Little Big Books - Nikki



Little Big Books

9.10.07

|Materials Needed: |

|Pens, Loose-leaf paper, |

|Copies: Weekly Points Sheets, Syllabi, Half sheets for homework assignments |

Section A: 26 Students

Section D: 24 Students

1) Welcome Students (5)

o Have students find their names on desks [on WPS]

o Take attendance & give out points

2) Read the following scenario and question aloud to whole class

[Also write on board] (5)

|Your father, best friend, and cousin are dead from recent acts of violence. You are doing your best to survive on the streets |

|without suffering a similar fate. All you want is to forget your violent past, hold down an honest job, and walk a straight line. |

|But you are pressured by your aunt and friends of your cousin to avenge your cousin’s death. |

Quick write Question: Given what you already know about life, would you walk the straight line, or avenge your cousin’s death? Your explanation must be at least six sentences. (10)

3) Share out (7)

4) Explain that this is Eddie’s predicament – throughout the novel, Eddie feels as if he is caught between these two worlds, and in the end he is also forced to make a decision (3)

5) Syllabus (20) – read aloud

o Contact info

o Important dates

o Behavior policy

o What’s important to me

6) Homework – letter of introduction

HOMEWORK

Little BIG Books

Due: Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Assignment: Write a one-page letter of introduction to me. Although I have had the opportunity to teach some of you in the past, I want you to write as if we had never met before today. I want a profile of you as a person, as a student, as a reader and a writer. What do I need to know about you?

Here are some questions to think about:

o What are your likes, dislikes and preferences?

o What’s your biggest fear?

o Do you like where you live? Do you plan on living in NY forever?

o What kind of activities do you most enjoy?

o What do you hope to accomplish this year?

o Did you read anything interesting this summer? What book would you recommend I read in my free time?

*You may type or hand-write your letter

HOMEWORK

Little BIG Books

Due: Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Assignment: Write a one-page letter of introduction to me. Although I have had the opportunity to teach some of you in the past, I want you to write as if we had never met before today. I want a profile of you as a person, as a student, as a reader and a writer. What do I need to know about you?

Here are some questions to think about:

o What are your likes, dislikes and preferences?

o What’s your biggest fear?

o Do you like where you live? Do you plan on living in NY forever?

o What kind of activities do you most enjoy?

o What do you hope to accomplish this year?

o Did you read anything interesting this summer? What book would you recommend I read in my free time?

*You may type or hand-write your letter

Little Big Books

9.11.07

|Materials Needed: Pens, Loose-leaf paper, |

|Copies: copies of the story (1st 5 pages) |

|Graded Weekly Points Sheets |

7) Housekeeping (5)

[Do Now: describe an Onion – all the words or ideas you can think of related to an onion]

o Collect HW & give out points

o Take attendance

8) Hand out first page of Buried Onions.

9) Read aloud (10)

Take notes on board – have students answer the following:

i. What is being described?

ii. What people are mentioned?

iii. What is this paragraph about?

10) Define found poetry

|Found Poetry: poetry that is found in any writing that inspires a reader to create his/her own thoughts in poetic verse. It is |

|acceptable to use the author's language, images, and observations about life. Although the writer may draw on the language of the |

|author and rearrange it and add language of their own, they ultimately create NEW poetry (which is the students' own work). |

|"Found" poetry helps students identify the author's style through word choice and poetic elements. |

5. Explain the directions – you want your poem to capture the same ideas that are written on board

o CAREFULLY re-read the text.

o Look for 20-25 words or phrases that you find particularly powerful or interesting

o Copy the words and phrases you chose onto a separate sheet of paper in the order that makes most sense to you

o You may only add three words of your own –TOTAL

o Read over your poem and come up with a title!

Pair off into groups of two & Create found poem (20 minutes)

- Make sure both names are on poem to be handed in. Share out (10)

- Exit slip: describe the narrator and/or the world he lives in (5)

HAND IN POEM, EXIT SLIP AND DAILY POINTS SHEET

|Homework: pages 1-5; stop at “that city job.” |

Little Big Books

9.11.07 – ALTERNATE ACTIVITY

Instead of the Found Poem Activity, you may want to try this imagery activity.

o Hand out copies of Buried Onions

o Read aloud 1st paragraph

o Ask students to share out what images the author uses in the paragraph

o Elicit definition for the word imagery – record on board.

o Pass out the Imagery in Buried Onions handout & have students record definition in the box.

o Work as a class to discuss 3 of the images given in the first paragraph:

EX:

|Images from Opening Paragraph |

| |

|1. Praying Mantis: |

| |

|The narrator uses a praying mantis to describe: |

|his dead father, 2 uncles & his brother |

|How does this image help you to understand the narrative? |

|You can tell that he thinks about them a lot if he has come up with this description. They are dead, and he imagines them silent, |

|insignificant as bugs. |

o After completing the first 3, ask students to read on to pg. 5, using the IMAGERY TRACKER handout to record new examples of imagery in subsequent pages.

Homework: Finish reading to pg 5 & complete imagery tracker handout.

Name: _______________________________________

Little BIG Books

Imagery in Buried Onions

Images from Opening Paragraph

1. Praying Mantis:

The narrator uses a praying mantis to describe: _______________________ _____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

How does this image help you to understand the narrative? ___________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

2. Giant Steel Rollers

The narrator uses the giant rollers to describe:

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

How does this image help you to understand the narrative? ___________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

3. Hatchet

The narrator uses the hatchet to describe: _______________ ________________________________________________

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

What picture do you get in your mind when reading this description? _____________________________________

________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Little BIG Books Name: _____________________________________

Buried Onions

[pic]

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Little BIG Books

9/12/2007

|Materials Needed: |

|Copies of quotes handout; extra copies of 1st five pgs of story |

1. Do Now: What stands out to you about Eddie’s environment, his family and friends, and his options for the future? (7 minutes)

2. Activity 1 (25): Explain to students that we are going to do a close reading exercise to develop our analysis skills. We will be giving them quotes pulled from the text & separating them into 3 categories: [write the following on the board]

• Eddie’s environment

• Eddie’s family and friends

• Eddie’s future

Once you have put the quotes into categories, you need to explain what the quote is saying about that category.

For example:

| “I knew the mortuary students would get good jobs because my cousin had died recently and my father and two uncles were dead…” |

|(p. 1) |

This quote gives us clues about Eddie’s environment. He obviously lives in a dangerous area because a lot of people die all the time. That’s why there is

a. Have students pair up, then hand out worksheet of quotes pulled from first 5 pages of the story. Instruct them to work in teams to first categorize, then explain the connection between the quote and the category.

b. It’s okay to disagree, just be sure you can back up your opinion in at least one sentence.

3. Share out & discuss (10)

4. Exit Ticket – now that we’ve discussed all this evidence, revisit the Do Now question:

What stands out to you about Eddie’s environment, his family and friends, and his options for the future? (3-4 minutes)

NO HOMEWORK (4-day weekend)

Buried Onions – Quote Analysis

Directions:

First, work with a partner to determine which of the following categories each quote fits into.

Then, in at least one sentence, explain what this quote specifically tells us about the category you and your partner selected. The categories are:

|~Eddie’s Environment |

|~Eddie’s Family & Friends |

|~Eddie’s Future |

1. I had a theory about those vapors, which were not released by the sun's heat but by a huge onion buried under the city. This onion made us cry. Tears leapt from our eyelashes and stained our faces (pg. 2).

Category:

Explanation:

2. Still the babies cried, and their crying stirred up our frustration because we were like those strollers going back and forth, back and forth, getting nowhere (pg. 2).

Category:

Explanation:

3. Laundry wept from the lines, the faded flags of the poor, ignorant, unemployable people (pg. 2).

Category:

Explanation:

4. For me, there wasn't much to do except eat and sleep, watch out for drive-bys, and pace myself through life (pg. 3).

Category:

Explanation:

5. Jesús made the mistake of looking down at this guy's shoes and saying something. This guy pushed a dirty blade right into my cousin's clean heart. Or so I heard pg. 3).

Category:

Explanation:

6. I had a print of a ship riding the ocean, its sail full, going somewhere. It was fake art, the kind of thing you can pick up at a swap meet or get as a gift when you buy a gaudy red sofa from a Mexican furniture store (pg. 3).

Category:

Explanation:

7. Even my mother, who lived in Merced with her sister Gloria, who had hearing aids in both wrinkled ears, seldom wrote (pg. 4).

Category:

Explanation:

8. I told myself to keep a steady weight on my shoulders and to stay out of trouble and run a straight line- to stay away from the police and the rumblings of the vatos who have nothing to do (pg. 4).

Category:

Explanation:

9. I dried my face on a towel that was bright orange, just like the vest I would wear if I did hold down that city job (pg. 5).

Category:

Explanation:

10. We know each other, marry each other, and hurt each other over small matters (pg. 4).

Category:

Explanation:

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Imagery is:

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