11/12: Happy Tuesday

1. 11/12: Happy Tuesday Reminders: Essay final drafts are due on TODAY by 11:59pm. DO NOW: Take out your TKAM Posters to share NEW UNIT TOMORROW: Personal Narrative Unit Just for fun: You walk into your house and it’s completely different–furniture, decor, all changed. And nobody’s home. HW: Creative Writing Prompt: You are human. You wake up tomorrow morning and your parents have become aliens from the planet Suspectra. Describe your morning. Have fun!

2. 11/13-14 Happy Block Day! New Seats! New Friends! New Fun! DO NOW: Sharing of Alien Parents writing at your table. DO NEXT: Journal: Why do people write? (Think/Pair/Share) Read: Anne Lamott’s chapters from Bird by Bird, “Short Assignments” and “Sh**** First Drafts”(SFD). Respond to Reading HW: Photo Writing Prompt. Select ONE of the photos on my webpage in the document titled “Photo Writing Prompts” and write a paragraph about whatever your imagination invents in response to that photo.

3. 11/13-14 Journal Write and Think/Pair/Share Journal: In your notebooks, please write for 5 minutes responding to the question: Why do people write? Pair/Share: When everyone at your table has finished, or 5 minutes elapses, please share your ideas with the rest of the table. Then please nominate one person to share with the rest of the class about what you determined as a table are the important reasons that people write. 20 minutes total time

4. 11/13-14: Reading from Anne Lamott’sBird by Bird Read silently: Use Talking to the Text while reading Anne Lamott’s chapters from Bird by Bird, “Short Assignments” and “Sh**** First Drafts”. Mark: 3 Golden Lines in each of the chapters (30 mins) Respond to Reading: In your notebook, write down all of the Golden Lines from the readings (6 total) that are important ideas to consider when writing creatively. After each Golden Line, explain why you think it is an important thing to remember. (20 mins) If you finish this before the bell rings, please read through the Personal Narrative Assignment sheet. No really, read through it. For real. Go.

5. Photo prompt 1 Boy and Tractor

6. Photo prompt 2 Child with Dog

7. Photo prompt 3 Hippie Wedding

8. Photo prompt 4 Rainbow Birthday

9. Photo prompt 5 Soccer Scramble

10. 11/15: Happy Friday!Survey Comp Lit Lesson Plans 5th & 6th period. Focus: Sensory Details & Figurative Language 1. Work through the handout titled “Figurative Language” as a table group. 2. Read: “School Lunches” and “A Rice Sandwich” in the reading packet to yourself individually. 3. Discuss these two questions with your group and then WRITE your own individual response in your notebook. • Think about your lunch today. What did you eat? Who did you eat with? What does your lunch “say” about who you are? • How does Esperanza feel about eating lunch in the cafeteria? Why does she want it so badly? What happens when she finally get there? Is it everything she expected it would be? Why or why not? What is the ‘moral’ of the story? 4. Fill in the “Literary Devices” Chart with examples from the two (2) readings above. Find at least one (1) for Simile, Metaphor, Alliteration, and Fragment. Write the example in the boxes on the right side of the chart. HW: Write a “SFD” of 1-2 pages about a school related event that reveals your personal feelings of insecurity about something. Think of things like trying out for a sports team, getting an assignment back with a grade on it, hoping/waiting to be invited to a school dance, or inviting someone to a school dance, the PE locker room. There are all kinds of things about being in school that create insecurity. Re-Read “A Rice Sandwich” and “School Lunches” if necessary for guidance. Bring a typed draft to class on Monday without your name on it.

11. 11/18: Happy MONDAY DO NOW: • Take out the “Literary Devices” Chart with examples for Simile, Metaphor, Alliteration, and Fragment. • Take out your SFD about a school related experience. Mini-Lesson: Figurative Language: “I Spy” Game Writing Workshop: Brainstorm writing topics Write a SFD of one 1-2 pages about one of the topics you started in class brainstorm. Type up and bring to class tomorrow. HW: Finish/Type your SFD and bring to class on Tuesday WITHOUT your name on it.

12. 11/19: Happy Tuesday! DO NOW: Take out your SFD from last night. I will stamp it. Take out your Literary devices chart and read through the rest of the devices. DO NEXT: Read 1. “My Name” by Sandra Cisneros 2. “The House on Mango Street” by Sandra Cisneros 3. “Leffingwell Elementary School” by Firoozeh Dumas Highlight literary devices and then add to your literary devices chart when you finish a story! HW: Read “Hairs” and “Four Skinny Trees” for class on the block day. Highlight readings for Literary devices. Reminder: Reading Quiz on all readings so far on Block Day!

13. 11/20-21 Happy Block Day! • Take out your Literary Devices Chart-You can use this on the quiz. • Reading Quiz & Correcting • Workshop: • Review Showing v. Telling Handout. Choose ONE flat description to practice with. • SFD work– Revise one of your four drafts with a focus on Figurative Language and Vivid sensory details. • Make your SFD a “GSD” (Guess what this means?) • HW: Revise two of your SFDs with a focus on “showing” versus “telling”– • Bring both revised drafts to class on Friday!

14. 11/22: Happy Friday! • Metacognitive Journal: Write for ten minutes about the writing process for you so far. What has been challenging? How have you dealt with the challenges? What have you enjoyed or perhaps felt good about? Why? • Workshop: Give feedback on one piece of student work • HW: If you have 2 revised drafts completed, you don’t HAVE to do anything for homework. But you could always revise, revise, revise! 

15. 10/5: Group & Individual Feedback Process Group Feedback process on From Afar Three Things Content: Write one comment or question about the content of the piece. Structure: Write one comment on the way the piece is mapped out: the opening, middle/body, and ending. Style: Write one comment on how the writer has included figurative language and sensory details or used details that add to your experience as a reader.

16. 10/5: Group & Individual Feedback Process Group Feedback process on From Afar

17. 10/5: Group & Individual Feedback Process Group Feedback process on “Sticks and Stones” Content: I don’t understand the relationship? Have they known each other long enough to feel what he said is okay. Was the girl chubby or did he just say that to be mean. Does she like him? Does Rodney like her? Did Miss B write this? Did R like her back? Why isn’t the main character’s name mentioned? Where they friends or classmates? What does she see in R. Dramatic. What leads up to the first scene? I want to know more background info about their relationship. Does she really like this jerk? That’s dumb. Good job conveying jerky-ness. What prompted him to say that? Ditto Sydney. Like Bam. Second Sydney. Structure: The hook made me laugh and I liked it. Third P diced up/choppy. Paragraphs are too short. The first part I liked, the rest seems like a repeat of the first paragraph. Liked the first line as a dialogue and the last sentence connects back. Style:Hyperbole of audience of thousands. Sensory detail of cheeks like hot fire– keep. Stupid stick boy. Keep. I was expecting more at the end… I wanted her to slap him or be more violent. King of Sticks and Stones but words can’t hurt… I’m confused.

18. 11/25: Happy Monday! • Do Now: Write about a conflict you have had recently with a friend, a teacher, a parent, or yourself. How did the conflict arise? What happened to keep it going? What was the breaking point? Or is it continuing? • Mini-Lesson: Plot, Theme and the Narrative Arc • Conflicts brainstorm • Read: “The Flowers” by Alice Walker/Chart the Narrative Arc • Read: “Sleeping” by Katherine Weber/Chart the Narrative Arc HW: Write a “SFD” about one of the topics from the class brainstorm. Focus on developing the narrative arc and maybe include an unexpected ending! Title it. Type it. And bring it to class tomorrow.

19. 11/26: Happy Tuesday! • Focus: Plot, Theme and the Narrative Arc • Charting the Narrative Arc: Sleeping and The Flowers • Workshop: Give your draft from Tuesday night to a peer for revision on Narrative Arc. HW: Happy Thanksgiving Break! NO HOMEWORK!

20. 10/10-11: Happy Block Day!Class Agenda– Notebooks 1-10 due Friday! • Focus: Writing about personal issues/Narrative Arc • Journal: Write about a personal or societal issue that is of significance in your own life… ie. family violence, divorce/blended families/step-parents, mental illness (like depression or addiction), poverty, bullying, body image/self-esteem, death of a friend/family member, etc.) Write whatever comes to mind and whatever feeling emerge. Try not to think too much and just write what you FEEL. • Read and Discuss: “Barbie Birthday” by Alison Townsend • Read and Discuss: “Big Boy” by David Sedaris • Workshop: Either create a personal narrative SFD that you expand from the journal above OR revise one of your current drafts by developing details that surface the personal issue that is present in the piece. HW: Be sure that you have 3-4 different pieces that you have drafted by Friday: Bring all to class. Notebooks 1-10 due Friday. 2 from the topics brainstorm (your choice) 1 about a school related topic (modeled after “school lunches” and “A Rice Sandwich”) 1 about a personal issue (this could overlap in another draft)

21. 10/12: Happy Friday!Class Agenda– Notebooks 1-10 due today! • Focus: Writing Workshop • Workshop: Please put all your most current drafts together (don’t throw away previous drafts!) in a manila folder and write your name on the folder. Give your portfolio to another student to read through ALL your drafts. • Peer Feedback: Please write the following information directly on each of the pieces. • Where can the writer include more sensory details? • Where can the writer add literary devices like metaphors, similes, personification, etc? • Has the writer developed the exposition, rising action and resolution of the piece fully? • Is the piece written as if it is unfolding and happening as the reader reads it? (Present tense) • Are there details or information that needs to be taken out? • At the end of class, turn in your portfolio to me. HW: Notebooks 11-22 due next Friday.

22. 10/15: Happy Monday! • Schedule this week & Essays • Focus: Dialogue & Deeply Personal Writing • Read & Discuss: “Salvation” and “Thank You, M’am” by Langston Hughes. • Workshop: Write about a time when you were forced to do something that you didn’t feel was right for you. Who was forcing you? How were you feeling about it while it happened? Did you learn something about yourself afterward? • OR • Write about a time when someone significantly older than you helped you to learn an important life lesson. This could be a parent, a teacher, a friend, a much older sibling, a pastor or priest, anyone who was at least 5 years older than you were. What happened? How did you learn from this person? What did you learn? HW: Develop your SFD started in class today. Be sure to practice using thoughtful and effective dialogue and/or interior monologue.

23. 10/16: Happy Tuesday!Class Agenda • Notebooks 11-22 will be collected on the block day (Thurs/Friday) • Select: ONE draft from all your SFDs and GSDs that you want to revise to a polished final draft. • Review: Personal Narrative/Autobiographical Incident Assignment • Review: Grading Rubric • Re- read: the following stories and take notes for reading quiz on block day: “How to Touch a Bleeding Dog”, “The Flowers”, “Sleeping”, “Barbie Birthday”, “Funny in Farsi”, “Salvation”, “Thank you, M’am” • Be sure to leave your selected draft with me at the end of class today. I will return them on the block day for you to revise over the weekend. Final drafts due on October 24/25 to www.turnitin.com

24. 10/16: Happy Tuesday!Class Agenda • Notebooks 11-22 will be collected on the block day (Thurs/Friday) • Select: ONE draft from all your SFDs and GSDs that you want to revise to a polished final draft. • Review: Personal Narrative/Autobiographical Incident Assignment • Review: Grading Rubric • Re- read: the following stories and take notes for reading quiz on block day: “How to Touch a Bleeding Dog”, “The Flowers”, “Sleeping”, “Barbie Birthday”, “Funny in Farsi”, “Salvation”, “Thank you, M’am” • Be sure to leave your selected draft with me at the end of class today. I will return them on the block day for you to revise over the weekend. Final drafts due on October 24/25 to www.turnitin.com

25. 10/18-19: Block Day!Minimum Day Schedule • Review for Reading quiz • Notebooks 11-22 – I will collect. • Reading Quiz • HW: Make all final revisions to your drafts and bring ALL drafts to class on Monday. Print out a FINAL draft to turn in (and be sure to upload a final draft to Turnitin.com by Wednesday night)

26. 10/18-19: Block Day!Minimum Day Schedule • Review & Practice for Reading quiz • EXAMPLE: “I watch my hand volunteer itself and run its fingers through the nap of his head, which is surprisingly soft. And, with my touch on him, he is suddenly dead.” • In the passage above, from the story “How to Touch a Bleeding Dog”, the man says he “watches his hand volunteer itself” as if he is disconnected from his own body and cannot control what is happening with his own hand. Use of the words “volunteer itself” gives us the sense that his hand is operating without his agreement. Similarly, when he uses the pronoun “its” to describe his hand, he further disassociates with his own body, rather than using “my” fingers which would give us the sense that he is connected to the hand reaching for the dog and it is under his control. This disconnectedness helps the reader to get inside the character’s head. His emotional state is one of shock and isolation. He is isolated from his wife literally, since she is gone. He is isolated emotionally as well. He has lost his wife, and now, the dog, with whom the wife was very connected, is dying. This seems like a metaphor for their love and relationship. Use of the alliteration of “s” in “surprisingly soft” gives a poetic feel and helps the reader to connect in a sensory way to this experience at the climax of the story. At the point at which the dog dies, the writer uses the word “suddenly” as if to convey a sense of immediacy and finality to the moment. This again adds to the tension of the scene and heightens the readers awareness of the character’s emotional state.