Aim: How can active reading be applied to interpret writers' choices that create a narrative voice?
Do Now: Class Discussion
Our first task for this cycle was to consider the question: What does it mean to you when you hear the phrase “to come of age”? To come of age has several meanings although the most common response is gaining maturity and crossing the bridge between childhood and adulthood. Likewise, we obtained enough knowledge to experience the real world and make our own decisions. In other words, we reached adult status. Coming of age could also mean that we developed self-awareness; we learned to express ourselves and voice our opinions. Someone spoke of the coming of age milestone in relation to different cultures. Depending upon your religious background, you may celebrate Bar and Bat Mitzvah, Quinceanera, or Sweet 16, all at different ages. The bottom line is that “to come of age” signifies growth.
The Double Entry Journal
A double-entry journal is a note-taking strategy that enables students to record their responses to the text they read. It gives them a way to interact with the content, by reflecting on and writing about their understanding of the material they are reading. While processing the information and connecting to the text, they enhance their reading comprehension.
This strategy is composed of a two-column journal. In the left column, students write a piece of textual information, such as a quotation or phrase, which they want to expand upon, understand better, or question. Students are to interpret this information and note their reflections, reactions, ideas, or analysis in the right column. The table below is a template.
Narrative Voice
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHl7mDZzfDw&ab_channel=MrsReid
Narrative voice refers to the perspective the story is told from. The writer should choose a narrative voice carefully, as it determines the character and reader’s response.
3 Types of Narrative Voice:
First Person:
In first-person point of view, the story is being told from the perspective of the narrator.
Pronouns: I, me, my, we, us, our
Second Person:
In second-person point of view, the story is being told from the perspective of the audience.
Pronouns: you, your
Third Person:
In third-person point of view, the story is being told from outside a single character’s perspective.
Pronouns: she, he, her, his, they, it
Spirit Reading
Following the video, we had a spirit reading session on an excerpt from Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. As we read, we were to highlight and annotate the text for diction, imagery, and syntax.
Diction: the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing
Imagery:
1) the actual language that a writer uses to convey a visual picture or representation of a sensory experience
2) the uses of figures of speech to express abstract ideas
Syntax: the arrangement, ordering, grouping, and placement of words within a sentence
From Speak
by Laurie Halse Anderson
1 I find my locker after social studies. The lock sticks a little, but I open it. I dive into the stream of fourth-period lunch students and swim down the hall to the cafeteria.
2 I know enough not to bring lunch on the first day of high school. There is no way of telling what the acceptable fashion will be. Brown bags—humble testament to suburbia, or terminal geek gear? Insulated lunch bags—hip way to save the planet, or sign of an over involved mother? Buying is the only solution. And it gives me time to scan the cafeteria for a friendly face or an inconspicuous corner.
3 The hot lunch is turkey with reconstituted dried mashed potatoes and gravy, a damp green vegetable, and a cookie. I’m not sure how to order anything else, so I just slide my tray along and let the lunch drones fill it. This eight-foot senior in front of me somehow gets three cheeseburgers, French fries, and two Ho-Hos without saying a word. Some sort of Morse code with his eyes, maybe. Must study this further. I follow the Basketball Pole into the cafeteria.
4 I see a few friends—people I used to think were my friends—but they look away. Think fast, think fast. There’s that new girl, Heather, reading by the window. I could sit across from her. Or I could crawl behind a trash can. Or maybe I could dump my lunch straight into the trash and keep moving right on out the door.
5 The Basketball Pole waves to a table of friends. Of course. The basketball team. They all swear at him—a bizarre greeting practiced by athletic boys with zits. He smiles and throws a Ho-Ho. I try to scoot around him.
6 Thwap! A lump of potatoes and gravy hits me square in the center of my chest. All conversation stops as the entire lunchroom gawks, my face burning into their retinas. I will be forever known as “that girl who got nailed by potatoes the first day.” The Basketball Pole apologizes and says something else, but four hundred people explode in laughter and I can’t read lips. I ditch my tray and bolt for the door.
7 I motor so fast out of the lunchroom the track coach would draft me for varsity if he were around. But no, Mr. Neck has cafeteria duty. And Mr. Neck has no use for girls who can run the one hundred in under ten seconds, unless they’re willing to do it while holding on to a football.
8 Mr. Neck: “We meet again.”
9 Me:
10 Would he listen to “I need to go home and change,” or “Did you see what that bozo did”? Not a chance. I keep my mouth shut.
11 Mr. Neck: “Where do you think you’re going?”
12 Me:
13 It is easier not to say anything. Shut your trap, button your lip, can it. All that crap you hear on TV about communication and expressing feelings is a lie. Nobody really wants to hear what you have to say.
14 Mr. Neck makes a note in his book. “I knew you were trouble the first time I saw you. I’ve taught here for twenty-four years and I can tell what’s going on in a kid’s head just by looking in their eyes. No more warnings. You just earned a demerit for wandering the halls without a pass.”
Think/Pair/Share Breakout Rooms
Think-Pair-Share is a collaborative learning strategy where students work together to analyze and reflect on an assigned reading. This technique requires students to think individually and share ideas with their peers.
In our breakout rooms, we were first instructed to choose four of our highlighted quotes and record them in our graphic organizers independently. We, then, were to note our initial reactions, thoughts, or analysis on each quote we chose. Once completed, we exchanged our documents with a partner and responded to each other’s comments.
Based on the graphic organizer above, my partner and I shared similar ideas and reactions. While agreeing with my thoughts, she also expanded on and revealed new interpretations that had never crossed my mind.
A scene that caught my eye was, “This eight-foot senior in front of me somehow gets three cheeseburgers, French fries, and two Ho-Hos without saying a word. Some sort of Morse code with his eyes, maybe.” In the excerpt, Melinda is displayed numerous times as silent and cold on the outside, yet we see that she has a rich interior. The narrator always seems to be deep in thought and as readers, we got to know and understand her better through her mind. For instance, I found Melinda quite amusing and perceptive in the scene above.
Individual Activity:
To sum up the lesson, we explored Anderson’s voice as a teen girl and discussed the authenticity of Melinda’s interior monologue. From my standpoint, Melinda’s sarcastic commentary is genuine and relatable. We understand more of her personality through her thoughts while her voice reveals nothing. Based on Melinda’s voicelessness, I can infer that she suffered from grief and traumatic events. Due to fear, she drowns in her own sea of silence and loses her ability to express herself. All things considered, Anderson does an excellent job capturing a teen’s voice in Speak.
Reflection:
Throughout today’s lesson, I learned and gained a deeper understanding of many things. Notably, how to create and utilize a double-entry journal effectively. The application of this note-taking technique helps me to process specific information, reflect on the material, and enhance my reading comprehension. Furthermore, I acquired a knowledge of narrative voice and how it is essential in shaping our understanding of the narrator and their relation to the story. I realized that through diction, imagery, and syntax, we can create narrative voices and view their perspectives. In Speak, we got a better sense of how Laurie Anderson was able to capture the voice of a teenage girl. Not only could we relate to the narrator, but the narrative voice adds to the understanding of the author: their purpose, language, and writing techniques. Ultimately, the narrative voice plays an important role in shaping a reader’s attitude and the story overall.
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