TOPIC GENERATOR Title: The Breakfast Club Why did you choose this book? I love the movie, I love the 80’s, I love teen dramas Write a brief summary of the plot line to this point. Five very different students get assigned to Saturday detention and are forced to reflect on who they think they are. What point of view is the story told in? third person omniscient What is the setting (place & time) of the story? Saturday…March 24, 1984, Shermer High School, Shermer, Illinois

List the main characters you have met.  Bender, Claire, Andrew, Brian, Allison, their families, Principal Vernon Who is the protagonist?  There are five protagonists. All five students take a turn as the main character as the story develops and we learn more about them and the reason each of them is in detention. What kind of advice would you give the protagonist?  stop judging each other and start listening to each other Do you agree with the protagonist’s actions? Why/why not?  It’s hard to agree with all of their actions, but Hughes does a good job of making you understand why they act the way they do. A good example of this is when we find out why Andrew is in detention. Bullying in unacceptable, but you feel some sympathy for him because of his relationship with his father.  

Who is the antagonist? Principal Vernon, parents, each other List and explain the conflicts you have encountered.  Vernon is the obvious protagonist, but they all face other conflicts as well. Their differences put them in conflict with each other, but they are united by the fact that they are all in conflict with their parents. Allison’s parents are absent, Bender has an abusive father, Claire’s parents are divorcing, and Andrew and Brian feel pressure from their parents to exceed at sports/academics. Each character is also in conflict with themselves.  What is the overall mood of the story to this point? angst, discontent but also humorous Make 2 predictions for the next section of the story. 1. students will defy their stereotypes 2. students will learn and grow as a result of their time together

  The big ideas raised in this book are: 1. Effect of home life on school 2. Parental pressure on kids—when is it good, when is it bad? 3. Bullying and cliques in high school—are popular kids always bullies? Of these big ideas, one that I find most interesting and would be willing to research further is:    Effect of home life on school--specifically the effect of physical abuse, substance abuse, poverty on behavior and performance in school What, if anything, do I already know on this topic? I know there is a relationship between home life and school performance because of what I’ve witnessed in my own classroom, and I want to know more about it

OTHER BIG IDEAS

OUR AMERICA The big ideas raised in this books are: Schools in the inner city—Are they failing their communities? Could they instead be used as instruments of change? Minorities in the prison system/juveniles tried as adults—What are the current laws and practices? Are they effective in rehabilitating juvenile offenders? What is the rate of recidivism for people imprisoned as juveniles? Government entitlements/subsidized housing—What is the effect of inadequate subsidized housing on a community? Are their better solutions?

THE OTHER WES MOORE The big ideas raised in this books are: Role of fathers—what affect do absent fathers have on families? Impact of drugs on a community—specifically the introduction of crack cocaine in New York in early 80’s and 90’s Relationship between economic privilege and racial privilege

RAISIN IN THE SUN The big ideas raised in this books are: Segregated communities—do they still exist? What laws or policies are there in place to encourage or discourage this? The American dream—Does it still exist? Is it attainable for everyone? Minimum wage—Is it a livable wage? Should it be raised? What are the effects?