BROKEN CHAIN
Gary Soto
LEARNING TARGET
 Review writing skills that we will continue to develop in 8th Grade
Language Arts
 Defining new 8th grade writing skills – avoiding personal pronouns
REVIEW: TOPIC SENTENCE:
 A topic sentence is the first sentence of a paragraph that
lets readers know the main idea of a paragraph.
 When writing about a story or novel, use the title in your
topic sentence.
 Topic sentences are general and cover your entire main
idea. Do not use details in your topic sentence.
 Do not use personal pronouns in your writing such as
me, my, I, you, etc. (More about this later.)
 Writing reminders
 Indent your paragraph
 Show you are Using Language (Punctuation, Capitalization, Grammar,
Word Choice,Varied Sentences)
 Remember to use a topic sentence!
 Avoid using first person pronouns (I, me, my)
 Use a complete sentence that is general enough to cover your main idea.
 Avoid specific details and support that you will be using within the body of your paragraph.
BASICS – ACADEMIC
WRITING SKILLS
QUESTION: HOW DO MOST TEENAGERS
FEEL ABOUT THEMSELVES?
BAD TOPIC SENTENCE EXAMPLE:
1. I think that most teenagers feel…
2. How most teenagers feel about themselves.
3. The first way most teenagers feel about
themselves is…
THINK: What is “wrong” with these sentences? How
can you make them “right?”
In your classroom notebook, fix these topic
sentences.
REMINDER:
 Topic sentences should:
 Include the topic and your opinion or position on
that topic – YOU are expressing your
JUDGEMENT on a topic.
 Include the title of the literary work being
analyzed (if appropriate)
 Not include supporting details
 Not use personal pronouns.
WHAT WAS WRONG WITH THESE TOPIC
SENTENCES?
1. I think that most teenagers feel…
2. How most teenagers feel about themselves.
3. The first way most teenagers feel about themselves
is…
QUESTION #1 PRACTICE TOPIC
SENTENCE
In your classroom journal, write a practice
topic sentence for the following question.
How important is it for teenagers to have
good self-esteem these days?
THINK/PAIR/SHARE
Pair up with a partner.
Share your ideas for a topic sentence.
Be prepared to share one with the class.
CHARACTERIZATION:
 How an author reveals a character
 Direct characterization is when the author tells us directly what a
character is like.
 Indirect characterization is when the author shows us through actions,
words by the characters, and by revealing the thoughts and feelings of a
character what they are like.
VOCABULARY
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
impulse: an urge (n.)
emerged: came out (v.)
sullen: grumpy; resentful (adj.)
apparent: visible (adj.)
retrieved: got back (v.)
USING YOUR VOCABULARY WORDS, WRITE A STORY.
UNDERLINE THEM WHEN YOU USE THEM. YOU MAY
CHANGE THEIR FORM (APPARENT -> APPARENTLY)
I really love candy. My favorite type of candy is
peanut butter M&Ms. It is very apparent that they
are my favorite because I always buy them over any
other candy. I never can resist my impulse to buy
them when I go to the store. If the store is out, I feel
very sullen. I usually ask my friend David to retrieve
me a bag from the store. When he emerges through
the door holding my M&Ms, it makes me so excited.
BROKEN CHAIN
Open up your book to page 16
Get out your notebooks.
FOLLOW ALONG AS WE READ…
Review vocabulary on page 16.
As you read, think about the conflicts
that the main character Alfonso
encounters in the story.
CONFLICT
Conflict is the dramatic struggle between
two forces in a story. Without conflict,
there is no plot.
We refer to the main character as the
protagonist. This person is neither the
good guy or the bad guy, but the person
who is faced with a conflict.
We refer to the person or thing who the
protagonist is up against as the
antagonist. We no longer say “good”
guy vs. “bad” guy.
TWO CATEGORIES OF CONFLICT
Some types of conflict are external
or in other words, located outside
of the character. You and anyone
else can witness the conflict.
Other types of conflict are internal
or in other words, located inside of
the character. Usually only the
character knows about these.
FOUR CONFLICTS
External Conflict
 Character vs. Character
 Character vs.
Environment
 Character vs. Society
Internal Conflict
 Character vs. Self
WITH YOUR PARTNER
Make a list describing four conflicts
Alfonso faces in the story.
Make sure to label each conflict
INTERNAL or EXTERNAL conflict.
Both partners should have their own
list. YOU WILL NEED IT!!!!
TOPIC SENTENCES SHOULD:
Include the topic and your opinion or position on
that topic – YOU are expressing your
JUDGEMENT on a topic.
Include the title of the literary work being
analyzed (if appropriate) and the author
Not include supporting details
Not use personal pronouns.
MORE ON PERSONAL PRONOUNS
 In academic writing, personal pronouns are wasted words.
 You are not having a conversation with your reader. They are not
there to discuss with you.
 When you make statements like “I think…” or “In my opinion…” you
are weakening the strength of your position.
 Consider the following statements:
 I think Captain Jaggery is punctilious
Vs.
 Captain Jaggery is punctilious
 Which statement sounds more believable?
ACADEMIC VS. PERSONAL
 In academic writing, it is simply unnecessary to use personal pronouns.
 Do not refer to yourself (I, me, my, etc.)
 Or to your reader (you, we, us)
 In academic writing, you have a specific voice.
 Your voice needs to reflect academic writing and not personal writing.
READING RESPONSE:
 On a separate piece of paper, write a response to the question
using your best writing skills. These responses will be
incorporated into your grade, so DO YOUR BEST!!!
 Remember to use a TOPIC SENTENCE.
 USE your BEST spelling, grammar, punctuation, and capitalization.
 Use a concluding sentence.
 Answer the question completely using support or evidence from
the story and other sources if needed.
READING RESPONSE: BROKEN CHAIN
In this story, Alfonso faces several internal and
external conflicts. Which conflict do you think
is the main conflict? Why? (Remember to
state what type of conflict you are describing
and whether it is internal or external in your
topic sentence.)
Remember, use a topic sentence and give 3
SPECIFIC supporting details for your opinion.
DUE: Monday, September 16
CHECK YOUR TOPIC SENTENCE
 Do you have the topic in your topic sentence? Hint: MAIN
CONFLICT
 Do you have YOUR opinion in the topic sentence? Hint:
Whatever you feel is the main conflict?
 Do you have the TITLE of the story with correct punctuation?
 Did you AVOID using details in your TOPIC SENTENCE?
 Did you AVOID using personal pronouns in your topic sentence
and your paragraph?
REFLECTION
We will be evaluating these topic sentences using a 3-2-1
scale.
This is something we will be doing all year long! I will evaluate
your writing using this scale on your assignments.
You will be evaluating your writing using this scale as a self
reflection before you turn it in.
 3 - You can do it, and do it well.
 2 – You do it, but you still need some work to make it
perfect.
 1 – You made an attempt, but you still need some work.
 0 – You didn’t attempt it.