OK, so I forgot a couple of things–at least it wasn’t my name. Here are the things:
I would have had students summarize the Parker poem before starting it to ensure they had a basic understanding of it before beginning the analysis process. I like the suggestion that a couple of people used in their presentations about identifying words in the initial reading process that students might not understand. If I were to try this lesson in a classroom, this is something I would add. I can’t find my books right now, but I think it was Scholes that was advocating for an initial reading with the sole intention of understanding the text before starting the analysis process. I think this would be particularly important in a classroom setting where students can have a wide variety of levels of vocabulary, textual knowledge, etc.
The other piece was at the end. When I was up there hemming and hawing, staring at my paper, saying that I felt like I was forgetting something, well, I was. And, yes, I had it written down, but unfortunately that signage which, when I wrote it actually came together for me as words and phrases, when standing in front of the class only appeared as letters and odd symbols that simply frustrated me as I looked at them. So…I had also built into my evaluative exercise a short paragraph for students to write and explain why they chose either the difficulty paper or the minor character response and what they felt was helpful or not about the assignment they selected. Just as we have been doing this semester, I would want my students to be cognizant of their thoughts and decisions and I think this would be a good, quick way to have them reflect on that.
So other than the beginning and the end, and the repeating myself a lot, I think, I’m OK with it. People seemed to be talking which was good. I couldn’t tell if they were really trying my assignments or just discussing whether they wanted to take Post Modernism next spring, but I would be curious to know. I don’t have the opportunity to try out my lesson anywhere else, so you all are it. I would like to know if it might work, if it would be better with modifications, if there’s no hope whatsoever—please let me know. -Jancy
I loved the idea of using the poem for a discussion of point of view, and the kids’ story you picked was perfect for talking about point of view. Very creative take on the lesson. I liked the poem, and I wish we had had more time to talk about what motivates a woman who claims to be distraught by her lover’s unfaithfulness to stay with him. I think your thoughts on point of view and credibility lead to the explanation.
Jancy,
I liked your assignments. And our group was really talking about the poem! You could tell we were really involved because we kept talking. Sorry. I think the things that you forgot would add a lot to the lesson. There needs to be a connection among the assignments so the students know there is a reason why they are doing them. The ommitted pieces would help answer that question.
Edith
I enjoyed your presentation, Jancy. And our group did talk about the poem – it was definitely a worthwhile exercise in point of view. I agree with Edith in that the two other aspects of the lesson would help tie in the purpose of the assignment. The metacognitive nature of the reflection acts as a sort of "so what" analysis.
Yes, the reflection component certainly addresses the "so what" question for literature. Whenever you see students engaged (talking) about piece of literature, you know you’re on the right track. It’s just a matter of steering them away from tangents.
Jancy, your presentation was so evenly paced, easy to follow and understand. In our group we did discuss the poem and felt that the narrator had fallen for the words and their intent, but after getting heartbroken, learned that any words spoken were hollow. Not being familiar with the other poem Edith mentioned, I was initially surprised when I heard her say the woman was a manipulator. (Which is why I wanted her to say it louder to explain the reasoning).Susan
Jancy, I also liked your presentation and the poem. I think that we did talk and work on it during your presentation and that you did great. lc