Several students were missing today because of track. The ones who were here were given their instructions at the beginning of class and worked on the assignment for the duration of the class.

Yesterday, they were given a handout that had a story in it titled “The Inheritor” that takes place in Australia.  (Read the story here…)  Attached behind it was a chart where they were to fill in the necessary parts of the narrative – characters, setting, main parts of the plot, theme, and resolution. They were asked to complete this chart AS they read, as well as make notes in the margins of their story about whether events in the story were the result of human instinct (animal instinct) or reasoning (rational thinking).

Once they were finished reading, there was a separate handout given with questions for them to consider and respond to. This work was to be done entirely independently so they can get more used to relying on themselves for their interpretations of stories and finding the answers in the reading. With the final exam coming, I’ll put more responsibility on them, instead of reading things aloud with the class. No one will read to you or talk through the answers for you on your test, so let’s get used to that way of working now!