Flowers for Algernon

Here’s a link to the Supplies List – School Year 2010-2011.

Today we started work in Flowers for Algernon found in the LOL book from pages 220-246.

Before we began to read, we talked for a bit . . .

• We talked about what we know about our brain (p 220). We speculated what would happen if one were to sustain a severe injury to one of these regions of the brain. Complete this sentence: If I sustained brain trauma to the . . .
  • . . . frontal lobe, I would probably have  difficulty controlling emotions, solving problems and making decisions, express myself in speech, involuntary movements,
  • . . . occipital lobe, I would experience problems related to vision as far as actually seeing and how I see things. I could have halucinations.
  • . . . parietal lobe, I would possibly have difficulty grabbing and holding things, judging distances, and I sould also struggle to read.
  • . . . temporal lobe, I would maybe forget things, forget the order that things occur in that I am usually familiar with, and I would also misunderstand language I normally have mastery of.
• We talked about inferences (p 220) – what they are and what is required to make them.
  • Students will make inferences and preditions throughout the reading of the story after each progress report.

We also got prepared to work with the text in a few ways . . .

• We set up a few expectations for what needs to be done WHILE we read.
  • We set up Characterization Charts for the main character, Charlie Gordon. These will be worked on throughout the reading of the story because just as we change over time so characters change over the course of a story (gosh they’re so dynamic). The charts should reflect changes Charlie undergoes in how he looks, expresses himself, and thinks about himself and others, as well as changes in how he is spoken to, treated and thought of by other characters. Students may record inferences right on their Characterization Chart too.
  • We looked over the Active Reading Questions (pp 223, 225, 227, 229, 235, 238, 243) to make sure students knew of the expectation to write brief answers to each one as they read.
  • We also got ready to keep a list of inferences we came up with on our own, unprompted but by the story.

We then set up a few expectations for what needs to be done AFTER we read.

• We will answer questions 1-5, & 7 on page 246.

For extra added in depth interaction witht he text, and to take it tot he next level, students were told they could write an expository essay in response to one of the following questions.

• A – What characteristics of Charlie make him a dependable narrator?
• B – Think about society’s attitude toward the mentally chanllenged. how might society treat Charlie throughout the course of the story?
• C – Should Charlie have gone through with the surgery? Discuss the pros abnd cons and come to a conclusion.
• D – THE BIGGIE
  • Pick one of the following quotes:
    • “Ignorance is bliss” -Anonymous
    • “A Year spent in artificial intelligence is enough to make one believe in God.” -Adam Smith
    • “I’d rather laugh with the sinners than die witht he saints.” -Billy Joel
    • “If we’re so much the same like I always hear, why such different fortunes and fates?” -Neil Peart
  • Use detials and information from the story to . . .
    • Explain what the quote means.
    • Explain how the quote represents the theme fo the story.
    • Explain why you agree or disagree with the quote.

Embedded are samples of student work.

A  Characterization Chart.

 Mohammed answering an Active Readin.g Question.

 Active Reading answers from a hard working young adult.

 Predictions after each Progress Report.  

 Another nice Characterization Chart.

Here’s the link to the Supplies List – School Year 2010-2011.

 Predictions after Progress Report 9.

 Inferences and/or predictions after Progress Reports.

 Another Characterization Chart. NICE one.

 Here’s the link to the Supplies List – School Year 2010-2011.