| My Bedroom
My cozy bedroom is located on the third floor of my parent’s modern mansion. You have to climb a total of forty steps on winding stairs between floors to get to my nest. Upon entering, the first thing you see is my wall to wall action packed poster of David Beckham. There is a bay window at the far end of the room which overlooks the lake. If you hurdle briskly over my hockey skates, metallic skateboard, and wooden rocking horse, you could view my rock, hip hop and heavy metal collection of CDs and DVDs at the foot of my queen size bed. In another tight corner you can rustle through a pile of Hot Rod and Fuel magazines, displayed haphazardly on the floor and on my mahogany night table. Underneath some of the steep mountains of paper on my pine desk, you could see my red alarm clock peeping sheepishly through the litter. Beneath my orange down filled duvet, is a pile of dirty clothes which I lazily threw on the bed and hid under the cover. There are two beautiful fish mobiles hanging from the ceiling. They seem to float across the piles beneath, closely viewing the winding pathways between the mounds of clothes, sports equipment and furniture. My Mum calls my room a labyrinth. |
STAGE 2: FROM PROSE TO FREE VERSE
I will now rewrite the paragraph into lines. Here you will notice the form changes from prose to poetry, in this case Free Verse.
| My Bedroom
My cozy bedroom is located on the third floor of my parent’s modern mansion.
You have to climb a total of forty steps on winding stairs between floors to get to my nest.
Upon entering, the first thing you see is my wall to wall action packed poster of David Beckham.
There is a bay window at the far end of the room which overlooks the lake.
If you hurdle briskly over my hockey skates, metallic skateboard and wooden rocking horse, you could view my rock, hip hop and heavy metal collection of CDs and DVDs at the foot of my queen size bed.
In another tight corner you can rustle through a pile of Hot Rod and Fuel magazines, displayed haphazardly on the floor and on my mahogany night table.
Underneath some of the steep mountains of paper on my pine desk, you could see my red alarm clock peeping sheepishly through the litter.
Beneath my orange down filled duvet, is a pile of dirty clothes which I lazily threw on the bed and hid under the cover.
There are two beautiful fish mobiles hanging from the ceiling.
They seem to float across the piles beneath, closely viewing the winding pathways between the mounds of clothes, sport equipment and furniture.
My Mum calls my room a labyrinth. |
STAGE 3: SHAPING MY FREE VERSE POEM
Now, I will shape my free verse poem further by focusing on content words, word order and removing as many function words as possible. Remember, as mentioned earlier, poets chose a particular word order, whether the choice is conventional or just the opposite. This is the freedom of poetry as opposed to prose.
Just so that you see the process, I will show in bold type all words or phrases I plan on removing.
| My Bedroom
My cozy bedroom is located on the third floor of my parent’s modern mansion.
You have to climb a total of forty steps on winding stairs between floors to get to my nest.
Upon entering, the first thing you see is my wall to wall action packed poster of David Beckham.
There is a bay window at the far end of the room which overlooks the lake.
If you hurdle briskly over my hockey skates, metallic skateboard and wooden rocking horse, you could view my rock, hip hop and heavy metal collection of CDs and DVDs at the foot of my queen size bed.
In another tight corner you can rustle through a pile of Hot Rod and Fuel magazines, displayed haphazardly on the floor and on my mahogany night table.
Underneath some of the steep mountains of paper on my pine desk, you could see my red alarm clock peeping sheepishly through the litter.
Beneath my orange down filled duvet, is a pile of dirty clothes which I lazily scattered on the bed and hidden under the cover.
There are two beautiful fish mobiles hanging from the ceiling.
They seem to float across the piles beneath, closely viewing the winding pathways between the mounds of clothes, sport equipment and furniture.
My Mum calls my room a labyrinth. |
Stage 4: And Finally…
Now, let’s see what it looks like when I rewrite the lines with the omissions. At this point, you may choose to edit some of the lines to read more clearly (I will bold the editing changes I make). This could include removing all punctuation marks, splitting the lines (indicated by a slashes), or changing the form of some words. Notice how changing the title of the poem makes a big difference as the title “Labyrinth” creates a definite visual image in the reader’s mind, and ultimately, the theme of the poem.
| My Bedroom (I will change to My Labyrinth)
My cozy bedroom // located on the third floor of my parent’s modern mansion
You have to climb a total of forty steps // winding stairs between floors to my nest
Upon entering // my wall to wall action packed poster of David Beckham.
a bay window at the far end of the room // overlooks the lake
If you hurdle briskly over my hockey skates // metallic skateboard and wooden rocking horse // you could view my rock // hip hop and heavy metal collection of CDs and DVDs // at the foot of my queen size bed
rustle through a pile of Hot Rod and Fuel magazines // displayed haphazardly on the floor // and on my mahogany night table
Underneath the steep mountains of paper on my pine desk // my red alarm clock// peeping sheepishly through the litter
Beneath my orange down filled duvet // a pile of dirty clothes // lazily scattered on the bed // under the cover.
two beautiful fish mobiles // hanging from the ceiling.
float across the piles beneath // viewing the winding pathways between the mounds of clothes // sport equipment and furniture.
my room // a labyrinth. |
MY FREE VERSE POEM
Here is the final version.
| My Labyrinth
My cozy bedroom
located on the third floor of my parent’s modern mansion
You have to climb a total of forty steps
winding stairs between floors to my nest
Upon entering
my wall to wall action packed poster of David Beckham
a bay window at the far end of the room
overlooks the lake
If you hurdle briskly over my hockey skates
metallic skateboard and wooden rocking horse
you could view my rock
hip hop and heavy metal collection of CDs and DVDs
at the foot of my queen size bed
rustle through a pile of Hot Rod and Fuel magazines
displayed haphazardly on the floor
and on my mahogany night table
Underneath the steep mountains of paper on my pine desk
my red alarm clock
peeping sheepishly through the litter
Beneath my orange down filled duvet
a pile of dirty clothes
lazily scattered on the bed
under the cover.
two beautiful fish mobiles
hanging from the ceiling.
float across the piles beneath
viewing the winding pathways between the mounds of clothes
sport equipment and furniture
my room
a labyrinth |
Following the exemplar in the content section of this Activity, write a free verse poem describing either your bedroom OR any other room in your home (for example, the kitchen or family room). Focus on the use of content words – nouns, verbs, adjective, and adverbs. You must submit your process work for assessment and must include the following:
- The descriptive paragraph;
- How the paragraph becomes lines;
- The editing of the lines;
- The final version with a title other than “My Bedroom.”
(2)STANZA POEM
Following the exemplar provided in the Content section of this activity, write a TWO or THREE stanza free verse poem on ONE of the following:
- Your grandmother or mother or father
- A pet such as a dog or cat
You must submit the process work with the final version to your teacher. Your submission must include:
- The two or three paragraphs (Stage 1)
- The edited version with figurative language
- The final version
(3)METAPHOR OF LIFE
- Find the lyrics to a favourite song that uses figurative language. Please make sure that your choice is acceptable for use in a classroom and does not include any profane or inappropriate language.
- Highlight or underline the examples of figurative language. Look for examples of personification, metaphor, simile, rhyme, rhythm, onomatopoeia, alliteration, and/or symbol. You should have at least four of the eight types of figurative language included in your song lyrics. You may have more than one of each type underlined. For example, the song you choose may have more than metaphor!
- For four of your examples, fill out a graphic organizer where you explain how each type of figurative language is used. You may want to link the example with the overall meaning of the song to explain what makes the example of figurative language effective. Here’s a suggestedgraphic organizer you can use:
Song: _________________________________________________________________________
| Identify figurative language (for example, metaphor, simile& ) |
Quote the example |
How does the figurative language reinforce the overall meaning of the song |
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#4
Short Story
(The words and phrases underlined will be used in one of your assignments in this activity)
“There’s no way she can come with us to lunch! Look at her,” sneered Jan as he stormed out of English class.
Drew looked away with a light blush crossing his face like the rising sun of a summer morning. He knew that Jan had difficulty being seen with someone who wasn’t quite like them. But Drew liked their classmate, Melissa. She laughed at their jokes even when they weren’t that funny. Hersmile was real, not phony like some of the other girls in the class. |
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“Jan, why can’t you just accept Melissa for who she is? She’s friendly, funny and she even laughs at some of our jokes!”
Jan spun around in the crowded hallway as the buzz of students changing classes became louder and louder. “She’s a third wheel, Drew – she makes us unbalanced!” shouted Jan over the swell of voices swimming around him.
Drew just shook his head at this response and hurried off to period 2 – Civics class. Drew sat beside Melissa in Civics and he knew that she would be asking him what he and Jan were doing for lunch. What would he say?
As Drew approached Room 101, he saw Melissa and her assistant making their way toward the classroom from the opposite direction. He admired how Melissa was able to move through those pushing and shoving students in the crowded hallways. Her white cane seemed to part the crowds the same way the school’s star fullback made opposing defences split in two. She never seemed to trip even when kids were sitting in the halls with their books and legs spread everywhere. Drew was thinking how this skill would come in handy when he tried to bring the puck end to end in hockey! He could move like the wind and never find himself checked into the boards by the other team.
Slowly, Drew lowered himself in his seat and waited for Melissa to enter the room. She sailed in with a smile on her face that brightened the classroom and went directly to her own desk.
“Hi Drew, how are ya today?”
“Excellent, Melissa,” smiled Drew, “How about you?”
” I’m out of this world! Didn’t you hear?” beamed Melissa. Not even waiting for a reply, she continued, “My name was selected by the radio station to spend a day with two of my friends at MuchMusic Studios in Toronto. Can you believe it? I don’t know all the details, but I was hoping you and Jan could come with me. What do you think?”
Drew couldn’t believe it. |
Task 1:
- Set up agraphic organizerwith the following headings as follows: TERM, EXAMPLE, ALTERNATIVE.
- List the following terms in your graphic organizer: personification, metaphor, simile, rhyme, rhythm, onomatopoeia, alliteration, symbol, participle, adjective, noun, adverb, verb.
- Re-read the passage on communities (oncontentpage).
- Identify each of the underlined words or phrases in the passage and match them to one of the terms in your graphic organizer. Record the examples in the graphic organizer (you may have more than one example for each term). In the ALTERNATIVE section, substitute the phrase or word with another word or phrase with the same or similar meaning as the original. Use your notes, dictionary or available reference materials to assist with this task.
TASK 2:
Below is a short narrative.
Read the short story closely and complete the following:
- A character map.
- A conflict map.
Follow the graphic organizers in the Exemplar.
| McDonald’s
I was seven years old. It was an unusual snowy day in May. Outside was as white as milk. I remember it well, not because of the fact that we had mountains of snow in May, but because of what happened that day.
****
My Mum called me downstairs that morning. “Mandy,” she shouted, “It is almost noon. We are going to McDonald’s today for lunch.” When we got there, she bought me everything I wanted. Even the mother of my best friend Beth was surprised.
“Mrs. Philips,” she said, “do you want Mandy to have the chocolate chip cookies as well as the chocolate sundae and a chocolate milkshake?”
Of course, my mother didn’t reply as she seemed to be in another world. For me, this was just great, even though I thought it a bit weird. However, I knew something was wrong. She had an icy glaze in her eyes. She told me to get my food and wait for her in the car. When she came to the car, she had tears in her eyes. Suddenly, it was like a waterfall cascading down her face. She gave me a weak smile. But not a happy one. After a few minutes, she started talking.
“Honey. Listen to me closely. There’s no easy way to tell you this because you’re so young. You’re my baby. And I love you so.”
She stopped and watched me eat my fries. Then she continued, “Your dad is going to sell our house. You and I are going to Grandma’s place. Your Dad is buying a condominium of his own.”
I was too young to know what to say to this. All I remember saying was, “Will I see him again?” My Mum smiled. “Of course, honey. He can come visit you whenever he wants to.”
Inside, I was crushed. I had the same feeling as the time when my hamster died. I looked at my Mum only to see a tear trickling down her red cheeks.
***
I am now fifteen. I haven’t seen my father since that day. |
#5 SHORT TELEPLAY
Based on the short narrative “McDonald’s” write a short teleplay.
McDonald’s
I was seven years old. It was an unusual snowy day in May. Outside was as white as milk. I remember it well, not because of the fact that we had mountains of snow in May, but because of what happened that day.
****
My Mum called my downstairs that morning. “Mandy,” she shouted, “It is almost noon. We are going to McDonald’s today for lunch.” When we got there, she bought me everything I wanted. Even the mother of my best friend Beth was surprised.
“Mrs. Philips,” she said, “do you want Mandy to have the chocolate chip cookies as well as the chocolate sundae and a chocolate milkshake?”
Of course, my mother didn’t reply as she seemed to be in another world. For me, this was just great, even though I thought it a bit weird. However, I knew something was wrong. She had an icy glaze in her eyes. She told me to get my food and wait for her in the car. When she came to the car, she had tears in her eyes. Suddenly, it was like a waterfall cascading down her face. She gave me a weak smile. But not a happy one. After a few minutes, she started talking.
“Honey. Listen to me closely. There’s no easy way to tell you this because you’re so young. You’re my baby. And I love you so.”
She stopped and watched me eat my fries. Then she continued, “Your dad is going to sell our house. You and I are going to Grandma’s place. Your Dad is buying a condominium of his own.”
I was too young to know what to say to this. All I remember saying was, “Will I see him again?”. My Mum smiled. “Of course, honey. He can come visit you whenever he wants to.”
Inside, I was crushed. I had the same feeling as the time when my hamster died. I looked at my Mum only to see a tear trickling down her red cheeks.
***
I am now fifteen. I haven’t seen my father since that day.
#6 JOURNAL
In your Journal reflect on your Reading and Written Communication experience. Focus on the following:
- What new strategies were introduced to me in terms of reading the short story?
- What new strategies were introduced to me in terms of reading the teleplay?
- What strategies did I find will help me in terms of writing free verse poetry?
- Do I feel more confident in terms of my understanding and appreciation of free verse poetry?
- What preparatory tips did I find effective in terms of writing free verse poetry?
- Do I feel more confident now in terms of my reading short stories?
- How will these skills help me in the future in terms of my reading?
- Am I more confident writing a teleplay? What aspects I liked? What aspects did I dislike?
- Do I have more appreciation for screen writers?
- Am I becoming a more confident reader and writer? If so, how?
