| Reading in the classroom
is fundamental to the learning process. If students are not required
to read, they will not have a full understanding of the tasks assigned.
Reading is especially important in the language arts classroom because
it sets the stage for assignments and gives students a point of reference
when conducting writing assignments. If a teacher assigns students
to write a persuasive essay taking one stand or another, it serves only
to benefit students if the teacher also gives the students readings to
help support their stance. Reading only helps, not hurt the students
to understand their assignments. On the other hand, reading obscene
amounts of material is not necessary, in my opinion, in order to give students
a point of reference.
I ask that my students read the following works:
The first two are articles
found on the web outlining one's views of what it is to be patriotic and
the last is a book that explains two scholars' views on patriotism.
I chose each work because my students will get to read at least 4 different
opinions on the subject of patriotism to incorporate and draw evidence
from in their works. If asked why I chose the particular readings,
I would only say that I want my students to use a wide variety of information
when developing their answers.
I believe the readings
I chose are good for this assignment sequence because it gives the students
opposing viewpoints. If they agree with one author, they can use
the author's work as evidence and support of their opinion. It is
always good to be able to give support and documentation if you can when
presenting your opinion.
ASSIGNMENT 1:
Read the first two articles
by going to the web addresses specified. After reading each article,
write a two-page essay comparing/contrasting the two opinions. How
are they similar, how are they different? Use evidence from each
article to support your claim.
A successful essay
will incorporate the ideals of each author into its argument and pull relevant
evidence from the source.
ASSIGNMENT 2:
Write a sonnet (14 line
poem) about what patriotism means to you. You can say anything you
want, how you want to say it, but remember, a sonnet only has 14 lines.
A successful sonnet will stay within the word constraints and fully answer
the question of what patriotism means. Also, give your sonnet a title
that correlates with your opinion. For more information about sonnets,
refer to (http://www.sonnets.org/yoursonnets.htm)
and click on any of the titles to view a sonnet.
ASSIGNMENT 3:
For this assignment you
are to read the book American Values: opposing viewpoints by David Bender.
After reading the book, take a few moments to jot down the three most important
characteristics of a patriotic person in your opinion. After you have your
list, use it to write a five-page essay in which you define patriotism
in your own words.
Your essay should outline
your three characteristics fully and provide detailed support from your
reading. You should also include a paragraph or two of comparing/contrasting
your essay with the opinions of the three authors you previously read.
A successful essay
will incorporate the ideals of each author, as well as your own, into the
paper while answering the question of what patriotism means to you.
Points will be deducted for grammar, spelling, and content errors.
EVALUATION CRITERIA
IS INCLUDED IN EACH ASSIGNMENT DESCRIPTION
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