Reading Response Template – please use these bolded headings & aim for under 500 words.

Incorporate all the readings in your response. ‘Readings’ include video, etc.

1. Student number
0526372

2. Reading names, or authors’ names, or the due date

Due January 18, 2017.

3. What was the most interesting thing(s) for you about the readings?
The most interesting reading to me was the Klein introduction. I am more familiar with
seeing articles like that of the zombie arguments and from the Huffington Post, but Klein’s in-
depth look at the past, present and future of climate change and the issues linked to the economy
is on another level. While the Velomobile article is also interesting, I am not a biker or an
engineer, so a lot of the jargon and technical explanations of speed and efficiency were lost on
me. Klein’s introduction alone inspires me to see how I can contribute to the conversation and
action against climate change, so I can only imagine how the whole book would impact me – the
section when Klein introduces his fears that his son may never see a moose, a bat or a starfish
(27-28) absolutely breaks my heart.

4. As a teacher, how might you use a main idea from one of the readings in your future
teaching?
Examining the rhetoric used in the Guardian article by Nuccitelli would make for an
interesting grade 11 or 12 English exercise. We could read this article as a class and discuss how
comparing over-used climate change myths that have been previously proved false to zombies
affects the reader. Examining how this comparison sways the reader by discrediting
Reading Response Template – please use these bolded headings & aim for under 500 words.
Incorporate all the readings in your response. ‘Readings’ include video, etc.

1. Student number
0526372

2. Reading names, or authors’ names, or the due date

Due January 25, 2017.

3. What was the most interesting thing(s) for you about the readings?
What I found most interesting was the article from The Week in 2015 regarding all cars in
the UK being emission-free by 2050. I wonder why Canada has not joined in on this program. I
would whole-heartedly support the switch to emission-free vehicles (assuming I can afford one),
and I think they have laid out a good time-line to phase out the emission-creating vehicles in 45
years.
The Bill Nye video is comprehensive and effectively understandable with the infographics,
which makes it an ideal educational tool; contrastingly, I found the “Time history of atmospheric
carbon dioxide, by CIRES & NOAA” video slightly confusing and hard to follow at first because of
the lack of sound and tiny legend that I don’t really understand. The general point was
understandable by the end of the video, showing just how drastically CO2 in the atmosphere
have risen since the industrial revolution.
The Phys.org article about Statoil was also quite interesting, particularly because it
provides hope that not only can we harness green energy, but that we could soon have the ability
to store the power created in case of an energy lull. Considering that our global warming is
contributing to abnormal weather occurrences, it seems particularly smart that we do what we
can to store the energy we can harness from the strong winds and currents that we have helped
create before they die down to their natural levels through our reduction of CO2 emissions.
Lastly, I’ve included a drawn response to the optional reading on the next page. This
reading really hit home with the knowledge that we have the next decade to figure out how to
stop ourselves from setting the earth on an irreversible course. The magnitude of the situation
should be obvious, but it seems like a lot of people will not believe in the horrible consequences
awaiting us until their homes are underwater due to the rising sea-levels.

4. As a teacher, how might you use a main idea from one of the readings in your future
teaching?
As a teacher, I might have students practice writing letters by writing to local government
about why Canada has not joined in the UK initiative to go emission-free. This would require
some research into the costs/resources available to make the transition in order to present well-
structured questions to government officials. Students could either try to argue for the switch or
get the conversation started by asking the government official to give their opinion on this
matter.
Reading Response Template – please use these bolded headings & aim for under 500 words.
Incorporate all the readings in your response. ‘Readings’ include video, etc.

1. Student number
0526372

2. Reading names, or authors’ names, or the due date

Due February 8th, 2017.

3. What was the most interesting thing(s) for you about the readings?
I think it’s funny that the image of the balanced garden doesn’t include humans, since we
are the ones throwing the whole world off-balance.
I really hope that the mass inclusion of bugs to the human diet is not introduced in my
lifetime, because I get nauseous just thinking about it. That being said, if it was included in a
product (protein powder for example) and I was unaware, I would be fine with that ignorance.
The most interesting read for me this week was the article by the Context Institute. It is
very matter-of-fact in its language – “Tonight the Earth will be a little hotter, its waters more
acidic, and the fabric of life more threadbare” (par. 3) – which helps convey the seriousness of
the topic. I really liked the line, “The plain fact is that the planet does not need more "successful"
people. But it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and
lovers of every shape and form” (par. 17) because it provides some concrete alternatives to the
“American dream” that western society tends to strive for. These alternatives are not only more
accessible than the “success” we currently work for, but they also open up doors to change
society as we know it so more people can live healthy, fulfilled lives.

4. As a teacher, how might you use a main idea from one of the readings in your future
teaching?
As a high school English teacher, I would use the ideas from the Context Institute article
to break away from the stuffy, traditional focus on in-class lessons. Finding new ways to teach
and to facilitate the inclusion of multiple disciplines into one subject is important as David Orr
argues that “lecture courses tend to induce passivity. Indoor classes create the illusion that
learning only occurs inside four walls” (par. 25). Orr also states that “Students hear about global
responsibility while being educated in institutions that often invest their financial weight in the
most irresponsible things” (par. 24) which could create a lesson in and of itself. Instead of
teaching about global responsibility as an abstract concept, our class could review our school or
school board’s policies on global responsibility or spending and evaluate them. We could then do
community research into some of the opportunities we have to improve these policies. After
finding out if we can make any local changes that will help us become more green-focused while
helping our local economy, we could write up proposals for our administration. While we may
not always be able to see an immediate change, we would be starting the conversation on how
to be a responsible resident of the earth (since it is our responsibility to keep the earth thriving
“for every living thing” as Katherine Hayhoe points out as the reason we were “made in God’s
image” in the video “The Bible doesn’t talk about climate change, right?”).
Reading Response Template – please use these bolded headings & aim for under 500 words.
Incorporate all the readings in your response. ‘Readings’ include video, etc.

1. Student number
0526372

2. Reading names, or authors’ names, or the due date

Due February 15, 2017.

3. What was the most interesting thing(s) for you about the readings?
I am excited to memorize and perform DiCaprio’s speech. He is a fantastic speaker, and I
hope I can do his words justice. I also found the “Elegy for the Arctic” article and video
incredibly moving.
The most captivating resource this week is the Bill Bigelow chapter. As a prospective
high school English teacher, his unit layout is a great framework on how to incorporate social
justice into the classroom. Having worked in retail since I was 15, I am no stranger to examining
products to see where they have been manufactured, but Bigelow’s class dug much deeper. I
particularly like that he acknowledges that eliminating child labour would not magically save
Third World countries from poverty (24).
Especially as an English major, I am incredibly impressed with the poems written by
Bigelow’s students; however, the one that hit me the hardest is the “There is a young girl who
lives in a shoe” (33) poem and the description of the sculptured house in a shoe that
accompanies it. I would definitely consider incorporating poetry or letters as social activism into
my English class.
One question that this reading left me with was whether Cameron was successful in
his/her campaign to get his school district to change where they were buying their soccer balls
(33). While the change of the L.A. school board is a great story, having multiple real-life
examples of individuals creating change is always helpful and inspiring to prospective/aspiring
activists.

4. As a teacher, how might you use a main idea from one of the readings in your future
teaching?
In a grade 11 English class, it would be interesting to include the video of Ludovico
Einaudi’s performance for Greenpeace. After a lesson (or a couple of lessons) on persuasion
using ethos, pathos and logos, we could watch this video and discuss which rhetorical device(s)
are being used. Is the video arguing the credibility of the pianist (ethos)? Is it arguing with
sound reasoning (logos)? And/or is it arguing using an appeal to the emotions of the audience
(pathos)? I would show the video without the context first, and not show the written parts at
the end. After a class discussion on what is being argued and how we believe the video is
making this argument, I would share the background information of who made the video and
their reason for doing so. I would then play the entire video again, and see if anyone’s opinions
of the rhetorical appeals have changed or seem to have been confirmed.
Reading Response Template – please use these bolded headings & aim for under 500 words.
Incorporate all the readings in your response. ‘Readings’ include video, etc.

1. Student number
0526372

2. Reading names, or authors’ names, or the due date

Due March 22, 2017.

3. What was the most interesting thing(s) for you about the readings?
The “Drag Times” video was definitely the more entertaining of the two videos we had
to watch this week. I almost laughed out loud when I heard of the “ludicrous mode” that the
Tesla has – I immediately thought of the Mel Brooks movie “Spaceballs”. I am blown away by
the power of this electric car, and even found myself doing a little extra research on it (not that
I have $100,000+ to spend on a car at this point in my life).
Elon Musk seems like a brilliant man, but he isn’t the most engaging speaker, which is a
shame. We need more scientifically-knowledgeable people to be able to speak out about
climate change – Bill Nye can’t keep going it alone (or so John Oliver reports
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjuGCJJUGsg).

4. As a teacher, how might you use a main idea from one of the readings in your future
teaching?
If I were a high school Art teacher, I would try to follow some of the advice Elon Musk
gives as to what we can do to help change our society. He suggests, “Fight the propaganda from
the carbon industry” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIMVteY7zUU 15:34-37). As an Art
teacher, one way I could combat their propaganda is by making my own, and having my
students make their own. We could create visual projects of all kinds to mirror the propaganda
that we see from the carbon industry and display them in our school and possibly even
surrounding communities. We could research some of the propaganda that is coming from “big
oil” and the like and try to mimic them with a better, honest message about climate change. Do
they have billboards? We could cover bulletin
boards or create signs for our school windows
facing the streets. We could build sculptures
(similar to our snow sculptures) out of recycled
materials that we could display on school-
grounds. Are they producing editorial cartoons
(like the one to the left found at
http://www.thegwpf.com/rip-british-heavy-
industry-killed-by-the-green-death/)? We can
submit some of our own to the school paper if we
have one, or to local community newspapers or
websites. Hopefully, this art would also start a
more open conversation in our school and
surrounding community.
Reading Response Template – please use these bolded headings & aim for under 500 words.
Incorporate all the readings in your response. ‘Readings’ include video, etc.

1. Student number
0526372

2. Reading names, or authors’ names, or the due date

Due March 29, 2017.

3. What was the most interesting thing(s) for you about the readings?
Here is a trilogy of haikus I created from the Think Progress article, “Germany Sets New
Record, Generating 74 Percent of Power Needs from Renewable Energy”:

German energy Changed power supply German Citizens

Pay energy producers Industrialized country Invest in renewables
Solar power BOOM Never done before Earn back your payment

This article filled me with hope. Germany has somewhere around 3x the population of Ontario,
and while they are only a third of Ontario’s size, that’s a lot of people to politically juggle. If we
could just start following their lead, I would feel much better about our chances of making it
through this climate crisis. Even the critiques didn’t bother me much because the shift is going
to take time, so it’s not like Germany could just cut off from fossil fuels “cold turkey,” but at
least they have a plan in place for 2050.
My favourite photos in the “20 Amazing Wind Farm Photos” article are: #7, “Maple
Ridge Wind Farm”; #10, “Like a Painting”; and #18, “Working Day and Night”.

4. As a teacher, how might you use a main idea from one of the readings in your future
teaching?
One thing I remember from my Media Studies class in high school was a lesson we had
on perspective. As a hopeful high school English teacher, Media Studies is a class I would be
interested in teaching. In my class, for a lesson on perspective, point of view and rhetoric, I
could use some of the photos of wind farms. We can discuss the differing placements of objects
within the frame: are the wind turbines central? To the side? In focus? Blurry? What is the
significance of the bird being in focus in photo #4, “For the Birds” while the wind turbines fade
into the background? Do these photos seem to be advocating for or against the use of wind
turbines? Do they seem cold and unnatural? Or linked to the natural world? As a class or
individually, we could explore how the different perspectives in the photos change the way we
see wind turbines in general.