The Book Thief ENG3U Tuesday

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March 21 , 2017
Small Group Task
Part 1 Quote Analysis

In the groups of 4-5, analyze the excerpt you have been given.

1. In the words of Rudys youngest sisters, there were two

monsters sitting in the kitchen (407)
2. [Rudy] made three separate formations that led to the
same tower of dominoes in the middle. Together, they would
watch everything that was so carefully planned collapse, and
they would all smile at the beauty of destruction. (408)
3. Rudy and his sisters each tapped a different domino and
they watched them fall until the tower in the middle was
brought to its knees. The girls cheered. Kurt, his older
brother, arrived in the room. They look like dead bodies, he
said. (410)
4. [Rudy] told himself in weeks to come or in fact, pleaded
with himself that if hes heard the rest of the conversation
that night, hes have entered the kitchen much earlier.
(410-11)
5. ***Three possibilities*** There was great dread in that
vision, especially the moment when [Rudy] was forced to
remove his hands. It was disconcerting to say the least, but
for some reason, she couldnt stop thinking about it. (415)
6. ***The contencts of Liesel Memingers imaginationIt could
easily be smoking. (418)
Part 2: The Word Shaker Analysis
Wednesday March 22nd, 2017

Allegory: A story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a

hidden meaning (typically a moral or political one).

Max final gift to Liesel is his scrapbook which includes a story he writes for
her called The Word Shaker. Zusak creates an allegory for us to interpret
which we will attempt to do, first individually, and then within our small
groups. You will share your finding with your group and build upon your
individual analysis.

Step One (15mins)

On your own, silently reread The Word Shaker (445-451) and interpret as
many of the symbols as you can below.
Step Two (5mins)
Within your group, take turns, again rereading the story aloud before you
begin your joint analysis.
Step Three (25mins)
Within your group, brainstorm the symbolism within the story and try to
interpret Zusaks intentions behind this allegory which, in itself, symbolized
the central theme of the novel: the power of words.
Step Four (5-10mins)
Choose a spokesperson from your group to report your findings to the class.
What is the allegory that Zusak is teaching through his story within a
story?

Symbols to get you started:What might the following things

symbolize in The Word Shaker?
1. The strange, small man
2. Ruling the world with words (planting words in his homeland)
3. Forests
4. The conveyor Belt
5. People who climbed the trees in the forest (The word shakers)
6. Small, skinny girl
7. The girls friend
8. The single teardrop
9. The planting of a teardrop (turned into a seed)
10. The furhers anger
11. Word Shaker climbing the tree / tree cannot be cut down
12. Cloud (like white monsters with gray hearts)
13. Young man climbing by putting nails into tree
14. Dissapearing clouds
15. Word Shaker and young man descend the tree / the tree begins
to die / fall
 16. A different-coloured path carved in the forest
17. Onlookers returning to forest
18. Voices and words heard by the word shaker and the young man

Small Group In-class Task Thursday

March 23rd, 2017

Choose Part 1 or Part 2 of your small group activities from this

week to polish and submit to be evaluated.

Use the Chromebooks or your own device to open a word

document online for your group. Together each member of your
group is responsible to write, add, and edit your work. As a result,
each group will receive one collective grade.

Collaborate with your team members and create a final analytical

piece.

This piece is due by the end of this class period and must be
submitted to google classroom.

Self-Assessment Friday March

24th, 2017

Out of 20% rate yourself on the following:

Completion of readings(on-time) ___ %

Completion of questions(on-time) ___ %
Participation in-class discussion and in-class reading ___%
Contribution to small group task ___%
Time and Effort allotted to Individual 2-Part Task ___%

Total % _____
Reasoning:
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