Organizing Units with Literature

Herz, S. & Gallo, D. From Hinton to Hamlet: building bridges between young adult literature and the classics.

Assorted Authors, Blackboard Readings and Handouts.

Probst, Response and Analysis.

Say:

One of the most important things that I feel I should be paying much more attention to prior to teaching is how to compile a text set that is equally challenging, yet accessible to my students. When I think about this course and all that it aims at teaching us, I am reminded that on the first week we discussed the importance of creating an environment in which students are able to have an authentic transaction with literature--Rosenblatt's theory shows that this is how we engage our students and keep them interested in the text. Although I completely agree with her, I do feel that I fall short as a pre-service teacher because I am not aware of the types of books that students who I will teach should be reading. In my internship, I primarily worked with books from the canon, and it was so easy to sit back and see how little students cared for those works. Someone like me however, I love (most of) them! One problem that I wanted  to address was how do I take those works that we are required to teach and make them not only interesting to my students, but allow them to genuinely transact wit the literature on a personal level? I believe that this week we are definitely able to answer that question.

Herz talks about how we are able to create this relationship between canonical text and contemporary works for students. Exactly the same thing we have been doing in this class! Having students work with a mentor text, for example Death of a Salesman, and pairing it with one maybe two other books is ideally the best way to get that type of engagement that we hope to see from our students. Students are without a doubt going to want to read books that they can relate to personally, and accordion to Herz, this is what will ideally spark an interest in students to continue to read. I believe that the purpose of this reading is to show us just how important it is to focus on the thematic unit as a whole. While definitely very true, I also enjoyed the Building Bridges article as this was the piece I think we should have been introduced to earlier. This article talks about the importance in being able to connect the two text but also asks you to consider what the bigger picture is for your unit plan. I couldn't help but think of the backwards planning approach when reading because I feel this is so ME! I have always been a bigger picture kind of teacher--I have grand ideas of where I want my students to be, and slowly start to work my way backwards with the text in mind to create a cohesive unit plan.

What I enjoyed about this week was thinking about how my resource collection fits into these thoughts. I'm pretty sure I have found that connection--first off, I love Death of a Salesman, it was one of my favorite plays that I read in high school...besides Othello of course. I can remember how my AP Lit teacher would always relate the play to the time that we were living in--connecting the canonical text to different YA lit, news articles, and discussions. This is what Probst wants us to think about--using the text as a guide to create an intertextual relationship which will spark discussion and creative thinking. I enjoyed doing my resource collection for the fact that I took an angle that I thought would captivate my students into wanting to have these fantastic conversations that we yearn for in our classroom. See below.

Do:

Resource Collection

Death of a Salesman

The Struggle to Achieve the Ultimate Goal:

The American Dream

Questions:

Is the American dream dead? Who's to blame?

Should the government help Americans in obtaining the American dream?

How has the American dream shifted from the early 1900's to today?

Who's dream is it anyways?

 



Core Text: 

Miller, A., & Weales, G. (1996). Death of a salesman. New York: Penguin Books.

Young Adult Novels:

Crutcher, C.  (1983).  Running loose.  New York, NY:  Laurel Leaf.

Creech, S. (1994). Walk two moons. New York: HarperCollins.

Franzen, J. (2010). Freedom. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Hosseini, K. (2003). The kite runner. New York: Riverhead Books.

Obama, B. (2006). The audacity of hope: Thoughts on reclaiming the American dream. New York: Crown.

Walls, J. (2005). The glass castle. London: Virago.

 

Song Lyrics:

Cox, J., & Smith, B. (1929).  Nobody knows you when you’re down and out.  [Recorded by Bessie Smith]  On Take it Right Back.  [CD] Columbia.  (1929).

Pink Floyd.  (1973).  Money.  [Recorded by Abbey Road Studios.]  On Money.  [CD] Harvest.  (1973).

Adele.  (2008).  Chasing pavements.  [Recorded by Adele] On 19.  [CD]  Eg White. (2007). 

Informational Texts (Articles):

Hoover Pittsburgh, B. (2013, May 10). 'The Great Gatsby' still challenges myth of American    Dream. Retrieved November 29, 2015, from

            <http://www.post-gazette.com/ae/movies/2013/05/10/The-Great-Gatsby-still-challenges-l          myth-of-American-Dream/stories/201305100196>

Kraus, M., Davidai, S., & Nussbaum, A. (2015, May 2). American Dream? Or Mirage?            Retrieved November 28, 2015, from             <http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/03/opinion/sunday/american-dream-or-mirage.html>

Samuelson, R. (2012, September 23). The American Dream's empty promise. Retrieved           November 29, 2015, from

            <https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/robert-samuelson-the-american-dreams-     empty-promise/2012/09/23/e630946c-0428-11e2-8102-ebee9c66e190_story.html>

Movies:

Korine, H. (Director). (2013). Spring breakers [Film]. Lionsgate.

Ross, G. (Director). (1998). Pleasantville [Film]. United States: New Line Home           Entertainment.

Winter, T. (Director). (2013). The Wolf of Wall Street [Film]. Blitz Film & Video Distribution.

Art:

Bosch, H. Death and the Miser. 1492. Oil on canvas. National Museum of Art, Washington, DC.

Gast, John. American Progress. 1872. Oil on canvas. Museum of the American West, Los       Angeles.

Wood, Grant. American Gothic. 1930. Oil on canvas. Art Institute       of Chicago, USA.

Informational Texts (Essays):

Bewley, M.  (1986).  Scott Fitzgerald’s Criticism of America.  In H. Bloom (Ed.), Modern critical interpretations:  F. Scott Fitzgerald’s the great Gatsby (p. 11-28).  New York, NY:  Chelsea House Publishers. 

Poems: 

Coffin, T..  The Secret Heart.  In All Poetry.com.  Retrieved Nov 29, 2015, from

            < http://allpoetry.com/The-Secret-Heart>  

McGiney, P.  First Lesson.  In Poem Hunter.com. retrieved Nov 29, 2015, from

            < http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/first-lesson-3>

Hughes, L.  (1938).  Let America Be America Again.  In Information Clearing House.  Retrieved Nov 21, 2009, from <http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article4004.htm>

Hughes, L.  (1922).  Mother to Son.  In Family Friend Poems.com.  Retrieved Nov 29, 2015, from < http://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/mother-to-son-by-langston-hughes>

Short Stories:

O’Brian, T.  (1998). Ambush.  In The Things They Carried. Retrieved Nov 29, 2015, from

            <http://www.gilbertschools.net/cms/lib3/AZ01001722/Centricity/Domain/874/Ambush%20by%20Tim%20O.pdf>

O’Conner, F.  (1955).  The Life You Save Maybe Your Own.  In BetterLessons.com. Retrieved Nov 29, 2015, from

            < http://betterlesson.com/community/document/390310/the-life-you-save-may-be-your-own-full-text-doc>

Poe, E. A.  (1843).  The Black Cat.  In Poe Stories.  Retrieved Nov 29, 2015, from

            < http://poestories.com/read/blackcat>

Picture Books:

Senzai, N.H..  (2010).  Shooting Kabul.  New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books.

Play: 

Hansberry, L.  (1959).  A raisin in the sun.  New York, NY:  Random House.  

Multi-Genred Lit

Tom Romano - Blending Genre, Altering Style: Writing Multigenre Papers
Camille Allen - The Multigenre Research Paper: Voice, Passion, and Discovery in Grades 4-6
Mary Styslinger - "Multigenre-Multigendered Research Papers"
Sara Biltz = "Teaching Literature Through the Multigenre Paper: An Alternative to the Analytical Essay"

Say

Before I begin this I'd like to start off by saying that I had NO idea what a multi-genred paper was--I am glad that I have that background now. I can also still admit that I am and would still be nervous to do this in my classroom...I'm sure that will change once we do one in this class however. What I enjoyed about the readings is that we were able to get all the parts of this process--Romano begins by telling us a brief history of how this style of writing came to be. From what Romano talks about, what I like most about this type of writing is the fact that this genre is able to incorporate so many different types of writing in one. The student is able to be the focus of their own words. How? There is no specific genre that students can use! Styslinger talks about how comfortable students were with this process due to the fact that many of them were able to be lenient in the topics and genres that they chose to write about.

Multigenre writing projects respond to contemporary conceptions of genre, audience, voice, arrangement and style by enabling students to tap into their knowledge about new media literacies, rich rhetorical situations, and the multiple perspectives that are inherent in any writing activity.In short, multigenre projects entail a series of generic documents that are linked by a central premise, theme, or goal. They may forward an argument, trace a history, or offer multiple interpretations of a text or event. They are rigorous forms of writing, involving all of the elements of a traditional research paper: research and citation, coherence and organization, purpose and aim of discourse, audience awareness, and conventional appropriateness. Thus, while multigenre projects certainly teach students valuable, transferable strategies and expectations for writing, they go further. 

Multigenre writing is thus informed by a multitude of rhetorical considerations including a complex understanding of genre theory. Teachers who engage in multigenre assignments must be prepared to sequence assignments/project pieces carefully, to engage in new kinds of response and evaluation strategies, and to learn to trust their students’ abilities and creativity. The results of this preparation, engagement, and trust are consistently surprising, heartening, and rhetorically sophisticated.

Do:
For this project, I can admit that I had a hard time trying to find a Do mainly because I have never done this. I then began to think about how would a teacher even go about grading this, so I went on a find to look for fantastic rubrics that teachers could have to use as a guide for grading this. The link is below for a sample rubric.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XhfoH0xt6lMP6hVQ-vuPod2JeYQ2S3HcFI5vj0qVHXE/edit?usp=sharing

Talk to Text: Fostering the Connection between Discussion and Writing

Robert Probst - "Tom Sawyer, Teaching, and Talking" from Adolescent Literacy

Robert Probst - Response & Analysis: Teaching Literature in Secondary School

Mary Styslinger and Timothy Pollock - "The Chicken and the Egg: Inviting Response and Talk through Socratic Circles"

Mary Styslinger and Jessica Overstreet - "Strengthening Argumentative Writing with Speaking and Listening (Socratic) Circles"

Talk to Text: Fostering the Connection between Discussion and Writing

The group of readings are surrounded around talking around literature—moreso creating an environment in which we are able to engage in Socratic seminars and how to also get students to not only transact with the text through dialogue, but also how to get our students into writing more. “Socratic circles change the way individuals read, think, discuss, write, and act; they have the power to change a student’s perspective on living, learning, and behaving” (Copeland 4). Now, Davontae 2 years ago would have said that this statement is a reach, but after reading multiple perspectives and seeing how well it fits into what “good teaching” looks like—I wholeheartedly agree.

I am reminded of the EDRD 600 immediately. Why? According to Gallagher, “Because the powers outside the classroom walls are so strong in tearing down young readers, what goes on inside the classroom is of paramount importance. Today, more than ever, valuable classroom time presents the best opportunity—on the the only opportunity—to turn kids on to reading. Unfortunately, this isn’t occurring” (2). I immediately thought of the Gallagher piece because over the summer we spent so much time trying to find out why are our students not reading—why are they not able to make meaning and engage with the text the way we as teachers do? I believe that one of the reasons this happens is due to the fact that we are not requiring our students to think in an abstract way and allow them the opportunity to have these meaningful discussions. So often we feel that we need to teach students formulaic approaches to how to read, write, blah blah—but, when we stop to look inside our own classrooms, we aren’t using the resources and best practice techniques to engage students. Socratic circles are the way in.

So often, and I can admit I fell guilty of this once, we as teachers believe that one way that we can show that students are engaging with the text is by giving them an essay to write! “Use specific quotes from the text and explain it so I know you are able to make meaning!”. This is not what we should be doing in the classroom. What I liked most about the reading this week is the fact that we are given a lot of information on how to use Socratic circles to engage in that writing discourse we expect in our classroom. Styslinger and Polluck state that one of the tricks when it comes to strengthening students writing is through their talking! Engaging in the Socratic circles in a way that it allows students to state their views (in a respectable manner) not only teaches them how to be effective speakers, but it teaches arguments for students. I wasn’t able to see the bridge in how the actual Socratic circle could lead to better writing—until we had the Socratic circle in our own class. Reading the text and then being asked to respond to a host of questions prior to the discussion allowed me to the opportunity to strengthen my stance on the piece. I could then take my argument and present them in a discussion with peers. In Styslinger’s article however, I believe she more so focuses on how to teach students that in Socratic circles there are rules and protocol to the process and not necessarily focusing on how to effectively use textual evidence to support student’s claims in the discussion. However, (no pun intended) isn’t this the chicken or the egg again? Do we teach how to respectfully engage in conversation or do we teach how to make good arguments? I am curious to try this in my own classroom however. I would want to see how my own students respond. I believe that one of the central problems we see in the classroom is the fact that not enough of this is being done at all. Sure the new state standards are practically pleading to use techniques such as Socratic circles—but why aren’t they being done? Do we place too much value on writing skills instead of oral communication? How do we expect our students to be able to communicate between each other when they can’t because we don’t teach how? Again—engagement with the text is more effective when we see it in writing…that to me is bogus (yet I see it all the time).

What I most like is how Probst gives us a fantastic way to have a win win for both! Teach discussion and writing as one. Workshop is a tool that we as college students use all the time. We peer review each others writing, and then have a conversation about our own writing. Not only is this an effective way to boost the two, but it allows us to interconnect oral and writing skills amongst our students. Now, I will be the first to admit that my concern is how do I grade something like this? Do I grade based on discussion? Or the writing? The editing? I believe that when we take out the worrying about grading and just allow the students to engage more—we will then see that they are putting more into their own work—no longer will students write to appease me; they will write to be more critical.

I had this happen. I wanted my students to write and forget about being graded. Write because you have something to say. I then had then converse with each other. Tell each other how their writing sounds, connects, and analyzes. I told my students that they would be graded 80% based on their conversations—20% based on their writing (10% would be their initial draft, 10% based on their final draft). Call me crazy, but when I had my students moving around in circles to share their papers and ask for feedback, the comments were amazing! They knew that they needed to pay attention to communicating between their own peers—the stigma was gone that their writing would hold the most weight on their grades. This is what I want to see done in my own classroom. I want my students to write because they want to be critical—and I want to foster a sense of community based on good conversation (positives and improvement suggestions). This is what I think these articles are trying to do. Teach us that we can connect writing and discussions. Styslinger and Overstreet did it—and it wasn’t done to the level that you had to choose to spend more time on one or the other.

My do for this is the lesson plan I used at my middle school. See below.

Davontae Singleton

Wump World Lesson Plan

Subject: English—6^th grade

Total Class Time: 56 minutes

Topic: Writing with Purpose

Objectives and (standards):

1.         SWBAT 6.W.2 Write informative/ explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.

2.         SWBAT 6.RL.3 Describe how a particular story's or drama's plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution.

Purpose:

In this lesson, students will be exposed to taking their story-map that they have created in class and using that as a template to create and write an exploratory essay based on the book “Wump World”. Student’s will be asked to not only create the basic outline of an essay, but they will be asked to make a personal connection in their essay as well that connects the text with an experience or other work of literature. Students will work on this so that they are able to write more clearly and effectively.

Procedures: (Please note that these procedures are to be done once for each student)

Introduction:

Warm-up: Why do we write? Write down 3 ideas on why you think it is important for us to write as 6^th graders, and then 2 ideas on why we write as adults? We will have a conversation to “dispel” any myths about writing and to break down the stigma that writing is difficult or tedious. (5 Minutes)

Development: This development phase will take the place as a workshop format. We will all work together, yet independently—sharing our ideas as we are going forth.

1.         Introduction—I would like to start the development of this essay as we are thinking about our personal statements to the book. What about the book would we like to lead in on? We can discuss how the book is an allegory or how the “wumps” are described as in the story. Students will be expected to work on a way to effectively introduce their paper and lead in with a good “hook”. After we have worked on our introductions, we will share some and give effective feedback. (10 minutes)

2.         Exposition, Main events, climax, and resolution—students will have their story map as well as their “introduction” paragraph from Monday’s class to use as they create the next 3 parts of their paper. This will be done independently as students already have the tools and information to write this part of their essay. (10 minutes)

3.         Final Reflection—This will give students the opportunity to make personal connections to the story. They will be given a number of prompts to help them end their paper. (What books/movies did this book make you think of? What advice would you have given the wumps or the pollutions? What would you have done differently if you were the wumps or the pollutions? What can we do so our world does not become like the wump’s world? What laws can we enforce to make sure these new rules are enforced?) As students are working on this part of their paper, we will again run it like a workshop, except this time they will share their endings with a partner. Students will be given a rubric and they will assess each others ending paragraph to ensure that it targets a specific connection from the book, but also explains why they chose to write about that connection. The point in this is to foster critical thinking in both their writing and conversations so that students are able to take both seriously and see the gift in oral conferencing with peers. As students are conferencing with each other, I will be going around to informally assess students work to check to see if they have the basic structure of a 5 paragraph paper as well as performing a very informal analysis on their writing. (25 minutes)

Conclusion: (6 min)

            Students will complete a ticket to leave. They will be asked to complete 2 questions: What did you find challenging about today’s activities? What is one area you would like more practice with?

After students have finished this, I will share my writing that I have come up with for students.

Materials:

            Wump World by: Bill Pete  

            Students will all need their computers

            Students will all need their story-maps

             

Evaluation:

After meeting with students for the day, they will be assessed based on their completing the writing activity. I will also perform informal assessments of their writing while monitoring student work during silent work as well as group work. Participation grades will be given to students who are always on task and complete assignments. 

Students will be graded the following way: (80% based on conversation, 20% based on writing—half for initial and half for final drafts.

Reference:

Appleman, Deborah, and Michael F. Graves. Reading Better, Reading Smarter: Designing Literature Lessons for Adolescents. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2012. Print.