Monday, October 13th:
1st Period:
THE THINGS THEY CARRIED
“In the Field”
Pages 162 - 178
Question:
1. What fundamental blunder did Jimmy Cross commit as the commander of his platoon?
2. How was Jimmy Cross trained to relate to his men? Did he follow his military training in how he related to his men?
3. What is Jimmy Cross thinking about during the search and recovery in the fields?
4. Normally, the men joke about the dead and the wounded. Why are the men annoyed with Azar about his jokes in this situation?
5. What combination of events contributed to the tragic circumstance of Kiowa's death?
6. What role did the boy play in the death of Kiowa?
7. What is the boy searching for in the muck? Why is it ironic that the boy is searching for that particular item?
8. Describe the recovery of Kiowa's body.
9. After the men recover Kiowa's body, what are their conflicting feelings? What are they secretly feeling?
10. What does the boy want to tell Jimmy Cross? Is Jimmy Cross listening? What is he thinking about instead and why?
11. According to Jimmy Cross, who could be blamed for the war? But on the battlefield, who is ultimately responsible?
1. What fundamental blunder did Jimmy Cross commit as the commander of his platoon?
2. How was Jimmy Cross trained to relate to his men? Did he follow his military training in how he related to his men?
3. What is Jimmy Cross thinking about during the search and recovery in the fields?
4. Normally, the men joke about the dead and the wounded. Why are the men annoyed with Azar about his jokes in this situation?
5. What combination of events contributed to the tragic circumstance of Kiowa's death?
6. What role did the boy play in the death of Kiowa?
7. What is the boy searching for in the muck? Why is it ironic that the boy is searching for that particular item?
8. Describe the recovery of Kiowa's body.
9. After the men recover Kiowa's body, what are their conflicting feelings? What are they secretly feeling?
10. What does the boy want to tell Jimmy Cross? Is Jimmy Cross listening? What is he thinking about instead and why?
11. According to Jimmy Cross, who could be blamed for the war? But on the battlefield, who is ultimately responsible?
“Good Form”
Pages 179 – 180
Questions:
1. What is story-truth?
2. What is happening-truth?
3. What is the difference between story-truth and story-happening?
4. Did O'Brien kill anyone during the war?
1. What is story-truth?
2. What is happening-truth?
3. What is the difference between story-truth and story-happening?
4. Did O'Brien kill anyone during the war?
“Field Trip”
Pages 181 - 188
Vocabulary:
Mausoleum: a big tomb in which important, rich people are
buried.
Dike: a dam; a large wall built to dam up water; however,
beavers build dams with sticks, logs and mud.
Questions:
1. Why did Tim O'Brien go back to the sewage field where Kiowa died?
2. What was the long term emotional effect of Kiowa's death on Tim O'Brien?
3. What was the point of O'Brien wading into the water and releasing the moccasins into the mud where Kiowa died?
4. Describe the field of death on the night of Kiowa's death and how it looked when O'Brien returned twenty years later. What was the emotion O'Brien was feeling at the field of death?
5. What do you think the old Vietnamese farmer's gesture meant?
6. What does the field represent to Tim O'Brien?
1. Why did Tim O'Brien go back to the sewage field where Kiowa died?
2. What was the long term emotional effect of Kiowa's death on Tim O'Brien?
3. What was the point of O'Brien wading into the water and releasing the moccasins into the mud where Kiowa died?
4. Describe the field of death on the night of Kiowa's death and how it looked when O'Brien returned twenty years later. What was the emotion O'Brien was feeling at the field of death?
5. What do you think the old Vietnamese farmer's gesture meant?
6. What does the field represent to Tim O'Brien?
1
Period 2:
Earthquake Drill
Tigran
Maria
Cat
Tuesday, October 14th:
1st Period:
THE THINGS THEY CARRIED
“Ghosts Soldiers”
Pages 189 - 202
Vocabulary:
Green: young and inexperienced; think of fruit as being
green and unripe and unready.
Civilian: a
person who is not in the military, para military or the police.
2nd Period:
Earthquake drill
Wednesday, October 15th:
First Period:
PSAT testing
2nd Period:
No class today
Thursday, October 16th:
Thursday, October 16th:
1st Period:
“Breakfast in the Classroom” fiasco
THE THINGS THEY CARRIED
“Ghost Soldier”
Pages 202 – 208
Vocabulary:
Chuminess: friendliness, being chummy with or friendly with;
being pals with someone
Terrain: geography, the lay of the land,
Perimeter: the boundaries
Gyroscope: compass,
a device which registers location or direction
Questions:
1. Why
did O’Brien dislike the new medic, Jorgenson, so much?
2. Why
did O’Brien want revenge against Jorgenson?
3. What
was O’Brien’s little joke that he wanted play on Jorgenson?
4. What
was the attitude that Sanders and the other soldiers had toward O’Brien when he
tried to get them to help him?
5. Who
was the one soldier who agreed to help him?
2nd Period:
THE THINGS THEY CARRIED
Preparation for the Socratic Circle
Write five questions and their answers; then break into
groups and share.
Ty
Ruth
Joseph
Chuy
Ricardo
Stephanie
Christian
Mary Rose
Davion
Clarissa
Ivette
Tyler
Hilda
Jessiane
Macy
Macy
Ray
Taraz
Jahayra
Chantal
Logan
Pamela
Pamela
Kona
Marlinda
Rebecca
Christopher
Friday, October 17th:
THE THINGS THEY CARRIED
"The Ghost Soldier"
Pages 208 - 218
Vocabulary:
Atrocity: complete and utter destruction stemming from violence
Questions:
1. Why did O’Brien dislike the new medic, Jorgenson, so much?
2. Why did O’Brien want revenge against Jorgenson?
3. What was O’Brien’s little joke that he wanted play on Jorgenson?
4. What was the attitude that Sanders and the other soldiers had toward O’Brien when he tried to get them to help him?
5. Who was the one soldier who agreed to help him?
These questions will be due on Monday.
2nd Period:
THE THINGS THEY CARRIED
Break into socratic groups; read each other's questions and discuss the answers in preparation for the socratic circle on Monday.
This assignment is worth THREE HUNDRED POINTS!
The quality of your questions is worth 100 points.
The quality of your answers is worth 100 points.
The quality of your discussion in the socratic circle is worth 100 points.
