Catcher in the Rye: Lesson Eight Thursday, November 10th; 95 min.

Purpose: It is not until students have learned the different themes throughout the novel that they can truly understand the significance of its symbols. Looking closely at the symbols and the ways in which they are portrayed throughout the text, including what the character does with it, what he says with it, and when it appears, provides the students with more insights into the deeper meanings of the novel. Students are also learning about thesis statements. While they have written analytical essays before, many of the students still struggle with forming argumentative theses, so it is important to learn how to create a cause-and-effect thesis by going slowly through the steps.

Objective: SWBAT connect symbols in the novel to different themes of the story. SWBAT create effective thesis statements for an analytical essay.

Common Core Standards:  Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze how it emerges and is shaped and refined by symbols  Develop claim(s) and counterclaims fairly Materials: y Symbol Pictures y So the Question is Thesis Worksheet y Putting it into Practice Worksheet Activity One: y Review Extra Credit: Students had the choice of either choosing a song and writing about how it connects to one of the themes of the story or writing the last chapter of the novel itself. Many students will want to present their song or their fan fiction creation, so they will have a chance to do this in class. (15-20 min) y Identifying Symbols: Students, over the course of the unit, have been updating their symbolism worksheets as they read. What symbols keep occurring throughout the novel? What does Holden do with these objects, and what does he say about them? The students will talk in pairs and discuss some of the interpretations and findings wrote on their worksheets. (5 min) o Share: After the students have spent some time talking about their symbols, we will come back together as a class and discuss the possible interpretations for the symbols that they have found throughout the novel. (5 min)  Teacher Role: As the students identify symbols, we will break down the significance of each symbol by asking the above questions. What deeper meaning could this object, based off of

what we have heard Holden say about / seen what Holden does with it, represent?  Student Role: Students will volunteer their ideas and finish the section of their symbol worksheets that were designated for class. Analyzing Symbols: Now that we have a basic idea of what these symbols could represent, we can try and connect them to the larger themes of the novel. On the board, I will begin making a horizontal tree diagram in which the themes that we discussed the day prior are listed on the left. The students and I will work together in order to pair a symbol (which I have a picture of) with a particular theme. We will draw lines connecting themes to these symbols, and next to each pairing, the students will be responsible for explaining why this symbol is connected to this theme as well as the authors purpose for using that symbol to convey that theme. (10-15 min)  Teacher Role: I will facilitate the discussion and model drawing the tree diagram on the board. I will also model how to answer why the symbol is connected to the theme/ the authors purpose) for the students to copy in their notebooks.  Student Role: The students will copy the diagram down in their notes and will provide answers to the above two questions. If the students do not finish these explanations in class as we go along, they will complete it for homework and turn it in the following day.

Assessment Slip: Choose one symbol we talked about today and relate how it relates to the theme of Catcher in the Rye. Activity Two: y Reviewing So the Question is Thesis Statements Worksheet: Since students will be writing an analytical essay on Catcher in the Rye, they will have to learn how write an effective thesis statement. We will walk through this worksheet as a class, and I will define the specific parts of a thesis: cause and effect. I will review the Cinderella thesis and how this demonstrates the proper argumentative relationship. (10 min)  Teacher Role: The worksheet breaks down how to make a thesis in few, easy-to-follow steps. I will review each step and model it for the students while also encouraging them to provide their own input regarding what the thesis statement should be.  Student Role: Take additional notes on the worksheet/ annotate it for better comprehension. Follow modeling steps, and provide input regarding how the final thesis statement should look. y Reviewing Putting it into Practice Worksheet: On the backside of the original worksheet, there will be an activity that requires the students to review five thesis statements to see if they pass the different strong thesis test, as demonstrated in the previous worksheet. In pairs, they will have to fix each thesis so it does pass all of the tests. (10 min)

Checkup: After the fifteen minutes have passed, we will come back as a class and review their answers and corrections they made to the worksheet. If there is a disagreement (if one group thought it was a good thesis and the other thought it was ineffective) we will take a closer look at that thesis and come to a general consensus. (5 min)

Activity Three: y Theme/Quote Hunters: It is helpful to first find specific quotes that convey a theme before writing an actual thesis; therefore, in groups, the students will have one theme that we established in class and will have to find 2 quotes that convey that theme in the novel. They will also answer questions regarding this quote, such as how does this convey the selected theme? What does this quote say about the speaker? Do you see any possible cause-effect relationships between what this quote is saying and the theme itself? (10 min) y Class Discussion/ Debrief: I will ask each group to establish their findings, and we will take what they found and try to create a thesis off of the answers/ evidence they found in the text. I will facilitate this discussion for each theme group, and I will write the final theses up on the board. The students are welcome to use the theses we created in class for their essays, but they will receive 2 extra credit points on their essay if they write a thesis of their own (which has to be approved by me before the next class period.) (10-15 min) Activity Four: y Review Rubric and Criteria Sheet: I will pass out the paper rubric and criteria sheet. We will discuss it as a class, and I will answer any questions the students may have regarding the requirements of this essay. (5-10 min) Homework: Now that you have your thesis, find 3 examples from the novel that support your thesis and bring them to class tomorrow. Assessment: Symbol Assessment Slip Putting it into Practice Worksheet