TITLE: The Dream Experience
TASK DEVELOPER: Michael Harrell
GRADE AND CONTENT AREA: English III; Eleventh Grade
SCOPE AND SEQUENCE: Approximately six days
TARGET TEACHING DATE: September 6, 2006
SCHOOL: Mergenthaler Vocational Technical Senior High School
STANDARDS:

Maryland Core Learning Goals, Expectations, and Indicators
English: Grades 9-12

Goal 1: The student will demonstrate the ability to respond to a text by employing personal experiences and critical analysis.

Expectation 1.2: The student will construct, examine, and extend meaning of traditional and contemporary works recognized as having significant literary merit.

Indicator 1.2.5: The student will extend or further develop meaning by explaining the implications of the text for the reader or contemporary society.

Assessment Limits:
  1. Identifying and/or explaining ideas and issues of a text or across texts that may have implications for readers or contemporary society.

  2. Extending ideas found in a text or across texts by connecting them to ideas that have personal or societal relevance.

Expectation 1.3: The student will explain and give evidence to support perceptions about print and non-print works.

Indicator 1.3.5: The student will explain how common and universal experiences serve as the source of literary themes which cross time and cultures.

Assessment Limits:

  1. Identifying the experiences, emotions, issues and ideas in a text or across texts that give rise to universal literary themes.

  2. Considering the influence, effect, or impact of historical, cultural, or biographical information on a text (will not be dependent on student's prior knowledge).

Goal 2: The student will demonstrate the ability to compose in a variety of modes by developing content, employing specific forms, and selecting language appropriate for a particular audience and purpose.

Expectation 2.1: The student will write compose oral, written, and visual presentations which inform, persuade, and express personal ideas.

Indicator 2.1.1: The student will compose to inform by using appropriate types of prose.

Assessment Limits:

  1. Composing to explain an idea or examine a topic:
    - using description to support the writing purpose
    - using personal ideas to support the writing purpose

  2. Composing to meet the criteria of the ECR rubric
    - fulfilling the writing purpose as stated in the prompt
    - including relevant and complete support of ideas
    - organizing appropriately for the writing purpose
    - using language carefully and correctly
    - demonstrating attention to audience understanding and interest
    - having no errors in usage or conventions that interfere with meaning

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SETTING & PERFORMANCES:

Writing Assignment

Directions: Everyone has had, at one time or another, an experience with a dream (day or night) that seemed to have been real. In fact, the details of the dream are still quite vivid in your memory.

Write a paragraph or more to the teacher, telling about the events of one of your vividly memorable dreams. Before writing, think about the people/characters of your dream. Think about the setting of the dream. Think about how the dream began, what happened as the dream continued, and how the dream ended. Be sure to describe the colors and places in the dream. Think about how you felt then and now after awakening from the dream..

Now write a paragraph or more to the teacher, telling about the events of one of your vividly memorable dreams.

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INSTRUCTIONAL ACTIVITIES:

Course: English III

Overview: The students were assigned the task of reading the short story by Ambrose Bierce entitled "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge." On the second day, after reading the selection, the students had to perform a three-part comprehensive exercise where they had to summarize the selection including all important details in sequential order, identify the elements of plot development, and answer comprehensive questions. On the third day, the students discussed the three-part comprehensive exercise to ascertain that each student understood the selection's development and its theme.

Activity 1: Prewriting - September 6,2006

ECR Writing Assignment: Everyone has had, at one time or another, an experience with a dream (day or night) that seemed to have been real. In fact, the details of the dream are still quite vivid in your memory.

Write a paragraph or more to the teacher, telling about the events of one of your vividly memorable dreams. Before writing, think about the people/characters of your dream. Think about the setting of the dream. Think about how the dream began, what happened as the dream continued, and how the dream ended. Be sure to describe the colors and places in the dream. Think about how you felt then and now after awakening from the dream..

Now write a paragraph or more to the teacher, telling about the events of one of your vividly memorable dreams.

Pre-Writing Activity Sheet

Directions: Answer the following pre-writing questions with complete sentences and with as much detail as possible.

  1. Briefly state what the dream was about.

  2. Who were the people or characters in your dream?

  3. Where did the dream take place?

  4. How did the dream begin?

  5. What happened as the dream continued?

  6. How did the dream end?

  7. How did you feel, and what were your thoughts when you awoke from your dream?

  8. How do you feel about that particular dream now?

  9. Why do you suppose that this dream has become such a memorable one?

  10. If this dream could come true, would you want reality to be exactly like the dream? Or would you want this particular dream to be a real experience? However you choose to answer, be sure to explain why.

Materials: Elements of Literature, the answers to the comprehensive exercise, pen, and paper.
Student performance: Answer the pre-writing questions with complete sentences and with as much detail as possible.

Activity 2: Writing the First Draft - September 7, 2006

Cues for Writing

Directions: Using the following cues for writing and the completed pre-writing activity sheet, write the first draft of your composition which stems form "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge." If you follow the directions carefully, you should end up having a five paragraph composition. Do not skip a space between paragraphs. Be sure to indent.

Your first paragraph should begin with ...

     Everyone has had, at one time or another, an experience with a dream that seemed to have been real, and the details of this particular dream remains vivid. This composition will discuss such a dream. (Include your answers for numbers 1, 2, 3, and 4.)

Your second paragraph should begin with ...

     The vividness of the dream continued as the dream progressed. (Include your answer for number 5.)

Your third paragraph should begin with ...

     Sometimes a dream leaves one feeling anxious or afraid. Sometimes it leaves one in a happy or somber mood. This dream ended by ... (Include your answer to number 6. Then continue in the same paragraph.) In the case of this dream, I was left feeling ... (Include your answer to number 7.)

Your fourth paragraph should begin with ...

     This particular dream was so vivid that it remains in my memory and has a definite impact on me. (Include your answers to numbers 8 and 9.)

Your fifth paragraph should begin with ...

     If this dream could come true ... (Include your asnwer to number 10 along with your explanation.)

--Or--

     I would not want this dream to come true ...
     (Include your answer to number 10 along with your explanation.)

Materials: Completed pre-writing activity sheet, the cues for writing, a pen, and paper
Student product: The first draft of the composition.

Activity 3: Revising - September 8, 2006

The students will exchange the first drafts. The checker will read his/her peer's first draft checking for errors in spelling, punctuation, capitalization, sentence sense, and grammar/mechanics. As the checker reads the first draft, he/she will circle all errors and write comments in the margins explaining each diacritical marking. After which, the checker will complete a checklist pertaining to the draft checked. The paper, along with the checklist, is returned to its owner. The owner must write the final draft by correcting all errors and by adhering to the comments on the checklist. The checklist is, as follows:

PEER REVIEW CHECKLIST
QUESTION
YES
NO
1. Did the writer follow directions? ___ ___
2. Did the writer discuss the assigned topic? ___ ___
3. Did the writer include a title? ___ ___
4. Was the title punctuated correctly? ___ ___
5. Did the writer address the intended audience? ___ ___
6. Did the writer use specific details to exand orextend the ideas of the composition? ___ ___
7. Did each paragraph have a topic sentence? ___ ___
8. Did the writer avoid using incomplete or run-on sentences? ___ ___
9. Are there any poorly written, confusing sentences? ___ ___
10. Did the writer use a variety of sentence types -- simple, compound, complex, or compound-complex? ___ ___
11. Are there errors in capitalization? ___ ___
12. Are there errors in punctuation? ___ ___
13. Are there errors in spelling? ___ ___
14. Did the writer follow the standard rules of grammar? ___ ___
15. Was the composition written neatly? ___ ___
Additional Comments: What can be done to make the composition better?

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Materials: the first draft of composition, the checklist, and a pen
Student product: the proofreading/scoring/checking of the first draft

Activity 4: Editing - September 8, 2006 (as a home assignment)

Students will examine their corrected first draft. They will write/type the final draft of the composition using the comments and the checklist as a guide. Students will submit the final draft on the next day of class. When submitting the final draft, the students will submit (1) the pre-writing activity sheet, (2) the checklist, (3) the first draft, and (4) the final draft. By submitting each segment of the process, students will gain greater insight into the process.

Technology: Computer for typing the final draft
Materials: The corrected first draft, the checklist, pen, and paper
Student product: The final draft of the composition (which is a five-paragraph composition dealing with a possible theme from the selection read).
Scoring: Use of the four-point rubric used for extended constructed response items

Activity 5: September 9, 2006

The students will submit their five-paragraph composition (along with the pre-writing activity sheet, the checklist, and the first draft). As the students were being taken through the writing process, they were receiving instructions during the mini-lesson segment on the following:

  • Using R-A-S-E-S (R: restate the question in the form of a statement; A: answer the question specifically; S: support your answer with information from the text and from one's personal experience; E: evaluate your answer to be sure you are stating a feasible, logical answer that is supported with relative details; S: summarize your answer to clinch the ideas of your paragraph).
  • Developing topic sentences.
  • Utilizing supporting sentences that stem from the text and from personal experiences.
  • Using commas appropriately.
  • Agreement of subject/verb and pronoun/antecedent.

Student product: The final draft of a five-paragraph composition

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SCORING:

Maryland High School English Rubric: Extended Constructed Response

LEVEL 4

The response is a well-developed essay that fulfills the writing purpose.

  • Develops ideas using relevant and complete support and elaboration
  • Uses an effective organizational structure
  • Uses purposeful word choice
  • Demonstrates attention to audience's understanding and interest
  • Has no errors in usage or conventions that interfere with meaning

LEVEL 3

The response is a complete essay that addresses the writing purpose.

  • Develops ideas using adequate support and elaboration
  • Uses an organizational structure that supports the writing purpose
  • Uses clear word choice
  • Demonstrates an awareness of audience's understanding and interest
  • Has few, if any, errors in usage and conventions that interfere with meaning

Proficient Performance = Level 3 and above

LEVEL 2

The response is an incomplete or oversimplified attempt to address the writing purpose.

  • Has incomplete or unclear support and elaboration
  • Attempts to use an organizational structure
  • Demonstrates little awareness of audience's understanding and interest
  • May have errors in usage and conventions that interfere with meaning

LEVEL 1

The response provides evidence of an attempt to address the prompt.

  • Has minimal or no support or elaboration
  • May be too brief to demonstrate an organizational structure
  • Demonstrates little or no awareness of audience
  • May have errors in usage and conventions that interfere with meaning

LEVEL 0

The response is completely irrelevant or incorrect.

NOTE: The rubric for ECRs was last edited and approved July, 2004. The rubric for BCRs was last edited
and approved July, 2004.

Source: http://mdk12.org/instruction/curriculum/hsa/language_arts/instructional.html

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RESULTS:

The students performing this task are members of an English III-Honors class. There are ten students in the class. The results of the scoring of the ECR is, as follows:

  • 1 student receiving 3.0
  • 5 students receiving 2.5
  • 3 students receiving 2.0
  • 1 student receiving 0 (failure to submit)

The students in this class have good writing skills. They have little difficulty supporting main ideas with details from the text and from personal experiences. Each student is experiencing difficulty in adhering to the rules of agreement subject/verb and pronoun/antecedent). Additionally, students are having difficulty with sentence construction -- run-ons and fragments. The use of practice exercises dealing with developing topic sentences and supporting ideas seemed to be helpful. The students were aware of the role of each. Being mindful of their use and having had practice helped to produce structurally sound compositions. We must study and explore the four types of sentence construction and the use of clauses and phrases as a means of subordination and coordination. With continued practice, students writing skills should improve.