American Literature: LA-3/LA-3S

Vocabulary test: week 20. Cumulative test!

Homework: Chapters 23-24 in Catcher in the Rye
Project due in its’ entirety on March 10th

Bell work
-Have students check and finish for 5mins what they worked on from Wed. Have them pick their favorite theme.
-Have each group present by writing their theme on the board and explaining why it is important.
-Left over time will go to them working on their Character Project.

Homework: Chapters 21-22 if not finished.

Study for the cumulative vocabulary test.

Project due in its’ entirety on March 10th

The Catcher in the Rye
Character Project

OBJECTIVE: To allow students to look more in-depth at the characters of The Catcher in the Rye in both a group and individual setting.

DIRECTIONS: Please make sure and read this entire explanation sheet. There are two parts to this project. DO NOT IGNORE THEM!

PART 1: The Electronic Scrapbook (85 points) DUE = April 10, 2006
You will work in your Character Groups to produce an eight-slide PowerPoint presentation. You will spend a day and a half planning your presentation, looking up quotations, etc. (your Character Groups WS will help). Another two days will be spent preparing your presentation in the computer lab.
General Description: You will create a “scrapbook” of mementos that Holden would have kept.
SLIDE ONE: Title slide. Include the name of the novel, the authors’ name, and the name of your project (include the name of the character whose scrapbook it belongs to).
SLIDES TWO THROUGH SEVEN: Each slide will represent one item that Holden would have cherished or wanted to create a keepsake of. Each slide must have:
• One picture that represents the object or item.
• A quotation from the book that supports your choice, with the page number cited correctly.
• A written explanation of at least two complete sentences that states why Holden would have kept that item.
SLIDE EIGHT: A personal response to the novel. Write at least eight sentences stating your group’s opinion of the novel, and support your opinion with specific information.
PART 2: Character Interpretation Essay (100 points) DUE = April 25, 2006
You will work individually to create an in-depth analysis of Holden.
Give your essay a snappy title: (see Essay Example)
Introductory/Thesis Paragraph: Make a claim (a general statement about Holden. What type of person is Holden? This claim/general statement/thesis is what you will prove in your essay.
• Be sure to identify your character by name and give his significance/relationship in the novel. Also include the title of the novel (underlined) and the author.
• Write in 3rd person (no “I”, “me”, “my”, etc…)
Body Paragraphs: Probably 2—include a physical description, mannerisms, values and the personality of your character using examples and quotes from the book. Weave together information you gathered as a group so that you include your character’s actions, words, and interactions with the other characters in order to give a complete word picture of your character.
• Be sure to include some direct quotes or passages from the novel that illustrate your character and prove your thesis about him or her.
• Then explain the quotes/passages.
Concluding Paragraph: Summarize or reword your thesis/claim/general statement and give a statement of how or the why of your character’s importance in the novel as a whole. You may also want to include a description of want happens to the character in the end (or if it is not made clear, what you think happens to them in the end).
The Electronic Scrapbook
Planning Guide

SLIDE ONE: (6 points)
• Title of novel, underlined: _______________________
• Author’s name, spelled correctly: _________________________
• Title of project/Character’s name: ________________________________
SLIDE TWO: (12 points)
• Picture: _______________________________
• Quotation: ________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
• Two-sentence explanation: ___________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
SLIDE THREE: (12 points)
• Picture: _______________________________
• Quotation: ________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
• Two-sentence explanation: ___________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
SLIDE FOUR: (12 points)
• Picture: _______________________________
• Quotation: ________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
• Two-sentence explanation: ___________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
SLIDE FIVE: (12 points)
• Picture: _______________________________
• Quotation: ________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
• Two-sentence explanation: ___________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________

SLIDE SIX: (12 points)
• Picture: _______________________________
• Quotation: ________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
• Two-sentence explanation: ___________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
SLIDE SEVEN: (12 points)
• Picture: _______________________________
• Quotation: ________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
• Two-sentence explanation: ___________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
SLIDE EIGHT: (7 points)
• Three-sentence response to novel: _____________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________

HELPFUL HINTS:
• Have all the work done on your Planning Guides before getting to the computer lab. This will give you all the whole period to work on the PowerPoint presentation as opposed to planning. You shouldn’t have to create your PowerPoint presentation for homework (finishing touches maybe, but the bulk of the work should be done in class).
• You might want to divide the slides up amongst your group members, so that everybody works on one or two of them. Then you can bring all of your work together in the computer lab. Perhaps the person who has the most PowerPoint experience will not make a specific slide, but will put all the work together in the computer lab with input from each group member who made each slide. Those group members not working on the computer can be working on their Character Interpretation Essays in the main part of the library.
• Pictures can easily be found using the PowerPoint clipart or Google Images (search for the picture you want, then copy and paste it in to your PowerPoint Presentation)—give credit to the website where the picture was found by including the web address (it can be small) on the slide…this avoids plagiarism 

Character Interpretation Essay
Essay Example
Tommy Tiger Tiger 1
Ms. Leverett
LA 3, Period ___
25 April 2006
Catherine—The Not So Great
Catherine, Myrtle Wilson’s sister in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, is a “slender, worldly girl” of about 30 who likes and gets attention through her showiness and gossipy nature.
Described as having a “solid, sticky bob of red hair,” and a complexion of “powdered milky white,” her eyebrows have been plucked “then drawn up at a rakish angle which blurred with her natural eyebrows.” All this makes it seem as if she is made up and dressed for show. Her movement, which creates “an incessant clinking” from her jingling pottery bracelets, also reinforces her showiness and need for attention. Although Catherine lives with a girlfriend at a hotel, she seems to like being around her sister Myrtle’s friends for the attention they give her. As a visitor, Catherine acts as if she owns Myrtle’s belongings when she looks “possessively” at the furniture in her sister’s apartment. Perhaps she feels ownership in the fake world Myrtle has created.
As one who doesn’t drink (she “felt just as good on nothing as all”), but likes to be noticed at parties, Catherine uses what little she knows or has heard to spread gossip and get attention. Speculating that Gatsby may have gotten his money suspiciously and furthering the gossip that some find him to be an undesirable character, Catherine reveals she’s “scared of him (Gatsby). I’d hate to have him get anything on me.” Here she is vain enough to think Gatsby might notice or would bother with her, basing her fear of him on rumor she’s heard and is continuing to spread. Engaging in family gossip, Catherine reveals that neither her sister Myrtle nor Tom “can stand the person they’re married to.” Even Nick sees through Catherine’s gossip and expresses shock at one of her “elaborate lies” when she refers to Daisy as being a Catholic, and says it is the excuse for why Tom doesn’t divorce Daisy. Yet, Catherine seems to disapprove more of the flawed marriages than of her sister’s affair, saying, “What I say is, why go on living with them (Myrtle and Tom) if they can’t stand them? Id I was them I’d get a divorce and get married to each other right away.” Catherine’s assessment of her sister’s affair is to continue it, rather than to repair her broken marriage. Catherine’s solution really only continues gossip.
A minor character, Catherine seems to live vicariously through her sister’s life as they both try to be accepted with the “upper class” but are more plagiaristic than real. She will probably fade away and not take a prominent part in any more of the action unless her sister Myrtle ends up marrying Tom, and that possibility seems unlikely because their different social classes can never merge.

-Bell work
-Vocabulary week 19 test
-Pass back papers
-Read chapters 19 and 20.

___________________
Homework: Chapters 19-20 if not finished.

Project due in its’ entirety on March 10th.

Tuesday 2-17:
-Bell work
-Have all students make questions about Catcher in the Rye through chapter 12. They do not need to know the answer.
-Have students (aprox sit on the floor as other students have prepared their questions.
-Student in the desk calls upon a student sitting on the floor. Then asks them a question. If the student on the floor gets it right, they can switch with anyone in the room. If not, they are still captive and cannot move. This is a game I made called “Firing squad”.

-If it dies out, have them write in a quick write about Holden’s fear of the unknown and his lack of emotional maturity. Why might he be this way, other than because of Allie’s death.
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HW: Read Chapters 13-14

Wed 2-18:
-Bell work
-Quiz on chapters 13 and 14 Catcher in the Rye
-Go over Midterm Review sheet :Handout
-Go over Characterization Essay worksheet: Handout
-Go over Character Project for Catcher in the Rye: Handout
-If there is time left over: Quick Write: Is there anything you have in common with Holden?
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Homework: Chapters 15-16

Project due in its’ entirety on March 10th.

Thurs 2-19:
-Bell work
-Chapter 15 and 16 Catcher Quiz
- Continued going over the Characterization packet and essay prompt.
-Had Students create extra credit half sheet with the review sheet I had passed out on Wed.
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Homework: Chapter 17

Fri 2-20:
Catcher in the Rye Midterm
Have students read chapter 18 in Catcher in the Rye.

-Bell work

Have students pull out a piece of paper and write about Holden’s lack of maturity. What do we see him do that expresses he is not as mature as he thinks he is. What does he think maturity means? Use quotes to support your ideas.
-Work on 4b worksheet due tomorrow and vocabulary.

Homework: Finish the worksheet, vocabulary, chapters 11 &12 in Catcher

-Bell work

Chapter 6-8 rerading quiz.

Have students read their quiz aloud and grade themselves 1-10 honestly for their scores.

Discuss the symbolism of the hat and the baseball glove.

Silent read chapters 9 & 10.

HW: Worksheet 4b:tracing motifs and finish up the reading.

Monday:

-Bell work

Chapter 5 quiz is the “excepts from the text” quote page.
-Have students get into groups of three and read the quote. They need to tell me the following:
Who said it?
Where it was said? Page number.
Context? In what situation was it said?
What does this tell us about the characters who said it?

Handout Worksheet 4b: Tracing Motifs- guiding questions and week 18 vocabulary.

TUESDAY:

-Bell work

-Finish up class discussion on Chapter 5.

-Redefine Motif

-Make a list of motifs on the board. Have students fill out worksheet 4b: Tracing motifs.

-Continue discussion and check for reading and understanding.

Homework: All classes should be up through chapter 8.

Through this weekend I expect everyone to have read through chapter 5 and be ready for a quiz. You should be making Cornell notes for Stradlater and be ready for your vocab week 17 quiz as well as a reading quiz on Monday.