Posted: February 21st, 2022

2/13 Activity

In lieu of meeting in person today, I have created this online discussion.  Each student is to post a primary post by 4 pm today, 2/13, and respond to at least two classmates by midnight tomorrow (2/14).  This is an adaptation of the activity that was planned for today, so hopefully most of you are prepared already.  Primary posts should be about 300-450 words, and responses should be between 250-350 words.  It’s OK if posts go over these limits, as long as you are not posting a five page essay!
Primary posts are worth up to 30 points, if they are posted by 4 PM today.
Responses are worth 10 points each.
The entire discussion is worth 50 points.
Instructions:
Choose 1 chapter from The Earth Knows my Name, read it carefully, and take notes.  Each chapter is an ethnography of an American community, focusing on the community’s garden, AND, each chapter is layered and reveals deeply held values, beliefs, and traditions within the culture.  This is not really a book about gardening, it is about culture, community, history, connections, and meaning.  Your notes should include as many of these connections as possible- as you read your chapter of choice, try to get at the beating heart of the culture being described.  This is what good ethnography does- meaning and connection come alive in the details.  This is the kind of reporting you are being asked to do in your assignments for this course, so hopefully you will get some ideas for Essay 2 and your Final Project while you are at it.  After 4 Pm on 2/13, students are to respond with breadth, depth, and singularity to at least two classmates.  You can also respond to the discussion question I posted, and one classmate.
In this discussion, you will discuss these connections, and you can your attach or paste in relevant points from your notes.  Your Primary Post should clearly state the chapter you focused on, and explore at least three connections to aspects of culture.  in this discussion, each student will:

Describe the culture they read about.
Elaborate on one aspect of culture that was described in the chapter.
Pose a discussion question to the class, encouraging connections between the reading and our own lived experience.
Respond to at least two classmates. 

Discussion Question Example:  The Gullah communities described in Chapter 2, Freedom, cultivate more than plants in their gardens.  They actively create and strengthen their connection to their history, their ancestral homeland, and their language.  The Gullah reclaim and protect their identity in their gardens.
“First you lose your costume. Then you lose your language. The last thing you lose is your food”(Freedom 65).Name a food that is connected to your culture and heritage.
What does this food say about your culture and your identity?