1st Quarter 

Click here for assignment sheet.

Click here for double entry journal rubric.  

Click here for a sample journal entry.

Click here for notes.

CLICK HERE FOR A PASSAGE ANALYSIS (FROM LAST YEAR'S ASSIGNMENT)

You will read this novel independently over first quarter, paying careful attention to the author’s style, organization, diction, details and figures of speech. You are responsible for identifying and understanding the following elements: characterization, setting, conflicts, climaxes, resolutions and conclusions, as well as identifying and commenting on the stylistic and rhetorical choices made by the author throughout the book.

Some of the themes developed in The Things they Carried are…

·         Fear of shame as a motivation

·         The nature of truth in storytelling

·         Things carried—physical and emotional

·         Pressure to adhere to a standard of duty, courage, or patriotism

·         War and love

Reading Schedule

It is expected that students will have read the assigned section of the book before the day that it is due and will be active and willing participants in discussion on those days. This unit will be treated like a college seminar and students are expected to take part in discussion, just as they would in a college course.  Discussion participation credit will be given on each of the following days. All work for that section of the book will also be collected on that day.

Double Entry Journal

You will complete a double entry (or dialectical) journal to aid in your understanding of the novel and also demonstrate that understanding to your teacher. In this journal, you are essentially having a “conversation” with the text and with yourself.

*** Review pgs. 42-43 in The Language of Composition and THIS SAMPLE for examples.  

Procedure

·         Use a notebook or loose leaf paper to serve as your journal

·         Draw a vertical line in the middle of each page in your journal

·         At the top of the left column, write the heading “Reading Notes/Quotes Chapter ___”

·         At the top of the right column, write the heading “Comments and Questions”

·         After you read each essay/chapter from The Things They Carried complete a page (at the minimum) in which you take notes on the left side and comment on the right side

As you read, you may want to use sticky notes to mark places in the novel to come back to in your journal. Some suggestions for notes include:

-          Words, sentences or ideas that seem interesting, strange, meaningful, confusing, or important

-          Passages that use noteworthy diction and/or syntax

-          Parts that contribute to characterization, setting, conflict, and/or theme

-          Literary devices such as imagery and symbolism

-          Passages that remind you of something else you have read or seen (connections)

2nd Quarter 

Link to "America's Original Superstar" in Time Magazine

CLICK HERE FOR ASSIGNMENT SHEET

Language is particularly important in this book. This controversial text, set in the ante-bellum period of American history, satirizes southern society and is acclaimed for its use of dialects typical to the region and the times. You will read this novel independently over second quarter, paying careful attention to the author’s style, organization, diction, details and figures of speech. You are responsible for identifying and understanding the following elements: characterization, setting, conflicts, climaxes, resolutions and conclusions, as well as identifying and commenting on the stylistic and rhetorical choices made by the author throughout the book.

Reading Schedule

It is expected that students will have read the assigned section of the book before the day that it is due and will be active and willing participants in discussion on those days. This unit will be treated like a college seminar and students are expected to take part in discussion, just as they would in a college course.

3rd Quarter

Students will read this novel independently over third quarter, paying careful attention to the author’s style, organization, diction, details and figures of speech. Students are responsible for identifying and understanding elements about the plot chapters: characterization, setting, conflicts, climaxes, resolutions and conclusions, as well as identifying and commenting on the stylistic and rhetorical choices made by the author. The intercalary chapters of the novel -  essays commenting on society in general rather than on the plot -  will be considered in greater depth.

Introductory Presentation

Assignment sheet for novel study

Route 66 

SAMPLE READING RESPONSE

SAMPLE PROSE DEVICE