Thoughtshots

1. Find a sentence in your writing where a thoughtshot could be incorporated.

2. Copy and paste into a different document.

3. Determine the type of thoughtshot needed.

4. Play around with the details until its write.

5. Copy and paste into the blog spot.

VIEW OTHER POSTS TO GET MORE THOUGHTSHOT IDEAS.

The Lottery...working with Theme

The Lottery Activity: Chew on This

You probably know this already, but English class is not math class. In your math classes, you get to circle the answer at the end of the problem. And it feels so good, right? Well, unfortunately, in literary works you don’t get a definitive answer to circle. You get a bunch of conflicting arguments. Welcome to the world of literature.

Now that you've read and studied your literary work, it's time to develop your own opinion. Pick a theme from Shmoop's The Lottery themes section http://www.shmoop.com/lottery-shirley-jackson/themes.html, and read the Chew on This statements for that theme. Notice how each statement is an opinion and not necessarily a fact? That's the beauty of building an argument – you can start a debate and argue either for or against it.

So, now it's your turn to contribute to the literary discussion. Write your own Chew on This statement for the theme that you've chosen. Support your statement with three quotations from the text.

To make sure that you could really get a good debate going on your Chew on This statement, also play the "devil's advocate" position and find three more quotations from the text that could be used to argue against your statement. Come to class prepared to argue for either side of your statement.

Place your Chew on This statement and six quotations in the same comment box...be sure to label which are in support and which are against.

Thinking About Plot...using "The Lady, or the Tiger?"

The plot is the one of the most important elements of the story; however, the characters decide what happens, when it happens, and how it happens. This occurs when the external or internal plot plays a major role. In The Lady or the Tiger?, the external conflict causes the princess to have tremendous internal conflict. Because the plot line ends at the climax, many readers are not satisfied with the author's falling action and resolution. Think about the princess' character (background, upbringing, feelings, thoughts, actions) to determine what you think happens next.

Write a new ending (falling action and resolution) for the story in which you reveal the princess’s decision (falling action) and show the effects of the decision on all the characters (resolution).

Think about questions like...

1. What happens to the young man?
2. How does she feel about it?
3. What does the king do next?
4. What does the princess do next?

If I were in charge...

"If I Were In Charge of the World" by Judith Viorst

If I were in charge of the world
I'd cancel oatmeal,
Monday mornings,
Allergy shots, and also Sara Steinberg.

If I were in charge of the world
There'd be brighter nights lights,
Healthier hamsters, and
Basketball baskets forty eight inches lower.

If I were in charge of the world
You wouldn't have lonely.
You wouldn't have clean.
You wouldn't have bedtimes.
Or "Don't punch your sister."
You wouldn't even have sisters.

If I were in charge of the world
A chocolate sundae with whipped cream and nuts would be a vegetable
All 007 movies would be G,
And a person who sometimes forgot to brush,
And sometimes forgot to flush,
Would still be allowed to be

In charge of the world.

Directions:

What would you do if you were in charge of the writing classroom? Use Judith Viorst's poem as a base and then just let your imagination run free. Fill in the blanks with your creative details and descriptions from the point of view of being the one to make all the big decisions.

Comment on this blog with your response.

WELCOME!!

Welcome to the second half of Language Arts 9! Be sure to become a follower of this page as well as set up a link indicating your blog for this trimester. Be sure your link is to your homepage NOT a particular post.

HAPPY WRITING!