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Today, I would like for you to read and respond to the article, "In the Minds of Others" by Keith Oatley. You should read and annotate the print article that I give you, but I will also include a link here. This article further develops the ideas from Independent Reading Blog #2 and will be of use later when we finish our Independent Reading Unit.

Your critical analysis of this article should:
-briefly summarize the main points of the article
-identify the author's argument
-evaluate the author's success by analyzing how the author uses:
1. textual evidence, such as facts or examples, to support claims
2. reasoning to develop ideas and to connect claims and evidence
3. stylistic or persuasive elements, such as word choice or appeals to emotion, to add power to the ideas expressed
-conclude with a strong comment upon the value of the author's topic/argument.

Requirements:
-typed, MLA style, 500-1,000 words (about 2 to 4 pages)
-posted here on the classroom blog
-AND to Turnitin by 11:59pm on Sunday night, 1/27/2019

Click on the image above to go to an electronic copy of "In the Minds of Others" by Keith Oatley.

"Literature’s Emotional Lessons:
Grappling with the way books make students feel—not just analytical skills—should be part of the high-school English curriculum." - Andrew Simmons

ERIC AUDRAS / PHOTOALTO / CORBIS

Now that you have experienced a significant chunk of your Independent Reading Book, please read this article (linked through the image on the left) and use it as a lens to say something about your chosen novel. This is the basis of a critical lens paper (where you use a nonfiction article to comment upon an artifact that you have read closely) and is a cornerstone of college-level analysis. We are just barely brushing upon this type of writing here, but you should consider this article carefully as you continue to expose yourself to good books.

Please note: I realize that you have just started reading your IR Books, but you can still apply the concepts from this article to your reading so far.

Requirements:
Plan and compose a short essay (250-300 words - 100 points) that addresses the points from the nonfiction article as it applies to the book you are reading. I understand that you have just begun your book, but you should still be able to touch upon some of the finer points of your reading in order for the nonfiction article to apply. To do this short essay well, you will need to be very clear about what the author's argument is in the nonfiction article. Focus on this task as you read Simmon's work and then apply his argument to your novel. How does your novel address his point/s?

Due Sunday night (1/20) by 11:59 pm!

Independent Reading Unit (Intro)

1/11/2019

click on poster for an enlarged image

As we begin this Independent Reading Unit, please remember that the "Bill of Rights" I have posted above certainly applies to you but that we do have an end goal for this unit. I want you to find a book that fits my rather loose parameters of a "work of literary merit," that you can finish reading by Tuesday, January 29th, but that also gives you pleasure as you read. Today's blog post is designed to help you plan for the end of unit assessment (TBA).

Cristina Hartmann

Still struggling to define "literary merit" and how to know if a book has merit? Well then, welcome to my world! This question has no single answer and can send you down a rabbit hole (what literary allusion did I just make?) if you try. I did find this interesting (even with all its typos and grammatical "oopsies" - I think she may have typed it on her phone as I often find some students do!!!) essay written by Cristina Hartmann on Medium. Read her piece for some commentary on this topic by clicking on her image to the left.

Step 1: By now you should have selected a novel from the library, my library, or your own shelves. You need to figure out how long it will take you to read in order to finish in time. To figure out how many pages you need to read a day, complete the calculation below.

Reading Speed Formula

Read a page. Time how long it takes in seconds (divide by 60) and, voilà, you now know how many minutes you take to read a page!
Count your book's pages, multiple by your page/minute speed, divide by 60 again and, voilà, you now know how many hours you will take to read your book!
Count how many days you have until you need to finish reading in order to give yourself time for the End of Unit Assessment (probably by Tuesday, January 29th) and so on and so forth!

I know that this seems like a ridiculous activity, but I am always surprised by how much more successful students are at reading, comprehending, and completing assignments when they know exactly how long it will take to complete the reading AND be able to finish all the tasks!

If you are interested in discovering how long you take to read literature of a variety of complexities, use the interactive calculator below.

click on the image above to go to www.myreadspeed.com

Step 2: Respond to this blog post, using your own name-no pen names this time, by:

listing the title and author of your selected novel (remember, you can always change the book, but not the due date!),
stating in a brief paragraph why you selected it,
and completing this blog response by 11:59 pm on Monday, 1/14!

Step 3: Start reading!!! You will be posting updates and responding through this blog about your understanding, interesting thoughts, progress, etc. every Friday.

*I am expecting you to keep your selected novel with you at all times. This is the best way to finish your novel ahead of your own schedule. Whenever you have a free moment, you should take your book out to read a page or two. You will be surprised at how much reading you can accomplish if you always keep it at hand to read at these odd moments! As an incentive, I will randomly reward students I "catch" reading with treats. Don't be surprised if I pop into one of your classes to see if you have your book on your person!

AP Literature and Composition Blog

Independent Reading Blog #3

Independent Reading Blog #2

"Literature’s Emotional Lessons:
Grappling with the way books make students feel—not just analytical skills—should be part of the high-school English curriculum." - Andrew Simmons

Independent Reading Unit (Intro)

Blog Post Rubric

Archives

Categories

AP Literature and Composition Blog

Independent Reading Blog #3

Independent Reading Blog #2

"Literature’s Emotional Lessons:​Grappling with the way books make students feel—not just analytical skills—should be part of the high-school English curriculum." - Andrew Simmons

Independent Reading Unit (Intro)

Blog Post Rubric

Archives

Categories

"Literature’s Emotional Lessons:
Grappling with the way books make students feel—not just analytical skills—should be part of the high-school English curriculum." - Andrew Simmons