Monday, Oct. 1stWalk In:• Pick up a Thought Journey prompt sheet on the way in. •Get out your Writers Notebooks.• Grab a class notebook, look in the “Genre Study: Blending Modes” section and get out the essay “Family Counterculture.”
Create a new heading in your WNB
October 1st, 2012: Thought Journey Genre Study
• Read and annotate the writing prompt
• In your WNB, IN COMPLETE SENTENCES, write down your thoughts on the assignment:▫Summary of what I’m supposed to do▫Questions I have▫Things I think will be difficult▫Ideas I might have for a topic.
Blending modes: Thought Journey Essay And Genre Study
What is genre study?•Closely reading many examples of a particular kind of writing.
•Using Inquiry to uncover traits and patterns within these examples(Inquiry – the act of investigating or seeking information through discovery and/or questioning.)
Knowledge isn’t enough• Learning has changed. Instead of knowing facts, students
need to be able to: read and creatively analyze many different kinds of texts. write clearly and accurately for a wide variety of purposes and
audiences. think critically and analytically to understand and solve
problems. collaborate as part of a team.
• In other words, students need to learn to become self-sufficient and self-reliant learners; the #1 skill students need to pick up for the 21st century is learning how to learn.
NPR documentary: “Don’t Lecture Me”•In your Writer’s Notebook, make a new heading:
Oct. 3rd NPR: “Don’t Lecture Me”
1. Big Idea #1
2. Big Idea #2
3. Big Idea #3
4. Big Idea #4
How is genre study different than other approaches to writing?
•Teacher Directed ▫Read for this purpose: setting, irony, plot
elements, suspense, theme etc . . . •Teacher Facilitator – Student Directed
▫Students will read many examples of mentor texts and collaborate with each other to discover traits that that they have in common through an inquiry process.
Genre Study Process
•Setting the Stage•Immersion (Read like a reader)•Close Study (Read like a writer)•Writing Under the Influence•Publish & Present
Students will create a Thought Journey essay
•word process, print and submit the essay to their teacher
•Create and submit a “Writer’s Statement” to the Bear Creek Newspaper Staff for potential publication
•Bear Facts Staff will request full texts of essays they are interested in.
A This I Believe essay is a personal essay.
Thought Journey Essay – Is a personal essay with hints of narrative & memoir
PERSONAL ESSAY Focused on belief , question, or insight about life that is significant to the writer
PERSONAL NARRATIVE Focused on a significant event
PERSONAL MEMOIR Focused on a significant relationship between the writer and a person, place, or object
"Family Counterculture" by Ellen Goodman Re-read the three essential questions from prompt sheet:
1. When and how do some modes for communicating ideas (i.e. descriptive, narrative, argumentative, etc.) work better than others?
2. How do I craft an essay that evokes an intended response from my audience?
3. How does my ability to use engaging syntax and correct and purposeful conventions help me better communicate my ideas?
These are the things we will be thinking about with everything we do over the coming weeks, including as we read this essay.
Think like readers:•In your genre groups, identify, articulate,
and discuss Goodman's claim.
•Read the essay, discuss, then:1. send one person up to the left white board
to write the question/problem/claim their group came up with, and…
2. Send one person to the right white board to write the realization/new understanding group came up with.
Now think like a writer: •In your genre groups, consider Ellen
Goodman’s motivation, approach, etc.
▫Why would someone write an essay like this?
▫Who are they writing it for? Who is their target audience?
Now BE a writer: •what is it that you want to say? Who do
you want to say it to? Here is your chance to make a statement and send a message to your parents, your teachers, your peers…to the world!!
Homework:•Read for at least 20 minutes and create a
reader response.
TuesdayWalk In:
BlockdayWalk In:
Brainstorming•What do you think about?•What annoys you?•What do you want to do?•What have you observed?
•What did you find interesting about the questions and realizations that others made about your topic?
•How can you use some of these comments to help you develop your Thought Journey essay?
FridayWalk In:
Homework
