TEACHER: Michele Sabatier
SUBJECT English II
DAY 4: Jabberwocky; parts of speech and word choice
CLASS TIME: 90 min
OBJECTIVE:
•
MDE 4.a: TSW analyze text to determine the appropriate use of advanced grammar in
composing or editing. (DOK 2)
•
MDE 4.b: TSW analyze text to determine the appropriate use of advanced mechanics in
composing or editing. (DOK 1)
•
MDE 4.c: TSW manipulate sentence structure to achieve a purpose such as clarification,
definition, or emphasis in composing or editing. (DOK 2)
•
MDE 1.c: TSW analyze word choice to determine author's purpose. (DOK 3)
•
TSW analyze and demonstrate understanding of use of parts of speech. (DOK 2)
•
MDE 2.e: TSW make inferences based on textual evidence of details and language to draw
conclusions and determine author's purpose (DOK 3)
MATERIALS:
Daily Oral Language book; Jabberwocky poem handout and overhead; Jabberwocky Revisited
overhead and handout; whiteboard; markers.
DO NOW: (5 min independent 7 minutes instruction and guided practice)
Responding to DOL on the board, TSW correct the sentence independently, then observe as selected
students put their sentences on the board. TTW guide the students in determining the best solution to
the errors, indicating the specific grammar and mechanics rules employed. TTW demonstrate to
students how to annotate the sentence for later study.
Review agenda for the day.
SET: (2 minutes)
Was there much action in the Indian Summer poem? What was the purpose of that poem? (To describe
something the poet saw, much as we would take a photo of a beautiful sight)
Some poems tell stories of adventure. Today's poem is about a battle between a young boy and a
dangerous creature called a Jabberwock.
PROCEDURES: (75 minutes)
TTW put pre-reading vocabulary on the board (without mentioning that the poem is largely nonsense)
'Twas (explain origins of 'twas and its relationship to 'tis as a precursor to it's)
slain
foe
sought
TTW read the poem as though students are to understand it, interjecting a few explanations of the real
words.
Ask students for a summary of what happened in the poem. [child was sent on a dangerous errand to
kill a deadly beast, he cut off his head and the adult was happy]
TTW reinforce that the students understood what happened, and ask if they understood all of the words.
When agreed they didn't, TTW reveal that most of the words were nonsense.
As readers, we don't always need to know exactly what every word means. We can infer [infer was a
recent vocabulary word] the meaning from what? [context clues]
TTW distribute the handout of the poem to the students and project the enlarged stanzas onto the
whiteboard, instructing students to take notes.
TTW underline each nonsense word and call on students to identify it by its part of speech, asking how
they are able to tell what part of speech the word is. Students follow along annotating their copies of
the poem.
Explain that "chortle" is in the dictionary as a word invented by Lewis Carroll when he wrote this
poem. So it was a nonsense word at the time he wrote it, but it has become a real word over time. It is
believed to be a combination of chuckle (laugh) and snort.
Jabberwocky Revisited.
TTW distribute the handout and put enlarged version on overhead.
TSW complete the poem using real words to make it make sense., using their notes as a guide for what
parts of speech to use in each blank. They can set the scene in the first stanza. EXTRA CREDIT: Even
though the original poem repeated the first stanza as the last, they can use different words to change the
mood.
NOTE: This activity can also be done (in groups?) as a "MadLib" blind game to produce a funny poem.
This will be used for review for the cumulative 9-week's test.
Model the first stanza on the whiteboard, reminding students they are not to use the examples. (I
happened to teach this lesson on Halloween day, so the students had fun making it a Halloween setting)
TTW demonstrate how word choice can change the mood of the action.
TSW complete the poems in class and share as time permits. TTW point out difference in mood and
tone of different poems created by changing the descriptive words.
CLOSURE: (2 minutes)
Review day's learning: that we can infer the meaning of words and often understand the main idea
without knowing exact meanings. We can determine a word's part of speech by its context and use in
the sentence. Choice of words changes the mood of a poem or any writing
Remember that on the exam for this unit, you'll see poems you haven't read before.
Coming up: Next we'll be playing a game in the hall to help understand a poem.
ASSESSMENT/EVALUATION:
Informal: Observe (M) student responses to DOL prompts for correct usage and mechanics.
Formal: Grade (M) written DOL notes for understanding of rules used and record as weekly grade in
the gradebook. (D)
Informal: Observe (M) student responses for accuracy in determining parts of speech (C)
Formal: Grade (M) Jabberwocky Revisited poems checking for correct use of parts of speech, and for
choice to change opening and closing stanzas (C) and recorded in the gradebook.
Formal: Grade (M) unit test for understanding word choice in authors purpose and mood (C) and record
grades in the gradebook.(D) (60% grade)