English Language Arts A30
Module 1
Assignment 3
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
Assignment Three
A.
Responding to Essays
An essay is a piece of prose writing in which ideas on a single topic are
presented, explained, argued, or described in an interesting way. Essays can
be divided roughly into the categories of formal and informal.
A formal essay:
 is impersonal, written by a knowledgeable author.
 is informative, explanatory.
 is developed in a logical and systematic way.
An informal essay:
 is meant to entertain.
 is conversational in style.
 reveals the personality of the author.
The topic of an informal essay is limited only by the personal choice of the
writer. The treatment of the subject, the style, and tone all reflect the
writer’s personality. It is his personal approach to the subject that makes the
informal essay often as entertaining as a letter from a friend.
Although an informal essay may appear to meander from one topic to
another, it is unified through theme and the writer’s attitude to the subject
of the essay. The theme, though usually unstated, is so central to the essay
that the reader can easily identify it.
(2)
1.
Circle one of the choices below.
“Native People Finally Claim Their Culture” is a(n) informal or formal essay?
Reasons
1.
2.
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
Evidence from the essay to support your reasons.
1.
2.
(2)
2.
In a sentence or two, give your first response to “Native People Finally
Claim Their Future.”
(2)
3.
In sentence form, state the theme of “Native People Finally Claim
Their Future.”
(2)
4.
In sentence form, discuss the tone of “Native People Finally Claim
Their Future.”
(6)
5.
In his essay, Cuthand makes reference to a number of reserves.
Explain what happened to the Last Mountain Reserve, the
Thunderchild Reserve, the Pheasant Rump and Ocean Man Reserves.
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
(4)
6.
After some reflection, answer the following questions based on
Cuthand’s essay.
 What was the impact of the Indian Act and the Soldier Settlement
Act on the Native People’s of Saskatchewan in the early part of
the 20th century?

According to Cuthand what is being done to correct the injustices
resulting from the loss of land in the 20th century?
A pun is the humourous use of two words that have the same or
similar sounds but different meanings, or the witty use of a word in
two senses. For example, “The first thing that strikes a tourist coming
to our province is the rocks.”
A pun is sometimes unjustly considered a low form of humour, but if a pun is
imaginative and fresh, it can add colour and a bit of the unexpected to a
piece of writing. Shakespeare used puns to great effect in a number of his
plays. Riddles are often based on puns such as this one.
Q.
A.
Why couldn’t the animals play cards on the Ark?
Because Noah sat on the deck.
Puns can also be found in comic strips in newspapers and magazines.
(4)
8.
Find two examples of puns in newspapers, magazines, or in other
materials available to you. You can copy them out in the space
below or send in the original examples.
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
B.
Writing the Essay
1.
Pre-writing
A personal essay is an informal essay written in a conversational style
and usually from a first-person point of view. When writing a
personal essay you need to go beyond just telling about events or
experiences. You need to explore the significance of an event or
experience and offers a perspective on it.
In a personal essay, at least three paragraphs in length, support or
refute one of the following statements. Your essay may have a
serious or humorous tone.
Rural Saskatchewan people are the most interesting people in
Canada
Canadians television shows have no sense of humour.
Canada is an imitation of the United States.
Support means to argue in favour of something; refute
means to argue against something or to prove an assertion
to be in error. Examples, quotations, and statistics help
you to support or to refute a statement.
(3)
In writing your essay, use the following steps.
a.
Write a purpose statement indicating your intent to the
reader.
My purpose is to _________________________________________
so that my reader________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________.
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
Use the webbing technique in your pre-writing phase to generate
and gather ideas about your topic.
c.
The following organizer will help you sort out your argument.
Position
Reason
Evidence
Reason
Evidence
Reason
Evidence
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
2.
(4)
d.
Choose a method of arrangement.
e.
Use an outline or a tree diagram to show how you will put your
ideas together.
Writing the First Draft
a.
In the space provided on the next two pages write your first
draft. In your first draft the focus is on content and clarity of
ideas. Spelling and mechanics are not important in the first
draft.
b.
Double-space your first draft so that you have space to make
corrections and revisions.
c.
Provide an interesting and suitable title for your essay.
Write your first draft on the following pages.
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
(5)
3.
Revising the First Draft
If possible, it is a good idea to leave your first draft alone for awhile after
writing it. After a few hours, or even better a day or two, you can come back
to it with fresh eyes and the revision process will seem less onerous. To
make revisions to your first draft use a different coloured pen than the one
you used to write your first draft. This will make it easier for you to see what
you want to change.
Listed below is a self-assessment checklist to help you edit and proofread
your first draft. The evaluation of your essay by your teacher will be based
on the criteria listed in the self-assessment guide.
Content and organization







Does your introductory sentence grab your reader’s attention?
Does your introductory paragraph clearly establish the topic of your
essay?
Are your ideas arranged in a logical order?
Is there sufficient and appropriate evidence to defend your position?
Is your concluding paragraph effective in that it wraps up the points
made in the body of your essay?
Is your tone, either humorous or serious, consistent?
Does your essay have an interesting and suitable title?
Sentence structure, spelling, mechanics and presentation







Are your sentences clear and complete?
Have you used transitional devices to make your essay coherent to
your reader?
Are your sentences punctuated correctly?
Are your words colourful and expressive?
Are all your words spelled correctly?
Is the verb tense consistent throughout the essay?
Is the overall appearance of the essay pleasing?
Teacher Comments
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
(15)
4.
Presentation
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
C.
Responding to Poetry
(4)
1.
In a sentence or two give your first response to reading the
poem in Lesson Three, “I am a Canadian”
(3)
2.
Duke Redbird’s poem is written from the first person point of view. In
two or three sentences, say why this point of view is effective.
(3)
3.
In a sentence or two, state one theme of the two poems.
“I am a Canadian”
(2)
4.
State the tone of Redbird’s poem and tell how he achieved this tone
in his poem. Use sentence form.
(3)
5.
What is a country – the land or the people? Does the country make
the citizen or do the citizens make the country. In one or two
sentences tell what Redbird’s poem says about these two questions.
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
D.
Creating a poem of your own
In this exercise you will use your imagination and creativity to write a poem
about Canadian identity. Writing a poem is a creative process, and you can
employ the same writing strategies you use when writing a paragraph or an
essay.
Although writing a poem is a creative writing process, you can still use the
strategies of pre-writing, drafting, revising (proofreading and editing) before
presenting your poem for your audience. You need to think about the
following aspects.






topic
rhyme
rhythm
form – the look of the poem on the page
diction
figurative language and literary devices
Narrowing the Topic
The topic of your poem is Canadian identity. This topic is far too broad; you
will need to narrow it to a manageable size. You can use any one of the
prewriting techniques to help you narrow the very broad topic of Canadian
identity to some aspect of this subject that is meaningful to you. Deciding on
a theme for your poem will also be helpful in narrowing your topic. What
idea, general truth or commentary on life or people do you want to convey
to your reader?
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
Rhythm
Maybe the melody of a song or ballad will serve well as a rhythm for you to
use.
Another method would be to use the same rhythm in your poem as the
rhythm used in one of the poems in this course. “Heat,” and “Moon-Songs”
have rhythms and stanza forms that would be excellent to imitate.
You may wish to use free verse as Marilyn Dumont has done in her poem
“Not Just a Platform for My Dance.” Remember, however, that your poem
should still have deliberate rhythmic effects. Free verse is not just prose that
is arranged in an odd way. Dumont’s poem is very good evidence for this
point.
Rhyme
Roses aren’t red
Violets aren’t blue
If you think poems have
to rhyme
Think again
Many poets do not use regular rhyme schemes. Some do. Decide on what
pattern of rhyme you will follow if you plan to use a regular rhyme scheme.
If you use free verse, you might want to include some rhyme for special
effect.
For help with rhyme and rhyme schemes see the “Poetry” section of your
English Language Arts Ready Reference.
The Form: the look of the poem on the page.
The look of the poem may be controlled by the rhythm you have chosen. If
you are imitating “Heat” or “Moon-Songs,” your poem will likely have a look
or stanza form that is similar to the poem you have imitated.
If you write a poem in free verse, you need to think carefully about how to
handle punctuation and spaces. For example, Duke Redbird’s poem has only
one comma and one period. In Archibald Lampman’s poem the punctuation
is very important and is vital to the meaning of the poem.
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
The form of the poem is based on specific reasons. A poem is not a
haphazard creation. Creating a poem is a very thoughtful process.
Diction
Diction (word choice) is an important aspect of literature. Of all types of
literature, poetry is perhaps the most reliant on effective diction for its
success. This is because poetry is usually a short, condensed form of writing.
Therefore, every word counts in creating the effect the poet desires.
It is important to choose the exact word you need to create the effect you
want. A thesaurus or a dictionary can help you in this task, as well as your
imagination.
Figurative Language and Literary Devices
Nearly all poems contain figurative language such as similes, metaphors or
personification. Most contain some literary devices, such as parallelism or
alliteration. Reread the poems you have studied so far in this course and see
how the poets have used both figurative language and literary devices in
their poems. Try to include at least one example of figurative language and
one literary device in your poem. Should you need more help with figurative
language and literary devices see your English Language Arts Ready
Reference, both the “Poetry” section and the “Glossary” section.
Note: You may use any of the poems you have read for this course as
models for your poem. You are also free to use your imagination to create a
poem that is uniquely yours.
Presenting your poem
Use your own paper to write your poem. Be sure to attach it to this
assignment upon submission.
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
(20)
Your poem will be evaluated as follows.
Requirements
Poem conveys a clear idea
about a single topic.
Teacher's Comments
Rhythm is appropriate to the
topic of the poem.
Rhyme (if used) suits the
rhythm and topic of the
poem.
OR
Free Verse (if used) is
appropriate to the topic of
the poem.
Form is pleasing and helps
convey meaning.
Diction: Choice of words is
appropriate. The words are
specific and well-suited to
the topic.
At least one example of
effective figurative language.
At least one use of a literary
device.
Spelling is correct
Punctuation (if used) is
consistent.
Overall appearance of poem
is pleasing.
English Language Arts A30
Assignment 3
(16)
D.
Building Vocabulary
It is important to know literary terminology so that you can think, speak, and
write in knowledgeable ways about literature. Knowing these terms and
what they mean will also enhance your listening skills. Should you need help
with any of the literary terms in the following exercise, consult the
“Glossary” section of your English Language Arts Ready Reference.
Magic Square: How Well Do You Know Literary Terms?
Directions: Select from the numbered statements the best answer for each of the
literary terms. Put the number in the proper space in the magic square box. The
total of the numbers will be the same across each row and down each column.
Statements
Literary Terms
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
k.
l.
m.
n.
o.
p.
1.
2.
3.
4.
alliteration
symbol
theme
stanza
tone
metaphor
personification
lyric poetry
narrative poetry
simile
hyperbole
diction
free verse
irony
euphony
imagery
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
Answer Box
English Language Arts A30
mental pictures created by words
a writer’s attitude toward a subject
poetry which tells a story
a group of poetry lines arranged according to
a plan
a specific thing that stands for an idea or
values
exaggeration for effect
inanimate objects are given human attributes
saying one thing but meaning another
a general truth brought out through a piece of
literature
a comparison introduced by like or as
an indirect comparison
pleasantness of sound
poetry with no regular rhyme or rhythm
pattern
poetry that focuses on emotion
choice of words
repetition of the same initial letter in two or
more words close to one another
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Magic number = _____
Assignment 3