Flowers for Algernon

1. Flowers for Algernon Expressive and reflective writing

2. Expressive and Reflective Writing In expressive and reflective writing the writer: • …expresses or reflects on his/her own life and experiences. • …often looks backward in order to look forward. In a nutshell: • What happened? • What does it mean?

3. Re-read Charlie’s Mistake • What is expressive (stating what happened)? • What is reflective (thinking back on what those events meant)? • What was Charlie’s mistake? • What does he take away from that mistake?

4. Favorite Mistake Writing Prompt • On May 20th, Charlie’s journal entry details how he witnessed a busboy at a restaurant ridiculed and laughed at for making a mistake. To Charlie’s shame, he realizes that he has just laughed at the expense of someone he used to be just like. Charlie begins to see his mistake as a positive error though, because it helps him discover a purpose. “Let me use my gift to do something for them,” he writes about his hope to advance knowledge for those with learning disabilities (Keyes 368). Have you ever made a mistake that turned into a positive moment?

5. Idea Brainstorming

6. Writing Brainstorming

7. Writing Structure- a beginning, middle, and end • Introduction • Thesis • Body • A. Supporting Paragraphs • B. Supporting Paragraphs • C. Supporting Paragraphs • Conclusion • Restate Thesis

8. Thesis Statement The thesis: • answers the question asked of you • offers a way to understand the topic • makes an arguable claim • found in the first paragraph Include in your thesis: TOPIC OPINION REASONING

9. Example Thesis- find the T,O, R • If I could be anyone for a day, I would want to be the President of the United States in order to understand the U.S. government better. • Before you make the decision to light up a cigarette, consider the problems caused by smoking. • Some people find it difficult to program a TV, but most will succeed if they remember to follow these guidelines. • Controlling the pet population through spaying and neutering is very important because it helps prevent the birth of unwanted and neglected animals.

10. Thesis Writing Time • 1. Define thesis statement • 2. List the three parts of a thesis statement • 3. Take your “favorite” mistake from the brainstorming list- write your opinion of that mistake, and the reasoning behind that opinion. • ________________________ + ___________________________+ • _________________________________________________________________

11. Example Introduction- find the thesis! • This Valentine’s Day, thanks to the advent of removable tattoo ink, couples can inscribe each other’s names into their skin without that nagging fear of “forever.” It’s practical but unromantic, the fringe culture equivalent of a prenup. • If only I’d put off my quarter-life crisis until this year, maybe I wouldn’t be living with my own flawed tattoo: blurry, bumpy with scar tissue, haloed with a permanent blue bruise. I’ve spent the past few years learning to love it — not an easy task for someone who color-codes her e-mail, alphabetizes her bookshelves and tweezes compulsively. But as I read about removable tattoo ink recently, flipping through Time’s “Best Inventions of 2007,” I realized I’m not sorry my ink is permanent. I may have a messed-up tattoo, but I have no regrets.

12. Introductions and Conclusions • See “Introductions and Conclusions” power point for definitions and examples.

13. Body Paragraphs- Tell All About! • Time to Express! • What happened? • What details do I note surrounding the mistake? (before/during/ after)? • Time to Reflect! • Looking back at the event, have I learned from the experience? What do I take away from the mistake?

14. Reflective Body Paragraphs lead to the conclusion • The way I felt about it changed from moment to moment, long after it was finally healed. Sometimes it looked puffy and frayed, and my stomach would sink. I’d have this on me for the rest of my life. At my wedding. In my coffin. I’d forever be explaining it: What it meant, why it looked the way it looked. I’d be enduring the scoffs of my younger, heavily tattooed brother and the unconvincing reassurances of my best friends. I sometimes found myself eyeing the laser removal ads on the subway, considering the damage I could do to my credit. • At other times it looked almost perfect. In the shower, against my translucent skin and veins warmed by the water, it was solid and clean. I liked the jagged arc it formed from a distance, the way you had to be up close to read it, as if it were a private note to self. It’s more appropriately symbolic than any other tattoo could be for me; it’s something I created that has taken on a life outside my control. What it symbolizes is important enough to me that I was willing to risk wearing it forever. If it wasn’t permanent, what would it be? Just painful jewelry. A commodity.

15. Conclusions Restate: • PURPOSE (THESIS STATEMENT and main ideas) • IMPORTANCE Explain : • WHY DOES IT MATTER? • WHAT COMES NEXT? • WHAT SHOULD THE READER KNOW OR DO?

16. Conclusion Example • It’s still a commodity of a sort, of course. I paid for it — $60, including tip. But it’s more than jewelry. I got butterflies in my stomach the time a boy ran his fingers over it and told me he liked it because it felt like Braille. It’s me: flesh and ink. And like my astigmatism, cellulite and other scars, there’s nothing much to do besides live with it. It may seem like forever, but tattoos, even the soon to be old-fashioned permanent ones, only last as long as we do. They’re an extension of the body, that notoriously imperfect but incredibly functional machine. Mine is a body that steeps in indecision and then acts rashly, doesn’t know how to feel comfortable feeling comfortable and can’t resist picking a scab. But at least I can live with the scars.

17. Example Conclusion While many people around the world have found themselves addicted to cigarettes, simply considering the many negative consequences of smoking would logically deter the habit. Smoking has caused a large variety of cancers, breathing problems and is extremely costly. There are still discoveries being made as to the total implications of smoking, and there are many healthy habits that can replace smoking. People can live much happier, healthier and longer lives without it.

18. Wish Writing Prompt • In “Flowers for Algernon,” Charlie’s initially has the wish to become smart. Charlie would be limited from achieving this goal, if not for the aid of a science-fiction level operation. What great, extraordinary wish do you possess? Remember, a wish is different than a goal, because goals can be achieved, and wishes are purely in the realm of fantasy.