“The first thing I saw was what looks like a mix of an American flag and a Japanese flag. Then maybe also an encampment. I think maybe it’s after Pearl Harbor and I know we imprisoned Japanese people who were Americans in concentration camps in California…”
8th Grade readers, writers, and speakers began a new unit on narrative non-fiction this week, selecting an individual book, from 20 titles curated by teachers, and analyzing its cover design as a warm-up exercise. Students made predictions about the book’s tone, topic, and central message based on only what they could observe in the jacket design, and presented their ideas to classmates. From here, they will set a pace to complete reading their book in the next two weeks, practicing daily annotations in one of the three formats they have learned so far this year—writing a summative paragraph, marking three sections with questions or connections, or taking notes about each section’s key highlights. The books each tell the story of a real-life individual’s journey through either a key moment in American history, or through their personal realization of what matters to them. Book choices allow students to select something of interest and also to set goals for themselves based on what will challenge them in reading.
Book choices allow students to select something of interest and also to set goals for themselves based on what will challenge them in reading.
Over the next two weeks, they will bring their individual annotations to discussion during all group mini-lessons, exploring ways each author effectively tells their story, captures small details, and uses figurative language to compel their reader. The final project for this unit will be to prepare a presentation of their own personal journey or formative moment, in a variety of creative formats. The blend of studying and then spinning off from one shared genre, paired with individual book selection, allows each student to work to their just right challenge while using reading and writing for authentic purposes, like discovering and conveying meaning in each of our life journeys.