Week 3 Syllabus: November 6-10

FOR YOUR ORAL PRESENTATION ON your independent reading, the most important part of your presentation is sign-posting and voice. The three steps in your presentation—describe the book, describe the author, and read a passage—should fit with your physical movement from point A to B to C and then back to your starting point A. With voice, you should speak loudly, consistently, and clearly. Pitfalls to avoid include speaking too fast, at an inconsistent pace or volume, and skipping any of the three steps in the presentation. Also this week, we will begin our work on Haroun and the Sea of Stories.

Tuesday, November 7

• Independent reading.

• Review of parent-teacher conferences and the importance of seeing me outside of class for writing and annotation conferences.

• Overview and preparing for presentations.

• Details: the allusions that matter in the story, “Raymond’s Run,” spec.

• HW: Prepare for your presentation. Get your copy of Haroun. If you haven’t finished the character worksheet on Squeaky, please do that.

Wednesday, November 8

• Independent reading presentations.

• Last 10 minutes of class, we will return to the song “National Emblem” and discuss racism in the story, “Raymond’s Run” and microagressions, how Bambara hides serious, important messages behind a young girl’s monologue.

• HW: Read (and annotate—circle vocabulary, keep notes of free-speech and the novel Haroun) the article, “The Stabbing of Salman Rushdie Renews Free Speech Debates.” There is a short writing assignment at the end of the article.

Friday, November 10

• If any remain, reading presentations.

• Small group background reading on Haroun. You will use this to complete the writing assignment attached to the article about the attack on Salman Rushdie.

• HW: If you haven’t done so, finish the written response to the reading on Rushdie.

• Read chapter one in Haroun.