What I've posted above is an excerpt from the novella Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad. Though I'm not expecting you to read the excerpt, what I do want you to see is the writing/underlining that is present on the page. The person annotating is making an attempt to actually connect with the text, and there are MANY ways to do this.
1. Find something that is an obviously important point in the story. This can be anything from a character detail, a change in setting, a crux in the plot setup, etc. Underline or highlight the text where you found the detail, and write something that shows your reaction to that particular detail. 2. Make a connection between the text and the world around you. What makes fiction wonderful is that it mirrors humanity...sometimes, at its best; other times, it mirrors humanity at its absolute worst. Sometimes it mirrors a story you heard on the evening news (because you guys are sleeping in...no way you're up for The Today Show), and other times it can mirror something that has actually happened to you. Underline the detail and write about it. 3. Make a "jump" in your reasoning and become a philosopher. And you all read this and said..."Huh?" What I mean by this is that you need to try to go beyond the text. Going beyond means that you found deeper meaning in the words of the story...something so profound that your light bulb glowed at full tilt and almost burst. An "A-ha!" moment, if you will. Here's the beautiful thing about going beyond the text - If you can back up how you made the connection, and place it in the context of the story...you can't be wrong. Ever. Now, backing up your connections can be difficult - just be prepared to discuss WHY you wrote your particular comment on the page. No Fear Annotation!! Now, some clarifications have been made... - The link to "The Lottery" has been taken down...boo! So, I found another one! You can find it here, and the link on the main English 1 page has also been replaced. - If you are missing the summer reading assignment, again, look at the top of the page...there should be a link that says "Download file." (Or you can click on the link. Ha!) - As far as the annotations...you can annotate to your heart's content. The only thing this will do is benefit you in the long run. Now, I am only grading the page that you turn in, but there is no reason why you shouldn't annotate the entire story to help you with the assignment. I will see one pattern, I assure you: those who annotate the entire story will have more thorough work on the summer assignment than those who choose to annotate a specific section. It shows you read the stories with care and diligence. Make sure you are keeping up with your Mythology assignments as well. Is there any link we can figure out between the Tom Cruise/Katie Holmes divorce to ancient mythology? Hmmm...I'll bet someone can make that link! Keep talking to me guys...I will be a bit more present than I was before. Promise! :-) Cheers! So looking forward to August! Until next time, Ms. Bellon
8 Comments
9/19/2013 12:38:13 pm
Reading is really great. I mean seriously, when in the class, it may look a little boring. But actually, i think if you forget about the time limit and start taking interest in the passages then it will be much more good for a student.
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sotomi usman
7/11/2014 06:40:41 am
how do i make the essay?
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Billionnn
7/31/2014 11:16:08 pm
So do we annotate short stories and the book or just one of them?
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Mariaaaam
6/10/2015 01:52:00 pm
We don't have to read all of the short stories over the summer, do we?
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Rachel
7/5/2015 09:06:39 am
I would like to know about the assignment on Mythology. For the different myths and their meaning. Does it have to be a full story myth or like a myth inside a myth? Thanks ;)
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student
6/6/2016 12:58:36 pm
I tried to use edmodo, but it is not letting me join the group.
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.......
8/10/2016 12:25:40 pm
same
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