Anyone else feeling small and inadequate after reading Tasha's awesome
lesson? Just me? 😉
*Michele Martin*
*Director of Information Science (Librarian)Sonoma Academy2500 Farmers
LaneSanta Rosa, CA 95404707.545.1770*
On Tue, Apr 5, 2016 at 12:20 PM, Tasha Bergson-Michelson <
tbergsonmichelson@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Hi Nicole,
If you have not heard too much from Casti folk (I understand if you have)
I just had a ton of fun with a lesson that I would love to share. I can
use the materials from my class, or update to passages I will use in my
chapter for the grant work I am doing on data literacy-teaching how to use
literary analysis to read for how language changes our understanding of
statistical information.
*Grade level:* I did it with 8th graders, and am also writing it up as a
PD lesson for teaching data literacy to faculty. Not only would it work
fantastically with high school students, but it could be easily adapted for
Elementary students in a library where the librarian does read-alouds to
younger kids or that has lit clubs or lit circles.
*AV needs: *None
*Short blurb:*
How do the words we use to frame and describe facts in nonfiction writing
potentially change how readers perceive their meaning? Students often go
looking for “some facts” or "some numbers" to use as evidence, but the
emotionally evocative language in which the information itself is embedded
may go unnoticed even while it sways the reader’s opinion of its
applicability to their need. Luckily, applying students’ formative skills
in literary analysis can go a long way towards helping them move beyond
initial responses to successfully analyzing and evaluating data. Come play
with the language of informational writing and explore ways to extend
existing close reading practice to better support critical thinking and
source evaluation.
*The lesson:* (originally done in a 50-minute period, but can be cut
down/shorthanded)
*Warm-up:* What vocabulary and sentences do the popular series Hunger
Games, Twilight, Harry Potter
<http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2013/11/hunger_games_catching_fire_a_textual_analysis_of_suzanne_collins_novels.html>,
and Divergent
<http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2014/03/20/divergent_trilogy_by_veronica_roth_a_textual_analysis_comparing_it_to_the.html>
use
to create their "unique" emotional landscapes? Start with a matching game
to see if you can identify which vocabulary sets go with which series.
(Slate author Ben Blatt textual analysis of the following series: Hunger
Games, Twilight, Harry Potter
<http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2013/11/hunger_games_catching_fire_a_textual_analysis_of_suzanne_collins_novels.html>,
and Divergent
<http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2014/03/20/divergent_trilogy_by_veronica_roth_a_textual_analysis_comparing_it_to_the.html>.
He tabulated the most common words and sentences
<https://docs.google.com/a/castilleja.org/document/d/1cW5xCzE_ypZfh7TXhWzrNsdM0fCsLf-s2Y9WxUAPqXM/edit?usp=sharing>
that
were unique to each author. I turned it into a table-group matching game
where, given the authors' names, the students had to guess which sets of
words went with which authors.)
We then take the word "angry" and brainstorm a series of synonyms for that
word. (The teacher found, with advanced testing, that when asked to name
emotions eighth graders were able to come up with "happy" and "sad.")
Now, having thought of a bunch of different words to describe just one of
the many emotions we experience, we reveal the correct answers to the
matching game we played above. The students reorder their cards to match
the true answers, and then start discussing 1. what emotion does each
series aim to evoke, and 2. what are some words/sentences I see on the list
for each series that evoke that emotion? We discuss.
We return to our list of synonyms for "angry." We introduce *connotation*
and *denotation* and give students a moment to look at the list and
think about how the connotation of their suggested synonyms differs from
the connotation of the word "angry."
*Practice with the familiar--fiction:*
Next, we give them the first three paragraphs of "The Tell-Tale Heart" and
have them read it. Students identify the claim the narrator makes about
himself, and whether or not they agree with it (they don't!). We give them
highlighters and give them a moment to go through and identify words of
phrases that gave them the idea that the claim being made differ from
reality and then share. We introduce the notion of the *unreliable
narrator* and give students a moment to brainstorm unreliable narrators
they know from prior reading.
*Extend to the unfamiliar--nonfiction:*
Then, we introduced the lit circle books (adult nonfiction about
astronomy) and explained we want them to understand that all sources are
biased, even when info is good, and that it is important for them to be
thinking about why authors chose the words they chose to describe
things--what emotions they were trying to make the reader feel. We want
them to be able to read science and other nonfiction for pleasure and
information in the future, but we want them to be aware of what they are
boing made to feel. We decide to call the nonfiction information the
"denotation" and the author's opinion/feeling we get from the writing the
"connotation." We practice.
1. Everyone gets a short passage from *Mercury 13, *reads it, and answers
the following questions:
- What was the author’s topic (what was the factual argument the
author is presenting)? You could call this the “denotation” of the passage.
- What was the author’s opinion about the topic? You could call this
the “connotation” of the passage.
- What was the author trying to make you feel about the topic?
- What are some words or phrases the author used to evoke those
feelings in you?
Quick group discussion.
2. Partners get a passage from one of the three other books from Lit
Circles, and work together to read and answer the same questions.
Book-by-book they report out to the class.
It is a very full 50 minutes (actually kinda still 52 minutes, oops!), but
we cover a lot of ground and see a lot of change in outcomes, growing of
confidence.
Let me know if you are interested. I would love to run this by a group of
adults and get their feedback. I can use the passages from my class, or
update to passages I will use in my chapter for the grant work I am doing
on data literacy.
Thank you,
Tasha
On Fri, Apr 1, 2016 at 4:20 PM, Nicole Hunter <nmhunter@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Hello BAISL members,
Do you have a favorite lesson that you use in your library instruction?
If so, I invite you to share it at our our next BAISL meeting on May 10th
at the French American International School in San Francisco. As always, we
want to see representation from all grade levels and any aspect of
instruction is welcome. These sessions are meant to be lively and
interactive, so let loose your ideas! Please email me (
nicole.hunter@xxxxxxxxx
<https://mail.sfuhs.org/owa/redir.aspx?C=uoo8Y6_P_UeuudJpZrotFTuEUog899IIXsZFMH31uyXYzY0E9VolKvSVMAfcH8-5lKaHO8y3tts.&URL=mailto%3anicole.hunter%40sfuhs.org>)
with the following:
- The lesson you would like to share
- The grade level you use it with
- A short blurb about what you will be discussing
- Will you need AV equipment?
If you have any questions feel free to contact me!
Nicole.
Nicole Hunter
Librarian, San Francisco University High School
Vice President, Bay Area Independent School Librarians
3065 Jackson Street
San Francisco, CA 94115
415.447.3123
nicole.hunter@xxxxxxxxx
--
Tasha Bergson-Michelson
Instructional and Programming Librarian
1310 Bryant St.
Palo Alto, CA 94301
(650) 470-7766
tbergsonmichelson@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
WOMEN LEARNING I WOMEN LEADING
