Standard 02-25-2014

Some good work time today for most of us.  The number of readers finished with their books is impressive. That allows for more time to be working on the project.  Be sure to check out the expectations on the link I shared with you yesterday.  Heck, here it is again today. This should work as a quick reminder for what you need to focus on.

A couple observations from today's work time:

1) Some of us are having trouble finding figurative language.  That's probably because you are so focused on the story while you are reading and you are not thinking about figurative language.  Take time to enjoy the book.  Once you are finished reading, it will be easier for you to go back and identify examples.  If you need help, you can always ask.

2) Don't be so consumed with offering a creative presentation that your information suffers.  You need to take care of the information.  Make sure it is accurate.  Make sure it is supported.  Make sure it is developed and explained.  Then start worrying about the way you are going to present it.  The bulk of your time on this project should be spent on writing up the information.  Focus on the part that is going to be a majority of the assessment.  The creative presentation is just the icing on the cake.

3) When summarizing, make sure you only identify the most important ideas.  Keep it general.  Specifics, aside from the protagonist's name, should be few and far between.

4) Theme needs to be a sentence.  If you are having trouble remember two things we have discussed: look at the title; look at the protagonist.  The title might be a big hint.  The protagonist will undoubtedly play a big role in the theme.

5) Speaking of the protagonist, be sure to show how the character was portrayed in the beginning of the novel and then show how the character changes (is dynamic) over the rest of the novel.  Back it all up with evidence from the text.

Tomorrow you will have a timed writing.  Here is your prompt:

Lemon Brown once said, “Every man has a treasure.” If that is true than Mary Maloney from the short story “Lamb to the Slaughter” must have a treasure as well. What is it that she treasures? In a well written essay, identify what Mrs. Maloney treasures and then back it up with evidence from the text.  

If you want to be successful you should be sure to:

-have a one or two sentence intro

-offer a clear claim that identifies what she treasures

-back up your argument using evidence from the text

-offer a conclusion sentence to wrap it up  

In addition, you should plan what you are going to write about.  Don't walk in cold tomorrow.  Know what evidence you are going to use for support.  You will have 30 minutes.  This will be worth 20 points.

See you soon.