Tag Archives: diction

Initial and Final Thoughts

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First, second, and seventh periods finished the anticipatory lesson for a unit on The Diary of Anne Frank. As such, we had an today, drawing on students’ prior knowledge of the Holocaust and making it personal through a series of reflective writing exercises. To do this, we looked at a slide show I created about the Holocaust, starting from the rise of the Nazis and ending with some photos I took in 2005 during my own visit to Auschwitz.

Walling up the Ghetto

Working

Leaving the Ghetto

Electrified Barbed Wire

Fourth period went over “Cub Pilot on the Mississippi”, paying close attention to how Twain uses formal diction to create a playful mood in the memoir. We simply prepared in groups today for the main presentation and discussion tomorrow.

Homework
  • First and seventh periods: none.
  • Second period: complete vocabulary preparation for Anne Frank.
  • Fourth period: none.

Holocaust and Written Style

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Fourth period worked on three elements of an author’s (and individual selection’s) style:

  • diction
  • tone, and
  • mood.

We looked at an example selection to see how the author manipulated words and phrases to create a specific mood and tone.

First, second, and seventh periods  began a couple of days of lessons dealing with the Holocaust in preparation for reading the Diary of Anne Frank.

All periods turned in the final draft of one or another projects.

Homework

Fourth period: read “Cub Pilot on the Mississippi”

Final Draft and Intro to Style

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First and seventh periods had a final day of work on the memoir final draft. It is due tomorrow, along with several other documents:

  1. First draft
  2. Peer editing form
  3. Second draft
  4. Final draft
  5. Rubric

Fourth period worked on the nonfiction form and will continue tomorrow. We’ve begun a short unit on the memoir and we will be focusing on the relationship tone, mood, and diction have with author’s purpose and audience.

Second period began Diary of Anne Frank by looking at the Holocaust and setting the stage for the Frank’s dramatic hideout in Amsterdam.

Homework
  • First and seventh periods: finish final draft of memoir.
  • Second period: three questions students might have about the information presented today.
  • Fourth period:
    • complete the final draft of the Antigone essay (rubric available here);
    • read page 435 (on tone, mood, and diction).

The Lead; Presentations; Diction

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First period worked on leads. We looked at six examples:

  • The Dramatic Lead: I wouldn’t make it through the night without it.
  • Starting In the Middle Of a Scene: I was sure we’d find the blanket ripped and dirty.
  • Leisurely Lead: When I looked into my Grandma’s linen closet, I was amazed by the patchwork of color. Never had I seen so many different blankets. There were soft, fluffy chenille ones and old worn brown ones. Tucked in the middle, barely visible, with just a faded yellow corner sticking out, was the one I wanted.
  • Beginning At the Ending: I joyfully pulled the tattered corners around me and sighed as I settled into the corner of the chair.
  • Introducing the Narrator: I used to think I was different from everyone else – that I had a secret friend that no one else had. But I’ve come to realize that lots of people had special relationships with inanimate objects. Yes, I admit it. I had a “blankie.”
  • Dialogue Lead: “Only insecure, immature babies need to drag their blankets around with them!”

Students then worked in pairs to create similar leads for the memoirs.

Second period finished preparing for their oral presentations and gave the actual presentations. How many of them figured out that the point of the activity was the preparation and not the presentation itself? I’m not sure.

Fourth and sixth periods worked on diction, particularly improving diction by using specific nouns and action verbs.

Homework
  • First period: two full-paragraph leads for the memoir using two different lead types.
  • Second period:
    • read chapters 16-18;
    • finish online forum discussions;
    • prepare for part of speech test (next week);
    • work on grammar topics at courses.ourenglishclass.net.
  • Fourth and sixth periods: third draft.

Selection test and diction

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Second period worked on improving their diction in their memoirs, specifically focusing on creating more specific nouns and verbs. I spoke individually with several students about their drafts and ways to improve it. The class is slowly coming to realize that writing is a long, time-consuming process.

First, fourth, and sixth periods had a selection test on the excerpt from I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. We took a little time to study, took the test, then went over it at the end. Add to that the starter and that pretty much wrapped up our day.

Homework
  • Second period:
    • fourth draft of memoir;
    • ten synonyms for “go”, “say”, and “think”.
  • First, fourth, and sixth periods: none.