Wed. Sept. 10, 2014: Archetype Heroes/Evidence Discussion

Today, students were put into the groups they were working with at the end of class yesterday to review the archetype hero they identified. I then wrote the names of the archetypal heroes they chose on the board. They were as follows:

1. Bumble-Bee (Transformer)
2. Harry Potter
3. Thor
4. Superman
5. Link (from The Legend of Zelda game)

One member from each group then came up to explain how the hero the group chose fit the traits of an archetypal hero.

I then asked what questions could be created from the discussion we just had as a class. The students came up with the following:

1. What do these characters have in common?
2. What traits do archetypal heroes have?
3. Who is the best hero?
5. Why doe we, as a culture, "need" heroes?
6. Are heroes liked by all?
7. Are all of the actions performed by heroes "good"?
8. Can a character be a hero and still be a jerk?

The students were then instructed to get out a piece of paper and write a paragraph answering one of these questions (with the question being answered written down at the top). They were given five minutes to complete this task.

The students who did not present during the earlier activity then read their paragraphs to the class. It was determined that in order to write a good paragraph, one must do the following:

Have a catchy attention-getter to draw the reader in
Have a clearly stated opinion (answer to the question)
Have the main reasons stated (also opinion)
Have specific evidence ("for example") to back up the reason(s) given

Students were then given a handout entitled "Human Qualities and Ideals" which defines virtues and values. I also provides a list of some universal virtues.

Students were then given a handout entitled "Questions for Analyzing any Text" which they will need for tomorrow's activity.

Students were then given a handout on Observational Evaluation. I as a teacher will record observations as part of the students "Assess and Reflect" mark.

All of these handouts were discussed in class. If you were  not here, they are in your portfolio. See me if something needs to be explained.