Spring Break is here! Time to... grade!

Spring Break is finally here!  

I think the students and I both need some rest.  That said, I will be spending a good many hours over the break grading their written pieces.  Section 1 gave me a large packet.  Sections 3 and 4 wrote about the topic below.  

Long Answer Question for Rules of the Game

How do authors create characters that readers connect with in order to learn about themselves and others? 

In Rules of the Game, Amy Tan created two characters we could relate to- Mrs. Jong and Waverly, her 9 year-old daughter. The conflict of the story comes from the tension between the mother, who was raised in China, and Waverly, who was born in the United States.  Amy Tan presents the two characters as opponents in the chess match of life, with the mother ultimately winning by the end of the story; Waverly’s independence and escape from her mother is check-mated by her domineering mother. 

At first read, it is easy to see that Waverly is the protagonist and her mother is the antagonist: Waverly’s mother interferes with her hopes and dreams.  But are the characters deeper than this?  Is Mrs. Jong a bad mother?  Is Waverly a good child?  Could Waverly be a bad child and her mother is simply responding to her daughter’s actions? 

Question 1

(about 300 – 400 words)

Using the character study sheets you have filled out on Mrs. Jong and Waverly, take a position on who is causing the tension in the story.  Is it all one, all the other, or maybe both?  Use multiple examples from the sheet.  Explain the characters by discussing the actions they do, the words the say, the reactions of others, and the descriptions given by the writer.

Question 2

(about 150 words)

What did you learn about yourself or others from these two characters?

Section 1 has a VERY important packet due tomorrow.

Section 1
The packet and essay for unit 3 is due tomorrow.

Some students were not quite sure how they are supposed to write the essay.  Trust me, I have explained it numerous times... so I explained it once more.

I told them to get their minds thinking like this:
1. The author created a piece.
2. The purpose of the piece is to transfer an idea to us, a theme.
3. That theme is part of the human spirit
     For example, "we all have a treasure" is from The Treasure of Lemon Brown.
     Another theme is "knowledge can come from unlikely places."
4. In order to transfer the idea, the writer creates a story with characters.
    I asked students to tell me how writers create characters we connect with and learn from.
5. When we are done reading the story, we remember these characters and themes.

I want the students to keep repeating the idea that the writer created a character that they connected with and learned from. 

I hope that helps.

Section 1: How do you write the essay that is due Thursday?

We read some Nikki Giovanni today.

How do you write the essay for unit 3:

How do authors create characters that readers connect with in order to learn about themselves and others?  Furthermore, what is the Human Spirit and how is it seen in these pieces?

You need to start your piece with a focusing statement. 

·      You will be leading us through a discussion of three pieces of literature.

·      Your piece will be explaining that the writers have created characters that you connected with and that you learned about yourself and others.

·      Maybe you could focus on the message of the Human Spirit?

·      The focus of the piece is to EXPLAIN THE WRITERS’ CRAFT.  Examine the pieces. The pieces are the result of the writers’ choices, choices they made to transfer an idea to your brain.

All the pieces we read in this unit demonstrate the Human Spirit. 

What is the Human Spirit?

How do the pieces discuss the Human Spirit?

What part of the Human Spirit will you take away from each piece?

Be sure you can fully explain to yourself why a writer creates a character.

·      You might be asking what is the purpose of the piece that the writer has created?

·      What role does the character play in the purpose of the writing?

Do you fully understand how a writer creates a character? You do NOT have to discuss each one of these.  Sound knowledgeable about how the writer created the character.

·      Physical description details

·      Things character says (dialogue)

·      Things character does (actions)

·      Reactions from other characters

·      Comments by the writer about the character

How did you connect with the characters?

What did you learn about yourself and others?

Suggested outline #1

     I.         Introduction

  II.         Define Human Spirit

III.         Character from piece #1

a.    Created character

b.    Coveys message about the Human Spirit

c.    Because you connected with a character

IV.         Character from piece #2

a.    Created character

b.    Coveys message about the Human Spirit

c.    Because you connected with a character

   V.         Character/Speaker from poem(s)

a.    Created character

b.    Coveys message

c.    Because you connected with a character

VI.         Conclusion: All three similar because

a.    Created character

b.    Coveys message about the Human Spirit

c.    Because you connected with a character

d.    Human Spirit

Suggested outline #2

     I.         Introduction

  II.         Define Human Spirit

III.         How three writers created characters

a.    Writer #1 method

b.    Writer #2 method

c.    Writer #3 method

IV.         Ways you connected with the characters

a.    Piece #1 and how

b.    Piece #2 and how

c.    Piece #3 and how

   V.         As a result of the writer’s efforts, a message about the Human Spirit was successfully transferred from the piece to your life.

a.    Piece #1 and how

b.    Piece #2 and how

c.    Piece #3 and how

VI.         Conclusion

MP3 Grades are finished, accept for ...

The grades for MP3 are finished accept for one last opportunity to take an AR test.  


Here is the list of students who are missing an AR test... or two for MP3

Section 1
JC, CC, AF, ZF, NH, AH, HK, AL, BM, RO, JR, RT, JV

Section 3
AS, IB, MB, AB, IB, RC, CC, AE, AF, AF, SH, MH, JH, RH, PL, JM, GN, JP, GS, ST, SW

Section 4
MKB, MB, AB, MD, SD,JH, ZH, BJ, MJ, QJ, IL, MM, IM, MS, TT,

MONDAY IS THE LAST CHANCE TO TAKE A TEST!
(This has been on the calendar for weeks!)

Sections 3 and 4 have a small vocab quiz Friday

Section 1 has a large project due next Thursday.  I have taught most of what I think they need to be successful on the project.  Today we finished the test on Rules of the Game. The grades are on HAC.

All sections have AR DUE MONDAY.

Sections 3 and 4 have a small vocab quiz Friday

The students copied the Words to Know from The Rules of the Game yesterday.  There are flashcards on this page if they want to practice.

Section 1 question for Wednesday

In Section 1, we finished reading Rules of the Game today.  We spent time discussing many of the important points of the story.  We also spent time exploring the characters of the mother and the daughter.  We are not quite finished, but I did tell them that I would like them to be prepared to answer this question tomorrow:

How does Mrs. Jong's concern for helping her daughter rise in society affect the plot?

Here is the story located on-line.

Today we focused on the mother's motivation to impart her Chinese wisdom to her American daughter.  There is a lot of wisdom in the words the mother says, so I had the students write down everything the mother said.  If the students did that, then they would get a great picture of the mother!

We also explored the nine-year-old girl in the story.  Tomorrow, we will explore the writer of the narrative and how she crafts the story to express the theme.

It would be ideal if the students read the story a second time.

Students should be reading!

Only one more week to get the AR tests done.  Section 1 needs a total of three.  Sections 3 and 4 need to have taken two.  If you are unsure, you can always e-mail me.

I am adding grades to HAC this weekend.  The students have taken a test on "The Treasure of Lemon Brown"  They also took a vocab quiz. 

It has been hard to get to Achieve because of testing.  I am never sure when the labs are available.  I am doing the best I can.

Have a nice weekend.

Be ready for grades on Treasure of Lemon Brown tomorrow

All classes have read the story. 

Section 1
They need a little more discussion time.  We will take a small quiz on the content.
The questions we started today will end up in the project.

Sections 3 and 4
These classes had a sub yesterday.  They finished the story and discussed the story a little.  Tomorrow they will have a little quiz on the content of the story.

Vocabulary

All classes should know these words for tomorrow: ajar, beckon, commence, gnarled, impromptu, ominous, probe, tentatively, tremor, vault.

If students would like to reread the story, they can read it here.

 

Section 1 and Sections 3 and 4 are on different schedules now.

Here is basically what you would need to know about class right now.

Section 1
This section will be on a different pace than the other two classes, so I will be using its own heading from now on. 

We are currently doing a unit on character study.  All the instructions can be found on this page.  Basically, I have told them exactly what they should complete and when it is due.  Each day, I plan to have lessons that they can apply to their independent work.

In short, they will be reading three pieces (or more) to answer the following questions.  How do authors create characters that readers connect with in order to learn about ourselves and others?  Also, what is the Human Spirit?

Homework:  They have to learn vocabulary and take some quizzes.  They should finish 3 AR tests by March 25. 

Sections 3 and 4
Mrs. Jamison, the push-in support teacher, and I are trying something different.  She and I are taking turns teaching the class.  She and I are teaching two different topics that we plan on merging after the break.  For now, she is teaching the students the persuasive essay.  She is teaching the required structure and terminology.  Her unit will end with the students imitating the persuasive pieces they have studied.

I am teaching the students characterization.  The students are reading literature focusing on how authors create characters we can learn from.  My unit will culminate in a long-answer response that demonstrates they have studied characterization.  They will also explain what the Human Spirit is and how it is seen in these pieces.

Homework: Students should have completed two AR tests by March 25.  There is not much homework right now.  I do not give homework just to give homework.  Maybe before break students will have some writing they must complete before the break.

We are beginning a new unit.

We are beginning a new unit:

• The Human Spirit

• Defining moments in life shape one’s identity.

• How do authors create characters that readers connect with in order to learn about self and others?

We are going to start by examining the characters in the movie we have been watching.  Then we will write a brief character sketch on one of our favorite characters from a movie or a book.  Section 1 should have both of these sheets done by Tuesday.  Sections 3 and 4 have the sheets due on Wednesday.

The Great Debaters Character Study                            

         Choose one character from the movie that you identify with.

Mr. Tolson (teacher), Henry Lowe (fighter), Samantha Booke (girl), James Jr.(14),  Hamilton Burgess (glasses speaker),  Dr. Farmer (speech writer)

         What are his/her motivations?  Why does he/she do what he/she does?

         What is the main conflict that interferes with his/her goals?

         How do his/her relationships impact his/her decisions?

 How does the character change over the course of the story?  What life lessons has the character learned from the experience?

Trait of the Character	How is it revealed by what character says, what other say about him/her, physical description, the character’s actions?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

adventurous, afraid, ambitious, arrogant, bad, bold, bossy, brainy, brave, brilliant, calm, careful, careless, charming, cheerful, childish, cowardly, cruel, curious, demanding, depressed, dishonest, eager, easygoing, energetic, evil, faithful, fearless, foolish, friendly, funny, gentle, giving, gloomy, graceful, greedy, guilty, happy, healthy, helpful, honest, hopeful, imaginative, impatient, impolite, innocent, inventive, intelligent, jealous, kind, lazy, lonely, loving, loyal, lucky, mature, mean, mysterious, nervous, nice, noisy, obedient, peaceful, pleasant, polite, poor, proud, quiet, responsible, rough, rowdy, rude, sad, scared, selfish, serious, shy, silly, sly, smart, sneaky, spoiled, strange, sweet, talented, thoughtful, thoughtless, trusting, trustworthy, unfriendly, unhappy, upset, warm, weak, wicked, wise, worried, zany

Your favorite characters

List characters from movies or books that you remember as clearly as someone you have met in person.

Character	What do you love about this character?  What did you learn from him/her?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Choose one of these characters and introduce him/her to us.

My favorite character:   ________________________ from ______________________

Character’s name, physical description, background, and other details about his/her life as established by the writer.

Give us 3 quotes from the story that the character says… as best as you can remember.

1.

2.

3.

What are some actions the character does that give us an idea of who he/she is?

How do you identify with him/her? What lessons did he/she teach you?

(Include a picture of this character, even if you have to find something that sort of looks like you think he/she would look like.)