Writing Assignment: - SUNY Cortland



Writing Assignment:

Poetry- Comparison/Contrast Essay

Kari Redmond

This writing assignment is part of a genre study on poetry taught to a tenth grade class. Thus far in the study, we have read several poems, including some on the environment like “The Earth Is All That Will Remain” and “One Sweet World,” and we have written in response journals about the basic elements of poetry. This assignment will expand on the students’ understanding of the elements of poetry, as well as prepare them to write their own poetry. Students will write a comparison/contrast essay based on two poems about snow, focusing on how the author uses literary craft to convey tone and to establish the relationship between nature and mankind. After writing this essay, students will begin to craft their own poetry.

We begin by doing a free write on our favorite ways to spend a snow day or how we have fun with winter weather. The purpose of this is exercise is to get students to examine the tone of their writing. To prompt this writing I will put several sentence starters on the board: “When I woke up to a snow day I…,” “My favorite winter sport is….,” “I like snow because…,” “The best winter days are spent….” After this journal free-writing, the students will have the opportunity to share their writing out loud with the class and discuss their positive relationships with winter weather. We will discuss the tone of each student journal entry, giving evidence from the writing. (For example: “What is the tone of Jane’s story?” “How do we know that it is nostalgic?”) I will model this process by writing in my own journal and sharing about how exciting snow days are for teachers, too. Following this sharing, I will ask the class to try and recall any personal negative relationships with winter and to share out loud in a discussion. This writing and speaking exercise will demonstrate the students’ understanding of the author’s tone.

After the whole-class discussion, I will then read “Snow Day” by Billy Collins aloud to the class.

Snow Day- Billy Collins

Today we woke up to a revolution of snow,

its white flag waving over everything,

the landscape vanished,

not a single mouse to punctuate the blankness,

and beyond these windows

the government buildings smothered,

schools and libraries buried, the post office lost

under the noiseless drift,

the paths of trains softly blocked,

the world fallen under this falling.

In a while I will put on some boots

and step out like someone walking in water,

and the dog will porpoise through the drifts,

and I will shake a laden branch,

sending a cold shower down on us both.

But for now I am a willing prisoner in this house,

a sympathizer with the anarchic cause of snow.

I will make a pot of tea

and listen to the plastic radio on the counter,

as glad as anyone to hear the news

that the Kiddie Corner School is closed,

the Ding-Dong School, closed,

the All Aboard Children's School, closed,

the Hi-Ho Nursery School, closed,

along with -- some will be delighted to hear --

the Toadstool School, the Little School,

Little Sparrows Nursery School,

Little Stars Pre-School, Peas-and-Carrots Day School,

the Tom Thumb Child Center, all closed,

and -- clap your hands -- the Peanuts Play School.

So this is where the children hide all day,

These are the nests where they letter and draw,

where they put on their bright miniature jackets,

all darting and climbing and sliding,

all but the few girls whispering by the fence.

And now I am listening hard

in the grandiose silence of the snow,

trying to hear what those three girls are plotting,

what riot is afoot,

which small queen is about to be brought down.

I will pause after the poem to address any confusion or questions that the poem may bring about. For example, a student may not understand the term “porpoise.” In this case, I will explain that “porpoise” is a synonym for a dolphin, and it is used by the poem’s author to add visual imagery for a swimming motion. Students will then be then given two minutes to do a reader response in their journals. By this point in the year, students will be familiar with the written reader-response journal activity that merely outlines their initial thoughts and feelings about the poem, characters, tone, etc.

Next, I will then read the poem “Beyond the Snow Belt” by Mary Oliver, to the class.

Beyond the Snow Belt- Mary Oliver

Over the local stations, one by one,

Announcers list disasters like dark poems

That always happen in the skull of winter.

But once again the storm has passed us by:

Lovely and moderate, the snow lies down

While shouting children hurry back to play,

And scarved and smiling citizens once more

Sweep down their easy paths of pride and welcome.

And what else might we do? Let us be truthful.

Two counties north the storm has taken lives.

Two counties north, to us, is far away, -

A land of trees, a wing upon a map,

A wild place never visited, - so we

Forget with ease each far mortality.

Peacefully from our frozen yards we watch

Our children running on the mild white hills.

This is the landscape that we understand, -

And till the principle of things takes root,

How shall examples move us from our calm?

I do not say that is not a fault.

I only say, except as we have loved,

All news arrives as from a distant land.

After the reading, I will explain “the skull of winter.” I will ask the class to close their eyes and picture what “the skull of winter” might look like, and I will explain that most likely it refers to the “dead” of winter or the barren state of winter months, but the image is much left open to personal interpretation. Students are then asked to respond for two minutes in their journals. I will then re-read both of these poems aloud and ask students to journal on them for about 5-7 minutes and comment specifically on the poems’ use of imagery, tone, and symbolism. Since we will have already discussed literary elements in previous units, I will just remind students by giving them definitions of these literary elements on the board. This will prepare them for the process of writing a comparison/contrast essay on the two poems.

Following this journaling activity, students will log onto their assigned computer stations and go to . Here they will be asked to click the appropriate tabs as we go over the required components of compare/contrast essays. For example, under the transitions tab, students will click on the “over” arrow to explore the lists of different types of possible transition words for comparison/contrast essays and explore the examples. They will also do this for each tab: definitions, examples, checklist, and organizing a paper. After students have completed this online exploration into comparison/contrast, I will direct them to . This website will bring them to an organizational and interactive map for creating comparative/contrast essays. It directly explains the three different types of compare/contrast essays which are whole, similarities and differences, and point to point.

I will pull up a sample map that I had previously created showing direct references to the poems and the specific theme of nature and its relationship with man, imagery, tone, and symbolism. Students will be allowed to choose their writing method and they will complete the online map using the prompts, the handouts of the poems for direct references and quotes, and their journal entries on observations. Then I will model the writing process by showing them the sample essay that I constructed from the graphic organizer. I will draw direct arrows from the literary elements in the graphic organizer to the coordinating section of the essay to show them how to adapt the worksheet to their writing.

Upon completing this graphic organizer online, students may print it out and use it to write the first draft of their essay. I will then hand out a sheet that outlines the assignment and the expectations, as well as a grading rubric and a comparison/contrast essay checklist.

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Man vs. Nature: Comparison/Contrast Essay

Writing Assignment Task:

After reading both of the poems as a class, you will write a comparison/contrast essay based on the relationships of humans and winter weather and the conflict of man vs. nature. In this essay, use details from each of these poems to support your thesis. You will incorporate ideas of literary elements such as tone, imagery, and symbolism to compare/contrast the poems. Using your map, organize your essay with a distinct structure and purpose in mind.

Purpose and Audience:

The purpose of this assignment is to develop a deeper understanding of the poetic elements so that we may create our own poetry. It is also your job to inform readers who have not previously read these poems about their differences and similarities.

Format:

Your paper should be typed with Times New Roman or Arial font (size 12). The final draft should be at least one page long with universal margins no larger than one-inch. You will hand in the entire project (writing map, first draft, peer review worksheet, and final copy) in the provided manila folder. The folder will have your name, project title, and date on the cover.

Checklist:

Before you hand in this paper make sure you have checked your work. Here are some reminders that may help you:

o Did I read my paper aloud to myself and to a buddy to check for errors and awkward sentences?

o Did I proofread my paper for grammatical errors?

o Does my paper have a strong organizational structure?

o Does my paper use details (including quotes) from the poems for support?

o Is my thesis clear and well written? Does my whole paper support my thesis?

o Did I properly use transitions and sentence starters?

o Did I include some of the literary elements (tone, imagery, symbolism, theme, conflict)?

Due Dates:

Organizational Map will be done in class on 3/16

First Draft is due 3/21 (we will work on these in class on 3/17 and 3/18)

Peer review will be in class on 3/21

Project folder including Final Copy will be due on 3/25

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The checklist will remind students to check their papers for: 1. organization/structure, 2. thesis, 3. supporting details from the poems, 4. good transitions, 5. proofread for grammatical errors and cohesion. All first drafts will be peer reviewed, a process that students are proficient at by this point in the school year, and I will use this opportunity to conduct a mini-lesson on smoothly incorporating details of support from the literature. Students will then revise their drafts and on the assigned due date they will turn in their “maps,” first drafts, peer review worksheet, and their final typed draft.

This assignment addresses the NYS English Language Arts Standards, including Standards 2 & 3.

Standard 2: Students will read, write, listen, and speak for literary response and expression.

Students are reading and hearing the poem and writing response entries in their journals. They are also journaling on their own experiences and sharing this form of expression with the class during whole-class discussion.

Standard 3: Students will read, write, listen, and speak for critical analysis and evaluation.

Students are forming a pre-writing map based on the poems. They are also writing a comparison/contrast essay and examining the various forms of man vs. nature conflicts.

| |6 |5 |4 |3 |2 |1 |

| |The paper compares and |The paper compares and |The paper compares and |The paper had some |This paper had little |Provides no evidence of|

| |contrasts items clearly.|contrasts items clearly, |contrasts items clearly,|attempts at compare |or no attempt at |understanding. The |

|Meaning |The paper points to |but the supporting |but the supporting |and/or contrasting but |making a comparison or|response makes no |

| |specific examples to |information is general. |information is |it does not use support|contrast between the |connections between the|

| |illustrate the |The paper includes only |incomplete. The paper |from the poems. There |two poems. It has |poems and the assigned |

| |comparison. The paper |the information relevant |may include information |is plot summary and |possible attempts at |task. |

| |includes only the |to the comparison. |that is not relevant to |some information that |understanding the | |

| |information relevant to | |the comparison. |is not relevant to the |assigned task, but | |

| |the comparison. | | |comparison. |there are no true | |

| | | | | |connections made. | |

| |The paper breaks the |The paper breaks the |The paper breaks the |There is some structure|The paper has a main |The paper shows no |

| |information into |information into |information into |but it is difficult to |idea, but lacks the |organization nor is |

|Organization |whole-to-whole, |whole-to-whole, |whole-to-whole, |follow and does not |focus and organization|there an attempt to |

| |similarities |similarities |similarities |follow the |needed. |have structure. |

| |-to-differences, or |-to-differences, or |-to-differences, or |whole-to-whole, | | |

| |point-by-point |point-by-point structure |point-by-point |similarities-to | | |

| |structure. It follows a |but does not follow a |structure, but some |differences, or | | |

| |consistent order when |consistent order when |information is in the |point-by point | | |

| |discussing the |discussing the |wrong section. Some |structure. | | |

| |comparison. |comparison. |details are not in a | | | |

| | | |logical or expected | | | |

| | | |order, and this | | | |

| | | |distracts the reader. | | | |

| |The paper moves smoothly|The paper uses some | | | | |

| |from one idea to the |literary elements to |There is an idea of |Makes an attempt at |Does not attempt to |There are no attempts |

| |next. The paper uses |compare/contrast the |literary elements, but |using literary elements|include literary |to literary elements to|

|Development |comparison and contrast |poems. There is sometimes|there is no evidence |to compare/contrast |elements in paper. |compare/contrast texts.|

| |to examine poetic |evidence from the texts. |from texts in the |texts. | | |

| |elements. The paper | |compare/contrast essay. | | | |

| |cites specific evidence | | | | | |

| |from the texts. | | | | | |

| | | | | | | |

| |The paper uses a variety|The paper attempts some |There is little or no |There is no variety in |Uses language that is |At times the language |

| |of sentence structures |sentence variety and use |variety in sentence |sentence structure or |inappropriate for |is incoherent. |

|Language use |and transitions. |of vocabulary. |structure or vocabulary.|vocabulary. |audience and purpose | |

| | | | | |or demonstrates a lack| |

| | | | | |of meaning. | |

| |Writer makes no errors |Writer makes 1-2 errors |Writer makes 3-4 errors |More than 4 errors in |Demonstrates lack of |The paper is full of |

| |in grammar or spelling |in grammar or spelling |in grammar or spelling |grammar or spelling |control and lack of |grammatical and |

|Conventions |that distract the reader|that distract the reader |that distract the reader|that distract the |proofreading. There |spelling errors that |

| |from the content. |from the content. |from the content. |readers from the |are frequent errors |make it difficult or |

| | | | |author’s point. |that make the author’s|impossible to |

| | | | | |point hard to |understand. |

| | | | | |understand. | |

SAMPLE ESSAY

Kari Redmond

English 10

November 20, 2008

Often, snow is a peaceful blanket that covers our town and silences our busy lives. “Snow Day” by Billy Collins shows that snow can be fun and playful, and “Beyond the Snow Belt” by Mary Oliver shows how snow can also bring people happiness. Both “Snow Day” and “Beyond the Snow Belt” have examples of the authors’ use of tone, imagery, and symbolism to show readers the positive relationship people can have with winter weather.

In “Snow Day”, readers gain a sense of playfulness and fun from the tone that Collins establishes. The overall mood that is set is light and airy, almost childlike. This mood is conveyed through the use of positive adjectives and simple sentence structure. The poet also uses imagery to portray a happy, lighthearted reaction to the snow. For example, the descriptive language like: “the dog will porpoise” and “darting and climbing and sliding” give the reader a feeling of silliness and child’s play. Also, the poet mentions that the speaker is excited about the several preschools that are closed. This gives the reader the indication that the narrator is excited for a break. Also, symbolism is used to describe the snow as a “white flag waving over everything.” This white flag represents the surrender that people must give to the elements, as well as the peaceful feeling given by snow. These things together indicate that the narrator is happy about the snow because of the snow day, and in this case the relationship with snow is a positive one.

Similarly, in “Beyond the Snow Belt”, Mary Oliver has set a tone of pleasure and peace in her poem. The reader gets the impression that the snow is a positive influence on the townspeople through the language and adjectives such as “lovely and moderate.” Additionally, the poet uses imagery to give readers a picture of happy people who “sweep down their easy paths of pride and welcome.” In this poem, the bad news arrives from a radio. The fact that a tragedy is occurring in a far away place is symbolic because the speaker wants to think that life past the Snow Belt is peaceful and happy. Those bad things happening far away are not really affecting the behavior of the speaker or the people who live in her town. The news coming from a radio represents the physical distance between peace and tragedy.

In conclusion, the two poems have very similar themes of a positive relationship between mankind and the winter elements. Both “Snow Day” and “Beyond the Snow Belt” show an example of how a poet can use tone to evoke feelings of playfulness, gaiety, and peace. Additionally, both poems have examples of descriptive imagery that paint a vivid and joyful picture of winter fun. Finally, both poems contain symbolic language that the poet uses to maintain a serene setting of winter snow.

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