"Frankenstein" Graphic Novel Adaptation

I think the use of graphic novels in the classroom is a brilliant idea. Not all students love to read. Not all students who love to read want to read. My problem in high school was I would read dialog but skip the “scenery” of the text. I wanted to get things done quick and then base my answers from in class discussion, especially if I was uninterested in the text. I feel many students fit into the range I just described. Graphic novels cut out the extra verbiage and use pictures to describe what is happening, this will register with more students than just reading text.

I feel that graphic novels can reach more students. Reluctant readers, slow readers, and uninterested readers are more likely to do an assignment if it’s more interesting. A graphic novel is also a good starting point for students who are struggling to grasp concepts or just struggling as readers in general. The “Frankenstein” graphic novel is a good example of something that would work well for reluctant or struggling readers. It is a story most kids are familiar with, so if I were to give them just the story text they may ignore it and watch a movie instead. A graphic novel would help keep students engaged in the lesson and give students an extra understanding. Or I could assign both the text and the graphic novel and have the students compare scenes from it to develop a deeper understanding of the text.

The only thing that might be problematic using graphic novels is that some can be quite graphic or disturbing to some students. For example, Poe’s works can be disturbing at times with ideas of mental illness and death. When some stories were converted to a graphic novel, I would question using them because of the graphic nature. Of course, it depends on the students age and maturity. We should always customize our lessons to our students, so that will play a part in determining if graphic novels are worth it a classroom.

"Night" by Elie Wiesel

I had never heard of the novel "Night" by Elie Wiesel before this class. I remember in high school we briefly studied the Holocaust. In my English Language Arts class freshman year, we read “Anne Frank” and discussed the terrible things that happened to the Jewish people. We often talked about how people would hide Jews, and how the Jews were put into concentration camps. We never once looked at the Holocaust through the perspective of a Jew that was in a concentration camp.

Wiesel’s description was more horrific then I was prepared for. I had nightmares the night I finished the book. Wiesel’s depiction of his first night in the camp was terrifying. I can’t even fathom the fear that all those people were feeling. I can’t imagine not knowing if I was ever going to see my family again. What Wiesel (and many other Jews) went through is terrible and no human being should have had to endure that torment. The two scenes that come to my mind are the scene where the Polish are throwing babies in the air for target practice and the first day in the concentration camp when they were dumping kids into the fire pit alive. Those scenes were hard for me to even read, I can’t imagine what it was like for people’s daily lives to deal with that fear.

I would use this book in my classroom just because it would give students a new perspective on what happened in the Holocaust. Often, adults want to sugar coat events and ignore things that happened. I think it is important for students to be aware of things that have happened in history, so it doesn’t happen again. This book could also give students an appreciation of how strong the Jewish people and culture is.

The only thing I would be careful about is the graphic nature of this book. I would use this book in a group of older more mature students. (11^th-12^th grade most likely.) I would also need to bring up resources for students how may be troubled by the graphic areas of the book. Regardless of the graphic nature, I wish I would have read this in high school and if I can work it into my classroom I will. 

Poe Mini Lesson

TPA Lesson Plan #4

Course:

1. Teacher Candidate	Michelle Rubio	Date Taught
Cooperating Teacher	Sean Agriss	School/District	Eastern Washington University
2. Subject	English Language Arts	Field Supervisor	N/A
3. Lesson Title/Focus	“The Black Cat” Foreshadowing and POV	5. Length of Lesson	20 minutes
4. Grade Level	9th grade

6. Academic & Content Standards (Common Core/National)	CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.5 Analyze how an author's choices concerning how to structure a text, order events within it (e.g., parallel plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks) create such effects as mystery, tension, or surprise. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.A Come to discussions prepared, having read and researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation by referring to evidence from texts and other research on the topic or issue to stimulate a thoughtful, well-reasoned exchange of ideas.
7. Learning Objective(s)	Students will be able to identify flashback and foreshadowing in Poe’s short story “The Black Cat.” Students will be able to identify point of view and discuss how it impacts the story. I can identify foreshadowing and point of view in “The Black Cat.”
8. Academic Language demands (vocabulary, function, syntax, discourse)	Vocabulary: Foreshadowing- when the author hints and warns of a future event. Flashback- technique used by an author to take a reader back in time to explain an event. Point of view- the person telling (or narrating) the story in first person, second person, or third person Function: Students will analyze foreshadowing and point of view. Syntax: Students will answer two questions (one question per group) about foreshadowing and point of view and answers will be written on the board. Discourse: Students will write out their answers about vocab and then discuss the vocab and answers with the class.

9. Assessment

Formative Assessment: Students will be asked to answer a question in their group. One group will be asked to compare foreshadowing in the text and comic and the other group will be asked to discuss point of view in the same way. Instead of turning their notes in, we will write their answers on the board and discuss as a class. 00At the end of the lesson, students will give a thumb up, down, or to the side on how they think they progressed through the lesson. This assessment will measure if the students can identify foreshadowing and point of view.

10. Lesson Connections

Research Theory: In the article “Linking Contemporary Research on Youth, Literacy, and Popular Culture with Literacy Teacher Education” by Robert Petrone, Using Pop Culture in the classroom can help student comprehension and bridge the gap of literacy development both in and out of school. Pop culture in the classroom “allows and creates spaces for students to draw on their own popular culture frames of reference to access, learn, and develop academic literacies.” (p. 14) In this lesson, students will connect a comic to a text, and further their understanding of the text. Students will use their own knowledge to think about how the text connects to pop culture they are familiar with. Prior Knowledge: This lesson will build off the pre-assessment at the beginning of the unit. Students were introduced to all the vocab they will need to know for the unit. In the previous lesson, students discussed and identified foreshadowing in Poe’s “Tell-Tale Heart.” To participate fully, students will need to have an understanding of what foreshadowing and character development is. This lesson will build on the idea of foreshadowing by adding the term flashback. Point of view will be added and asked how in “The Black Cat” it relates to the character development. Students already know what foreshadowing is and how to identify it, but adding a comic and a new term “flashback” will deepen their understanding. Future Knowledge: This lesson will build into character development and what that means for the whole story. Students will be introduced to more terms as we move onto a longer story where more terms will apply. Viewing a comic will help the students get ideas for their creative portfolio, where they will have to create a couple scenes for part of the final project.

11. Instructional Strategies/Learning Tasks to Support Learning
Learning Tasks and Strategies Sequenced Instruction Introduction: Discussion on vocab words. Learning Tasks: Comic reading and group discussion. Closure: Discussion on foreshadowing and point of view from the group discussion and asking the students how they feel they are doing on the I can statement.
Teacher’s Role Introduction (5 minutes): -I will prompt the students to get out their laptops as I write the I can statement on the board. -I will say the I can statement out loud. -I will ask the students what they remember about foreshadowing from the previous lesson. -I will ask the students if they know what a flashback is, and to keep that idea in mind for the rest of the lesson. -I will ask the students if they know what point of view is. I will explain what point of view is if they don’t know. -I will explain that the comic will help them with ideas toward their creative portfolio at the end of the unit. Learning Tasks (10 minutes): -I will ask the students to access the comic from my blog and being to read it. After about five minutes, I will split the class in half and ask them two different questions. -Group one will be asked to compare foreshadowing in the text and the comic. I will ask that they compile a list of what parts of the comic helps their understanding of foreshadowing. -Group two will be asked to compare the comic to the text and what they understand about the narrator and his point of view. After five minutes, I will bring the class together to talk about our findings. Closure (5 minutes): -I will create two columns on the board: foreshadowing and point of view. Both groups will share what they found and explain how the comic helped them find these instances. - I will ask the students how they feel they met the target today with a thumb up, to the side, or down. -I will remind the students that tomorrow we will continue talking about “The Black Cat” and that this lesson will help them with ideas for their creative portfolio.	Students’ Role -Students will get out their laptops (or their electronic devices.) -Students will listen as I read out the I can statement. - Students will tell me what they remember from the previous lesson about foreshadowing. - Students will tell me if they know what a flashback is, and/or listen to what a flashback is. -Students will tell me what they think point of view is. They will listen to me explain it a little more. -Students will listen as I explain the importance of the lesson and the comic for their portfolio. -Students will access the comic and begin to read it. -Students will split into two discussion groups. -Students in group one will compare foreshadowing in the text and the comic. One student will act as scribe and list what parts of the comic help their understanding of foreshadowing. -Students in group two will compare point of view and the narrator in the test and comic. One student will act as scribe and list what parts of the comic help their understanding of the narrator. -Students will return their attention to me as we enter the end of the lesson.   -Students from group one will share their list with the class and for it to be written on the board. -Students from group two will share their list with the class. -Students from the opposite group will listen so they get an understanding of everything presented. -Students will rate their progression towards the learning target with a thumb up, down, or sideways. -Students will listen as I explain what we will be doing tomorrow.
Student Voice to Gather Student voice will consist of the students giving me a rating of their progression towards the learning target at the end of the lesson. Sharing their ideas from the group activity will also give me a idea of what they know and allow them to discuss what they know with others.

12. Differentiated Instruction

ELL Students: Group work will help the ELL students get their ideas out. The students will be patient and willing to help them get their ideas across during the group discussion as well. Low: Students who are struggling with ideas of foreshadowing and point of view will be able to listen to ideas of others before picking out examples of their own. The comic will help them see things that may be hidden in the text. Medium/High: Students will be able to develop their ideas with a mixed group of students. High level learners will be able to help the other students find more hidden ideas from the text in conversation. Medium level learners can also add ideas to the discussion as well as develop their thoughts with all the different ideas from the group.    Interest Levels: Students will keep interested in the lesson because I will not be lecturing the whole time. I will introduce a comic that will grab their attention. Group work with the comic will help the students stay engaged in the lesson and learn in the process.

13. Resources and Materials

Petrone, Robert. Linking Contemporary Research on Youth, Liteacy, and Popular Culture with Literacy Teacher Education. Journal of Literacy Research, 45(3). Retrieved from https://scholarworks.montana.edu/xmlui/bitstream/handle/1/9556/Petrone_JLR_2013_A1b.pdf?sequence=1 Teacher: White board, markers, comic, and text. Students: Pencil, paper, electronic device, and text.

14. Management and Safety Issues

Transition times between reading and discussion could create a problem. Students may not want to continue onto the next task, but the comic should keep the students fairly engaged in the lesson. Students will be praised when they are on task and provide good answers. I will walk around the classroom during the discussion, so the students will stay on task.

15. Parent & Community Connections

Students will be able to discuss with their parents/guardians the impact that pop culture has on their understanding of their academic work. Comprehension of literature and how it applies to the real world and why it is important will be important for future education. Making connections between different sets of information is also an important real-world skill students can use in their community.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian: Sherman Alexie

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie is a fascinating novel that every person should read. Before this class, I had heard of the novel, but had never taken the time to read it. I think the novel shows the diversity of the Native Americans culture and the problems many Native kids and families face all the time. I love the diversity of characters and that there a many relatable characters. We get to experience the life of Junior, who doesn’t have the easiest life. Moving to a new school is difficult, even though it was his choice. Making new friends and losing friends and a community isn’t the easiest choice.

I think this book would work very well in a classroom. It would give the students a taste of diversity and show them that we don’t know what other people are going through. (Like the scene where Rowdy guessed that Junior was poor, but wasn’t planning on saying anything. Or the fact that Junior’s dad is a drunk.) The book brings up many issues that an oppressed culture faces. I think that the more students learn about different cultures the more accepting and understanding they become. In my opinion, it is (partly) our job to raise our students into respectful, understanding young adults. I think it is important for the students to look at problems such as reservations and the way they’re more like a prison, as stated in the book. I think students should realize there are bigger problems teens are facing then acne and relationships. There is a lot to gain for students to look at and analyze local culture and the problems that are still current. I think it’s important to look at the cultures that surround our students’ local area. Students should be aware of the issues that go on close to home, and I think this book could open students’ eyes.