Date: July 27,1996

Grade Level(s): 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

Subject(s):

• Language Arts/Writing (composition)

Background information for the teacher: (submitted within the Step-by-Step description below)

Concepts covered in the lesson: reading, research, writing, critical analysis, public speaking

Material or equipment list: books by the specific author, index cards, notebooks, videotape machine (optional)

Procedures (Step-by Step Description):

Early in the school year, each student selects a novelist, playwright, poet, or essayist to study as the year's project.

The combination of a fifteen to twenty minute presentation and a paper, whose length is determined by the teacher, serves as a major portion of the last quarter's grade.

The project is composed of three parts. Either the teacher assigns a specific author to each student or the student selects his or her own author.

• The student will then examine the author's life by reading a biography, autobiography, encyclopedia selection, or any other source of information to learn more about the author's life.
• Then the student will study the author's works. The number of works depends upon the selcted author since the works may vary greatly in length. (The teacher's guidance and discretion are important in this part of the project.)
• Finally, the last part of the project involves reading critical essays dealing with the author's works. Students should be looking for dominant themes, connections between the author's life and writings, and any other pertinent, interesting, or useful information to present to the other students in the classroom. (This third section of the project may be a bit difficult for the younger students. Teachers of those students may want to omit this section or replace it with another task.)

Toward the end of the academic year, the student will deliver his fifteen to twenty minute presentation in the persona of the author. Thus, the student who is Twain is dressed in Twain's garb. Costumes and props are most welcomed. A clever, informative, and logical blending of the research is generally rewarded with a high grade. Students in the audience are asked to submit positive written comments after each presentation.

These presentations may be videotaped if the students and teacher feel comfortable in doing so.

A one-page sheet that summarizes the student's findings should be presented a day before the presentation so the teacher may duplicate enough copies for the other students in the audience saving them unnecessary note taking time. These summary sheets should be given out after the presentation to insure complete attention to the speaker.

NOTE: If the number of students in the class is high and time is of the essence, the teacher could certainly allow or assign two or three students to work on the same project together.

All in all, the project is fun and educational since it brings literature and their creators to life right before the students' eyes. It also allows the student the opportunity to improve his or her public speaking and research, two important components in the learning process. You, as the teacher, will also enjoy seeing the creative talents of your students!

Assessment: (included within the Step-by-Step Description above)