English11MidtermExam

WritingPortfolio
Part1:
WritingReflection
Chooseonewritingthatyouthoughtwasyourmosteffectiveandonethatwasyourleast
effective.Writea
12paragraph
reflectiononeach.Inyourreflection,youmust
specificallyexplainwhyeachpiecewaseffectiveorineffective.Forexample,what
specificwritingelementsmakeyourmosteffectivepiecethebest?Whatspecifically
wouldyouchangeororworkoninyourotherwritingpieces?

Writingsthisyear:
FormalBookAnalysis
Maus
and
TheGreatGatsby
SummativeEssays
NarrativeWritingsSuperHeroNarrativeandtheNanowrimo

1. Mosteffectivepieceofwritingandwhy.
MymosteffectiveWritingwasthe
Maus,
Formalbookanalysis.Ilikedthebookandwas
abletoanalyzeitquitewell.IhadbeenworkingonanalysingessaysinmyAPEnglish
classatthetime,Iwasabletousethatinformationtohelpmeforthisessay.Ifindit
easiertowritewhenIhavetoanalyzesomethinglikeabookoressay.

2. Leasteffectivepieceofwritingandwhy.
TheNaNoWriMo,narrativewritingwastheleasteffectivewriting.Itwasabithardat
first,butonceIhadastorylineinmind,Iwasabletorollwithit.However,I'mnotvery
goodatwritingwithoutperfecting.Itwasaconstantstruggleformenottogobacktoa
partearlieronandfixit.AlsoI'mnotonethatlikestowritestoriesmucheither.

Part2:
WritingProcess
Takinga300400wordssectionofyourNanowrimoassignmentfromNovemberplease
reviseitfromitsroughdraftform.

1. Copyandpastethe
roughdraft
below.DoNOTrevisethispieceinthisarea.

Theotherdaywhenerinandhermomwereatthestoreshealso(erin)alsopicked
upsomethingsforhernewoffice.allofthepapersandpermentshadgonethroughand
shewasabletorenttheofficebuildingaswell.everythingsofarhadgoneasplanned.by
ninninetheywereontheroadtheydecidedtoleaveabitearliyincaseoftraffic.itwasa
goodthingtheyhadrunintosomeonthehighway.butnowthetheywereonthecountry
roadsonthequietandpeacefullcountryroads.erinsfatherandryanroadinthemoving

truck,erinsmotherwasinfrountintheirsuv,anderinandherbrotherseanfollowed
theminhercar.
theridethereseanwasfasanatedthewholewaswiththescenary.hehadbeenout
ofthecitybefoebeforebutheneversawanythinglikethis.therollinghillsandthe
continuousfarmingfeildsoneafteranother.erinherselfhadmadethetriptowoodberry
andbacktwice,buteverytimeitjustkeptgettingmoreamazing.shewasstillamazed
thatshewouldbelivinghkkereherenow.shecouldn'twaittoactullyactuallygettosee
thestarsatnightintheskywithoutallofthelightpolutonpollution.andnotalways
herethesoundofcars,honkinghornsandtheothervariessoundsofthecity/chicago.
afteralongtwoandahalfridtheyarivedinwoodberrysaftly.theypulleditoin
tointothedrivewayandputthetruckinparktherestofthevehilclestheyparkesonthi
thesideofthestreet.erinwalkeduptotheownersanintroducedherselfandtheother
membersofherfamily.theyhandedoverthekeystoerinandwelcomedhertothe
woodberry/town.afterthattheyleft.theywalkedintothehouse.erintookherfamaly
intothehouseandgavethenthetour.theyallagreedthatitwasagreathousefor
her(erin).

2. Copyandpastetheroughdraftinthissectionandbegintoreviseyourwork.
Highlightanychangesin
yellow
andadditionsin
green.

Theotherdaywhenerinandher
mother
wereatthestore
,Erinwasabletoget
somethingforhernewoffice.
All
ofthepapersand
permits
hadgonethroughandshe
wasabletorenttheofficebuildingaswell.
Everything
,
sofarhadgoneasplanned.
By
nine
oclocka.m.
,
Erinandherfamily
wereontheroadtheydecidedtoleaveabit
early

incaseoftraffic
,
itwasagoodthing
.

T
heyhadrunintosomeonthehighway
,
butnow
thetheywereonthe
beautiful
and
peaceful
countryroads
.

Erin's
fatherand
R
yan
drove
in
themovingtruck,
Erin's
motherwasin
front
intheir
SUV
,and
E
rinandherbrother
S
ean
followedtheminhercar.
T
heridethere
S
eanwas
fascinated
thewhole
time

by
the
scenery
.
H
ehadbeen
outofthecity
before
,butheneversawanythinglikethis.
T
herollinghillsandthe
continuousfarming
fields
oneafteranother.
Itwasalottotakein,thetreesallseemedto
swaybackandforth,fomaslightsummerbreez.

E
rinherselfhadmadethetripto
W
oodberryandbacktwice,buteverytimeitjustkeptgettingmoreamazing.
S
hewas
stillamazedthatshewouldbelivingherenow.shecouldn'twaitto
actually
gettosee
thestarsatnightinthesky
,

without
allofthelight
pollution
.
Shewouldevenbeableto
herethesoundofthecountyside,,insteadofthenoisyChicagotraffic.
A
fteralongtwo
andahalfridthey
arrived
in
W
oodberry
safely
.
T
heypulled
into
thedriveway
ofErins
newhouse
andputthetruckinpark
.

T
herestofthe
vehicles
theyparkeson
the
sideof
thestreet.erinwalkeduptotheownersanintroducedherselfandtheothermembersof
herfamily.theyhandedoverthekeystoerinandwelcomedhertothe
W
oodberry.
A
fter
thattheyleft
,Eringaveherfamilyatourofhernewhouse.

T
heywalkedintothehouse.
T
heyallagreedthatitwasagreathousefor
Erin
.

3. Pleasewritea
12paragraph

reflectiononwhythechangesyouhavemade
improvesthewriting.Keepinmindyouraudiencewhenthinkingabouthowthis
improvesthewriting.
AlotIaddedsomemoredetailtodescribethesceneryofthecountryside.Iwantthe
readertobeabletopictureandexperiencewhatthecharactersdo.Thereadershouldbe
abletofeelwhatitsliketocomeoutofabigcityandseethecompleteoppositescenery.

Part3:
WritingSkills
For
six
oftheitemsbelow,youwillneedtocopypastetheexamplefromanyofyour
essaysandexplainhowtheexamplebelowmeetthestandard.

Makesuretoidentifythe
writingthatitcomesfrom.

1. Effectivelyandcorrectlyusesimagery(ShowNOTTELL)
(Explainwhyyou
chosetoputimageryhereandwhyitiseffective)
(FromSuperheroNarrative)Danitookoffdownthestreetonhernewboard,she
knewexactlywhereshewantedtogo.Therewasatallandsteephillattheendofthe
street.Danidecidedtowalkupthehillwiththeboardinhand,ratherthemwastehertime
gettingupit.Shestoodatthetopandlookeddown.Shequicklyhoppedonherboard,
beforeshehadachanceforsecondthoughts.Theboardsuddenlyskiddedtoahalt.Dani
wassentsoaringthroughtheair.ShelandedwithaloudTHUD!Whenshefinallywas
abletositup,shesurveyedthedamage.Shehadaskinnedkneeandherhandshadafew
scrapesonthem.Danidabbedthebloodfromherkneewithhersleeve.Onceshecould
seethewound,shetriedtotouchiteversogentlytogetsomestonesout.Suddenlythe
srapeandtheblooddisappeared.Daniwasconfused,shesattherelookingatherkneein
shock.SlowlyDanitouchedoneofthescrapesonthehands.Justlikebeforeit
disappearedandnolongerhurt.
Ichosestoputthisuseofimagery,becauseIusedalotofdetailstoexplainthe
event.Bydoingthisthereadercanvisualiseintheirheadtheeventsthatunfold.
2. Effectivelyandcorrectlyusesaproper(specific)noun(
Explainwhyyouchoseto
putaspecificnounhereandwhyitiseffective)
3. Effectivelyandcorrectlyusesavividverb(
Explainwhyyouchosetoputavivid
verbhereandwhyitiseffective)
(SuperheroNarrative)TheRavenletoutaloudshriekofrepugnance.
Iusedthewordrepugnantinthissentencetomakeitsoundevil,butinreality
itsnotthatshocking.
4. Effectivelyandcorrectlyusesafigurativelanguage(
Explainwhyyouchosetouse
figurativelanguagehereandwhyitiseffective)
5. Effectivelyandcorrectlyuseofsymbolism
(Explainwhatthesymbolismis,why
youchosetouseithere,andwhyitiseffective)
6. Revisebyaddingasentence(s)orword(s)thatsupportthepurpose.
(Explainwhy
yourrevisionimprovedyouressay).
(SuperheroNarrative)Shebeganstumbling,shefeltasifshewasdrunk.The
Shadowbeginsfallingintothewallsanddoors.Numeroustimesshefelltoherknees,but
shenevergaveup,shedidntwanttogiveupontheplants.
Iaddedthesesentences,becauseitgaveabetterexplanationofwhatwas
happening.Ioriginallyhadsomthinglikeshewasbeginningtofeelreallysick.

thatdoesn'tgivetoomuchdetail,bychangingitandaddingthisitgivesamore
lucidpicture.
7. Showanexampleofacomplexorcompoundsentenceinyourwriting.
(Explain
howthisisbetterthanusingmultiplesimplesentences)
(
Maus
submissiveessay.)ThebooksMausIandIIarecomicbooks,butdon'tlet
thatthrowyouoff.
Byusingacomplexsentence,itsoundandlooksmoregrammaticallycorrect.It
alsoaddsahookbyusingthewordbut.Thesentenceflowstogetherbetter,ratherthan
usetwodifferentsentencesandbechoppy.
8. Revisebydeletingunneededorofftopicsentence(s)orword(s)
(Explainwhy
yourrevisionimprovedyouressay)
9. Createsanintroductionthatsetsthestagefortherestofthepiece.
(Explainthe
strategyyouusedandhowitcontributestoyouressay)
10. Createsaconcludingparagraphthateffectivelybringsthepiecetoaclose.
(Explainthestrategyyouusedandhowitcontributestoyouressay)
(
TheGreatGatsbysubmissiveessay.)
Moneyplayedakeyrolein
TheGreat
Gatsby.
ItwassoughttobeakeytohappinessbyMyrtle,Wilson,andGatsby,butitwas
thelustforthiskeytohappiness,whichwouldleadMyrtle,Wilson,andGatsbytotheir
downfall.
Iaddedthissentencestosumuptheessayasawhole.Itsummarizestheessayup
withoutretellingeverything.
11. Createsatonethroughwordsanddescriptions(connotation/denotation)thatare
appropriateforacertainaudience.
(Explainwhoyourintendedaudienceisand
howyoutargetedthataudiencespecifically).
12. Createsvoicethroughuseofdialogueandcolloquialvocabulary.(
Explainwho
yourintendedaudienceisandhowyoutargetedthataudiencespecifically).
(Howdoesthisaddtoyourwriting)?
(SuperheroNarrative)"Youhaven'tfigureditoutyethaveyou?",saidTheRaven.
"What,whatareyoutalkingabout?"SaidTheShadow."Feelingalittlelightheadedare
we,"that'stoobadIwashopingtofightyoumyself"saidTheRaven."Whathaveyou
done?"SaidTheShadow."Iputlittlebitofpoisononeachplantyouhealedonyouway
uphere,""nowyouwillneverbeabletohealaplatagain."SaidTheRaven.
Igavethecharactersinthisscenedialogtobringthemmoretolife.Thereaderor
audiencecangetabetterideaofhowtheymightactinreallife.

Reading
Inthereadingsectionofyourportfolio,pleaseshowandreflectonyourgrowthasa

readerinEnglish11.Pleaseinclude:

Part1
:
RequiredReadings
Pleasereflectontheskillsyoulearnedaboutwritingorreadingfromatleast
two
ofthe
elevenrequiredtextsfromthiscourse.Youwillfindalistofsomeofthoseskillsbelow.
Writea
23paragraph

reflectiononthoseskillsbelow.Pleasemakesuretoincludeat
least
three
ofthoseskillsinyourreflectionMakesuretoidentifythetextitcamefrom
andbespecificonthatauthorsstyle.

ShortStories
FortunateSonbyDaveMarshstartsonpage12
ChameleonSchlemieleonbyPatricSTracy
HillsLikeWhiteElephantsbyErnestHemingway
TheMasqueofRedDeathbyEdgarAllenPoe
ARoseforEmilybyWilliamFaulkner
TheLotterybyShirleyJackson

Poems
RubriksCubebyBenjaminBarker
FinalExamForMyFatherbyJoaquinZihuatanejo
TheRavenbyEdgarAllenPoe

Novels
Maus
byArtSpiegelman
Vol.1

Vol.2
TheGreatGatsby
byF.ScottFitzgerald

Readingskillslist:
Choose
threeforyourreflection.

1. Canidentifytheauthorspurposeinapieceofwritinganduseevidencefromthe
texttosupporttheclaim.PleasedothiswithANYpieceofwritingwehaveused
thisyear.
2. Canidentifytheauthorsintendedaudienceinapieceofwritinganduseevidence
fromthetexttosupporttheclaim.(Ethos,Pathos,andLogosorShowNotTell)
3. Canyouidentifyanauthorsabilitytohookareaderintotheirstory.(Ethos,
Pathos,andLogosorShowNotTell)
4. CanyouidentifyhowanauthorcreatesvividcharactersthroughuseofShowNot
Tell/FigurativeLanguage,Connotation/Denotation,etc.
5. Canyouidentifytheinferentialmotivationsofcharactersinareading.
6. CanyouidentifyhowanauthorcreatevividscenesthroughuseofShowNot
Tell/FigurativeLanguage,SymbolismConnotation/Denotation,etc.
7. Demonstratesuseofconnecting(connectingthebooktosomethingoutsideofthe
book)strategiestounderstandatext.(SocraticSeminar)
8. Demonstratesuseofquestioning(openendedquestionsthatgeneratediscussion)
strategiestounderstandatext.(SocraticSeminar)

9.

Demonstratesuseofpredicting(askingquestionsorusingcontextualcluesto
predictthepossibleoutcomeofastory)strategiestounderstandatext.(Socratic
Seminar)

Pleasewriteyourreflectionbelow:
Intheshortstory
ARoseforEmily
,theauthorhooksthereaderinthefirstand
secondparagraphs.ThefirstparagraphtellsthereaderthatEmilyisdeadandmostofthe
peopleatherfuneraljustwantedtoseeherhousenother.Afterreadingthatthereaderis
alreadyinterestedtoknowwhythehouseissoimportant.Thesecondparagraphisan
exampleofhowshownottellcanhookareader.Theauthorusesdetailstodescribe
Emilyshouse.Inthepoem
TheRaven
,theauthorhooksthereaderinwithhisusageof
words.ThewaythatallofthewordflowtogetherthroughtheuseofAnaphora.
InEdgarAllenPoespoem
TheRaven
,heisabletocreatevividscenesbyusing
shownottell.Heusesdescriptivewordstodescribetothereaderaverynormalscene,
butbyaddingmanydifferentdescriptivewordshecreatesabetterimage.Healsouses
thedenotationwhendescribing.thesebothareusesinthefifthparagraph.In
ARosefor
Emily
,therearemanyscenesthatusetheshownottellrule.Forexampleinparagraph
fouronpagetwo,theauthorisdescribinghowMissEmilylookedafterherfathers
death.HealsousessymbolismtorepresentMissEmily,bysayingShelookedbloated,
likeabodylongsubmergedinmotionlesswater.
Youhavetobeconstantlyaskingyourselfquestionswhilereading
ARosefor
Emily,
becausethestoryisnotwritteninchronologicalorder.Forexamplethestory
beginstotellusaboutMissEmilysfuneralandherpastlife,thenitbeginstotellus
aboutameetingthattookplaceinthehouseafterEmilysfatherhaddied.Alsoyouhave
tobeabletousethecontextcluesinordertomakeaprediction.Theauthortalksabout
howmanyoftheneighborswerecomplainingaboutthesmellthathadbeencoming
fromEmilyshouse,theyallassumeditwasdeadanimal.lateroninthestory,theauthor
tellsusaboutmissemilywantingtobuypoisontheyassumeditwasforrats.youcan
starttoconnectthedotsnowafterreadingbothofthesesections,shemusthavebought
somepoisonforpestthatwereinthehouse.

Part2
:
ReadingAnalysis
Inthefollowingcoldreading,
OnDumpsterDivingbyLarsEigher
,pleasewriteashort
200400wordessayansweringoneofthefollowingquestions:

1. Howcouldthetextbereadandinterpreteddifferentlybytwodifferentreaders?
2. Ifthetexthadbeenwritteninadifferenttimeorplaceorlanguageorfora
differentaudience,howandwhymightitdiffer?
3. Howandwhyisasocialgrouprepresentedinaparticularway?
4. Whichsocialgroupsaremarginalized,excluded,orsilencedwithinthetext?
5. Howdoesthetextconformto,ordeviatefrom,theconventionsofaparticular
genre,andforwhatpurpose?(Forexampleisthisahistorytext?)

6. Howhasthetextborrowedfromothertexts,andwithwhateffects?

Pleasehighlightthequestionyouaregoingtoanswerabove
yellow
andwriteyouressay
below.
SocialGroups
Thetitle
OnDumpsterDiving,
mayseemabitstrangeatfirst,butafterreadingit
youstarttounderstandwhythesepeopledoit.Throughout
OnDumpsterDiving
,two
differentSocialgroupsareacknowledged,thepoorandtherich.Inthiscasethepoorare
thehomelessanddumpsterdiversandthericharemiddleclasspeopleandcollege
students.
Theauthorofthisarticlestatesinthebeginningthattheyarehomeless,theyonce
wereseenasapartofsociety,butnowtheyareseemasthelesserpart.Thissocialgroup,
thehomelessordumpsterdivers,arebeingrepresentedbytheauthor.Dumpsterdiversor
thehomelessarepeopleyoudontnormallyinteractwithhowever,theyarenotthatbad
ofpeople.Theauthorshowsustheupswiththeoccasionaldownsofbeingontheother
sideofsociety.Forexamplewhentheauthortellsusaboutfindingpizzasinadumpster
belongingtoapizzaplace,theyknowifthefoodisgoodorbad,becausetheyvisitit
frequently(
TheThreepennyReview
6).AnotherexampleofthisisTheareaIfrequentis
inhabitedbymanyaffluentcollegestudents.IamnotherebychancetheDumpstersin
thisareaareveryrich.(
TheThreepennyReview
6),Theauthorispointingoutthecollege
students,theyareapartofadifferentsocialgroup.
Tothehomelesstheyseecollegestudentsastherich,becausetheyhavemoney,
evenifitisnotmuch.Collegestudentsareapartofadifferentsocialgroup.Tothemthey
dontseemveryrichatall,buttothosewithnomoneytheyarelikeprincesand

princesses.Thestudentdoesnotknowthat,andsinceitisDaddysmoney,hestudent
decidesnottotakeachances.(
TheThreepennyReview
6).Thisquoteisaprime
exampleofthemostcollegestudents.Sometimestheydontthink,theyjustdo.
Thesetwosocialgroupsplayamajorroleinboththisarticleandsocietyitself.
Peoplealwaysclassifyoneanotherasrichorpoor,orbywhohasthemostmoney,this
articlemakesyourethinkthatabit.Yestheauthorishomeless,buttheyhavefounda
waytoacquirethesamethingsmiddleclasspeoplehavewithouthavingtospendmoney.
Itseemsasifthereisadifferencebetweenthesetwosocialgroups,butinrealityweare
allthesame.