BANNED BOOKS: A RESEARCH PRESENTATION

Transcription

1 BANNED BOOKS: A RESEARCH PRESENTATION "There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them. " - Joseph Brodsky Many books are frequently challenged or banned based upon the objections of a person or group. A challenge is an attempt to restrict or remove a book. A banning is a removal of that book. The practice of challenging or banning books impedes the access of others. This threatens freedoms of speech and choice. You will select a book to read that has been challenged or banned in the past. I have included some lists to help you make your choice, but the final choice is yours. When you have made your selection you must turn in the signed permission slip (see below) with your name, book choice, signature, and parent signature. You will complete three tasks as part of this research presentation: 1. Dialectical Journal 2. Informative Letter 3. Presentation The pages that follow will contain more details about each specific task. I give my son/daughter permission to read the book listed below. I understand that this book has been challenged and/or banned at some point in the United States. Book Title: Student Signature: Parent Signature:

2 DIALECTICAL JOURNAL Think of your dialectical journal as a series of conversations with the text as you try to understand its contents. The purpose of this activity is to give you a better understanding of what you re reading! You will have a minimum of 15 entries during your reading of the book. At the very beginning of this journal, I would like you to write a one paragraph response before you read. For this response, you should make predictions about the book, react to the reasons listed for it being challenged/banned, and offer your first impressions (based on the title, cover, etc.). To set up the journal itself, you will take a page and fold it vertically, creating two equal halves. You will have a left-hand column and a right-hand column. Label the left-hand column Text and the right-hand column Response. Skip a space under each title.

3 Text Column (Left) As you read, find passages from the text that do any of the following as you read spoke to you because your experiences were similar to this person made you form a strong opinion where you felt like you had something to say back made you realize something important about the person s story or personality moved you because of the creative way they were written or the words that were used contained moments where you found yourself interpreting the literary meaning of the content confused you because you could not understand or could not relate to the experience of the person reminded you of something you ve seen before uses patterns, themes, or ideas in the writing that occur several times in the story, enough that you picked up on it discussed events you found to be surprising or confusing, disappointing or even inspiring you found yourself judging, interpreting, imagining or trying to make sense of something where you found yourself thinking about it or the image it provoked much later in your day or week nudged you to predict what would likely come next had unusual or unique moments in the writing, organization or other interesting literary hallmark that made the book a joy or a pain to read Once you determine the passages that struck you in some way, you will record the portion of text in the left-hand column labeled, Text. After you jot down the quotation, put the page number in parentheses (see format on previous page).

4 Response Column (Right) Now it s time to respond to that passage that struck you! Respond by Questioning what happened or why Questioning a character s actions or reactions to a particular situation if you found it surprising or if you disagreed Justifying a character s actions or reactions to a particular situation if you would ve done the same thing Interpreting the meaning of something ambiguous or unclear Giving your personal reaction to something that happened Relating a situation to something that you ve experienced or could never imagine experiencing Writing about what it makes you think or feel or want to do Comparing the person s character or experiences to a person you know or a character you ve read about, real or imagined Predicting what might happen next Relating it to something you ve learned in school or from an important figure in your life Talking about how a specific event relates to the bigger world around us or how it has an impact on it WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT MERELY SUMMARIZE THE PLOT!!

5 Here are some sample response starters to help you I really don t understand this because I really like/dislike this idea because I think the author is trying to say that This passage reminds me of a time in my life where I can t imagine what this would be like because If I were (this person), at this point, I would The part doesn t make sense because This character is heroic (or other adjective to describe) because This idea/event seems to be important because I ve heard of this before when The language the author uses here makes me feel/think of/catches my ear because When the author does it creates a tone that When I read this part, I felt because What would happen if? Now I understand that whereas before it was unclear because The details create/show that This seems to symbolize that By doing this, the author creates an image of At the very end of this journal, I would like you to write a one paragraph response after you finish the book. For this response, you should offer your final impressions on the book, your reaction to it as a whole, and a reaction to it being challenged and/or banned.

6 Informative Letter A person or group who challenges or seeks to ban a book often does so in objection to the book s content or subject matter. There is always a reason given by this person or these groups to defend their attempt to ban the book. You will be writing an informative letter to a fictional parent who objects to the book you chose to read as part of this project. For your letter you must Research your book and find out the reason(s) it was challenged and/or banned. Explain why the book should not be banned, connecting back to the reasons it was challenged and/or banned. For example, the children s book And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell tells the true story of two male penguins at the Central Park Zoo in New York City that hatched an egg together. According to the American Library Association, this book was the third most frequently challenged book of 2014 for reasons relating to the topic of homosexuality. One could say that the book is only trying to present an accurate account of real events. One could also say that the book does not feature any romantic representation of the two penguins. Your letter should be formatted according to the following requirements minimum two pages (one page is counted as one side of a lined sheet of paper; each page should be on its own sheet of paper) Times New Roman, 12 point font, double-spaced (if typed) See example below for proper layout September 23, 2015 Dear Parent, INSERT CONTENT OF LETTER HERE Sincerely, Your Signature Your Name

7 PRESENTATION For the final task, you will present your project to the class. No, this is not optional! Your presentation must include the following A visual poster Title and author Summary 2-3 important or meaningful quotes (can be taken from the dialectical journal) Reasons for it being challenged/banned Pictures/Photos/Images Final verdict Summary of your informative letter You will discuss all of the items on your visual as well as the informative letter during the presentation. For the final aspect of the present you will give your final verdict of the book should it be banned or not? RUBRICS 1. Dialectical Journal 50 points a. There are at least 15 entries for the book, including a response to each. (10) b. Responses are not a summary of the story, characters, events, etc. (20) c. There is a one paragraph response prior to reading. (10) d. There is a one paragraph response after finishing the book. (10) 2. Informative Letter 50 points a. Letter follows the sample format. (10) b. Letter does not summarize the story, characters, events, etc. (10) c. References reasons the book was challenged/banned. (15) d. Explains why the book should not be challenged/banned. (15) 3. Presentation 50 points a. Visual poster includes all necessary information. (10) b. Summarizes all of the information without reading word-for-word; explains the images/photos/pictures chose for the visual. (15) c. Explains the final verdict for the book. (10) d. Student speaks clearly and acts professionally. (15) TOTAL 150 points

8 BANNED/CHALLENGED BOOKS (SUGGESTIONS) To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Harry Potter (series) by J.K. Rowling The Golden Compass (series: His Dark Materials) by Philip Pullman The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger The Giver by Lois Lowry The Color Purple by Alice Walker Catch-22 by Joseph Heller A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck The Hunger Games (series) by Suzanne Collins Twilight (series) by Stephenie Meyer the perks of being a wallflower by Stephen Chbosky The Lord of the Rings (series) by J.R.R. Tolkien In Cold Blood by Truman Capote Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie Holes by Louis Sachar Go Ask Alice by Anonymous (Beatrice Sparks) Unwind by Neil Shusterman Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk Carrie by Stephen King The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini Looking for Alaska by John Green Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher ttyl (series) by Lauren Myracle Crank by Ellen Hopkins Lush by Natasha Friend My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult Whale Talk by Chris Crutcher Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Meyers A Time to Kill by John Grisham Friday Night Lights by H.G. Bissenger Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes *Please note that these are only suggestions. You may select a book that does not appear on this list so long as it has been challenged and/or banned.