Required Text and Checklist

Transcription

1 Dear Pre-AP student and parent: The Pre-AP curriculum is designed to challenge you academically and intellectually to prepare you for high school Pre-AP and AP classes. You should be prepared to have teachers with high expectations. As preparation for Pre-AP English, each student is required to complete and turn in the summer reading assignment no later than the third day of class. As faculty members at Moorhead, our goal is for our students to be successful in our program. Therefore, if you need help completing the summer reading assignment, ask for assistance before the due date. Sincerely, Your Pre-AP Teachers Contact Information: Moorhead Junior High School Evelyn Surgers Main Office ELA Department Chair (936) Required Text and Checklist For the project, the students will be reading Lord of the Flies by William Golding. We suggest that each student buy a copy of the novel for use in class. The following checklist will help ensure you have completed the required activities. I have a copy of Lord of the Flies. I have read the novel. I completed Activity 1: Academic Vocabulary on page 2. I read the characterization information on pages 2 and 3. I looked at the example for Activity 2 on page 3. I completed my part of Activity 2: Characterization Using a Character Autopsy and STEAL on page 4. I completed Activity 3: Understanding Literary Elements and Devices on pages 5 and 6. I understand I cannot copy my essay from another source, including another student. I completed my handwritten rough draft of Activity 4: Compare and Contrast Essay. The final draft will be completed in class and will be checked for originality. 1

2 Activity One: Academic Vocabulary Directions: Using a complete sentence, you will define the academic terms. You may write your answers on separate notebook paper if you need more space to write. You may use a dictionary for this activity. 1. Setting: The setting is the time and place where the story takes place, and it includes historical and cultural elements that show the character s values and believes. 2. Plot: 3. Exposition: 4. Rising Action: 5. Climax: 6. Falling Action: 7. Denouement/Resolution: 8. Internal Conflict: 9. External Conflict: 10. Protagonist: 11. Antagonist: 12. Character Traits: 13. First-person Point of View: 14. Second-person Point of View: 15. Limited Third-Person Point of View: 16. Omniscient Third-Person Point of View: 17. Theme: 18. Tone: 19. Mood 20. Foreshadowing: Activity Two: Characterization Using a Character Autopsy and STEAL Characterization is the act of creating and developing a character. Readers can find both direct and indirect characterization by using the acronym STEAL: 1. Speech: Note what the character says and how he or she says it. 2. Thoughts: Find the character s thoughts. What do the thoughts reveal about him or her? 3. Effect: How do other characters react to the one you are analyzing? What do others say to him or about him? 2

3 4. Actions: Analyze how the character acts, behaves, moves, and gestures. 5. Looks: Imagine what the character looks like. How is he or she described? Additionally, you can look for clues about the character s background, such as where the character grew up or how he or she was raised. You can find the motivation or goal and look for ways this affects the plot. You can analyze how the character traits add to the conflict or problem of the story. Finally, you can determine whether the character changes throughout the story. The following activity is designed to help you understand the characters that Golding created in the story. You will do this by completing the characterization graphic using examples of direct or indirect characterization from the story. You may use one character for each example or a variety of characters; it s up to you. Example of Characterization in Cat and the Hat. (Adapted from Read, Write, Think) Element of STEAL Speech Thoughts Effect Acts Looks Direct Quote or Example from the Text with the Page Number But we can have lots of fun that is funny! (p. 7). So all we could do was to Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit! And we did not like it. Not one little bit (p. 3). Throughout the beginning of the story, the fish scowls at the cat immediately after each of the cat s activities (p. 11 and 25). UP-UP-UP with a fish, is an activity that involves the cat standing on a ball while balancing seven objects (p. 12). Later in the story, the cat releases two things that fly kites inside the house (p. 18). At the beginning, the cat has a smile on his face. Towards the end when the cat is told to leave, he has slumped shoulders and a sad face. (p. 2 and p. 57) Explanation - what did you learn about the character? This shows that the cat s character is upbeat and likes to have fun. The narrator s thoughts as he stares out the window on a rainy day indicate that his character is not happy about his current situation. He is bored. The scowl on the fish s face supports the idea that the cat s behavior is not acceptable to the fish. The fish seems like someone who follows the rules. These activities are outrageous and dangerous, and they should not occur in a house. These actions show that the cat s character is not concerned about rules. The smile reveals that the cat is enjoying himself and is not sorry for his behavior. The frown and slumped shoulders show that he is not enjoying himself anymore. Now it s your turn. Complete the chart based on Lord of the Flies. 3

4 Element of STEAL Speech Direct Quote or Example from the Text with the Page Number Explanation - what did you learn about the character? Thoughts Effect Acts Looks 4

5 Activity 3: Understanding Literary Elements and Devices Identifying the basic elements of a work of fiction helps you understand it better. Complete the following components. Imagery 1. Identify one example of imagery in the story. Quote the text and tell which senses the scene appeals to. Explain what you think the author was trying to communicate or accomplish through the use of imagery. Tone 2. Two adjectives that describe the tone are. 3. Explain how the writer established that tone. Which words and details tell you how the author feels about the characters and the subject matter? Plot 4. EXPOSITION: What is the setting? Who are the characters? 5. INCITING INCIDENT: What causes the problem to begin, or what changes in the character s life to begin the conflict? 6. RISING ACTION: What happens that causes the situation to escalate, or intensify? 5

6 7. CLIMAX: Describe the moment when the problem reaches its most intense. What happens to make this a turning point? (This should solve the problem created by the created by the inciting incident.) 8. FALLING ACTION: What is the solution to the problem? How is it carried out? 9. DENOUEMENT/RESOLUTION: What is the ultimate outcome? Analyzing Theme 10. What was the protagonist s mistake/flaw? 11. How did that mistake/flaw affect the character? 12. What did you and the character learn that can apply to actual life, another story, or another text? 6

7 Activity 4: Compare and Contrast Essay and Outline Your essay will compare two characters from the novel and explain how the characters are similar and how the characters are different. The final essay will be checked for originality. If your work is copied from another source, including another student, you will receive a zero for this part of the project. Outline for the Essay Paragraph 1: Introduction This paragraph introduces the two subjects that are being compared or contrasted and includes an overview of the essay. Sentence 1 - Hook: Grab the reader s attention. Sentence 2 - Bridge: Connect your attention grabber to your thesis. Sentence 3 - Thesis Statement (controlling idea): Summarize all your points into one sentence. Example: While the characters from The Cat in The Hat both spend time with the children, their goals differ in that the cat just wants to have fun without regard to the consequences while the fish wants to protect the children and follow the rules. Paragraphs 2 -?: Body Paragraphs You will use as many body paragraphs as it takes to cover all the points in your thesis statements. Traditionally, if you have three points in your thesis, you need three body paragraphs. In this paragraph, you should provide a more detailed explanation of the points in your thesis. Usually, you ll follow a model paragraph structure as follows: Sentence 1 - Topic Sentence: Introduce the point of the paragraph. Sentence 2 - Detail: What is similar or different about this point? Sentence 3 - Explain: Show the reader how you reached this idea. Sentence 4 - Elaborate: What is the comparison of this idea? Sentence 5 - Conclusion: Tie up your thought so you can transition to the next idea. Last Paragraph: Conclusion A good conclusion should be the writer s finale. In a rhetorical analysis, you should provide a holistic assessment of the impact your ideas should have on the audience. In other words, what do you want your audience to think or feel when they finish reading your essay?. Sentence 1: Restate your thesis. Sentence 2: Tell the audience what they should think or feel, clarify your idea, or show how your idea has larger impact on society. 7