UNIT 1 B NOTESLESSONS 6-9

Today’s focus:

Scenes:

How do scenes from a story affect the text? Why does being able to answer this matter?

Ponder this: plots are a collection of related scenes, woven together to create a whole. Now, imagine the plot of your

favorite story without some of the scenes. That’s kind of like movie theater popcorn without butter—not nearly as good

as it should be. Take a moment to consider stories you’ve read or movies you’ve watched. Pick your favorite story,

then think of your favorite scene. How does it affect the way you relate to the characters? How does the scene make

you feel? Happy? Sad? Anxious? Have you ever considered why you felt that way? What do you think is the reason?

Author’s Purpose:

Speak!

Why?

Do you have something to say?

If you have a purpose, yes. We communicate to share information, convince someone of something,

or entertain. Often the three are combined.

Whether you’re writing or speaking, you’re communicating

NOVEL REVIEW

1. What happened Friday afternoon? Turn to the end of the chapter titled “Things You Don’t Forget” if you need a refresher! (pg 57/ slide 38)

Miranda comes home from school and the door is unlocked! This freaks her out! Her mom swears she locked it. Two days later, Miranda finds the first note.

2. Who is Annemarie? Where do Miranda, Colin, and Annmarie start working?

Annemarie and Colin are classmates of Miranda’s. They ask for jobs at Jimmy’s sandwich shop. Miranda later brings Annemarie home and it’s the first time that she notices how shabby her apartment looks.

REVIEW: ELEMENTS OF A PLOTPlots are the events, scenes, and actions that take place

in a story. They are organized into a specific order and tell

a story.

Remember, setting = Time + Place (where and

when)

An era is a certain place in time. For example, a story set in the era of the 1960’s might have a

mood of tension due to the Civil Rights Movement

Exposition

Rising Action

Climax

Falling Action

Resolution

AS YOU READ, KEEP THINKING ABOUT THE THEME! THEME: A LESSON OR A UNIVERSAL TRUTH (SOMETHING EVERY HUMAN CAN RELATE TO)

A true friend will be there for you when you need them

How do you think this theme may apply to our novel?

SETTING THE SCENE

Think of a book or movie as a puzzle—all the pieces have to fit together!

Ask yourself the following questions:

1. Can the reader make predictions about what will happen next?

2. Is the sequence logical?

3. Does the scene end in a way that makes the reader want to read more?

AUTHOR’S PURPOSE

What was Rebecca Stead’s (our author) purpose in writing When You Reach Me?

A. PersuadeB. InformC. Entertain

The old woman handed a bouquet of posies to Sarah, promising that the small flowers possessed magical powers to protect her from the plague. Sarah gave her a penny, thanked her, and hurried home. She needed to get rid of the fruit in her kitchen. The old woman said that another way to avoid the plague was to get rid of all fruits. She didn’t know why, but she wasn’t going to risk it. Pressing a perfumed handkerchief to her nose, she ran past the graveyard…

It’s in the details shared. In this case, it’s a vividly told story. Can you imagine the posies? The perfumed handkerchief? Pulling the reader in and engaging him or her is the goal of entertaining.

RECAP AND REVIEW

Why do scenesmatter? Because, whether you’re reading about dinosaurs, time travel, or Brussels sprouts, you will find that being able to identify settings, moods, and themes, and see how they work together, makes reading more than a quick, superficial, and forgettable experience. Being able to understand how these elements affect the characters and the plot makes it easier to understand the story, and critical thinking is a valuable skill no matter who you are.

Determining the author’s purpose means that you can recognize the type of writing used and the way that the purpose is achieved. Additionally, when you are able to tell the difference between informing and persuading, you are more likely to understand what you’re reading and less likely to mistake opinion for fact. This means that you can think for yourself rather than have others tell you what to believe.

believe it’s the end of class!

Today’s focus:

Text vs Film:

It all begins with an idea. The idea becomes a story. The story becomes a novel… And then Hollywood options the

book for a movie and the next thing you know, it’s on the big screen.

So you buy your ticket, sit back, and prepare to be amazed. Sometimes you are. Other times? Not so much. Have

you ever read a book and then watched the film version, only to find that the movie left out several scenes or changed

characters? Have you ever watched a live presentation, only to find that things didn’t match up?

Time to talk about the bumps and the lumps of the characters’ lives, to talk about the tender moments, the

declarations of true love, and the distressed damsels.

It’s time to talk plot.

Novelist E.M. Forster defined a plot as a “cause-and-effect relationship between events in a story.” Take a moment

to ponder the plots of books that you’ve read and movies that you’ve seen. Did they make sense, or were there ever

moments when you couldn’t figure out why something was happening? What made it easy to follow the story? What

made it challenging?

Plot:

NOVEL REVIEW

1. Reread pages 88–93. Do you think Miranda may have misjudged Julia? Who is really the meaner one in these chapters? Explain your answer.

Miranda seems like the meaner one. Julia helps Annemarie and tries to include Miranda. Julia is only mean when Miranda excludes her or shows dislike for her.

2. On page 106, the laughing man turns and runs when he sees Marcus. Then Marcus says this has happened before. Why do you think the laughing man runs from Marcus?

Maybe he’s afraid of him

The cat was old and mangy.

HOW DO YOU IMAGINE OUR CHARACTERS?

BOOKS VS FILMS

When you read, you see the story in your mind—you imagine the people, places, and events based on the descriptions that are provided. You also fill in the blanks and imagine what isn’t fully described.

When it comes to movies and live performances, your imagination takes a back seat to the director’s vision. The director and his/her team determine the appearance of the characters and the setting(s).

Movies are adaptations of an original text. With a partner, share a book that has been turned into a movie. What was the same

about it? What was different?

Book Film Stage

Need imagination

Purpose: Entertain

Can be edited

Director decides what characters and setting look like

Purpose: Entertain

Can be edited

Director decides what characters and setting look like

Purpose: Entertain

Live—no editing

COMPARING AND CONTRASTING

As we compare these three mediums, ask yourself the following questions: Which do you need your imagination for?

What is the purpose of each?

Which can be edited before releasing?

Which is the best for someone with a reading disability?

WHERE ARE WE IN THE PLOT?

The Beginning: Introduces the

characters.

The Middle: The Conflict is

introduced.

The Middle: The Main character must confront the problem. Most exciting part!

The Middle: The problem is solved.

The Ending!

As the action builds to the climax, the

reader is drawn deeper into the story,

wondering what will happen next

PLOT TECHNIQUES: FORESHADOWINGWell-written tales use foreshadowing, which is a hint or a

warning.

What was this passage foreshadowing?

RECAP AND REVIEW

believe it’s the end of class!

Plots are events, not images. They are not Luke Skywalker holding a light saber; they are Luke and Vader’s final showdown. They are not Cinderella in a lovely dress; they are the prince slipping the slipper

onto her foot. These events are what take the reader from the exposition to the denouement in, ideally, an

interesting manner. The events that happen between the beginning and the end connect—much like a

chain—and result in reactions.

Without those connections, you’d have, quite literally, characters running about with no clue what to do

next.

When you read, you engage in the text, thinking about the words and the images created. You imagine the scenes and the characters. Watching, however, is less engaging—at least in that sense. When you

watch a movie or a play, you engage in the story as it is presented, taking it in and enjoying it for what it

is. Sometimes, watching the story can make the plot or theme clearer. Sometimes, watching it can

change your entire understanding of a character. All in all, there are few “wrong” answers, since everyone

brings his or her own experience to the story.