Seminar Review (10 minutes)
Please take the next ten minutes to review your reading and seminar prep notes.  You may even jot down some more points to these seminar questions.

Seminar Style:

1. 2 circles with extra chairs in the middle
2. We’ll switch once, 30 minutes in (could also switch every 10-15 minutes…your choice)
3. Feel free to jump into chairs in the middle at any point- for 30 seconds or the whole seminar, it doesn’t matter
4. Note-taking is highly encouraged!  Will help you with your seminar reflection.

 
Link to: Seminar Questions

Link to: Seminar Reflection (Due Friday, beginning of class)
 
HONORS:  Instead of the seminar reflection, you will need to complete the Honors Essay #1. This writing will be the application essay for admittance into Honors.  Please see the Honors page on my DP for your instructions for Essay 1.  For you, this assignment will be due on Friday, September 9 at 8:15 am via email.  Let me know if you have any questions!

Starter 2- Seminar Norms (15 min)
1. What needs to happen for a class to have a successful seminar?  What behaviors do you need to see, and what kind of thinking and preparation need to occur?
2. Do you prefer to have seminars graded or ungraded?  Why?

Class Biz

• Ashley's brief orientation of classroom layout
• Bring tea!
• Don't forget your shared resource-- please bring by the END of this week.  See the syllabus (it's in BOLD RED) for your contribution.

Agenda
Share out starter responses!  Decide on seminar guidelines

Revisit Values and Add Behaviors
Yesterday we talked about what we value as a class.  Today, we’ll make it a little more concrete. 

1. Values mean nothing until the rubber hits the road.  Unless you show it in action, can you really say that you truly value it?
2. Values listed on boards
3. Students in pairs
4. We value __________, so we____________
5. Brainstorm together for a few minutes.  Then hit at LEAST 3 of the values on the board and finish the sentences!

Come back together, gallery walk.  Put a star next to the sentences that really stand out to you.  Ashley will compile the top choices!
 
Listen to "Reporting from Egypt"-- NPR story from this morning about one journalist's experience covering the Arab Spring Uprising there and discuss as a class the following:

• General reactions to this story?
  
• To what extent does this story make you cynical about the potential of the Arab Spring uprisings to bring about positive change?
• Food for thought as you do seminar prep: Is this the type of media coverage Rebecca Solnit is critiquing? 

"Habits of Highly Cynical People" Coaching (rest of class)
1. Summarize the main point of this article.  What, in one sentence, is it saying?
2. Go paragraph by paragraph.  Pay special attention to paragraphs 3-7, 20, 23

• Summarize main idea
• Answer questions/clarify meaning

3. Have your group write two thought-provoking seminar questions on an index card and give them to me.
 
Seminar Prewrite
Answer at least two of the questions below.  Handwritten or typed is okay.
1. What is Solnit’s definition of a naïve cynic?  What are the two types (see paragraphs 8 and 11), and what characterizes their thinking?
2. To what extent are you a naïve cynic?  How much of what Solnit describes rings true to you about yourself?  Explain.
3. In paragraph 6, Solnit makes a number of points about complexity, uncertainty, and ambiguity.  To what extent are you comfortable with complexity and uncertainty?  Give a concrete example.
4. In paragraph 7, Solnit offers a number of criticisms of naïve cynicism.  What is the most important/cutting critique she offers in this paragraph?  Why?
5. In paragraph 20, Solnit says, “Accommodating change and uncertainty requires a looser sense of self…”  What does she mean by this?
6. To what extent is cynicism useful?  Harmful?
7. What kind of thinking habits do we need to cultivate to move beyond naïve cynicism?
8. How does this article connect to your education?  To your goals this year in Humanities?

Homework:  Finish seminar prep for tomorrow's seminar!

 
Today's Goals:

• Evaluate the pros/cons of cynicism-- to what extent is cynicism valuable?
• Establish class values to help our class be the collective jungle boss I know us to be at our core.

Agenda
​Set Up Starters (10 min)
Every student creates a Google Doc labeled with “Full Name Humanities Starters,” and shares it with me.  Make sure to give me permission to comment!
1. Every starter should be clearly labeled with the Starter # and date
2. Newest starter goes at the TOP of the page
 
Starter 1 (20 min)
1. Syllabus: Go to Ashley's DP, and find the Syllabus page.  Read closely!  Then explore the rest of Ashley's DP.  Bookmark it!

• What are you most excited about for Humanities this year?
• What are you apprehensive/nervous about?  What can I do to help alleviate those fears?
• What questions do you have?  List them!

 
Pair/share, try to answer each other’s questions.  Then come back as a whole class, I will answer any remaining questions

Class Biz

• Honors-- What's the deal with Hum. 12 Honors?
• Homework-- Finish reading "HoHCP"

 
Class Values (40 min)
This will ultimately end in a class constitution of sorts.  What do we value in this class?

1. Count off by 4.
2. Split into groups, go into different corners of the classroom
3. 5 min- brainstorm on sticky notes things that we value in this class (one item per sticky)
4. 10 min- group, combine, winnow.  Get to 5 that your group agrees on.
5. Merge with another group.
6. 10 min- Share your qualities, group, combine, winnow.  Get to 5.
7. Merge two big groups.
8. 10 min- Both groups share their qualities.  Combine where appropriate/easy.

 
"The Habits of Highly Cynical People " (30 min)
A.  Pessimist? Idealist? Optimist? Cynic? Partner discussion: Rank yourself on the spectrum of Pessimistic---> Idealistic.  Do you see your place on this spectrum as problematic in anyway?

B. Read and annotate the above linked article—it will be the basis for a Socratic seminar that is connected to our critical thinking goals for the course this year.  Make sure to mark:

1. Places where you are confused
2. Important or beautiful sentences/ideas
3. Vocab (look it up!)
4. Questions you have
5. HINT…you’re probably going to want to look up a definition of cynicism!

We will coach tomorrow.
 
HOMEWORK:
Finish reading and annotating “The Habits of Highly Cynical People” (By Tuesday start of class)
Bring in your assigned "shared resource" as outlined on the syllabus in red. (By Wednesday)