T E A M W O R KBuilding a Successful ProgramOne Step at a Time

Round Rock ISD

Language Arts Job Alike

August 20, 2013

Elizabeth Davis, Westwood High School

GOAL: To develop and practice common skills and vocabularyWriting processAnatomy of an essayShort response

expectationsLiterary devicesRhetorical devicesArgument terminologyGrammar skills

Deconstructing the Prompts

BIG QUESTION

=

MEANING

little question

=

method

Deconstruct the prompt…The following passage is a short story by Alice Walker, a 20th

Century African-American writer. Read the passage

carefully. Then, write a well-organized essay in which you

analyze the techniques Walker employs

to convey the theme of her story.

Background InformationBIG Question / little QuestionImportant Background InformationTrue crime…family murdered…day before…

Kansas…1959

BIG QuestionWhat is the theme of the story?

Little QuestionWhat strategies does Walker employ?

FACT FINDING - Context#1 Dramatic situation

Who?What?When?Where?Why?

FACT FINDING – Diction/Word Choice

#2 PINKHighlight meaningful word choicesMarginally comment on FIVE choices (or

designated #)Questions to ask: Connotations? Conflicts?

Connections? Significance?

Templates for annotations:“conveys…” “shows…” “conveys…” “suggests…”

“is fitting because…” “significant because…”

FACT FINDING - Syntax#3 YELLOWHighlight the first four words of each sentenceHighlight all punctuation (sans periods,

commas)

Comment marginally on ONE syntactical choice. [make sure you identify the specific device]

FACT FINDING – Narrative Strategies and Rhetorical Devices

#4 GREENHighlight at least one narrative strategy and

one rhetorical device [figurative language if possible]

Templates for annotations:“conveys…” “shows…” “conveys…”

“suggests…” “is fitting because…” “significant because…”

FACT FINDING - Tone#5 BLUEBracket two short sections of the text and

identify the tone using a precise tone word

Justify your choice of tone word by discussing the context and using text for support.

FACT FINDING – Thematic Associations

#6 REDDivide the passage into 3- 4 sections and give each

section a one-word title using an abstract noun.

Examples of Level Two Associations:

Fear * Excitement * Violence * Chaos* Order * Arrogance * Submission * Confidence * Confinement * Freedom * Benevolence

FACT FINDING – Level 3 Method#7 Look at the passage as a whole and identify a

method that unifies the passage. Next, explain briefly how this method achieves that unity.

Examples of Level 3 Method words:

Characterization, contrast, comparison, juxtaposition, analogy, parallelism, repetition, shift, etc…

Writing a Thesis StatementTry to write a COMPLEX sentence [includes an

independent clause and a dependent clause]

Include the meaning in the independent [or MAIN] clause

Include the method in the dependent clause

Here’s a templateIn the passage from _________________________ [work] ________________ [author] seeks to ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________by/through

____________________________________________________________________________________[higher level method].

Example Thesis for “The Flowers”Through the stark contrast of the pleasant natural setting and a shocking discovery by the protagonist, Alice Walker, in her short story “The Flowers,” demonstrates that the harsh reality of racism, especially in the segregated South, ultimately results in the loss of innocence for its victims.

Pink – thesis and topic sentences Green – evidence and examples Yellow – explanation and discussion Blue – reference to the original

question or topic (key words) Orange – transitional words and

phrases

Taking Inventory of the EssayBefore (with a model), during, or after (as a debrief) the writing task, have the students highlight their work to show all required components…

Highlighting PracticeMcKay conveys his theme that man grows stronger through adversity by first describing the struggles the speaker must face. The controlling metaphor of the poem describes the speaker’s undergoing a baptism by fire. He will descend into the “weirdest depths of the hottest zone” as he enters the “yawning oven.” Before he leaves, however, he addresses one unwilling to face the challenge because of his “terror of the heat.” This detail adds to the effectiveness of the experience as we see only the bravest souls accept the challenge.

Our speaker then must go alone to face the dangers ahead. Through daunting images, McKay compares these dangers to weapons and snakes. In addition, the cacophony of the lines emulates the fierce nature of the challenge. The speaker faces “red aspish tongues” as they “shout wordlessly [his] name” while the oven “spits forth fiery spears.” Here, McKay parallels the violent challenge through harsh and unpleasant sounds of his diction. This combination of imagery, sound devices, and figurative language effectively presents the reader with an image of the struggle the speaker must face.

Questions?