Thursday, October 1st
• 9th Lit Warm-Up: What is the main idea of this paragraph?
Imagine walking through the doors of your high school and into
a sea of look-alikes. Everywhere you turn, you see nothing but
plain polo shirts, khaki pants, and blank stares. How, in an
environment of such enforced conformity, can teenagers express
their individuality? The teenage years are a time of selfdiscovery; forcing students to wear uniforms stifles their ability
to express themselves, and can lead to self-esteem issues or
even depression. Aside from being unfashionable, uniforms are
often expensive, placing an unnecessary financial burden on
families. Furthermore, uniform dress codes are not effective in
reducing disciplinary or academic problems in schools. Thus,
there is no logical reason for enforcing uniform dress code
policies in our public schools.
9th Lit Agenda for Today
• Works Cited Page
• Writing Effective Introductions
WHAT IS A WORKS CITED PAGE?
Last page of a research paper
List of sources used in the paper
Entries are in alphabetical order
MLA Format for Online Sources:
Author’s Last Name, Author’s First Name. “Title of Article.”
Name of Website. Publisher, Date of Publication.
Web. Date Accessed.
Works Cited
“Literacy Facts: The Impact of Literacy.” The Literacy Center, n.d. Web. 30
September 2015.
Paul, Annie Murphy. “Educational Technology Isn’t Leveling the Playing Field.”
Slate. The Slate Group, 25 June 2014. Web. 30 September 2015.
Stevens, Angie. “Poor Reading Skills Lead More Students to Dropout of School
Than Poverty.” Reading Horizons. Reading Horizons, 20 April 2011. Web.
30 September 2015.
Writing Effective
Introductions
October 1, 2015
First Sentence: The Lead
• Also known as an “interest grabber,” “attention grabber,” or
“lead.”
• Inspires the reader to continue reading
• Leads into the thesis
• NEVER USE:
•
•
•
•
“In this essay I am going to talk about…”
“This essay is about…”
“Today I’m going to talk about…”
“Hello, my name is…”
Anecdote: A Little Story
• Vivid detail
• Appeals to emotion
• Example:
• If your thesis is that advertising liquor on TV is
irresponsible, you could open with the story of
an alcoholic friend who got drunk for the first
time after seeing a particularly persuasive ad
for Patrón tequila.
Startling Statistic
• Make it relevant to the audience
• Ask them to look around the room, or think about
their family, neighborhood, school, community, etc.
• If your thesis is that America needs to improve its
system of preventative mental health care, you could
open by sharing ABC News’s recent report of a study
showing that up to 1 in 5 Americans suffers from
mental illness.
• Use a parenthetical citation to cite your source!
• Example: According to a recent study by the
American Educational Research Association, “a
student who can't read on grade level by 3rd grade is four
times less likely to graduate by age 19” (Sparks 1).
Quotation Lead
• Make sure the audience knows who you’re
quoting and why the person is important.
• Example:
• Former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan
once said, “Literacy is a bridge from misery
to hope.” But why are so many Americans
unable to cross that bridge?
Historical or Background Lead
• All introductions are going to need some kind of
background information, but don’t make it boring.
• Vivid verbs help
• Keep it simple
• A good opening line from a speech about wiretapping:
“Ever since the September 11th attacks changed the face of
national security, debate has raged about where we define
the boundary between safety and privacy.”
Scenario
• Take your audience to Imaginationland…
• Help them visualize what the world would be like if they:
• Make the change you’re suggesting
OR
• Disregard your advice.
Here’s an example from an essay on preventing gang
violence:
Most Americans cannot imagine being able to walk down
any street of any major city in this country, wearing any
color they prefer, without fear or anxiety. Such a dream is
possible, however, if local governments and communities
work together to achieve it.
Next comes your thesis…
• Thesis=Main idea; the point you are trying to prove. It’s not
just “what your paper is about;” it’s YOUR POSITION on the
topic.
• Thesis is typically a “should” statement.
• Your lead should transition smoothly into your two or three
main points and your thesis statement; these can actually be
part of the thesis sentence.
• Example: Due to overcrowding, sanitation issues, and unreliable
technology, the main building of Fuller High School should be
remodeled or replaced.
• Each body paragraph will deal with one of your main points.
Example:
Lead
Three Main Points
Thesis Statement
Imagine walking through the doors of your high school and into
a sea of look-alikes. Everywhere you turn, you see nothing but
plain polo shirts, khaki pants, and blank stares. How, in an
environment of such enforced conformity, can teenagers express
their individuality? The teenage years are a time of selfdiscovery; forcing students to wear uniforms stifles their ability
to express themselves, and can lead to self-esteem issues or
even depression. Aside from being unfashionable, uniforms are
often expensive, placing an unnecessary financial burden on
families. Furthermore, uniform dress codes are not effective in
reducing disciplinary or academic problems in schools. Thus,
there is no logical reason for enforcing uniform dress code
policies in our public schools.
Your Turn
• Write an introductory paragraph based on the topic you chose
yesterday.
• Switch papers with a partner and check for the following:
• What type of lead did your partner use?
• What is your partner’s thesis statement?
• What two or three main reasons are given to support the thesis?
Summarizer
• Think about the two or three main points you have to support
your thesis. In what order do you think you will write about
them and why?
Thursday, October 1, 2015
Shiloh: A Requiem
By Herman Melville
Skimming lightly, wheeling still,
The swallows fly low
Over the field in clouded days,
The forest-field of Shiloh -Over the field where April rain
Solaced the parched one stretched in pain
Through the pause of night
That followed the Sunday fight
Around the church of Shiloh-The church so lone, the log-built one,
That echoed to many a parting groan
And natural prayer
Of dying foemen mingled there -Foemen at morn, but friends at eve -Fame or country least their care:
(What like a bullet can undeceive!)
But now they lie low,
While over them the swallows skim,
And all is hushed at Shiloh.
American Lit Warm-Up
1. Lines like “the swallows fly low” and
“the church so lone, the logbuilt one” contain examples of
________________ rhyme.
2. The line, “the church so lone, the
log-built one,” also contains
_________________________.
3. The reference to a famous battle—the
battle of Shiloh—is an example
of_______________________.
4. Why were the men “foemen (enemies)
morn, but friends at eve”?
WORD BANK for 1-3:
INTERNAL, ALLUSION, ASSONANCE, END,
ALLITERATION
at
American Lit Agenda for Today
• American Individualism in Music
• Hawthorne Poetry Presentations
• Unit Review:
– Kahoot
– Review Sheet
Individualism in Music
•
•
•
•
Your Name
Artist
Title
Example of figurative language or other literary device
(simile, metaphor, allusion, personification, hyperbole,
imagery, alliteration, assonance, etc.)
• What’s the connection?
– In other words, why did you choose this song? How does it
relate to the themes of this unit (individualism,
Romanticism, Transcendentalism…the connection between
humans and nature, social justice, civil disobedience,
solitude, self-reliance…)
My Example
• Artist: Pearl Jam
• Title: “Given to Fly”
• Example of figurative language: “A wave came
crashing like a fist to the jaw…” (simile)
• What’s the connection?
It’s a song about a man who “tuned out” from
society and escaped to the solitude of nature to
seek truth, then returned to share it with the rest of
humanity. He’s essentially Thoreau with wings.
Hawthorne Poetry Presentation
• Read the poem
• Share the one best example of figurative
language in the poem
• Read your paraphrase
• State the theme
American Lit Summarizer
Which of the following concepts do you think you
need to study the most in preparation for
tomorrow’s test?
• Unit Themes: Romanticism, Transcendentalism,
American Individualism
• Important Authors: Emerson, Thoreau,
Hawthorne, Poe
• Literary Terms: Allusion, Simile, Metaphor,
Symbolism, Imagery
• Reading/Writing Skills: Citing Textual Evidence,
Determining Theme