The first thing we want to do today is make your top-5 choices for your second opinion story. First, take a look at these options, there are 28 of them and there are 18 of you, so there are a few extra:
1. Hall monitors - does Bowie have enough? Do they even help? Take a stance on this topic.
2. Double FIT - would it be good to have another FIY-type class between 3rd and 4th period? Argue yes or no on this topic.
3. Girls sports - it doesn't feel like there is much equality between the sports here at Bowie. Take a stance on this topic.
4. Passing Periods - are they long enough? If they were longer, it would mean the school day would also be longer. Do you want classes to start at 8:30 or go until 4:50 to have longer passing periods? Write about passing periods and make an argument either way.
5. Getting away from Block scheduling and going back to shorter classes - some people think this would be good for students. What do you think? Take a stance either way and explain why.
6. Do standardized tests really matter? Argue for or against standardize tests. One thing to think about; how do you want college's to judge you? A single application with your essay and letters or recommendation OR could high scores on standardized tests help schools decide who to should get in?
7. Paying for college - Can you think of ways that could reduce the cost of college? If so, argue that those should be established so more people can go to college. Be realistic....
8. Not enough elective options - Does Bowie have enough elective options? Take a stance either way? Something to think about: Do you know all of the elective options here?
9. Holiday decoration timing - is it too early to see Xmas decorations the day after Halloween? Argue yes or no.
10. Food delivery at school - Bowie should allow food delivery, or Bowie should not allow food delivery. Take a side and explain why you think you are right?
11. Social Media impact on Bowie - Is SM a big influence on students here at Bowie. Is that a good thing or not?
12. Overworking students - students are overworked at Bowie. What are some solutions to this problem?
13. Racism at Bowie - is there a racism problem at Bowie? Pick a side and argue your opinions.
14. AI in school - schools should allow students to use AI OR is AI bad and schools should be even stricter about its use. Argue one side or the other.
15. "Brain rot" - Write about the use of language and how it has changed over time. Take the stance that each generation has its own language and that is okay OR by creating new languages we are dumbing down the English language.
16. Burnout - what are some solutions to burnout and what kind of suggestions could you make to students who are feeling burnout.
17. Pumpkin trend - good or bad when students start following SM trends?
18. Banned books - banning books is bad OR there are some books that might be inappropriate for students and those shouldn't be in the school library (you could argue in this case, that maybe at the public library).
19. Political issues dividing students and teachers - does this happen in school? How do you propose that teachers stay politically neutral while trying to do their jobs.
20. Relationships vs Grades - should students focus on grades over relationships, or is there a way to balance them and still be successful. Pick one and make a good argument for your opinion.
21. Are core classes preparing students for college? Take a side, yes or no?
22. Homework - should there be homework in school or not? Things to think about: do you think you will have homework in college? How dos one prepare for post-secondary education if you aren't learning how to do homework now? Do you think all education should be done completely in the classroom?
23. Louder classes: some classes are really loud and that can impact students. What are some potential solutions to this kind of problem (this could be about other things like AC/heat, odors, or lighting or other classroom specific issues besides noise).
24. Not enough resources to help when struggling with school work - Bowie doesn't offer enough resources to help students who are struggling. Things to think about: Do you know all of the potential areas to get help, like peer tutoring? Are you taking advantage of FIT and getting help? Are you going to tutoring?
25. All students should be able to leave campus at lunch to get food - Argue why you agree with this.
26. Jobs as a teenager - should students get jobs or not? Take a stance and argue one way or the other.
27. Vandalism is a problem at Bowie. Come up with some potential solutions and argue why they would help.
28. Bees are going extinct and that could be bad news for the world. Come up with some solutions and argue why we should make those changes mandatory.
To the right of your name, type the story number and a few words that describe your story selection for your 5 favorites. Later this period, you will get your assignment and will start writing today and through next class.
IF you have another idea that you would prefer to write about, come see me. I am open to shifting you to something else as long as I can find a local connection and I feel like it is a worthy story idea.
When you are done with this assignment, move on to one of the following things:
1. CE#2.1 - finish
2. Opinion Story #1 - if I don't have it as PND, you aren't done
3. Dispatch Issue #2 - make sure you got it done
4. Dispatch Issue #1 - I have it marked as PND - make sure you are done
5. Check Frontline and verify that you are caught up - some of you need to finish Huntington and Earthquake (many of you only did one of them)
You may also go interview - you MUST tell me who you are interviewing and I need to look up their information for you.
I will assign your Opinion Story #2 today. here is the information for that piece - you will have time today and on Friday to write this piece. Next week we will focus on your News/Club story, but there will be time to work on Opinion Story #2 then as well.
Today you will start writing your second opinion story. Last time, you choose from a small group of options for your first attempt. This time, almost all of you have your own story. No one else will write the same piece. We will publish some of the ones you wrote before, and all of these will be published if they meet our standards. This is due by the end of class on Monday, Nov. 18!!
1. First make a new Google Doc and title it the name of your story.
2. Share the link, make sure it is set correctly: ANYONE WITH THE LINK CAN EDIT. Copy that link.
3. Paste it in the Google Sheet in the proper location. Make sure it is SHARED PROPERLY. And then go to your Google Site and make a new subpage called Opinion Story #2 and put it in there using the EMBED option to make it a clickable link.
4. Write a headline - let's say 5-10 words. It should be a complete sentence, but it shouldn't have a closing punctuation. Make sure it has a noun and verb. If you want to wait until the end to write this that is fine.
5. Outline your story in the following manner:
Paragraph 1 - a brief summary of the topic
Paragraph 2 - your direct stance on the topic
Paragraph 3 - an explanation of your stance
Paragraph 4 - one reason you think your stance is right
Paragraph 5 - another reason you think your stance is right
Paragraph 6 - a final reason you think your stance is right
OPTIONAL - paragraph 7 - another reason you think your stance is right
OPTIONAL - paragraph 8 - another reason you think your stance is right
Paragraph 7/8/9 - address the other side, either concede something that their side might have right OR pick out something that someone from that side might argue that you disagree with
Paragraph 8/9/10 - come up with a solution
OPTIONAL - paragraph 9/10/11 - another solution, or the continuation of the solution above
Paragraph 10/11/12 - restate your stance in different words than you used in paragraph 2
6. Your story should be between 375 - 475 words. Do not go over or be under that count.
7. Please turn this piece in using Times New Roman, size 12, regular - you may write in whatever font and size you want, but at the end, fix your entire piece to this standard
8. Please use indents and create a line break between paragraphs, you should have 8-12 paragraphs total
9. You may need to do some research about your topic, and you are welcome to use information you gather from your research. Make sure you CITE those sources if you use their information or words. For example you might find statistics that relate to your story. You must cite who collected those stats. This can be very simple: According to a study by researchers at Stanford University, 85% of students who get 10 hours of sleep have higher grades than those who don't.
10. There should be NO QUOTES in your story. This may mean that when you cite other sources you will need to convert that into a statement without quotation marks.
11. You may write in 1st person, but you can also write these in 2nd or even 3rd person.
12. Avoid repeating yourself. Your reasoning needs to be distinct and different in each paragraph.
13. Do not veer from your stance. Be firm and definitive. Give your opinion, defend your opinion with your reasoning, and come up with solutions to the problem.
14. You have 2 classes to write this piece
