Gary Woodward

PLANNINGDate: Apr. 12. 2011 Grade level: Grade sixTitle/Subject of Lesson: Using AbsolutesObjective(s): Students will be able to identify and use absolutes. Students will be able to effectively use absolutes in their own writing.

State (or District) Core Curriculum Standard(s)8.2.c. Use strong verbs and precise and vivid language to convey meaning.8.3.a. Revise draft to add details … and strengthen word choice.

Concept(s) to Be Taught: structure of an absolute identifying the rhetorical effect produced by using an absolute

Materials Needed:His heart beating very fast, Harry stood listening to the chilly silence.

(J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets)

They all fell silent, the hobbit standing by the grey stone and the dwarves watching impatiently.

(J. R. R. Tolkien, The Hobbit)

There, his black robes rippling in a cold breeze, stood Severus Snape.

(J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets)

Two photos of individuals in action

Quotes about absolutes: An absolute phrase “moves the reader in for a close-up view, focusing on a detail, just as a film-maker uses a

camera” (Kolln 212).

Overheads of all these quotes, as well as imitation, and combining exercises

Strategies to Be Used: modeling, guided practice, independent practice sentence imitation, sentence combining

PERFORMINGAnnouncements : None

Continuation from Previous Lesson: Students are in the process of writing a reversal paper. This is an informative text but because of its contrasting organizational structure, I feel that an absolute will add description especially to the introduction. I think that inserting an absolute that will highlight a key feature and enhance student writing and the entire reversal.

Lesson Presentation:

Gary Woodward

A) Getting Started: [review of prior knowledge]

[modeling] Begin by displaying J.K. Rowling’s example and subsequent examples of an absolute from published authors. Ask students if they see anything is common?Ask students what they notice about the structure and purpose behind an absolute and what effect they think the absolute has:o with #1 the ing is at the beginning on the sentence and adds description to the sentence.o with #2 the ing word is at the end of the sentence and add description to the sentenceo With#3, the ing word is in the middle of the sentence and adds description to the sentence. o The purpose is the same for all three. Each add description to what? In number one it is his heart, in #2 it is

hobbit and dwarves and in #3 it is his robe. What is the word that we term we use to describe these terms—noun. So with this descriptive feature we need a noun and an ing word.

o Ask them to look at the structure. Students will point out that a comma or commas are used to separate the phrase. This depends where the absolute is inserted in the sentence.

Show the quote by Kolln and see whether the students agree with Kolln’s assessment and have then write it down in their notebooks.

B) Directing the Learning: [learning activities][modeling/sentence imitation] Now we are going to compose absolutes together. To do so, we are going to imitate J.K Rowling’s absolute construction. Show the sentence imitation overhead with J.K Rowling’s absolute phrase. We are going to think of some nouns that could go with the rest of the sentence. Rather than his heart, what is a body part that could go with Harry stood listening to the chilly silence.

List ideas: eyes, hands, nose, tongue, lips. Let’s choose eyes.

What are some ing words that could go with eyes? List ideas: twitching, darting, glaring, staring.

Write a new absolute using J.K Rowling’s structure. Talk about what effect this new sentence has on the original text. What is the focus?

What would happen if I moved the new absolute to the end position?

What rhetorical effect would it have?

Now insert the absolute between the noun and the verb? What is the effect?

[guided practice/sentence unscrambling] With a partner practice unscrambling sentences. The sentence has movable parts which are underlined. Move the sentences around and write down the different variations and discuss with your partner the rhetorical effect of each move? Explain which one you feel fit best with the sentence. Remember that absolute phrases be placed in three places: the beginning, the end and in between the noun and verb.

[guided practice/sentence imitation] Now it’s your turn to imitate an absolute phrase with a partner. Display a photo on the data projector. Ask the question, “what do you see?” Follow up by asking students to brainstorm nouns that they can see in the photo. For my example here I have used an image from the Tour De France (http://www.benzinsider.com/2010/09/tour-de-france-2011-sponsorship-on-its-way).

Students list nouns that they can see in the photograph. They may notice: muscles, sweat, flags, cars, wheels, spokes, helmet, crowd, barriers, houses, sky, traffic lights, champion, road, eyes, heart, and fingers.

Now ask students to list “ing words” that link with the brainstormed nouns.

Have students say the noun and what it is doing. For example choose the word crowd, then brainstorm an ing word that goes with this word. Give an example like -- crowd cheering. Students then use nouns listed on the board and find complementary ‘ing words’. List words on the board as students come up with them such as,

Gary Woodward

waving, sweating, gasping, turning, breathing, cheering, cramping, fixating, flashing, stretching, beating and pointing.Now provide a simple sentence for the picture –The cyclist finished the race.Have students choose one noun and one ing word to go with the sentence provided --finger waving.Place this phrase after the word cyclist. It now reads --The cyclist, finger waving, finished the race. Have then change the position of the absolute to the beginning and the end.

Ask students -- what does adding this phrase do? Students may give a response like an absolute gives emphasis to a particular feature of the picture, adds detail and helps with sentence variety. (Share and discuss various absolute phrases.Now put two absolute phrases together: Finger waving and crowd cheering, the cyclist finished the race. What effect does that have?

Repeat this exercise this time with a partner using a picture of a scuba diver (http://bit.ly/gxCVpt).

Ask students brainstorm nouns and ‘ing words’ just like the previous example.

Give them a simple sentence with the prompt for where the absolute phrase can be inserted

…...…………… The diver …………………. swam in the sea ……………………………

Invite students invent absolutes to put into their template and request students share sentences and the reasons for choosing particular absolutes.

C) Bringing the Lesson to a Conclusion: [independent practice/accountability] Ok you are writing reversal at the moment. I’d like you to read through

your drafts to see if you can find a sentence where you can add an absolute phrase. If you cannot find one, think of a place where you might think it is appropriate to insert one. How does it change your writing? Does it add or detract? What is the rhetorical effect?

Assignment: You must include at least one absolute in your draft.

Evaluation: Was the lesson successful? What worked and what didn’t, what will I modify?

Gary Woodward

His heart beating very fast, Harry stood listening to the chilly silence.(J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets)

They all fell silent, the hobbit standing by the grey stone and the dwarves watching impatiently.(J. R. R. Tolkien, The Hobbit)

There, his black robes rippling in a cold breeze, stood Severus Snape.(J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets)

An absolute phrase “moves the reader in for a close-up view, focusing on a detail, just as a film-maker uses a camera” (Kolln 212).

Gary Woodward

His heart beating very fast, Harry stood listening to the chilly silence.

_______________________ Harry stood listening to the chilly silence.

Harry________________________ stood listening to the chilly silence.

Harry stood listening to the chilly silence___________________________

Gary Woodward

There, his robes rippling in a cold breeze, stood Severus Snape.(J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets)

There sat Mrs. Jordan.Her pink hat wobbling side to side.

The cyclist finished the race……………………….. The cyclist …………………

finished the race ……………………

Gary Woodward

The diver swam in the sea

…...…………… The diver …………………. swam in the sea ……………………………