Class notes: February 2nd, 2012

Plot Chart:

As you read, keep one of these charts folded up in your novel, or at hand if you have a reading spot you tend to use. Use it as a bookmark! Before you begin reading, jot down the date and the page number you are starting on. One you have finished reading, record your page number. Then, briefly write down some plot points, important events, or interesting quotations from the passage you just read.

The whole writing process should not take more than one or two minutes. This chart is intended to be a quick-and-dirty way to keep track of your reading progress, and to remind yourself of the novel's events. I can guarantee that if you fill out this chart every time you read, information retrieval during essay time will be significantly faster. This grid will also be handed in and evaluated near the end of the unit.

Discussion Groups and criteria.

Discussion Groups are peer, teacher, and self evaluated.

CATEGORY

EE

FM

M - MM

NY

Preparation

Student comes to discussion group with a completed journal entry and a passage to read and discuss.

Student comes to discussion group with a completed journal entry and discussion ideas.

Student comes to discussion group with a partial journal entry and discussion ideas.

Student comes to discussion group with no journal entry or is working on it in class.

Participation

Student routinely initiates conversation, builds on the ideas of others, makes connections, and engages others.

Student participates in the conversation and builds on the ideas of others.

Student participates in the conversation.

Student does not willingly participate.

Listening

Student listens respectfully and includes others in the conversation all the time.

Student listens respectfully and includes others in the conversation most of the time.

Student listens respectfully and includes others in the conversation some of the time.

Student rarely listens respectfully and does not include others in the conversation.

A sophisticated discussion group participant (EE):

- Comes to the group with a journal entry ready and a passage to read and discuss

- Initiates Conversation

- Builds on the ideas of others.

- Includes others in the conversation

- Listens respectfully while others are talking.

- Makes text-to-self connections – Connects information from the text to own life/experience.

- Makes text-to-text connections – Connects information from the text to other texts/media sources.

- Makes text-to-world connections – Connects information from the text to the world at large.

At the beginning of each Discussion Group session, you will exchange Journal entries with someone in your group, and read that person's journal entry before starting discussion. This way, not only do you bring your own perspective and experience to the table, but you are primed with someone else's perspective.

Homework: In addition to your novels, read assigned Wikipedia Pages for Feb 8^th.

Western Front: World War I (Summary, Section 3.2.1)

Lord of the Flies: World War II (Summary), Strategic Bombing during World War II (Summary)

Catcher in the Rye: Boarding School (Summary, Section 1.1)

An article's “Summary” is the information shown before the table of contents menu.