HERO UNIT: LESSON MAP

WEEK 1: (Lessons 1-5)

1. inductive intro to conceptualizing "hero"
• bridge connects categories/characteristics to student-generated examples
  
2. zeroing in on academic perspective (Frye)
• preliminary student-generated definitions (individual)
• begin discussing necessary conditions/elements surrounding existence/creation of hero?
  
3. preparing for reading of "Chivalry"
• research jigsaw to frontload basic stories: Arthurian legend, symbols: holy grail, apple of life (Hesperides), philosopher's stone, egg of the Phoenix
• discuss traditional role of the knight (who? quest? obstacles?)
• meaning of chivalry...? does it exist today? in what form?
  
4. 
   

dilemma 18, continued

3 men A (Rousseau), B (Kant), C (Aristotle) walking

• A points out a boy who has fallen into the lake and is swirling in the currents helplessly
• A reminds his friends that the waters are said to be very fast and deep; A doesn't dare to risk helping the boy
  
  
• B has already jumped into the water and has begun swimming towards the boy, to no avail because of the strong currents
• B gets in trouble because his clothes become heavy from being waterlogged and begins to sink; B waves to his friends for help and friends A & C debate what to do
  
  
• C, nodding philosophically, says to A, "Yes, little man, you are right. It looks as though our companion is finding out for himself why no one swims in that stretch of water!"
• having said that, C walks determinedly towards an old rotten tree, breaks of the largest branch, and throws it to friend B
  
• using the branch, B is now able to swim over to the boy and rescue him
  
  
• boy and B congratulate C for quick action and presence of mind
• C acknowledges flattery and in turn, "magnanimously" congratulates B for good intentions, but also chastises him for allowing irrational side to overrule good sense (jumping in without thinking)
• B says that C is right, that "good intentions are not enough"

So...Who's the hero?

Consider these thoughts:

• if A didn't inform his friends of the water conditions, and both B and C had jumped in, they probably would have all 3 died...does inaction (due to reasonable fear and hesitation) make one a coward?
  
  
• "good intentions are not enough"--can heroism exist only where one is aware of one's capacity (i.e. does failure negate the virtue of the deed?)
  
  
• if C had not saved B and the boy in time, what then? C did not take action right away and had been motivated by the same fear A had. circumstances proved fortunate for everyone. can C be a hero then?

dilemma 18 (the magnanimous man in heaven)

1. Kant
• "though all knowledge begins with experience it does not follow that it arises out of experience
• the world appears on the basis of our minds' perceptions and judgements
  
  
2. Aristotle
• virtue lies in a mean, between excess and deficiency (courage is the mean between excess of rashness and deficiency of cowardice; magnanimity (w/ re. to self-esteem) is the mean between excess of vanity and deficiency of pusillanimity)
  
  
• **consideration must include flexibility b/c one extreme may be more closely linked to the mean than the other...(e.g. friendliness is closer to excess of being ingratiating that the deficiency of being surly)
  
  
• moral eval. of an action must consider responsibility of human agent (was action undertaken voluntarily or involuntarily--i.e. produced by external force or out of ignorance?)
• **so when a good deed occurs, but only as an accidental event resulting from some unforseen force or circumstance, can it still be a virtuous act? hmmm.
  
  
3. Rousseau
• liberalism V. communitarianism: following the general will does allow for individual diversity and freedom, but because the general will does aim for well-being of the "whole", following general will can cause conflicts with specific interests of individuals
  
  
• SOCIAL CONTRACT: by ignoring the interests of all groups or factions (collection of individual wills) in favor of the general will, only then would decisions be made to benefit society as a whole (in accordance with general will)

• what is the "general will" anyway?
  
  
• **can the goals of the general will truly meet all individual needs...i.e. is it possible for the "benefit of the whole" to gravely infringe on the rights of some individuals? (assuming that the decisions made have not been made to benefit only particular groups in society...)
  
  
• e.g. what about gay marriage:
• fallacious arguments could be made for the general will that procreation and perpetuation of the human species depend on heterosexual unions, thereby opposing gay marriage.
• this decision would be an infringement on the basic freedom and potential happiness of a fraction of individual wills. what then?
• it could not be for the benefit of all, because not all unions would be gay, and therefore supporting gay marriage would not infringe upon the benefits of the whole of society
• in which case, what is the role of the Sovereign and how should intervention occur in order to support benefit of the "general will"?
  

birth of heroes

Plato--based on the idea of "the one" (spiritual realm), without the "ideal" of the object (or such), the physical version of the object, considered only a shadow/replica (representation, imitation, reflection)--they physical version could not exist.

The ideal inoles "naming" or conceptualizing the thing--if we did not hae a name for a tree--would it case to be?

p.17 (interp) The hero was a creation of Greek culture--as a result of the ordering/categorization of things through poetry and the poetic imagination (e.g. in epics such as the Illiad/Odyssey, characters were observed performing good deeds--through these stories, the Greeks formulated their theories of goodness and other standards (Greek myths?) until Plato (and subsequent others?) questioned these ideals and touted logic over the unquestioning acceptance of such ideas.

literary criticism

Bressler, C.E. (2002). Literary criticism: An introduction to theory and practice. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

• does a text have only one correct meaning?
• is a text always didactic; i.e., must a reader learn something from every text?
• does a text affect each reader in the same way?
• how is a text influenced by the culture of it author and the culture in which it is written?
• can a text become a catalyst for change in a given culture?

1. theoretical criticism: formulates theories, principles, and tenets of the nature and value of art (by citing general aesthetic and moral principles of art, provides framework for practical criticism)
2. practical criticism (applied criticism): (based on theories and principles of theoretical criticism) defines the standards of taste and explains, evaluates, or justifies a particular piece of literature
3. absolutist critic: posits there is only one theory or set of principles that may used when evaluating a literary work
4. relativist critic: uses various and even contradictory theories in critiquing a text
   

specific strategies

• DOUBLE-ENTRY DIARIES: (direct quote & page #) + one of the following:
  

• "this reminds me of..."
• "i wonder..."
• "i visualize..."
• "i'm confused because..."
• interesting details + summary of learning
• what's important or interesting to me + author's message (trying to say...)

• COMPREHENSION CONSTRUCTORS
  

• what's your thinking
• what are you wondering?
• what do you think might be a possible answer to your question?
• what connections can you make?

• tips for reading a poem (reading guide)
1. read through twice
2. think about background knowledge that will help you to connect to the people, animals, or objects in the poem.
3. try to make a picture in your head of what's happening in the poem.
4. what do you think the poem's about?
5. brief double entry: textual evidence + background knowledge

• drawing inferences (reading guide)
  
• record question from reading you're most curious about
• go back to text, record textual evidence that might help you answer your question
• combine clues in text with background knowledge to try to answer question you asked in #1

• text-to-self connections
• text quote + "This reminds me of..."

• silent reading record (types of guides):
  
• summary + brief reflection/connections write-up
  
• questions-response to text writeup-classify questions
• "i'm stuck" (record where in text) + hypothesis why stuck + propose how to get unstuck + suggestion of what is understood thus far

• questioning and identifying confusions

• inner-voice sheet
  
• going through given text, identify inner voice during reading and decide if it helps or distract from reading. record specific places in text.

• CODING SHEETS
  

making inferences

(from tovani)

1. use picture books: e.g. Rose Blanche (Roberto Innocenti); Grandfather Twilight (Barbara Berger); The Wretched Innocenti (Chris Van Allsburg)...other examples in Strategies That Work

2. active reading strategy: double-entry diary (textual evidence + background knowledge & experiences)

3. Teaching students to infer:

• Ask yourself a question (Wonder something about the text).
• Consider textual evidence left by author that may represent important clues.
• Think about what your background knowledge tells you about these clues.
• using clues in the text and background knowledge about the topic, try to answer the original question.
  

"Not just boring stories": Reconsidering the gender gap for boys

Taylor, D.L. (2004). "Not just boring stories": Reconsidering the gender gap for boys. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, v.48 (no.4), p. 290-8.

retrieved at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1598/JAAL.48.4.2

reading strategies

• Tovani, C. (2000). I read it, but I don't get it: Comprehension strategies for adolescent readers. Portland: Stenhouse Publishers

• double-entry diaries (left col: direct quote from txt + pg. no.; right col: "thinking options") p.30

• comprehension monitoring: (p.36)
  
• how do you know when you are confused?
• what do you do when you are confused?

• Six signals for identifying confusion: (p.38)
  
1. voice inside reader's head not interacting with text
• voice 1: reciting text
• voice 2: converses with text (asks questions, dis/agrees w/ content)
2. camera inside reader's head shuts off
• reader unable to get visual image from words--meaning has been interrupted
3. reader's mind wanders
• mind thinking about something far-removed from text
4. reader can't remember what has been read
• good readers should be able to retell some part of what has been read
5. clarifying questions asked by reader not answered
• literal questions should be asked to clarify meaning--if unanswered, indicates need for more background info or reader not focused on text (perhaps also that question is not relevant? need practice on questioning skills?)
6. reader reencounters character but has no recollection when that character was introduced
• breakdown in meaning constructing--reader not paying attention and needs to go back

• "What do you wonder?" (p.79) - how to ask questions, developing curiosityGe
• Student examples:
  
• why are blacks always killin' blacks?
• how does aspirin know where to go?
• why do some people in my family do drugs?
• why do fireflies glow?
• what happens when you die?
• how come time goes fast when you are having fun and slow when you are bored?

• Georgia Heard (author/poet)
• "I Wonder" poems

chivalry notes

• p. 36 mentions "a water-stained copy of Romance and Legend of Chivalry by A.R. Hope Moncrieff" (EX LIBRIS FISHER handwritten top of 1st page)
  
• things needing historical setup:
• Holy Grail (legend of King Arthur, Sir Galaad--Knights of the Round Table)
  
• Lancelot, Camelot
  
• map of Camelot, maybe? (Joyous Isle, Castle of Bliant p. 44)
• Philosopher's Stone (Noah's Ark)
• Egg of the Phoenix (from Araby)
  
• Apples of Life (Hesperides)
• magic lamp (Chinese origin?)
  

creative process model notes for Things Fall Apart

1. Bridge to prior experience: (cultural frontloading)

• Questions/discussion about Punishment
• w/community
• connect to Kohlberg’s moral dvpt model
• let the punishment fit the crime—how is punishment decided on as society, as well as smaller units within community
• create microcosm within classroom based on conflicts in novel to simulate situation and stimulate discussion

2. Prediction: Title –predict meaning/significance (perhaps after historical frontloading)
   


3. storytelling
• orally; discussion traditions/significance/reason for storytelling; also discuss stories used to explain behavior, stories used as rules of behavior, stories used to explain natural occurrences (creation myths, ancient myths, folklore, legends, tall tales?)
• cultural connection: explore native am. stories/culture as comparison and primary source available in community (text-text, text-world)


4. story writing-class unit-long project anchored to reading of novel: what's newsworthy? (explore differences in potential/limitations between var. media types/outlets)
• newspaper
• town crier
• newsletter
• "tv news?"


5. textual explorations (close reading)
   
• motifs - silence, darkness, fire
• symbolism - fire, gender
  
• language - e.g. power of names and language (why the word "snake" must never be uttered in the dark of the night); language as empowering v. stripping away power (colonialism--imposing new language, culture on existing one)
  


6. focus on themes
• father/son relationship
• husband/wife relationship
• mother/daughter relationship
• spiritual leaders (roles, significance, reflection on culture)
  


7. extension activities (based on close reading)
   
• proverbs-take adages/proverbs and create stories explaining the origin of proverbs (e.g. tortoise story in text)--creative/diff. ways of looking at common things
  
• signal phrases as storytelling element/technique
  


8. redressing of title (respond to initial prediction of title significance/meaning)