1 A Study of Genre: Mythology in the Classroom William Montaruli A Genre Study in Mythology Define “Genre”? When most people think of genre, they think of it as Heather Lattimer describes: “At its most rudimentary level, the idea of genre is essentially the idea of a category or type” (2). As many teachers feel pressured to “teach to the test,” genre has become a method of sorting the literature that students read and a gateway into a discussion of other literary elements such as theme, plot, and symbol. As educators, however, it is important for us to recognize that genres are more than simply a system of categorization; genres have absolute practicality in the classroom. Instead of using genre to classify texts and then lead students into a discussion of the literature, we can use the literature to push students into a discussion of genre itself. In studying a genre’s format, purpose, and style of writing among many other characteristics, your students can be better prepared to then practice writing in the genres themselves. In the classroom setting, the study of a particular genre enables students to establish a community of readers and writers and share what they have learned. If we use genre in this way, then we are actually utilizing it in the way that Charles Cooper illustrates for us in his article, “What We Know about Genres, and How It Can Help Us Assign and Evaluate Writing.” According to Cooper, “genre is actually “[a] type[…] of writing produced every day in our culture [and a] type[…] of writing that make[s] possible certain kinds of learning and social interaction” (25). By allowing our students to see a genre as more than a system of categorization, but an actual type of writing, we are encouraging them to further develop themselves as both readers and writers. Rationale: Why is using genre important to teach our students? In many classrooms, students are guided and directed to produce pieces of writing that are supported by canonical texts as they prepare for standardized exams. I would argue, as Bomer has in his book A Time for Meaning, that our students are not simply “empty vessels who need to
Transcript
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A Study of Genre: Mythology in the Classroom
William Montaruli
A Genre Study in Mythology
Define “Genre”?
When most people think of genre, they think of it as Heather Lattimer describes: “At its most rudimentary level, the idea of genre is essentially the idea of a category or type” (2). As many teachers feel pressured to “teach to the test,” genre has become a method of sorting the literature that students read and a gateway into a discussion of other literary elements such as theme, plot, and symbol. As educators, however, it is important for us to recognize that genres are more than simply a system of categorization; genres have absolute practicality in the classroom. Instead of using genre to classify texts and then lead students into a discussion of the literature, we can use the literature to push students into a discussion of genre itself. In studying a genre’s format, purpose, and style of writing among many other characteristics, your students can be better prepared to then practice writing in the genres themselves. In the classroom setting, the study of a particular genre enables students to establish a community of readers and writers and share what they have learned. If we use genre in this way, then we are actually utilizing it in the way that Charles Cooper illustrates for us in his article, “What We Know about Genres, and How It Can Help Us Assign and Evaluate Writing.” According to Cooper, “genre is actually “[a] type[…] of writing produced every day in our culture [and a] type[…] of writing that make[s] possible certain kinds of learning and social interaction” (25). By allowing our students to see a genre as more than a system of categorization, but an actual type of writing, we are encouraging them to further develop themselves as both readers and writers.
Rationale: Why is using genre important to teach our students? In many classrooms, students are guided and directed to produce pieces of writing that are supported by canonical texts as they prepare for standardized exams. I would argue, as Bomer has in his book A Time for Meaning, that our students are not simply “empty vessels who need to
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be filled with” information through the process of rote memorization. Oftentimes, this type of study invites students to look at a topic or theme in great depth while ignoring the study of writing itself. In classrooms where this is practiced then, aren’t those teachers essentially asking their students to produce a particular type of writing without thoroughly knowing it? In Bomer’s words, “Every piece of writing, every text we read comes to us as both a text—the piece it is—and a kind of text—an instance of a genre” (117). If we choose to follow Bomer’s thought process, then we should direct our students to study and create pieces of writing that look closely at genre. In order to fully appreciate literature as both a text and a kind of text as Bomer suggests and lead our students to develop deeper understandings, we need to encourage other educators and students to approach these texts through a study of genre. Promoting Learning and Empowerment through Genre. Developing Deeper Understanding: In a traditional classroom, learning revolves around a canonical text and “teaching to the test,” which only offers students a brief overview of literature out-of-context; such preparation offers no authentic connections and therefore the skills our students learn cannot be transferable. In a classroom like ours where teachers use genre studies, students develop a deeper understanding of the texts through careful examination of the parts of the whole genre and the relationship between them. The skills learned in a class genre study (i.e., analysis, evaluation, comparison, writing in a particular form, drafting, revision, and peer editing) are transferable because they have meaning in relation with one another. While these skills are important for our students to understand in order to do well on the Regents Exam, they are also important for our students as they work towards becoming life-long readers and writers. Perhaps the most important skill our students will learn through genre study is to be “better prepare[d] [to] navigate their own way through unfamiliar text forms in the future” (Lattimer 5). Works closer to a student’s own reading level can help you to scaffold student learning to a harder (possibly “canonical”) work. Therefore, not only is the use of genre study an effective way to fulfill the interdisciplinary study standard, but it is also an authentic alternative to “teaching for the exam.” Implementing the use of genre study in your classroom will help students to climb the ranks of Bloom’s Taxonomy of Understanding. Real-World Knowledge: Already, our students have real-world knowledge of genres from their own experiences and personal lives. They know genres span popular culture through music, movies, television, and videogames; many students might even find themselves identifying with one genre over another. Students’ prior knowledge about genre enables us to introduce new knowledge—like the use of genre in the ELA classroom—in a way that will enable students to make connections to their pre-existing knowledge, thus making it less difficult for our students to understand. According to Lucy Calkins, even “very young children demonstrate that they already have a sense of the different voices and forms of various genres” (35). Therefore, it is important for our students to feel that their work has meaning in the context of the real-world that they have already experienced. Using a genre study in the classroom allows the students to see that other forms of writing beyond the five-paragraph essay exist both in and out of the classroom. Since, as
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educators, it is our responsibility to promote life-long literacy, why not use students’ awareness of genre to teach these important skills to young adults? Genre-Specific versus All-Purpose Criterion: When conducting a study of genre in our classrooms, we ask our students to turn their focus to a range of texts within one category and to look specifically at the criteria that make the genre what it is. Once our students have learned how to analyze one genre based on its specific criterion, they will understand how to repeat a similar process again in the future when they are exposed to a new genre. Not only is the transferability of genre-specific criterion important in terms of identifying different types of writing, but it is further important in helping them to identify the “what” of their writing. Many educators today strongly focus their efforts on teaching content and sometimes forget about the importance of the delivery of the information. The unjust part in this type of educational setting, is that students are being graded on format specific criteria without ever having been immersed in a study of the genre itself. Genre-specific criterion helps students clarify the necessary characteristics their piece should include. The characteristics of each genre will then act as steps to help a student deliver his message in a clear and concise format. Genre-Study as a Vessel for Social Interaction: If you look back to Charles Cooper’s definition of genre, you will see that he stresses the importance of genre as a communal text that evokes social interaction. When you ask your students to delve into a genre study of one particular genre, it is evident that they will be better able to make progress in terms of their learning as a community of readers and writers. This happens in a genre-study versus other methods of direct instruction because our classrooms are no longer teacher centered. In fact, our classrooms become student centered as teachers and students learn together in a community of readers and writers. Students become experts on a topic that we, the teacher, know only little about, thus enabling us to learn together. This helps our students become actively engaged and feel empowered in their education. Choices: Offering our students the choice of a text that bests suits their interests is a powerful learning technique. In order to empower our students, we need to be empowering educators. A genre-study gives us that freedom as it allows us to tailor our curriculum to our students’ genuine interests and needs as learners. If we show our students touchstone texts that “knock their socks off” (Calkins 365), we can close the gap between schoolwork and life skills. If we use a genre-study in order to promote a bridge between in school learning and real world application, we have the ability to authenticate the learning experiences of our students. In specific, mythology affords our students the ability to examine several texts that are relevant to the issues that they face as developing adolescents.
What Is Myth? Definition A myth originated as an oral tradition passed down from generation to generation and across culture to culture. It is a story that exemplifies the values and traditions of the culture it
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represents. According to David Russel’s Literature for Children, a myth “[is a story] of gods, goddesses, and heroes of a given culture, and these stories serve a variety of purposes, combining science religion, and even sociology and psychology” (95). In essence, mythologies are stories that represent the innermost questions, thoughts, fears, and beliefs of a particular civilization or even mankind as a whole. In order to define a myth, it’s important to look at both its characteristics and origins. Definition Through Purpose There is no set definition of a myth. Most people think Myths are just ancient stories about Odysseus and Beowulf slaying demons in the darkest corners of the ancient world. This isn’t entirely false, but it is also not the whole truth. Russel’s definition of myth is a basic answer to the essential question “what is myth,” but he continues to examine the purpose of myth, which is the closest thing to a concrete definition. To define myth, it is important to look at the three main overarching purposes the stories serve. These are to explain the creation of man, to explain the unknown, and to enforce the customs or values of a civilization Creation: According to Russel myths are stories that explain “the origins of the world and of human beings” (95). Almost every civilization has a creation story written in its history. Christianity has the story of Adam and Eve that says that God created humans in his image. Hawaiians have the story of Pele who raised the ground from the sea floor; a similar theme found in Odin and Ymir’s tale, which has its roots in Norse mythology. All of these myths have a purpose, and that purpose is to explain the creation of man. Fear of the Unknown: Most people fear what they cannot process through their sensory inputs. Mythology gives us a reason for the unexplainable. The most popular myth in modern culture is religion. Every religion offers you an idea of an afterlife, a promise of eternal bliss or a thousand virgins. According to Russel, “Myths help to resolve humanity’s fear of the unknown—whether it be thunder or lightening (explained as activities of the gods) or death” (95). Cultural: Myths journey across the ancient world. Each myth adapts and changes as it travels to tailor its values to fit into the original structure. These stories with slight variations but similar frameworks are called mono-myths. According to Russel, “Myths reinforce cultural values” (95). The methods of mythological mutation are explained in the following section, however, it is important to understand that myths go through changes depending on the storyteller’s origins. As language art teachers, it is hard to understand that mythology is not defined as “fiction,” but instead it is defined as a set of beliefs about the three overarching topics—true or false has no bearing on the definition of mythology. Origins of Adaptation A myth can come into creation in one of two ways, by both independent invention and diffusion. In Robert A. Segal’s text, Joseph Campbell: An Introduction, he explains the differences between the two terms: “Diffusion means that myth originates in a single society and spreads elsewhere from it. Independent invention means that every society invents myth on its own” (126). Either form of creation, similar myths share the same core elements with each mutation.
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Through diffusion, mythology mutates and tailors itself to individual societies. These mutations are significant in each story as changes are made based on the group or individual’s culture. Today, we have the privilege of cementing these myths in written word; before that time, much like a jazz musician, individuals would revise the myths so they were culturally relevant and fill in any missing or forgotten pieces. As the myths then travel from one civilization to another, the unreliability of oral translations causes the myths to further change. Complications with the transferability of oral translation do not, however, carry over to myths that are developed by independent invention. As Segal points out above, independent invention supports the notion that mythology comes from a “collective consciousness.” He goes on to explain that “[collective consciousness] assumes that the mind of all mankind is fundamentally the same, so that individuals everywhere will inevitably produce the same artifacts” (101). This concept is what allows similar myths to spring-up in ancient civilizations that lacked contact with one another, while the specifics of each myth are actually tailored for cultural relevance. For example, if our students create a myth about a modern hero, their first impulse is usually to base it on their own Western culture because—much like the people of ancient civilizations—they are very egocentric in their thinking and largely unable to see beyond their own perspectives. The variances of myth are strongly attributed to the culture of oral tradition and the egocentric focus of several ancient civilizations. For example, whether the myths mutate through diffusion or just are tailored for cultural relevance through independent invention, the result is the same: the creation of the mono-myth, which is a sub-genre of mythology that shares commonalities in its structure due to diffusion and independent invention. Why Did I Choose A Genre Study On Hero Myths? As we now know, mythology is a series of threads, stories that are similar but adapted for cultural relevance. These threads or subgenres are similar but range in difficulty. This is valuable for our purposes because our students can start analyzing a simple text to understand similar devices and themes in the more challenging ones—an important benefit of a genre study. While our students are discovering themes they analyzed in less challenging works, they are identifying more challenging concepts in a similar piece of writing. This method of scaffolding works best with the study of a mythology sub-genre such as the hero quest because students can analyze the root story and then see its progression into modern literature. This adaptation of literature expands past our students’ development as readers, but into the fabrics of our students’ writing as well.
A Genre Study: Step-By-Step Instruction How to Begin? The most difficult aspect of teaching any new educational theory to our students is knowing where to begin. Luckily for us, experts such as Cooper, Calkins, and Boomer have given us a solid practical foundation. Below is an adaptation from the steps provided by these experts in order to conduct a genre-study, which focuses on the mythology subgenre: The Hero Quest.
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1.) Students Participate in Selection and Evaluation of Material We should start the genre study by first learning what students in the room already know about myths and mythology. It is not uncommon to have a few students personally interested in the topic who will be able to offer their expertise in the class. In helping students to identify what they already know about myths and what information they would like to know by the end of the study, learning can be appropriately scaffolded for the particular dynamic of the classroom in question. Touchstone Texts Touchstone texts are vitally important as we work to engage our students in the study of The Hero Quest. As teachers, it is our job to find the most appropriate, relevant, and applicable samples. An example of this small, teacher-generated list of touchstone sources has been provided (Apendix A) After you develop your own list, it is important to show your students why these works were selected as the best examples of the genre. One example that I have selected to illustrate this point is the Reading Workshop. This process will allow students to interpret the suggested touchstone texts and provide them with opportunities to explore similar texts that correlate with both their own interests and the criteria of the genre. Reading Workshop: Organizing Literature Circles in the Classroom While you may have students present in the room who are very familiar with Greek, Roman, Norse, and/or Celtic mythology, it is not entirely likely that they will fully understand the concept of the hero-quest. After exhausting student information stores, you should distribute copies of a small selection of touchstone texts that your students will discuss in miniature literature circles. These groups should be organized based on student choice; after you have distributed the list of texts, your students should choose which pieces are of the most interest to them. Once your students have read the text(s), you should ask them to come up with a list of stages and/or phases that they believe the hero of their mono-myth goes through during his journey within the tale. As the whole group shares out, write student responses on the overhead or chalkboard. Once student responses have been exhausted, see if students can denote the pattern. Do they see similarities in your steps? Can they come up with a name for each one? To solidify the practice of this type of reading, it may be appropriate to ask students to read another mono-myth before the next class. Depending on the number of touchstone texts the teacher plans to use, students could read the same text offered to another group or choose to read from a selection of texts chosen in advance by the teacher. Your students’ input should be welcomed if an acceptable hero-quest myth is suggested based on the individual’s previous knowledge. Student choice might inspire more personal interest and lead to culturally relevant texts. 2.) Listing Basic Features of the Genre What is a Hero Quest?
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It is important that your students understand the trials and tribulations the hero faces in order to complete his quest. In order to effectively organize an otherwise complicated theory, I would suggest that you first introduce the main three phases of the hero’s journey—separation, initiation, and return—which are broad and encompass sixteen smaller “sub-stages” (Monomyth Cycle 1). These sixteen sub-stages are the elements of a Hero Quest. [Appendix B] In order to aid your students’ retention of the sub-stages of The Hero Quest, you can attach the sub-stages to their over arching phases. Next, you can categorize the literature circle suggestions under the appropriate phases and their corresponding sub-stages. It is important for both you and your students to know that all of these sub-stages may not be included in every myth. However, they always appear in the same order regardless of omissions. Importance of Hero Quest Elements It is important for your students to be able to identify examples of each sub-stage in order to effectively produce their own Hero Quests for their first writing assignment. The ability to infer information from a text is an important ELA skill that will aid them in completing their critical lens essay later on. Genre-specific criterion enables students to have a clear focus on the material they need to extract. Furthermore, the same criterion enables students to have a clear format while writing both assignments. In other methods of instruction, students are overwhelmed by an all-purpose criterion, and this causes the development of unorganized student essays. The lack of structure takes away from your students’ capabilities and comprehension of the required skills necessary in a good piece of writing. 3.) Sample Lessons It is important for your students to understand the elements of the hero quest because it is the genre’s basic features—it defines the genre. If students do not understand these principles, they will never be able to construct their own writing in that genre. There are several resources that teachers can incorporate into their lessons. Here are two sample lessons based on several resources that I found involving the hero quest. Lesson One: The Hero Quest and Hollywood The Hero Quest pattern is utilized in a vast majority of Hollywood films that most of our students are familiar with. This is important to hook the student’s interests because the use of this media is out-of-context for school. Analyzing these films and having your students extract the information can greatly increase their chances of retention of the stages and sub-stages of the hero-quest. It is important that after showing the film in its entirety you need to have a discussion about the individual stages and sub-stages of the hero-quest. You can also show the scenes from the movie again if they students aren’t clear about any of the stages. If you prefer, you can even stop the movie at important stages while the students are viewing it for the first time. Provided under Appendix C is a suggested list of YA appropriate movies that will be engaging for your students. Lesson Two: The Hero’s Journey, a Web Quest
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In order help your students get a better grasp of the Hero Quest in anticipation of their upcoming writing assignment, they should complete a guided exploration of the genre using a web quest. Students will use the internet addresses provided to search for answers to the given prompts. Students who successfully complete the web quest by reading the given material and thoughtfully answering the given questions will be much better prepared for the critical lens essay later on in the unit. A student copy of the handout has been provided in Appendix F, in addition to a completed version in Appendix G. 4.) From Passive Readers to Active Writers The Writing Process: The Importance of Multiple Drafts
After initially introducing the phases of the hero quest, students will analyze and interpret the film Star Wars as a hero-quest. They will record their findings and develop their understanding in their writer’s notebooks. Students will use their entries as models when they begin drafting their own mono-myths. Boomer states “As they [our students] move toward drafts, they use their notebooks to plan out how the [hero quest] might go” (128). This planning stage is important for drafting a well-developed paper. Our students need to saturate themselves with mythology before they can use it effectively. A genre-study allows this immersion to occur, but the writer notebooks help our students organize and interpret this information for later use. As teachers, it is important for us to see how our students arrive at their conclusions or misconceptions to identify individual points of struggling. If we are able to identify our students’ needs, we can tailor our unit to their individual needs. However, our knowledge of student progress is moot if we can’t translate this information to that individual. Our students’ writer notebook entries should be informally evaluated using a check system. Educators should guide student inquiry by placing a check next to any thought that should be probed further; or a check plus next to any idea that was well-developed. In this case, teacher suggestions will hinder the student’s ability to develop his own rationale, but are more appropriate during the drafting process.
Assignment Two: Writing a Hero Quest The First Draft
Once students have used their writer’s notebook to develop their ideas, they will be expected to create their own hero quest. The heroes of students’ myths should follow and complete the three phases of the hero quest, as Campbell outlines is typical for the genre. See Appendix B, a student handout of the three phases and sixteen sub-stages of the hero quest and Appendix H for a copy of the student assignment handout. Students will work to develop a coherent piece of writing through an extensive revision process; they will have the opportunity to peer review each other’s work and have teacher feedback at multiple stages of the drafting process. Students will be evaluated on their hero myths through the use of a rubric [see Appendix I]; the rubric will be a tool for both the teacher and student, allowing students to see what areas of their understanding need to be reinforced before the final writing assignment: the critical lens essay. Additionally,
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you should plan to provide your students with a polished sample piece that you have produced yourself. By modeling for your students what is expected of them in their final drafts, they will know what to aim for during the bulk of the drafting, revision, and editing processes. The Importance of Teacher Modeling Teacher modeling is an important stage in the learning community of a democratic classroom. It shows the students that even as teachers, we still struggle as learners. It makes the students feel as if they are equal, and not just being dictated to complete a task. Teacher modeling helps the students feel better about the writing process and reduces their anxieties. Students will begin to realize that we are giving them a task that we feel is authentic. If we complete the tasks we assign to our students, we can better predict possible faults or paper-assignments: those that just aren’t practical in classroom application. Teacher modeling is effective because it is a form of self-reflection. It helps us notice our strengths and faults so we can adapt and become better each and every day. 5.) Importance of Rubric as Assessment Tool In general, our students need to be provided with a rubric before completing and turning drafts of their work. This practice is important for our students as it allows them to understand what is expected of them in every aspect of their writing. If students know what we are looking for, they can use the rubric as a checklist during their revising and editing—thus hopefully learning for themselves what parts of their writing need extra attention. As teachers, rubrics are invaluable to us as we evaluate student writing progress when multiple drafts have been handed in. Rubrics allow us to see where our students strengths and weaknesses are, enabling us to tailor our lessons to their needs. 6.) Revising and Editing Rationale: Why use multiple drafts?
Writing is a process. Oftentimes, our students produce a piece of writing and hand it in to us assuming that it’s “done.” They’re ready to be graded and simply move on. In truth, a writer’s writing is never truly “done”; our students should learn to expect that writing is a process that includes brainstorming, multiple drafts, and serious revision and editing. It takes time to produce polished work. Our students should understand that professional writers, like those who’ve created the pieces we’ve studied in this unit, go through a very similar writing process. It’s important for us to remind our students not to get discouraged as they revisit their work. We need to make writing manageable for our students. Many of your students may have difficulties focusing on a writing assignment as a whole. It is important to break down the writing process into multiple drafts so your students can focus on one small goal at a time. For example, in the Hero Quest assignment for this genre study, it would be easiest for students to tackle the inclusion of the sub-stages while writing instead of focusing on skills like spelling and grammar that can be further developed at a later time. This will help your students feel less overwhelmed by the complexity of a culminating writing project.
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Revision is a form of social interaction. According to Cooper, “Students can help each other with the entire [writing] process, and they can be particularly helpful if they have been learning about the same genres together. […They can effectively] guide their evaluations of their own and other students’ work” (50). For these reasons, it is critical to include peer review as an aspect of the writing process to form a community of writers—of both you and your students. This interaction is important for a student-centered classroom and for the students to feel as though they are treated as equals. This relationship is essential to sustain a healthy learning environment, especially while implementing a whole-class genre study. Educators can see areas in which students need improvement. Even though our students may see ideas they want to develop in their own writing, they still need practice making themselves heard in a clear, logical, and coherent manner. By using a system of multiple drafts, we can guide our students to develop ideas that need additional attention, and we can provide proper mini lessons, and to tailor instruction to individual student needs. In a genre study where students are writing in a newly familiar format, they will need the extra guidance provided by multiple drafts and multiple revisions in order to accurately model the genre of the Hero Quest and the necessary inclusion of the sub-stages.
Practical Application of Mini Lessons for Hero-Quest Assignment
Mini Lesson (Appears between first and second draft of the Hero Quest)
Craft: Adding Detail and Description First thing’s first… Two pieces of writing will be provided to students via the overhead projector or ELMO: one that lacks any sort of detail and/or complex sentence construction and a second that has been revised to include additional detail and description. [See Appendix J.] A piece of paper should be used to cover the second piece of writing until the first has been read aloud. After giving students a moment to read the sample to themselves, ask if one student will read the following passage out loud to the class: I stepped outside. The air was cold. It was snowing. I walked down the street. I put my letter in the mailbox. I walked home. After he or she has finished, the teacher should also read the passage out loud making sure to pause at each period, thereby emphasizing the choppiness of the paragraph. Give students a few moments to record their reactions in their writer’s notebooks. After students have finished, uncover the second passage and ask for a second volunteer to read as before. It would be in the teacher’s best interests to choose a student who is not intimidated by reading in front of his or her peers. Again, the teacher should read the passage aloud after the students have finished. Even knowing how frigid it would be, I put my hand on the doorknob and turned. As I stepped over the threshold, I immediately felt the icy air swirl around me. Small white
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flakes landed on my checks and nose, melting instantly. I pulled the door closed behind me and began the normally short walk down the street to the nearest denim blue mailbox. Kicking up the small coating of snow as I went, I thought carefully about what I was about to do—trying to decide if there were any consequences. Would it be best for her to know or should I just keep it to myself? Unable to decide for a moment, I stopped in the middle of the road and looked up into the dark gray clouds. Deciding that it didn’t matter, I took the last few steps to the box and pulled the door open slowly. After surrendering my letter to its dark insides, I slowly turned around and watched the pattern that my feet made in the snow. Trudging back to my doorstep, I knew that within three days she would know how I felt. Students should be given a few moments to record their reactions to this second passage in their writer’s notebooks. This will be valuable as some students are more comfortable participating in a class discussion after they have had the opportunity to first organize their thoughts. Once it looks like most students have finished, ask students to talk to you about their reactions. What is similar about the passages and what is different? Is there a passage that they liked better? Why do they think that is? What does the second passage provide that the first does not? When students seem to have exhausted their discussion, ask them to revisit the drafts of their myths. They should be able to find sections that lack description and that could use more detail. Allow them to write for an extended period of time in class, leaving 10-15 minutes for students to break into small groups and share what they’ve been working on. Groups might offer positive feedback and constructive criticism to students as they move towards revising their pieces. Tying up the loose ends… After sharing their pieces, it would be appropriate to remind students why detail is important in their writing. The addition of detail to writing can be difference between an engaged reader and one who pushes the text aside in search of something more entertaining. Simple details can be more telling about a character or a setting than anything else. Students who’ve been actively engaged in class will be able to support your statements.
Mini Lesson (Appears between second and third drafts of the Hero Quest)
Peer Review
After students have had time to brainstorm and then revise one draft of their Hero Quest, you should plan for time to Peer Review in class. For a piece of writing like the Hero Quest, it will be very important for Peer Reviewers to identify all the phases and stages of the Hero Quest that the writer has so far included. For a handout detailing the specifics that peer reviews need to look for, refer to Appendix K.
Mini Lesson (Appears between third and fourth drafts of the Hero Quest)
Conventions: Revision/Editing Techniques
Before using an editing mini lesson with your students, it is important that they have completed three drafts, been through the peer review process, and received your feedback. Before they
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complete the fourth and “final” draft, students should learn about effective ways to edit their own work. First thing’s first: Use your own Hero Quest as the writing sample for this mini-lesson. The lesson provides an excellent opportunity to practice teacher modeling. Since this lesson is an exercise in revision/editing techniques, you can ask your students to help you edit your writing while simultaneously using guided practice to prepare them for future work with their own pieces. If you have the resources available to you, you should plan to put your sample piece up on the overhead projector or ELMO while students look on with a paper copy they can right on. Your auditory/musical learners will appreciate the dialogue between their classmates while any kinesthetic learners will be better able to cement the practice in their mind by doing it themselves. For our purposes, the revision and editing of this lesson will ask students to focus on four aspects of their writing: their tendency to over-wordiness or extraneous information; any particularly strong passages they are proud of; the potentially weaker passages that need improvement due to awkward phrasing, etc; and areas where incorrect punctuation, capitalization, and word choice are distracting to the reader. As you read your piece aloud, ask your students if they can pick out the awkward speech in your writing, and make notes on your projected copy using:
- [brackets] to indicate that something needs to be cut out, - s squiggly line to indicate that a weaker phrase or section needs additional attention, - a double underline to point to particularly strong phrases—reminding your students
what to strive for, - and a circle to show students where they might need to either look up punctuation and
grammar rules or ask for help Wrapping it up: After students have had the opportunity to help you with your writing, you can direct them towards their own Hero Quests—asking them to use these same symbols as they revise for this fourth and final time. For a sample student handout detailing these revision/editing guidelines, see Appendix L. 7.) Lesson: Preparing Students for the NYS Regents Exam The Critical Lens Essay Students will be expected to write a critical lens essay using both the film (Star Wars) and a myth of their choice that has been discussed in class as one of the touchstone texts. For a handout detailing the critical lens essay assignment see Appendix M. A six point rubric for assessment has been provided in Appendix N. Again, students will be evaluated for content, writing style, and conventions. Using a six-point rubric helps students become accustomed to the way that the Regents Examination is scored. Furthermore, it helps students identify the component of their writing that needs improvement. In essence, rubrics illuminate the strong and weak points of a student’s writing for a more concise revision that helps the student produce a better final product.
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Mini Lesson (Appears between third and fourth drafts of the Critical Lens Essay) Conventions: Sentence Combining with Coordinating Conjunctions
By this stage in the drafting process, it’s very likely that some students’ revised pieces
will exhibit problems with sentence combination. If the majority of the class seems to be having a problem, it will be important to address it during the editing stages through a mini lesson. In this case, we’ll work with coordinating conjunctions as a way to show students the proper way to combine two sentences without creating a run on sentence or comma splice. The mini-lesson provided is modeled after the grammar and convention mini-lessons developed by Dr. Noralyn Masselink. To begin:
Students will be provided with a copy of the “Coordinating Conjunctions” worksheet provided in Appendix P. As a class, we’ll read the passages from “Ramayana1” in the right hand column aloud and compare them to the passages in the left hand column by answering the questions at the bottom of the page. A completed copy of the exercise can be found in Appendix Q.
After the class has completed the exercise, they will break into small groups of two-three students to complete the “Follow up Work: Coordinating Conjunctions” worksheet provided in Appendix R to solidify their understanding of the concept. [See Appendix R.] A completed copy of the exercise can be found in Appendix S.
Once students have completed both exercises, they will be ready to look at their own writing. In pairs, they should exchange drafts for peer review and focus specifically on finding instances where a coordinating conjunction and accompanying comma: has been used effectively, has missing information that needs to be added, or has been used incorrectly to form either a run on sentence or a comma splice. After students have had the chance to review each other’s work, they should look to correcting any errors or revising their word choice to create compound sentences in place of any remaining choppy language. 8.) Portfolio As English teachers, we expect our students to create a portfolio of all their work in our course. Ideally, we would love for them to create a portfolio that spans their entire high school career, but obviously this is out of our control. What we can do, is suggest that our students dedicate a section of their portfolio to this study of The Hero Quest. Students should not only include their final products (their own Hero Quest and the critical lens essay) but the other pieces that make up the genre study as well. You might consider asking them to catalogue the sources they’ve explored and researched in addition to their revision techniques. It’s your prerogative to choose whether this is a suggested or required assignment, but I would suggest that it be a critical component of any unit of study—especially a study of genre. If you use a genre-study in the classroom, the portfolio is an important tool to help categorize students’ works. Taking it one step further, I would suggest that your students’ digital portfolios 1 Note-Ramayana is a popular hero quest that was adapted to Indian culture. This myth is useful in the classroom for two main reasons: it focuses on a young hero who is coming-of-age, and the myth follows Campbell’s hero quest model.
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of their writing are broken down by genre. This way, if they need to further develop or reference their work, they have a clear system of organization. If using genre study helps classify texts, why not use this concept to classify a portfolio? 9.) Publishing: Digital Portfolios Publishing in the 21st century is vastly improved due to the internet. I would suggest that you take advantage of the audience that the internet provides. Your students completed a digital portfolio in order to upload it onto a class website that can be shared with any online community with similar interests in the hero-quest. In particular, I would invite other schools or institution from any region of the world with the same interests to join your online community and share their work. This online community is not only for your students’ benefit, but for other younger students who have not yet taken the Regents Examination. The sample critical lens essays will help these students prepare for and anticipate the upcoming exam. This step is important for your students as well because it offers them a chance to affect the life of another. With this in mind, I feel that your students will work harder to complete the best final project for their capabilities. 10.) Self Reflection Student reflection is the most important stage of the learning process. Students should reflect several times throughout the semester in their Writer’s Notebooks. These reflections will help students take a position by either consciously reinforcing or mending their old beliefs and creating new ones. Student entries will be evaluated both by themselves and the teacher. As students’ write in their writer’s notebooks, teacher’ are given sufficient evidence of individual improvement, and the writer’s notebook entry shows the students’ a weakness in their writing that needs to be corrected in this early stage of the writing process. Another effective use of self-reflection in the writer’s notebook is the students’ need to express how they feel about mythology as a genre-study. In fact, student self-reflection on the mythology genre study will shape your unit as it proceeds. If implemented properly, the self-reflection is an effective tool for understanding your students, and helping your students’ understand themselves. Your students should self-reflect once more at the end of the semester as they think back on the genre study as a whole. This assignment will be informally graded as part of a writer’s notebook check, but is an assignment that your students should take seriously. Their feedback may help you decide whether you’d like to implement a future genre study with those same students. Conclusion To conclude, a hero-myth genre study is an engaging option for students of all ages. Students will be able to explore deeper insights on a particular type of writing, which is not offered by “coverage” of multiple diverse works. These touchstone texts become clear examples for students to frame their own writing. In a genre-study, students focus on content and are guided by the genre-specific elements to induce “flow” in their writing process. The process as a whole allows students to take ownership of their work and strive to better themselves in a scaffolded environment.
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Want to Learn More?
Supplementary Resources For Teachers: "The Hero's Quest." Web English Teacher. Web. 22 Nov. 2009.
<http://www.webenglishteacher.com/hero.html>. "Teaching Mythology with Film -." Associated Content - associatedcontent.com Web. 22
Nov 2009. <http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2263399/teaching_mythology_with_film.html>.
"Using Joseph Campbell's Hero Quest in "The Tale of Genji" -." Associated Content – associatedcontent.com. Web. 22 Nov. 2009. <http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/152594/using_joseph_campbell s_hero_quest_in.html?cat=38>.
"Movie Heroes and the Heroic Journey | Lesson." Media Awareness Network | R. Web. 22 Nov. 2009. <http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/educational/lessons/secondary/movies/movie_heroes_journey.cfm>.
For Students: Fleming, Fergus. Heroes of the Dawn Celtic Myth (Myth and Mankind).
New York: Time-Life Books, 1998. Print.
"Harry Potter films: The hero quest lives on | EW.com." Entertainment Weekly's PopWatch Blog | PopWatch | EW.com. Web. 22 Nov. 2009. <http://popwatch.ew.com/2009/07/16/harry-potter-films-hero-quests-on-the-big-screen/>.
Helbig, Alethea. Myths and hero tales a cross-cultural guide to literature for children and young adults. Westport, Conn: Greenwood, 1997. Print.
Moore, John Noelk. Interpreting Young Adult Literature. Portsmouth: Boynton/Cook Publishers, Inc. 1997.
"Myths, Folktales and Fairy Tales." Teaching Resources, Children's Book Recommendations, and Student Activities | Scholastic.com. Web. 22 Nov. 2009. <http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/mff/myths_mymyth.htm>.
Note- Above is appropriate to aid young adults in writing myth.
<http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/herosjourney/>. Russell, David L. Literature for Children A Short Introduction (6th Edition).
Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 2008. Print. "Start of the Hero's Journey." Maricopa Center for Learning and Instruction | Maricopa
Center for Learning and Instruction. Web. 22 Nov. 2009. <http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/smc/journey/index.html>.
"The Vulcan with a Thousand Faces: Joseph Campbell and the New Star Trek |."
POPTEN | Top Ten Lists for Pop Culture Junkies. Web. 22 Nov. 2009. <http://www.popten.net/2009/05/the-vulcan-with-a-thousand-faces-joseph-campbell-and-the-new-star-trek/#more-2979>.
Works Cited Boomer, Randy. "A Curriculum For English." Time for Meaning. Portsmouth:
Heinemann, 1995. Print.
Calkins, Lucy M. "Genre Studies." The Art of Teaching Writing. Porstmouth: Heinemann, 1994. 357-67. Print.
Cooper, Charles, ed. “What We Know about Genres, and How It Can Help Us Assign
and Evaluate Writing.” Evaluating writing the role of teachers' knowledge about text, learning, and culture. Urbana, Ill: National Council of Teachers of English, 1999. Print.
Lattimer, Heather. Thinking Through Genre. Portland: Stenhouse, 2003. Print. Heroes of History - The Heroic Monomyth." Oracle ThinkQuest Library. Spring 2006.
<http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/herosjourney/>. Russell, David L. Literature for Children A Short Introduction (6th Edition).
Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 2008. Print. Star Wars. Dir. George Lucas. Perf. Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher.
Lucasfilms, 1977. DVD.
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"The Monomyth Cycle." Welcome to WIU | Western Illinois University - Macomb and Moline. Web. 11 Nov. 2009. <http://www.wiu.edu/users/mudjs1/monomyth.htm>.
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Appendix A Student Handout: List of Touchstone Texts
Short Sample List of Student Texts with Hero Myth Format: Evslin, Bernard. The Adventures of Ulysses. New York: Scholastic Paperbacks, 1980.
Print. Lucas, George. Star Wars, Episode IV – A New Hope. Null: Del Rey, 1986. Print. Rowling, J. K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. New York: A.A. Levine Books,
1998. Print. Tolkien, J. R. R. Lord of the Rings. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2002. Print.
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Appendix B Student Handout: Phases and Stages of the Hero Quest
The characteristics of a Hero Quest allow the reader to compare and contrast key moments in the hero’s journey between hero myths. According to Joseph Campbell, the sequence of events are as follows: Separation: Unusual Birth The hero is usually conceived in a mysterious and unusual way. The hero may be born with a virgin mother, or be the son of a god. The hero is oftentimes threatened at birth and if forced into hiding by an evil force. Call to adventure: The hero is in a state of unbalance, turmoil even. Something will ask him to complete a task. For example, Agamemnon calls Odysseus to adventure against Troy. There isn’t always a “call to adventure” in every hero quest. Some heroes are banished or lost from their homes without setting out on any formal quest. Refusal of the call: The hero isn’t always “heroic” in accepting the challenge. There have been many instances where the hero either refuses to go on a quest, or even become distracted from his goal. If the hero refuses his “call to adventure,” the hero will find himself in need of escaping a difficult situation. A Guide or Supernatural aid: Being a hero doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to complete your quest without any help. Most heroes have helpers, guardians or “guides,” who help them escape an otherwise fatal situation. If a guide is absent, the hero is often offered help by a god. Help can come in many forms. The guide can offer a way to escape a situation, or physical or psychological weaponry. Many times, a hero receives a vital tool such as an protective “amulet” or “talisman” to help him succeed his quest. Threshold crossing In this stage, the hero leaves or is forced from the comfort of his home to embark on the quest. The crossing of the threshold can happen several times depending on how many “new worlds” the hero enters. In these new worlds, his worth as a hero will be tested. A common example of “Crossing a Threshold” is the hero’s journey to the underworld. On the descent to the “new world,” the hero usually has to defeat a guardian or protector. Belly of the whale
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The “Belly of The Whale” lies past the guardian of the threshold. It is the “new world” which takes the form of fluidity and dream-like imagery. The entering into the “Belly of the Whale” stage is symbolized by darkness. A common example is the hero in underworld itself. When the hero emerges from this world, he is a new person. Initiation: Road of Trials The “Road of Trials” is the heart of the Hero Myth. The hero’s worth needs to be proven through a series of obstacles, which can be either mentally or physically demanding. These obstacles increase in intensity and prepare the hero for the ultimate goal that the myth is trying to accomplish. Goddess or Temptresses The hero encounters a woman during his quest in the “new world.” The woman that he encounters can be grouped into one or two categories. She can either be a goddess or woman that helps the hero complete his quest or a temptress. A temptress is often how women are depicted in mythology. They are tricksters normally in disguise that wants to see the hero fail in completing his quest. An example of a temptress in modern day fairytale is the witch that “tempts” Snow White to eat the poisonous apple. Apotheosis Oftentimes in mythology, the hero will reconcile with the authority figure in his life. This stage is clearest in hero quests that involve princes. Normally, they will have to face their father, the King, in opposition for the thrown. Or the father was forced out of the kingdom at the hero’s birth and the hero sets out to find him. Ultimate Boon The “Ultimate Boon” is the reward the hero receives for successfully completing his quest. This reward isn’t always gold or anything physically tangible. Often, the ultimate boon is knowledge given to the hero as his final reward that can benefit or save his people. Return:
Refusal of the Return:
Once the hero finishes his quest, he may not want to return to his home but instead stay in the new world. The hero may believe that the old world won’t accept or understand what the hero has learned on his journey.
The Magic Flight:
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The hero may rather decide to return home after finishing his quest. He may be accompanied by a protector who helps him overcome the obstacles the hero might face as he returns home. With the prize in hand, the hero must flee from those he angered on his journey.
Rescue from Without:
While on the return journey, the hero may need to be rescued from death or from a state of helplessness and bliss.
Crossing of the Return Threshold:
As the hero travels to return home on his journey, he must once again cross the threshold separating his home and the new world. He may have to defeat another gatekeeper, and in the process become “reborn” with his humanity after his “death” from crossing the threshold the first time.
Master of Two Worlds:
Once the hero crosses the threshold, he comes to realize that there really is nothing separating his home from the new world. He now understands the differences and the balance between the comfortable safety of his home and the new world. With this understanding, he has also balanced his character and mind.
Freedom to Live:
Now with the journey complete, the hero has reached an understanding with himself and can now live freely between his home and the new world. With his newfound knowledge, he can now be beneficial to the world.
Note: Every hero quest does not include all of the elements listed above, but all the elements that are present in the story in sequence.
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Appendix C Young Adult Appropriate Film List
The following films follow the hero quest format:
1.) Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.
2.) The Lion King.
3.) Beauty and the Beast.
4.) Star Trek.
5.) The Wizard of Oz.
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Appendix D Student Handout: The Hero Quest—Phases and Sub-Stages (Prose)
Elements of the Hero Quest According to Joseph Campbell’s break down of the three phases of the hero’s journey, there are specific stages heroes must complete across all hero-quests before he may move on to the next phase. These phases break down as follows: In phase one, departure, heroes should have some call to adventure; they may choose to refuse the call, but it is always to their disadvantage. Those who choose to accept their calling generally receive some sort of supernatural aid that aids them in making the transition across the first threshold between the hero’s old world and the “adventurous new” one. In phase two, the hero is initiated into this new world. His trials and tribulations include a “road of trials,” a meeting with a Goddess, possible temptation (usually from a temptress) to stray from his task, and an “atonement with the [character’s] father” or another similar authority figure. After those trials, the hero has an apotheosis or epiphany and whether it is this knowledge alone or something more tangible, the hero bestows an ultimate boon on the world. The third and final phase, return, has many possibilities; the hero may refuse to return, be brought home under the protection of an outside source in a magic flight, or might even possibly require rescue from an outside source. There is an additional transition across the [return] threshold as the hero reacts to the division between the new world and the one he knows as home. Upon his return, he finally understands there is no separation between these worlds. Understanding this makes him a master of both the new and old world and gives him the freedom to live and help others with his newfound knowledge (Heroes 1).
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Appendix E Student Handout: Sample Hero Quest
Burt is a man of about twenty years of age. He walks along the cliffs looking down at the waves crashing on the jagged rocks. As they crash, the white waters engulf the rock in its entirety occasionally letting it bask in sun’s warmth, and letting it feel the winds kiss amongst its damp surface. Burt often takes this walk staring at the outward moving ripples from the rocks he hurls. He looks over the edge and sees a puddle forming on a divot in the cliffs face. Burt never knew his parents and looking at his reflection is as if he was looking at a stranger he has never met. One day, Burt sees a seagull squawking on the same rock that the white water rushes over. He admires the bird’s courage to sit so far to immediate danger, or his ignorance of not knowing. Burt sees a massive wave engulf the seagull. He walks down to the cliff to investigate. He finds the seagull lying dead on the shore. He picks him up and buries him under the coarse sand. That was the first day that Burt ever walked down to the bottom of that cliff. The following day Burt couldn’t get the image of the daring bird out of his head. The phone rings. It’s his friend Mike. Burt goes on to explain the story about the daring bird buried sea side. Mike asks, “So after all these years you finally climbed down the cliff?” Burt mutters, “Yea, I guess I didn’t even realize that.” Mike continues, “Well then maybe you should go down again.” Burt refuses. Mike offers to come with him. Burt accepts. They go to the cliffs later on that day around three O’clock. At the edge, Burt looks down in sorrow and fear all mixed together. They climb down to the shore together and stand at the waters edge. “It’s ok,” Mike says. Burt almost puts one foot in the water and sees the crashing waves curling over the rocks. He steps back. Mike hands him the surfboard and says this is what he would want. Burt takes the board from Mike and steps into the shallows. He thrust himself onto the board and paddles out. The whitewaters curl over, engulfing him as he fights to get to the other side. Burt breaks through to the calm ocean past the crashing waves. A world of freedom he has only imagined up until this point. He sees the waves bubble up in front of him, but crashing inland. He knows he has to get back but is paralyzed with fear. Mindy, a fellow surfer confronts him and asks “Hey, Scared?” He glowers at her in terror. Her soothing voice makes her words dance on the air “It’s ok. Its only water I’m going to help you through this. Why are you so scared anyways?” She asks. He replies, “My brother died out her a year ago, and I was suppose to come visit and surf with him, but I couldn’t make it.” She glances down at her board and says, “Ok well let’s do this together then, just lie down and paddle. Now go! The board is taken by the largest wave he has even scene crash on the shore. He tries to stand up and gets tumbled. A few minutes later, Burt is standing on the cliffs dripping wet and with his skin stained with salt. He sees Mike frantically looking for him and shouts down. Mike comes up to the cliff. Burt says with a smile plastered across his face, “I finally surfed with my brother, now I can finally live.”
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Appendix F Lesson 2: Student Handout // Web Quest (Blank)
Today, you’ll be going on a journey of your own as you learn more about the Hero Quest. To
begin, please go to the following web address: http://www.alvinsoon.com/lifecoachesblog/wp-content/files/theherosjourney.pdf
1. Who is Joseph Campbell and what is he famous for? 2. What reasons might a hero have for refusing his/her “call to adventure”? 3. Who or what are “Threshold Guardians”? What roles do these guardians play in the Hero Quest? 4. What is the hero’s final test? 5. What is the ultimate boon or “treasure” that a hero receives in return for his quest? Pick two of your favorite sub-stages of the hero’s journey, and do some searching on http://www.YouTube.com. Can you find video clips that exemplify these stages? For each clip, write a short analysis of justifying your choice. 1. 2.
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Appendix G Lesson 2: Student Handout // Web Quest (Completed)
Today, you’ll be going on a journey of your own as you learn more about the Hero Quest. To
begin, please go to the following web address: http://www.alvinsoon.com/lifecoachesblog/wp-content/files/theherosjourney.pdf
1. Who is Joseph Campbell and what is he famous for?
Campbell is an American college professor; he’s studied myths across cultures and discovered that they share commonalities.
2. What reasons might a hero have for refusing their “call to adventure”? What’s the problem with such a refusal?
A hero might refuse their call to adventure due to fear of approaching challenges or because they doubt their ability to complete the journey or task. The problem with such a refusal is that it’s “inauthentic”; people have inside them everything they need to become a hero.
3. Who or what are “Threshold Guardians”? What roles do these guardians play in the Hero Quest?
Threshold Guardians are the obstacles that stand between a hero and his completion of the journey. They’re role is to test the hero and confirm his conviction to follow through on his chosen path.
5. What is the ultimate boon or “treasure” that a hero receives in return for his quest?
A hero’s treasure might be a physical object that a person can hold in his or her hand, or it might be “something intangible like knowledge or self worth.”
Pick two of your favorite sub-stages of the hero’s journey, and do some searching on http://www.YouTube.com. Can you find video clips that exemplify these stages? For each clip, write a short analysis of justifying your choice. 1. 2.
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Appendix H Student Handout: Hero Quest Assignment
Assignment Handout: We have spent a significant amount of time immersing ourselves in the genre of the Hero Quest. Now that you’ve followed a few different heroes on their journeys, it’s time for you to write one of your own! Purpose and Audience: The purpose of this assignment is to create your own Hero Quest. You have control over the characters, the setting, the plot, everything. You have ultimate control—but you must adhere to the phases and sub-stages of the hero’s journey that we’ve been discussing in class. Please be sure to refer to the “Phases and Stages of the Hero Quest” handout you received at the beginning of the unit. Your audience for this assignment will be other experts on the genre—i.e., your classmates. For this reason, you need not be explicit about the phases and stages of the hero’s journey. Format: The format and structure of this assignment are entirely up to you. My only request is that you are sure to title your piece and give it a provocative hook or lead. Checklist:
Include a proper header on the top of the page. This header should include the following in this order:
Your Name Name of Course Teacher’s Name Date
proofread and run a spell check on your piece before submitting it either in hardcopy or electronically;
keep your writing well organized. Remember to follow the order of the phases and sub-stages of the hero’s journey;
re-read your Hero Quest before handing it in to make sure that it fulfills the criteria outlined in both this assignment sheet and the accompanying rubric;
your piece needs a title. Due Dates: You will start brainstorming in your writer’s notebook during class on <Insert Date Here>.
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There will be class time available to you to work as you move from the brainstorming stage to your first draft. Plan to continue working in class on <Insert Date Here> as you develop your first draft. You’ll have the chance to revise both in class and for homework with a second draft due for peer review and at the end of class on <Insert Date Here>. If time allows, you will start reviewing each other’s second drafts in class. Class will break sixteen minutes early on <Insert Date Here> for a mini-lesson on Effective Peer Feedback. For homework, complete your peer review of the Hero Quest you began reading in class. Peer review comments are due back to the original owner of the draft on <Insert Date Here>. You will have the opportunity to revise your Hero Quest based on your peer reviewer’s comments, at your own discretion, in class on <Insert Date Here>. If your peer reviewer failed to complete his assignment notify me immediately. For homework, you will have time to finish any last minute revisions before submitting a third draft of you Hero Quest in hardcopy to the teacher. Suggestions for revision will be returned in class by <Insert Date Here>. Time will be given in class on <Insert Date Here> for you to conference with me and work on your last set of revisions. You should plan to hand in a fourth and “final” draft of your Hero Quest (in both electronic and paper copy) at the beginning of class on <Insert Date Here>. On <Insert Date Here> we’ll start class by self-reflecting on our experience with genre in our Writer’s Notebooks.
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Appendix I Student Handout: Hero Quest Rubric
Criteria 3 2 1 0
Content
Hero Quest is throught
provoking and engaging. The
story is original and follows a logical plot progression.
Hero Quest is engaging and the story is original.
At times, the plot may be
unclear.
Writing does not encourage
readers to keep going. The story
may be a modified version of a well known
myth.
Content either lacks originality or the story does
not follow a logical path.
Student needs to
revise.
Adherence to the Genre
Characteristics
It’s very obvious that this writer is familiar with the phases and sub-
stages of the hero quest. At least ten of the sub-stages have been covered.
Student has done a successful job demonstrating
their understanding of the hero quest.
At least eight of the ten sub-
stages have been covered.
Student may not have an accurate understanding of the hero quest. Less than eight of the sixteen
sub-stages have been covered.
Student does not have an
understanding of the progression
of a hero’s journey. Less
than five of the sixteen sub-
stages have been covered
Student needs to
revise.
Grammar and Mechanics
Student proofread and
ran spell check; writing contains no misuses of punctuation or grammatical
errors.
Piece contains less than three
misuses of punctuation or
other grammatical
errors.
Student needs to proofread his/her
work. Piece contains more
than eight misuses of
punctuation or other
grammatical errors.
Piece is nearly impossible to read due to issues with
grammar and mechanics.
Student needs to
revise.
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Appendix J Mini Lesson 1: Craft—Adding Detail and Description
Passage One: I stepped outside. The air was cold. It was snowing. I walked down the street. I put my letter in the mailbox. I walked home. Passage Two: Even knowing how frigid it would be, I put my hand on the doorknob and turned. As I stepped over the threshold, I immediately felt the icy air swirl around me. Small white flakes landed on my checks and nose, melting instantly. I pulled the door closed behind me and began the short walk down the street to the nearest denim blue mailbox. Kicking up the small coating of snow as I went, I thought carefully about what I was about to do—trying to decide if there were any consequences. Would it be best for her to know or should I just keep it to myself? Unable to decide for a moment, I stopped in the middle of the road and looked up into the dark gray clouds. Deciding that it didn’t matter, I took the last few steps to the box and pulled the door open slowly. After surrendering my letter to its dark insides, I slowly turned around and watched the pattern that my feet made in the snow. Trudging back to my doorstep, I knew that within three days she would know how I felt.
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Appendix K Mini Lesson 2: Peer Review—Guided Questions
As you read your peer’s Hero Quest, identify the phases and sub-stages that they have included in their text.
Peer Reviewer: _________________________
Phases and Sub-Stages of __________’s Hero Quest Unusual Birth
Call to Adventure
Refusal of the call
A Guide or Supernatural Aid
Threshold Crossing Sepa
ratio
n
Belly of the Whale
Road of Trials
Goddess or Temptress
Apotheosis
Initi
atio
n
Ultimate Boon
Refusal of the Return
The Magic Flight
Rescue from Without
Crossing of the Return Threshold
Master of Two Worlds
Ret
urn
Freedom to Live
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Appendix L Mini Lesson 3: Editing—Guidelines
Editing and Revision Techniques
As we prepare to revise our Hero Quests for the fourth and “final” time, it might be helpful to narrow our focus in terms of what we are looking for. For some of you, these techniques might be hard to employ as you read your own writing to yourself. If you are having a difficult time hearing your own voice (maybe you’re skimming through and missing punctuation errors or awkward word phrases) it might help to have a peer read your paper to you. In this way, that peer will be reading the text exactly as they see it and you will be able to mark for what needs editing and revision accordingly. As a disclaimer, this is not a peer reviewing exercise. You should be marking up your own text. Things to look for:
1. As you read through your text, be conscious of extra information. Are there words, phrases, or sentences that seem to be getting in the way of your point? Does every sentence take you closer to the next sub-stage of hero’s journey? To help you identify unnecessary sections of text that can be cut out, put them in [brackets]. Remember, we want to practice concision and use our words economically!
2. Keep an eye out for weak phrases or sections of your writing that need additional
attention. Are there portions of your Hero Quest that are confusing? Did you include a phrase that doesn’t quite make sense in context? Draw a squiggly line beneath any weak or unclear writing to remind yourself of the areas that need your attention.
3. You should also be on the look out for particularly strong and effective sections of your
writing. Not only will it make you feel accomplished to see the strong pieces jumping out at you, but you’ll get an idea of what areas of writing you’re best at. Are you better with introductions or conclusions? Can you write a killer topic sentence or do you write really effective transitions? Allow yourself to see your strengths by using a double underline.
4. How often have you read through something and wondered if your spelling was off or if a
comma really belonged where you wanted to take a breath? Do you sometimes wonder if you’re using the right word or if you actually have an effective transition at the end of your paragraph? I wonder about things like that all the time and I find myself continually asking others for help. Use a circle to indicate any remaining questions or concerns you might have and make a note about who the student can see for assistance.
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Appendix M Student Handout: Critical Lens Essay Assignment
Assignment Handout: Using the statement below to guide your argument, write a critical lens essay in which you analyze the Hero Quest through a feminist lens. You will use both the film Star Wars and a touchstone text of your choice that we’ve read together during this unit. Your list of touchstone texts to choose from includes:
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear us that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.” –Marianne Williamson Purpose and Audience: The purpose of this critical lens essay is to analyze two Hero Quests using a particular literary theory, i.e. the feminist lens. If you would like an additional challenge, you might consider analyzing the hero quests using another literary theory (i.e. deconstruction, new historicism, etc.). If you choose to go that route, please see me before you begin the drafting process. In this assignment, your audience will be myself and the other students in the room. You can assume that we’ve all had adequate exposure to the texts you discussing, and therefore should avoid plot summary. Format: Please write a 500 to 750 word comparative essay that will be submitted in both hardcopy and electronically. Use 1 inch margins on both sides, and Times New Roman font set at 12-point. Your essay should roughly follow the structure below.
Introduction Body Paragraph 1- Analysis of Film Body Paragraph 2- Analysis of Touchstone Text Body Paragraph 3- Comparison of the two Hero Quests Conclusion
Checklist: Create in-text citations in your introductory paragraph that includes the author’s or
director’s full name and the title of his work. If you include a quotation that exceeds three typed lines, it should be formatted as a block
quote (single spaced and indented by one inch from the left hand margin). Be sure to include a proper header on the top of the page. This header should include the
following in this order:
Your Name Name of Course Teacher’s Name Date
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Do not forget to proofread and run spell-check before turning in either an electronic or paper copy of this assignment.
Do a word count to make sure you have the appropriate number of words according to the guidelines above. Highlight the essay and then click on word count in order to ensure that the title and header are not included.
Keep your comparative essay well organized. If you would prefer to use another format other than the one above, please talk to me before you begin the drafting process.
Re-read your comparative essay to make sure it completes the task. It would be beneficial to use the rubric you were given as an additional checklist.
Make sure you incorporate specific evidence from both texts to support your claims. Give your essay an exciting title and an engaging hook. If it’s important enough for you
to write 750 words about, it’s important enough to receive a title. Due Dates: You will start brainstorming in your writer’s notebook during class on <Insert Date Here>. There will be class time available to you to work as you move from the brainstorming stage to your first draft. Plan to continue working in class on <Insert Date Here> as you develop your first draft. You’ll have the chance to revise both in class and for homework with a second draft due for peer review and at the end of class on <Insert Date Here>. If time allows, you will start reviewing each others second drafts in class. Class will break sixteen minutes early on <Insert Date Here> for a mini-lesson on Sentence Combining with Coordinating Conjuntions. For homework, complete your peer review of the essay you began reading in class. Peer review comments are due back to the original owner of the essay on <Insert Date Here>. You will have the opportunity to revise your essay based on your peer reviewer’s comments, at your own discretion, in class on <Insert Date Here>. If your peer reviewer failed to complete his assignment notify me immediately. For homework, you will have time to finish any last minute revisions before submitting a third draft of you essay in hardcopy to the teacher. Corrections will be returned in class by <Insert Date Here>. Time will be given in class on <Insert Date Here> for you to conference with me and work on your last set of revisions. During the first twenty minutes of class, we'll work through a mini-lesson on sentence combining as a means to vary sentence structure. You should plan to hand in a fourth and “final” draft of your essay (in both electronic and paper copy) at the beginning of class on <Insert Date Here>. On <Insert Date Here> we’ll start class by continuing our earlier work with the self-reflection on our experiences with genre in our Writer’s Notebooks.
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Appendix N Student Handout: Critical Lens Essay Rubric
6 5 4 3 2 1
Meaning
Has clearly expressed
points in earth shattering
detail, Proper evidence
provided that goes over and
above requirements.
Has clearly expressed
points, strong details
provided, evidence is used very
well.
Has clearly expressed
most points, good details
provided, evidence supports points.
Has expressed points that are vague, details are lacking,
evidence superficially
supports points.
Has expressed superficial points that
are incoherent
or incomplete, take away
from meaning.
Has expressed points that make
no sense, no meaning can be
gathered.
Development
Has chosen exceptional examples to support their meaning in
many areas, has highly
developed key points,
discovers new understandings.
Has chosen strong
examples to support their
meaning, could use one or two
more examples for
support.
Has chosen good
examples to support their
meaning, could use
several more examples for
support.
Has chosen few examples
that superficially
support multiple claims.
Has only chosen one
example from that supports multiple claims.
Has not chosen any examples to support multiple
claims, or examples they
have chosen are clearly
inappropriate to support multiple
claims.
Organization
Is clearly formatted
according to the standards
highlighted on the assignment
sheet. Formatting adds
to the flow of the essay.
Is clearly formatted
according to the standards highlighted
on the assignment sheet, but
minor details need to be addressed.
Needs improvement
on some formatting
requirements, but vitals are
intact.
Is not formatted
according to the
assignment and needs significant
improvement.
Is not clearly
formatted which
severely takes away
from the clarity of the
piece.
Is not clearly formatted which makes the piece
impossible to read.
Language Use
Uses language appropriate for a comparative
essay, vocabulary and
sentence structure
elevates the impact of the
individuals meaning,
Uses language
appropriate for a
comparative essay,
vocabulary and sentence
structure support
meaning.
Uses language appropriate
for the piece, but is lacking
context.
Uses language incorrectly or
that is superficial,
does not add to the meaning
of the piece.
Uses language
that is hard to
understand, vocabulary
and sentence structure
clearly take away from
the meaning of their piece.
Uses language that is clearly
inappropriate for a comparative
essay, vocabulary and
sentence structure make
piece impossible to read.
Conventions Has no spelling,
grammar, or punctuation
errors.
Has no more than 2
spelling, grammar,
punctuation errors.
Has no more than 4
spelling, grammar,
punctuation errors.
Has errors which
interfere with the meaning
of piece.
Has errors which make
the entire piece
difficult to understand.
Has errors which make the piece impossible to
read/understand.
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Appendix O Student Handout: Self Reflection Guidelines
Assignment Handout: Congratulations on completing what might be your first ever genre study! We’ve immersed ourselves in the genre of the Hero Quest by reading multiple examples, analyzing texts, and even writing our own. I’m fairly certain that we’ve all become experts on the genre. Purpose and Audience: For this assignment, I would like you to reflect on the process we’ve been through in this genre study. What pieces were helpful to you? Was there anything that you thought to be less than worthwhile? Why? Did you learn anything new from studying the Hero Quest? What was your favorite touchstone text? Least favorite? Was there anything you didn’t learn about that you wish you had? If you had the option to work on another genre study, would you? If so, what genre would you be interested in studying? Format: Please write a 400-500 word reflection in your writer’s notebooks. You may structure your piece in whatever way is easiest for you. The audience for this piece will be you and I—please be honest as you reflect. This assignment will be informally graded during a regular writer’s notebook checks. Checklist:
Be sure to proofread your piece before submitting it. Follow a logical progression in your writing. Re-read your reflection and this assignment sheet before handing in the assignment to
make sure it completes the task. Make sure you incorporate specific evidence from all components of the genre study to
support your opinions. Please give your reflection a title.
Due Dates: <Insert Date Here.>
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Appendix P Mini Lesson 4: Sentence Combining—CC Blank
Coordinating Conjunctions
The Ramayana: Chapter One Uncoordinated Sentences Coordinated (Compound) Sentences
1. You are to blame for our troubles. You made Ravana immune to attack by either the gods or his own people.
1. “You are to blame for our troubles, for you made Ravana immune to attack by either the gods or his own people” (Rosenburg 365).
2. Unless you act quickly, evil will triumph over good. We will be ruined!
2. “Unless you act quickly, evil will triumph over good, and we will be ruined” (Rosenburg 365).
3. The gods honored and respected Vishnu as their great defense in time of need. They pleaded with him for help.
3. “The gods honored and respected Vishnu as their great defense in time of need, so they pleaded with him for help” (Rosenburg 366).
4. His evil ways know no end. We are powerless to stop him.
4. “His evil ways know no end, yet we area powerless to stop him” (Rosenburg 366).
5.Then he took the stance of the archer and drew the bow. The strain was more than the wood could bear.
5. “Then he took the stance of the archer and drew the bow, but the strain was more than the wood could bear” (Rosenburg 367).
1. All of the sentences above are grammatically correct, but the ones on the right are probably preferable. Why do you think that is? What differences do you hear when the sentences are read aloud?
2. Cross out everything in the left-hand column that does not appear on the right. Circle anything new that appears in the right-hand column. Do you see a pattern? How were the sentences on the left transformed into the sentences on the right? 3. Specifically, which words were added to help combine the sentences? 4. These words are called coordinating conjunctions. What do these words do in the sentences above? 5. After seeing how the coordinating conjunctions and commas are used in the sentences, can you figure out what the comma rule is? 6. There are two other coordinating conjunctions not listed here. What are they? Can we develop an acronym that will help us remember the words?
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Appendix Q Mini Lesson 4: Sentence Combining—CC Completed
Coordinating Conjunctions
The Ramayana: Chapter One Uncoordinated Sentences Coordinated (Compound) Sentences
1. You are to blame for our troubles. You made Ravana immune to attack by either the gods or his own people.
1. “You are to blame for our troubles, for you made Ravana immune to attack by either the gods or his own people” (Rosenburg 365).
2. Unless you act quickly, evil will triumph over good. We will be ruined!
2. “Unless you act quickly, evil will triumph over good, and we will be ruined” (Rosenburg 365).
3. The gods honored and respected Vishnu as their great defense in time of need. They pleaded with him for help.
3. “The gods honored and respected Vishnu as their great defense in time of need, so they pleaded with him for help” (Rosenburg 366).
4. His evil ways know no end. We are powerless to stop him.
4. “His evil ways know no end, yet we area powerless to stop him” (Rosenburg 366).
5.Then he took the stance of the archer and drew the bow. Thestrain was more than the wood could bear.
5. “Then he took the stance of the archer and drew the bow, but the strain was more than the wood could bear” (Rosenburg 367).
1. All of the sentences above are grammatically correct, but the ones on the right are probably preferable. Why do you think that is? What differences do you hear when the sentences are read aloud? The sentences in the left hand column are choppy and disconnected while the sentences in the left hand column seem more fluid.
2. Cross out everything in the left-hand column that does not appear on the right. Circle anything new that appears in the right-hand column. Do you see a pattern? How were the sentences on the left transformed into the sentences on the right? The sentences on the left were transformed by replacing the period with a comma and adding a new word to combine the two shorter sentences into on long sentence. 3. Specifically, which words were added to help combine the sentences? for, and, so, yet, but 4. These words are called coordinating conjunctions. What do these words do in the sentences above? The words above are used to combine the sentences. 5. After seeing how the coordinating conjunctions and commas are used in the sentences, can you figure out what the comma rule is? When combining two sentences with a coordinating conjunction, a comma must be placed after the first sentence but before the coordinating conjunction. 6. There are two other coordinating conjunctions not listed here. What are they? Can we develop an acronym that will help us remember the words? or, nor || acronym: BOYSFAN
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Appendix R Mini Lesson 4: Sentence Combining—FW CC Blank
Follow up Work: Coordinating Conjunctions
The Ramayana: Chapter Two
1. Find two additional examples of compound sentences from your outside reading and copy them below. Be sure to indicate where the information was found. 2. Use the sentences below to create compound sentences. Be sure to choose an appropriate coordinating conjunction and punctuate appropriately.
a. I will end my days in ease. Since Rama is unmathed in virtue and valor, and Ayodhya and the kingdom of Kosala will prosper under his rule.
b. Another queen’s son has won the throne, not your son. Your son is the better of the two, being unmathed in merit and in fame.
c. Speak to your husband before it is too late. Otherwise, Rama will force Bharata to serve him and will hate Bharata if he refuses.
3. Answer the following question in a compound sentence, using the provided sentence to assist you. What happens to Rama in Chapter Two? For fourteen years, Rama is exhiled from Ayodhya ____________________________________ ___________________________________________________ 4. In one compound sentence, summarize chapter two of The Ramayana.
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Appendix S Mini Lesson 4: Sentence Combining—FW CC Completed
Follow up Work: Coordinating Conjunctions
The Ramayana: Chapter Two
1. Find two additional examples of compound sentences from your outside reading and copy them below. Be sure to indicate where the information was found.
Varied. 2. Use the sentences below to create compound sentences. Be sure to choose an appropriate coordinating conjunction and punctuate appropriately.
a. I will end my days in ease. Since Rama is unmathed in virtue and valor, and Ayodhya and the kingdom of Kosala will prosper under his rule.
I will end my days in ease, and since Rama is unmathed in virtue and valor, and Ayodhya and the kingdom of Kosala will prosper under his rule.
b. Another queen’s son has won the throne, not your son. Your son is the better of the two, being unmathed in merit and in fame.
Another queen’s son has won the throne, not your son, yet your son is the better of the two, being unmatched in merit and in fame.
c. Speak to your husband before it is too late. Otherwise, Rama will force Bharata to serve him and will hate Bharata if he refuses.
Speak to your husband before it is too late, or otherwise, Rama will force Bharata to serve him and will hate Bharata if he refuses.
3. Answer the following question in a compound sentence, using the provided sentence to assist you. What happens to Rama in Chapter Two? For fourteen years, Rama is exhiled from Ayodhya, yet he has the company of both Sita and Lakshamana during his journey. 4. In one compound sentence, summarize chapter two of The Ramayana.
“King Dasa-ratha plans to give his kingdom to Rama, but Bharata’s mother forces him to give it to her son instead.
