Ms. Auchinleck's English Treasure Trove



Pre-Writing Activity: “A Mountain Legend”Record each response using complete sentences, extending your answer where necessary. Where is the setting?Who is the protagonist?What is his main conflict?How is this character developed? Hint: Think of actions and words, feelings and thoughts, as well as thoughts and words of other characters.What are some themes that might be applied to this story?Writing Assignment: “A Mountain Legend”This will be your first process piece of writing for the year. You will prepare and write a multi-paragraph (five paragraphs) essay in which you discuss how conflict develops character in the short story “A Mountain Legend”. You must follow the writing process – that is, brainstorming, outlining, rough draft, revise and edit, and a final draft. You will submit all components for evaluation. A cover page must be included.You are advised to use your pre-writing activity worksheet as you prepare your essay.First paragraph: (DO NOT USE HEADINGS)Opening sentences must state the name of the author, the title of the story, and the main conflict. Include approximately three to four sentences which provide a plot synopsis.Closing sentence is your thesis statement – you need to state that conflict develops character.***You will use THREE conflicts and ONE character trait from the text.Second paragraph:Topic sentence must state the first example of your main conflict.Provide text evidence to support that example in your second sentence.Explain how this example shows your character trait.Then, explain how character is developed using the protagonist’s words and actions.Closing sentence must also transition to the next example.Third paragraph:Topic sentence must inform the audience of the second example of conflict.Provide text evidence to support that example in your second sentence.Explain how this evidence shows your character trait.Then, explain how character is developed using the main character’s feelings and thoughts.Closing sentence must also transition to the final example.Fourth paragraph:Topic sentence must inform the audience of the third and final example of conflict.Provide text evidence to support that example in your second sentence.Explain how this evidence supports your character trait.Then, explain how character is developed using other characters’ words, feelings, and thoughts. Closing sentence must also transition to your concluding paragraph.Fifth paragraph:This is your conclusion.In your first sentence, restate (in a new way) your thesis statement.Reiterate the conflict and its overall importance to this story.Clincher statement should provide a final thought about the protagonist and what he has learned.REMEMBER to include the following components for evaluation:Pre-writing activityOutliningRough draftRevisions and editing marks on rough draft (use a different colour)Final draftCover page“A Mountain Legend” Essay: Peer Editing SheetPlease refer to this checklist as you read your partner’s essay, and as you review your revised copy before you write your final copy.Are there any errors in capitalization?The beginning of each sentence must be capitalized.Capitalize proper nouns (e.g. names of people and specific places).The pronoun “I” is also capitalized.Likewise, ensure that there are no words or letters capitalized that shouldn’t be.Are there any errors in spelling?Consult a dictionary (e.g. the free Merriam-Webster Dictionary app) for unknown words. This is an extremely valuable skill as your electronic device will not inform you if a word is used mon spelling errors are found in the Resourcelines 9/10 textbooks. Have you used words appropriately and effectively? This is referred to as word choice (or, diction).Once again, this is a very valuable skill and it must be honed to ensure success.Consult a thesaurus to expand and improve your vocabulary.Check for errors in punctuation.Periods are used at the end of sentences. Check that your sentences are not running on or are fragmented. (e.g. The swift brown fox ran down over the hill and then he caught his supper he was really hungry so he started to eat it right away. -----This is a run on sentence. -----The swift brown fox chased his prey over the grassy hill. He was so ravenous that he tore viciously into the tender rabbit meat as soon as he caught it. ---This is the corrected version. Not the improved use of diction, too. Another incorrect example would be –The swift brown fox. Raced over the hill. ---This is a sentence fragment because neither part expresses a complete thought).Commas are used to make lists or to separate sentence parts. (e.g. The brave little boy decided to run into the forest, capture the sly fox, and then head to his granny’s house before sunset.).Apostrophes are used to indicate possession (e.g. Sherry’s house has a blue front door.) as well as to support a contraction (e.g. They shouldn’t have come here.).Quotation marks are used to indicate that you are citing someone else’s thoughts or work. They must be used for examples taken from a text. ( e.g. “ ‘ Could you reach this flask if I tossed it to you?’”). when a character is speaking you must use appropriately the quotation marks, as indicated above. If a character is not speaking in your citation, simple use “ to open your quote and ” to close the quotation.Ellipsis points … (use only three) are used to show that part of the text has been omitted. People often use ellipsis points with long pieces of text evidence (running over several sentences). This practice saves space and time.Other grammatical errors can be tricky to catch.Never say or write:Could of, should of, would of, etc.Instead, say or write:Could have (could’ve); should have (should’ve); would have (would’ve), etc.Avoid using contractions in formal writing.Refer to Resourcelines 9/10 for more potential problems.Have you organized your essay?Five distinct and separate paragraphsUse instructions from handout to ensure paragraph provide the required details.Have you included all of the relevant details and information in each of your paragraphs? Refer to your handout for these details.Do the sentences flow smoothly? Or, are they all over the place?Is the information presented in a clear manner so that it is easy to understand?Are sentence openings or other information repetitive? If so, revise and change.Writing Your Essay: A Step-by-Step Guide1st Paragraph:This is your introductory paragraph.Your first sentence is called the opening sentence and it should state the main conflict as well as introduce the title of the story and the name of the writer.This paragraph will be approximately 5 to 6 sentences.Character Trait Examples:Self-consciousNegative UncertainDetermined e.g. OPENING SENTENCE Jason is the adolescent protagonist in Jordan Wheeler’s interesting narrative “The Mountain Legend”.The next 2 to 3 sentences must provide a brief plot synopsis (Basically, you answer Who?, What?, When?, Where?, and Why?).Finally, the last sentence of your introductory paragraph is called the thesis statement and it states your purpose ( to show that character is developed through conflict).e.g. THESIS STATEMENT The author develops the conflict develops character throughout this story.2nd, 3rd, & 4th Paragraphs:These are your body paragraphs.It is here that you will explain three different examples of conflict (one per body paragraph) that develop the character trait.Your first sentence in each body paragraph is called the topic sentence and it must state the example of conflict.e.g. TOPIC SENTENCE A desire to prove himself to others may prove to be Jason’s downfall.Your second sentence will state a piece of text evidence (quote) from the narrative to support your example. Next, you must explain why this example is problematic for the protagonist (1 to 2 sentences).Then, you must show how this conflict develops character (1 to 2 sentences). Finally, your closing sentence will summarize this event and transition to the next example.Each body paragraph will be about 7 to 10 sentences.***********Please remember: You will follow these instructions for the next two paragraphs. However, you will use two new examples of conflict (one in each paragraph), while using the same character trait in all three body paragraphs.***********Please note: Examples are meant to support you by illustrating how a sentence may be written. Students are not permitted to plagiarise them. You must use your own ideas and construct your own sentences.Closing Paragraph:This is your summary or concluding paragraph.Your first sentence will restate your thesis statement in a new way.Then, you will briefly discuss the importance of conflict in this story and that the character learned a very important lesson (theme) as a result.Your clincher statement must express a final, powerful thought about the character and may include a theme statement to demonstrate the lesson learned.This paragraph should be approximately 5 to 6 sentences. Essay Scoring GuideDescriptors Comments Score IDEASJot notesRough draftFinal draftInsightful and interestingClear and relevant/35 ORGANIZATIONIntroduction3 body paragraphsConclusionIdeas support purpose and messageIdeas give directionDetails are developedConnections are made/20VOCABULARYUses words preciselyUses words effectivelyUses new words correctlyWords contribute to message/15VOICEVoice is unique and affects the reader.Voice is distinct and engages the reader.Voice is present and clarifies my purpose.Voice doesn’t stand out.Voice is not recognizable./15CONVENTIONSCapitalization rules are followed consistently.Punctuation rules are followed consistently.Spelling rules are followed consistently./15TOTAL SCORE/100 ................
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