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My summative assessment reflection: 

BOB'S REVISED/COMMENTED LESSON 8:

I like to teach or learn with music in the background.

Before Bloomsburg, I lived in… Penndel

At Bloomsburg, I want to major in… Secondary Ed. English

Right now, I’m most interested in… Why my vest looks so shiny in that picture.

My favorite musical artist is… Rhapsody of Fire

My favorite movie is… The Lion King

One thing I like to do in my spare time is… Turn disposable cameras into tasers.

When it comes to technology, I’m most comfortable with…(put X next to all that apply)

Microsoft Word Microsoft Powerpoint <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Email <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Cellphone <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Text messaging <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Taking cellphone pictures <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Taking cellphone video <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Taking cellphone audio <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">X Video editing <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">X Blogging or Social Networking (e.g., Facebook) <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">X Making websites

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">My favorite teachers were the ones who… <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Talked with a class, not at them. <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">But I didn’t like classes in which… <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Professors don’t know what they’re talking about.

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">In this class, I’m most nervous about… <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Failing

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">In this class, I’m most excited about… <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Using the wiki and Viddler

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">If there’s one thing you should know about me as a student, it’s… <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">I like talking in front of the class.

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">If there’s one thing you should know about me in general, it’s… <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">That I do everything to the EXTREME!

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">UNIT PLAN RATIONALE: <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">All students learn the elements of fiction and writing in elementary school; the things like plot, setting and characters. However meaningful writing is not about haphazardly throwing these elements together, but instead combining them in creative ways. If students could recognize this it would help them to become better writers themselves, and to appreciate the work of the authors which they read. Therefore I would like to teach a unit on the archetypes that are present within stories. In addition to offering students greater insight into writing, it could help them to develop a "shorthand" to refer to characters or plot elements in their reading. It's much easier to say, "Manfred is an Byronic hero." than, "Manfred is a powerful character with great potential who the audience sympathies with, despite the fact that he rejects traditional notions of good, even when this leads to his downfall." <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">After we discussed some of these archetypes and gave examples of them, students would be challenged to research additional types and identify them in works that they enjoy. By giving allowing the students to chose which works they look at (from either a preselected list or after teacher approval) it would be easier to maintain interest. They would also be given an opportunity to practice research. Finally the unit is aligned with the 1.2.X.B and 1.2.X.C standards, suitable for teaching in late high school.

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">GUIDING QUESTIONS: <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">1. It has been said that it is impossible to create new stories, and that all fiction has follows the same structure and is made of the same elements. How can a writer combine these elements to make their story seem unique? <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">2. If a writer chooses to deviate from the normal forms of these elements, how can it affect their work? <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">3.How can understanding the elements of fiction, and the ways which they are used, help you as a reader and as a writer?

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">UNIT ASSESMENT: <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">My unit assesment will be a combination of two parts. The first will be a paper, students will choose one of the following prompts:

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">1. Select a work of fiction. Identify the archetypes and idioms present in it and how the author uses them in creative ways to tell their story. For example, in Harry Potter the main character is called to begin his adventure when he begins recieving mysterious letters but does not initially open them. How is Rowling's presentation of the call to adventure in this way unique.

The students will write about 10 examples. Of the 10, they will be asked to elaborate on 5, showing how they are unique and how this influences the story as a whole. The target paper length will be about 5 pages double spaced. Besides standard paper requirements, such as spelling; mechanics and organization, students would be graded on the depth to which they explored their examples.

Students would be given a list of works to choose from. Due to the nature of the assignment I will not need to be as familiar with the works the students chose as I would if I was teaching the work myself, so almost any work that I was familiar with could be used, giving fairly broad list. If a student was not satisfied with the listed works and wanted to choose their own they would have to submit a proposal to me with: the name of the work, a summary of it, and why they think it is a good choice for the project at least a week and a half before the assignment is due. I plan on distributing the assignment approximately half way (2 weeks) into the unit, and having it be due at the end, so this will give them enough time to consider their choice for a few days and not be too rushed if it was not approved.

Due to the wide variety of archetypes and idioms that exist, students would most likely need to complete some out of class research for this assingment. For example, a student looking at Grim's Fairy Tales might find a book on the Aarne-Thompson classification system useful. We would have some library time (2 days?) to help with this. The list of works to chose from would include a list of some resources that students might want to look at, such as Campbell's Hero with a Thousand Faces or the website TVTropes.org

To finish our unit students would be asked to give a brief presentation based on their paper. They would present a brief summary of their work, followed by an explanation of two or three examples they found most interesting. The presentation would give students who were poor writers an oppurtunity to showcase other skills (while also giving students practice with presentations) and would be graded based on how well they conveyed the information from their paper. Primarily it would focus on their speaking technique (did they speak clearly, mumble, rush?) and their use of props and/or a visual aid. These presentations would most likely take the better part of 3 class days, but I believe they would be worthwhile in allowing me to assess (and students to practice) a broader range of skills, exposing students to various works and allowing them to see different viewpoints if more than one student chose the same piece.



LESSON PLANS FIRST DRAFT:





Bob Smith's review of Bob Brad's Lessons

UNIT PLAN FINAL DRAFT:



MY GATSBY JOURNAL ENTRY: