ALEX Learning Activity

  

Rhetorical Style and Meaning in Fiction: Part 1

A Learning Activity is a strategy a teacher chooses to actively engage students in learning a concept or skill using a digital tool/resource.

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  This learning activity provided by:  
Author: Shannon Luster
Organization:-1
  General Activity Information  
Activity ID: 2779
Title:
Rhetorical Style and Meaning in Fiction: Part 1
Digital Tool/Resource:
Rhetorical Style and Meaning in Fiction Part I Slideshow
Web Address – URL:
Overview:

In this activity, the student will determine how rhetorical style contributes to the meaning of fiction. The student will follow along with the teacher as he/she presents notes on rhetorical style and meaning in fiction to complete a note sheet. This activity will help the students define, identify, and interpret two types of rhetorical styles which contribute to the meaning of fiction.

This activity results from the ALEX Resource Development Summit.
  Associated Standards and Objectives  
Content Standard(s):
English Language Arts
ELA2021 (2021)
Grade: 11
19. Interpret how an author's grammar and rhetorical style contribute to the meaning in both fiction, including poetry and prose, and nonfiction, including historical, business, informational, and workplace documents.
Unpacked Content
Teacher Vocabulary:
19.
  • Grammar
  • Rhetorical style
  • Fiction
  • Poetry
  • Prose
  • Nonfiction
  • Historical documents
  • Business documents
  • Informational documents
  • Workplace documents
Knowledge:
19. Students know:
  • Methods to identify an author's particular rhetorical style.
  • Formal, standard English conventions and their usage in a variety of text genres.
  • Authors choose to use particular grammar and rhetorical style in writing to convey the meaning of the text.
Skills:
19. Students are able to:
  • Interpret how an author's grammar use contributes to text's meaning in multiple genres.
  • Interpret how an author's rhetorical style contributes to the meaning of the text in multiple genres.
Understanding:
19. Students understand that:
  • An author's grammar and rhetorical style affect the meaning of different texts.
Learning Objectives:

The student will define, identify, and interpret examples of rhetorical style which contribute to the meaning of a fictional text.
  Strategies, Preparations and Variations  
Phase:
Before/Engage
Activity:

1.  The teacher will provide students with a copy of the Rhetorical Style and Meaning in Fiction Note Sheet. This note sheet can be provided digitally or can be physically copied for each student to have.  

2.  The teacher will read aloud the directions on the note sheet so that students understand how to complete the note sheet.

3.  The teacher will display the Rhetorical Style and Meaning in Fiction Google Slides presentation for the students.

4.  The teacher will explain each slide in the presentation, pausing along the way to ensure student comprehension and understanding.  

5.  The teacher will monitor the students as he/she presents the material in the presentation to make sure students are filling in the blank spaces on the Rhetorical Style and Meaning in Fiction Note Sheet.

6.  The students will be actively engaged in defining, identifying, and interpreting examples of rhetorical style which contribute to the meaning of fiction as they fill in the blanks on the note sheet and as they write responses to short answer questions on the worksheet.

7. When the presentation is concluded, the teacher will prompt the students to complete the Activity Reflection question at the end of the note sheet.

8.  When the students complete the Activity Reflection question, the students will be prompted to turn in the note sheet to the teacher.
Assessment Strategies:

1. The teacher will observe each student during the activity presentation to make sure he/she is filling in the blanks on the note sheet.

2.  The teacher will evaluate the students' interpretation of how an author's rhetorical style contributes to meaning in fiction using the point values associated with each blank and with each short answer question on the note sheet. Each answer written in the blank space is worth 3 points. Each short answer question written on the note sheet is worth 5 points. The note sheet is worth a total of 100 points.
Advanced Preparation:

1.  The teacher will need to have technology available to display the Google Slides presentation on Rhetorical Style and Meaning in Fiction.

2.  The teacher will need to make copies of the Rhetorical Style and Meaning in Fiction Note Sheet for the students.

3.  If the teacher is providing the students with a digital copy of the Rhetorical Style and Meaning in Fiction Note Sheet, the teacher will need to upload copies of the Google Doc to the appropriate learning management systems (Schoology, Google Classroom, etc.).
Variation Tips (optional):

The teacher could modify the note sheet with sentence starters for each short answer question if there are students who need some differentiated instruction for the completion of short answer questions.
Notes or Recommendations (optional):

Links to corresponding activities for extension:

Interpreting Rhetorical Style Part 2

Rhetorical Style and Meaning Part 3
  Keywords and Search Tags  
Keywords and Search Tags: diction, interpret, meaning in fiction, rhetorical style, sentence structure