Slouching Towards Bethlehem CommentariesIOCD Practice #3 (and Paper 1)

Who:

Two to three students present per class period on extracts from Didions essays as assigned by the reading
schedulepresenters must coordinate to be sure they are not presenting on the same 1-2 page extract as their
peers
The rest of the class develops discussion questions for as part of their Readers Journals

What:

Students will be responsible for facilitating a commentary on a one to two page extract from a Didion essay as part
of the previous nights reading
Discuss the overall ideas presented in the essay, significance as a whole (no more than 1 minute)
Share your close analysis of Didions techniques/choices in the extract (one page portion you have selected)how
does her diction, tone, style, syntax, figurative language, etc.affect the extract? What of the characters, how does
she develop them? Why does she make the choices that she does? (Criterions A & B)remainder of your time
Answer any questions your teacher and/or audience has. (Criterion D/E)

When:

Each class, two to three students will present. You only present on your day.
Presentations will last no more than eight minutes each. Questions may push it a bit longer, but prepare no more
than eight minutes of commentary.
Will occur at the beginning of class

Why:

To solidify your knowledge on Didions work (a weakness for the previous classes)
To build your skills in close analysis and literary commentaryparticularly in how to comment on passages rather
than poetry
To engage the class in student-directed discussion
To understand the expectations and rubric for the IB Internal Exam, the IOCD (completed in January)

How:

Sign up for a day/slotthats your day! Take a look at who presents with youmake sure you do not present on
the same pages or you will BOTH be docked points
Annotate your extract, color mark itdidnt buy your own copy? See me during my planning so I can make a copy
of your extract for you
Have purposeful organization and thesis to begin the commentary (Criterion C)
Your teacher and/or audience members will then ask you questions at the end of your commentary

Scoring (for specifics refer to your resource packet)

points

Criterion A Knowledge and Understanding

Criterion B Appreciation of Writers Choices
Criterion C Organization (THESIS!)
Criterion D/E Response to Questions
Criterion F Language
Criterion BroccPrepared, presented on assigned day

Total 50
5 pts
5 pts
5 pts
5 pts
5 pts
5 pts

Presenter
50 point
rubric used
once

Audience Members
5 points per class, prepared
discussion questions
(checked before
presentations) as part of the
readers journals

Part of the
Wording in the IB English 2 HL Guide
Commentary
Preparation During this time students are supervised. In the 20 minutes,

Modifications for class commentaries / Extra

explanation
You will have already prepared for your
they are expected to:
discussion. Remember, in the IOCD, you only

read the extract and accompanying guiding questions

have 20 minutes to prepare.
carefully
Do NOT conduct research for this; however,

identify and analyse closely all the significant aspects of

the extract
you may reference previous knowledge in

make notes for the commentary

your analysis

organize the structure of the commentary.

You are expected to conduct a full analysis

Students should aim to identify and explore all significant

of the extract
aspects of the extract, commenting on the effectiveness
o Discuss the overall tone, ideas
of the writers techniques, including the use of stylistic
devices and their effect(s) on the reader.
presented in the essay, significance

A commentary should be sustained and well organized. It

as a whole
should neither be delivered as a series of unconnected
o Share your close analysis of
points nor take the form of a narration or a line-by-line
Didions techniques/choiceshow
paraphrase of the passage or poem.
does her diction, style, syntax,
figurative languageeffect the
essay?
Consider the guiding questions if you get
stuck (located on the back of this paper)
Commentary Students must be allowed to deliver their 8-minute
Very little modification other than your IOC
commentaries without interruption and teachers must
portion will be about a poem.
not distract students or attempt to rearrange their
(8 minutes)

I will have a timer, and start the clock. You

commentaries.
will present your ideas for 8 minutes.

Teachers may only intervene if a student panics and

needs positive encouragement, or if a student is off
DO NOT READ THE ESSAY/EXTRACT.
target or is finding it difficult to continue.
Do not simply paraphrase/summarize the
extract.
You will not has the extract to point to
your peers will be instructed to turn to that
page and follow along.
Your notes may be your copy of the book,
as well as scrap paper if you choose.

Teachers must be satisfied that students have understood

Questions
I will base my questions on what you
specific words, phrases and allusions, as well as
discuss
appreciated their importance within the extract or poem.
(2 minutes)

You will not know my follow up questions

They should also be satisfied that students understand

or the audiences beforehand
the significance of the extract within the whole poem or,
in the case of a complete poem, the relationship between
You will be asked TWO questions

the poem and other poems by that author that have been
studied.
Teachers must satisfy themselves that students
understand, and can comment on, the writers technique

General Non-Fiction Guiding Questions according to IB:

To what effect is sentence structure used in this extract?

In what ways is the style of this extract typical of the work as a whole?

What is the likely impact of this extract on the reader?

How important is the logical sequence of ideas in this extract?

Is there any person in the work, other than the writer, whose presence
you found to be forceful or memorable?
Did you find the essayist skilled in bringing the work to a particularly
satisfying conclusion?
o Do you have any reservations about the writers responses or
attitudes to the places/people/ideas?

o
o
o

o
o

What cultural aspects of the context do you think had the

strongest impact on the writers story?
Were there some aspects of life that you found significantly
omitted in the writers story of experience?
What features of the work most attracted you, for example,
the history or the geography, the encounters with people, or
the personal reactions of the writer?
What is the role of anecdote in the work and how well do you
think this writer handled that feature?
What human issues form the subjects of the work? Did you
find any of them particularly well handled?