This week the 8th graders began an author study on Edgar Allan Poe. If you are unfamiliar with this writer, click on the button to watch a brief 3 minute mini biography about his life.
After reading a short biography and completing a research web quest assignment, the kids learned very quickly that this man is considered to be one of literary "greats" of our time, but suffered from many problems throughout his life. The purpose of learning about Edgar Allan Poe's life was to see the connections of major life events to his written works.
Alas! This is where our story begins... "Annabel Lee"! "Annabel Lee" was a poem written by Poe shortly before he died of mysterious circumstances. After reading and annotating the meaning of "Annabel Lee", the students, Mrs. Anderson & I concluded that he was still devestated by the loss of his first wife, Virginia, and it was probably written in memory of her.
Mood and Tone is a difficult concept to understand. The students learned that Mood is the feeling that readers get when we read a text & Tone is how the author feels about the subject of his writing. In the pictures below, students explored tone by choosing an emogi that represented one tone of the poem (there were several). After drawing the emogii, students constructed a paragraph of justification using textual evidence to support their opinions. We're still practicing that "R.A.C.E" structure for literary response, however I was pleased they were able to identify one tone and try to justify their response!
Way to go 8th Grade! Can't wait for the "Tell Tale Heart" next week! :)
Until Next Time,
Ritchie
Until Next Time,
Ritchie