LITERARY ELEMENTS: TONE

1. LITERARY ELEMENTS: TONE • Five Fun Lessons on Understanding Attitude in Literature---by Megan Clark

2. ?What kinds of emotional responses do we have to literature, and why?

3. Lesson Overview • Day 1: Parts of Speech Review • Day 2 & 3: Recognizing Tone • Day 4: Understanding Tone (Steps and Categories) • Day 5: Providing Evidence of Tone • Day 6: Review on Tone: Name That Tone

4. Parts of Speech Review • POV Refresh: Class discussion on what Nouns, Verbs, and Adjectives are. Show them quick and easy definitions for each and have them write definitions on their handout. • Parts of Speech Game (like Musical Chairs): Large Space, Rugs, Word Lists, Directions, Rules and Behavior • Handout: I do/We do/You do Labeling parts of speech in 3 literature excerpts. (Where the Red Fern Grows, Spiderwick Chronicles, Twilight) • Parts of Speech Game: Find your match. Each student is given a word, or a parts of speech word. “Parts of speech” people do not know their POS, and have them stuck to their back with a sticky note. WIthout talking, class can silently find a match. When students find their match, wait with partner at the front of the room. • Go over the results as a class.

5. Recognizing Tone: Part One • Teacher Hook: Greet a variety students with the same words, using a different tone each time. Afterwards, discuss with the classroom how they would define tone and how it affects the way we process information. • Handouts on Tone/Mood Words and The Tone Man. Quick lecture on Tone vs. Mood. Explain how Tone/Mood are never concrete, as they are formed by our perspectives. • Watch Mary Poppin’s Trailer Vs. Scary Mary Re-cut Trailer. After each clip, have class choose the tone and mood of each and write the words inside of the tone man’s body. Encourage students to use words from the handouts to extend their vocabulary. Afterwards, allow students to share results with class. Scary Mary Clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2T5_0AGdFic • Word Game: Pass out random words to students. One at a time, have them state their word to the classroom and choose a category at the front of the class that they feel best suits the TONE of their word. Afterwards, ask the classroom if anyone disagrees, and to explain why. Remind them there are no wrong answers.

6. Word Game Categories: • Scary/Creepy • Humorous • Romantic • Violent/Angry • Delightful/Happy • Sad/Depressing

7. Recognizing Tone: Part Two • Journal Prompt: (POS Review) Using complete sentences, write three sentences about things you like about yourself. Be sure to use descriptive words in doing so. When finished, circle the nouns, verbs, and adjectives. • Write 4 prompts on the board. Have students choose a partner and practice delivering the lines to one another using at least two different TONES. Example: Sara said “hi” to me in the hall today. Or: I just found out I’m going to have a new baby sister or brother. Afterwards, they must ask their partner to guess the tone they were aiming for, and then, in turn, find out the “mood” they cast by learning how their delivery made the other person feel. • Fairy Tales (like Mad Libs): In teacher-chosen groups, allow students to choose one of 8 condensed Fairy Tales (handouts). As a group, students choosethe TONE they would like to change their fairy tale to. Next, instruct students to go through and change the TONE of the fairy tale by replacing the words (nouns, verbs, and adjectives). • Have each group share their results with the class. As they do so, ask the rest of the class to write down on a small piece of paper their guess on what their chosen TONE was, and return their guesses to the group.

8. Understanding Tone • Watch short Power Point on Shel Silverstein and Johnny Cash • Pass out handout and have students complete handout on matches for “Tone Categories” and “5 Steps to Understanding Literary Tone.” They may work with one partner. • Using the overhead projector, discuss results as a class. • Pass out lyrics to Shel Silverstein Poem “Boa Constrictor” and Johnny Cash’s “25 Minutes to Go.” Have student volunteer to read Boa Constrictor. Using overhead projector, model to the class how to highlight and label their papers for TONE. Next, have students highlight and label “25 Minutes to Go” on their own, and turn it in. • Show “25 minutes to Go” video to class for final perspective. Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxvR7ZUjaJk

9. Tone Categories and sub-categories • Language: Word Choice (negative, neutral or positive), Dialogue, Slang, Repetition • Images: Shapes, Symbols, Facial Expressions, Body Language, Clothing, Furniture, Items • Setting: Light, Time of day, Color, Location, Temperature, Landscape, Architecture • Attitudes: Comic or Serious, Old-fashioned or Progressive (modern), Comfortable or Uncomfortable, Shifting Feelings • Audience: Formal or Informal, Personal or Impersonal

10. 5 Steps to Understanding Literary Tone • Step 1) Read the passage, jotting down a few notes on the margins about how it makes you feel • Step 2) Re-read the passage, circling all the words that you don’t understand. • Step 3) Using a dictionary, find the meaning of these words and replace the words in the passage with a quick word or definition to remind you of the meaning • Step 4) Using a highlighter, re-read the passage a third time, highlighting Specific Words, Language, Images, Setting, Attitudes, and references to the type of Audience the writer may be trying to address. • Step 5) Now that you have identified the places in the passage you want to talk about, take a pen or pencil and go back and label them, writing notes along the margins, about how these findings affect the TONE of the passage.

11. Shel Silverstein • Americanpoet, singer-songwriter, musician, composer, cartoonist, screenwriter, and author of children's books (Where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic, and the Giving Tree). • Silverstein confirmed that he never studied the poetry of others and therefore developed his own quirky style: laid-back and conversational, occasionally employing profanity and slang. • "When I was a kid — 12, 14, around there — I would much rather have been a good baseball player or a hit with the girls. But I couldn't play ball, I couldn't dance. So I started to draw and to write. I was also lucky that I didn't have anybody to copy, be impressed by. I had developed my own style. By the time I got to where I was attracting girls, I was already into work, and it was more important to me." • "I would hope that people, no matter what age, would find something to identify with in my books, pick up one and experience a personal sense of discovery.”

12. Boa Constrictor • Oh, I'm being eatenBy a boa constrictor,A boa constrictor,A boa constrictor,I'm being eaten by a boa constrictor,And I don't like it--one bit.Well, what do you know?It's nibblin' my toe.Oh, gee,It's up to my knee.Oh my,It's up to my thigh.Oh, fiddle,It's up to my middle.Oh, heck,It's up to my neck.Oh, dread,It's upmmmmmmmmmmffffffffff . . .

13. Shel Silverstein Writes for Johnny Cash • He wrote the music and lyrics for "A Boy Named Sue" (which was performed by Johnny Cash and for which Silverstein won a Grammy in 1970). Another Silverstein-penned song recorded by Cash is "25 Minutes to Go," sung from the point of view of a man facing his last 25 minutes on Death Row, with each line of the song counting down one minute close.

14. Johnny Cash • Americansinger-songwriter, actor, author, and Biblicalscholar, who was one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Although he is primarily remembered as a country music artist, his songs and sound spanned many other genres including rockabilly and rock and roll—especially early in his career—as well as blues, folk, and gospel. Late in his career, Cash covered songs by several rock artists, among them the industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails.

15. Johnny Cash • By the age of five, J.R. was working in the cotton fields, singing along with his family as they worked. The family farm was flooded on at least one occasion, which later inspired him to write the song "Five Feet High and Rising". His family's economic and personal struggles during the Depression inspired many of his songs, especially those about other people facing similar difficulties. Cash's early memories were dominated by gospel music and radio. Taught by his mother and a childhood friend, Cash began playing guitar and writing songs as a young boy. In high school he sang on a local radio station. Much of Cash's music echoed themes of sorrow, moral tribulation and redemption. His signature songs include "I Walk the Line", "Folsom Prison Blues", "Ring of Fire.” Cash felt great compassion for prisoners. He began performing concerts at various prisons starting in the late 1960s.

16. Providing Evidence of Tone • Pass out Evidence handout---2 Part. • Part 1---Visual Images: Show 2 visual images on the overhead, and have students choose 1 to write about. They must choose a word to describe the tone of the image and provide evidence as to why they choose this tone. (To show evidence is to choose a category from their category list and explain the details of the image using the subcategories.) • Share results with the class. • Pass out clip boards and have students gather at front of classroom on carpet. Explain to students how to listen for tone, and ask students to refresh on the different ways an author uses tone in literature. Read them the picture book story, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, pausing and prompting students to write examples of TONE on their handouts. When story is finished, discuss as a class how the story made them feel and their opinions about the TONE of the story. WHen they complete the handout, each student gets a magic pebble.

17. How to describe the tone of these images? • Choose One to write about and provide evidence for

18. Tone Review • Teacher Hook: Greet students and have a quick open discussion about applying “Tone” to personal text messages. Give personal antidote about ways friends have misunderstood each other when they haven’t been aware of how the tone of their written messages when text messaging. Example, “We need to talk.” How would this make you feel? What kinds of ways could you take this question? • Tone Game: Name That Tone… and prove it! (Students pre-grouped). Each group chooses their own name and names are names are written on the board. Handout on Game Instructions, Cheat Sheet, White Boards and Pens, and Tone Cards. Show clips and images on the overhead. Have student teams vote on the images and share their evidence. • Examples: Video---New Moon Trailer, Dumbo Baby Mine, Mr. Eat All Images: Edvard Munch’s “The Scream,” and “My Life with the Wave,” Writing: Poem “Jen,” Bonus Round: Thriller (video and lyrics) • Announce final scores and discuss the results and what they thought of the game.

19. Game Instructions • Game Instructions: • 1. Read, listen to, or watch the prompt overhead • 2. With your group, decide how you wish to label the tone. (Note: you can choose more than one tone, but you must be able to back your opinions up. Only share what you think you can back up.) • 3. Choose your tone card and have it ready to share with the class. • 4. Using your white board, write down as much evidence as you can to prove how the author used your chosen tone in the passage/film clip/photo. (Note: the more evidence you provide, the higher chance your team has for winning this game.) • 5. When prompted by the teacher, share your tones and evidence.

20. Lesson Objectives • Students will express their feelings about the TONE of various visual images, literature, songs, and video clips. • Students will understand that authors use specific language to create an emotional response from the reader. • Students will use information in the text to draw conclusions about the authors tone. • Students will expand their vocabulary skills to better express a variety of tones as used in literature.