ENG 3UI- Book Club Seminar Presentation Assignment
Learning Goal:
In a collaborative team, I will create and present an informative and engaging presentation sothat I can
show my understanding of the story, and demonstrate my ability to critically analyze a novel.
Task:
With your book club group, create a 20-25 minute seminar that shares your understanding of the novel’s
context, character development, theme development and finally your opinions regarding the writing
style, structure, and novel as a whole. Remember, this is NOT a summary presentation. The purpose of
this seminar is to develop a presentation that answers the driving question:
Does this novel matter?
Therefore, your presentation should connect the major ideas from your novel to the audience in an
insightful and creative way.
Evaluation:
**Each group member will be evaluated separately based on their specific area of focus, but group
marks will apply to certain criteria such as overall organization and ability to engage the audience
through relevant activities. See the rubric for clarification.
Presentation:
Your presentation must include the following areas of focus and should be organized in one slideshow:
1. A strong introduction (1-2 minutes in length) that includes:
 An effective HOOK- Introduce you topic in a creative and engaging way. (not by introducing the
members of your group)
o Consider: startling the audience, arousing curiosity through visuals/ sound, delivering a
compelling fact, describing a scene, etc.
 Share an agenda.
 Introduce the novel - a very brief summary of the characters, setting, main conflict, etc.
*Only share enough about the story so that the audience can easily follow along
2. Person #1 - context - Is the context important to our understanding of the novel?
 answer this question by researching something about the time period and place in which the
story is set - could include details about the author’s life (if relevant to your analysis)
 describe its significance to the text as a whole - ideas:
o highlight a scene in which the setting is significant for a particular reason
o go into detail about customs and mannerisms appropriate for that context that we are
unfamiliar with today and affect our understanding of the text
 provide evidence (quotations) to support the significance of the context and/or illustrate the
context
 compare the information you’ve researched to how it appears in the novel
 include effective visuals to help establish and communicate the context
3. Person #2 - character - Are the characters relatable?
 answer this question by discussing 2-3 characters in depth - what are they like?, are they
realistic?, do they stand out for some reason?, are they archetypal and how do they fit that
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archetype?, are they unlike any character you’ve ever seen?, why are they interesting? - avoid
just talking about their lives and involvement in plot, and focus on their personalities
provide evidence (quotations) to support/demonstrate your claims
compare characters to other characters you’ve encountered - ideas:
o within the text (if there are foil characters) - to other characters in the course - to other
characters you’ve encountered elsewhere (movies, TV, novels…) - to real life (are they
realistic characters?)
include effective visuals to support your comparisons
4. Person #3 - theme development - Is there an important message shared through this novel?
 answer this question by discussing one theme that is prominent in your novel in depth
o how does it change and develop? - go into depth on how it begins, and how it develops
throughout the novel - look at how the message is revealed to the reader
 what is the author saying with this theme? - what is the bigger message behind your novel?
 provide evidence (quotations) to support/demonstrate your ideas
 compare this message to similar themes in a text read in the course (or, if you can’t come up
with any, compare it to another text you’ve read/seen)
 include effective visuals to support your author’s message
5. Person #4 - the sell - Is this an effective novel?
 answer this question by looking at the novel from a literary perspective - was this novel wellwritten? Does it tell a good story?
o look beyond whether or not it is an engaging novel
o look at how it’s written and how the story is conveyed
o look at the language used, literary devices employed, plot structure, writing style, etc.
 argue your point by using specific reasons and details to support (quotations) - thoroughly
analyze the text here to convince the class that this is or is not a worthy novel
 compare this novel to other texts in the course and/or other text you’ve read or seen
 effective visual to support your point (maybe something that demonstrates a key scene, or
character....)
6. Activity to engage the class - including all members - (3-5 minutes in length) -to be incorporated
where appropriate – does not have to appear at the end
 completely up to you - complete a creating and engaging activity for your peers to participate in
 it must be meaningful - no trivia about your presentation
 clearly outline the connection this activity has to your novel
7. Conclusion - some type of meaningful conclusion *Avoid waiting there awkwardly until applause
**Your listening skills will also be evaluated through your engagement and participation in other
presentations.