What’s Next?Module 1, 12A

What's in store for you after high school? Not sure?  Is college for everyone? For anyone? How can you be most successful in the future?

This module is designed to help you answer these questions for yourself, once you have all the facts...

What to expect: This module will help you explore all options, so you can be

sure you’re on the right path as you make the first steps toward college or a career.

The final essay for this module will be the autobiographical narrative for your senior project, which can be used as a college entrance essay as well.

Other parts of this module that will count for senior project: journal 1, life map, job shadow.

How you’ll be assessed: In addition to the senior project elements, you will need to:

Participate in class discussions Complete all activities in the activities template Submit the activities, and your autobiographical narrative, to your

LF in a folder labeled “What’s Next” in our shared Google Drive Folder.

Activity One: Journal (and Website Update)Begin by taking a look at your own life right now:

For your first senior project journal entry, reflect on your last three

years of high school and how they’ve brought you to this

very moment.

Or, you may focus on one/some of the questions below: How is your senior year so far? Where are you at in your senior year? Are you on pace? If so, why? If not, why not? What are you currently working on for your senior project? What has been exciting or interesting about your project? What are you most looking forward to in your senior year? What are your goals for this year, for the future?

Spelled correctly, in complete sentences, on your website as a blog. Minimum 500 words.

**NOW IS ALSO AN EXCELLENT TIME TO UPDATE YOUR “ABOUT ME” AND “CLUBS AND ACTIVITIES” PAGE. I WILL BE EXAMINING THEM.

Setting Up Your Google Drive Folder

Click the box to the left of your new folder , and the people + symbol to share it.

Share it with me. Make sure it says “can edit,” and save.

Online, in Google Drive, go to create folder Title it by your: Lastname, Firstname, ELA 12

Period #

1

2

3

4

Once you’ve set up this folder,create a folder within it entitled “What’s Next.” This folder is where you will submit your work later.

WARNING Download Google Drive to your computer, so that your files

and folders are accessible straight from your desktop.

DO NOT save to “My Documents.” Save to your Google Drive folder instead.

MANY PEOPLE LOST WORK LAST YEAR when their computers had to be re-imaged. They had to do their work over again. Don’t let this be you. Save to Google Drive.

Activity Two: Quickwrite (5 min)Respond in your activities template, under the heading “Activity 2: Quickwrite.” You may focus on one or all of the questions below.

What do you think you will be doing next year? What careers or colleges have you thought about? Do you think you are ready for this next stage of life? List reasons

why/why not. What do you WANT to do, if you could do anything? What obstacles

might you face?

Be sure to save the activities template to your Google Drive for later.

Writing Mini-Lesson: Sentence Patterns

We emphasize sentence patterns throughout the first two modules this semester, in order to further develop your writing at a college-ready level (plus, it just makes your writing more interesting for the reader!)

Advanced sentence structures are particularly important for your college essays, so we will learn most of the structures during this module

Activity Three: Intro to semicolon Watch the video at http://

www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kssP4fWs9U and take notes on at least three important factors

Record these notes in your activities template under Activity Three

Sentence Pattern 1: Semicolon with no conjunctionContinue to take notes under activity 3 in your activities template.

EXPLANATION:

This pattern helps you join two short, simple sentences having two closely related ideas. Instead of using a conjunction (or a transition), and instead of making them seem less relate by using a period, use a semicolon!

SP 1 (Cont’d) – Activity Three

Continue notes in activities template:

When to use:

When you have two ideas/sentences that are closely related, but combining them with a semicolon seems more powerful than a comma and conjunction.

SAMPLES WRONG: I texted him yesterday he didn’t answer. (this is a run-on and is not

a sentence. ALL of you are guilty of this.) WRONG: I texted him yesterday, he didn’t answer. (in this case you, would

need a conjunction like “but”) CORRECT: I texted him yesterday; he didn’t answer. (this combines two

sentences without a conjunction by using a semicolon) OR: Gloria, try on these jeans; they’ll look really great on you.

REMEMBER: IF YOU USE A COMMA, YOU NEED A CONJUNCTION (AND, BUT, OR, NOR,

SO, YET, FOR = FANBOYS) IF YOU USE A SEMICOLON, YOU DO NOT.

Activity 4 – Practice SP #1 Complete the practice activities in your activities template to

solidify your understanding of our first sentence pattern.

“Want to Get Into College? Learn to Fail”Angel Pérez

Download a copy and save it to your Google Drive Folder, in order to highlight/underline in Adobe.

Note:Many people do not grasp the differences between college and university. Essentially, they are the same, but here are the different categories:

“Community Colleges” are typically 2-year institutions, catering to the local population who wish to achieve associates degrees while working. They are typically commuter schools, meaning no on-campus community.

“Colleges” are institutions offering a 4-year bachelors degree. They often have a focus on a specific type of study – such as the liberal arts or technology. Many of them are privately-funded, and they can be ranked more highly than universities due to their high academic rigor and student-centered focus. Colleges are much smaller than universities, usually ranging from 1,000 to 5,000 students.

“Universities” are much larger – often over 30,000 students, and they offer graduate degrees (masters, doctorate) as well as bachelors (undergraduate). Due to the size, classes are typically much larger and lecture-based, in particular because they have a research-centered focus. They are more frequently public. They are often less expensive than colleges, especially for in-state students. Many universities are actually made up of smaller colleges within the institution (i.e., college of liberal arts).

**liberal arts = academic subjects such as literature, philosophy, mathematics, and social and physical sciences (as distinct from professional and technical subjects)

**Although private colleges are often more expensive, their private-funding usually makes them better endowed (have more money) than public universities. Thus, these schools frequently give much better financial aid to compensate for the larger price tag.

Activity Five: Vocabulary. Find these words in the reading. If you do not know them, write a comment next to them so you will know when we read. Rigorous (2) – very difficult; challenging Tremendous (3) – extreme; intense Chuckle (4) – to laugh quietly Project (4) – to show; to give the appearance of Dean of admission (4) – head of admissions at a school Flaws (4) – mistakes; errors Perceive (5) – consider; see as Disciplinary infractions (5) - discipline action (e.g., suspensions) Falsify (5) – to fake; lie about Fundamental (7) – basic and most important Rigors (8) = challenges

Activity Six: Survey the Text

Before reading, take time to preview by answering the following in your activities template.

1. Look at the title, and make predictions about what you think will be Pérez’s message.

2. Skim through the first 2 paragraphs, and read the final paragraph. Once you’ve done that, add to your predictions about Pérez’s message.

Activity Seven: First Read-ThroughAs we read the article aloud, use Adobe’s highlighting and underlining features to mark anything that strikes you as interesting, confusing, or anything in between.

When we’re finished, you will go back and add at comments to at least 3 of the phrases you have highlighted.

Activity Eight: SOAPSToneComplete the following SOAPStone chart in your notes, using the provided handout, to help you understand each argument within the text.

TEXT COMPONENT

THE ARTICLE

SUBJECT

OCCASION

AUDIENCE

PURPOSE

SPEAKER

TONE

(RE?) INTRODUCTION:THE ACADEMIC SUMMARYUsing a rhetorical précis to analyze an author’s argument

And…Action!Activity 9: Rhetorical Précis

With your elbow partner, complete a rhetorical précis for “Want to Get Into College? Learn to Fail.”

Continuation of the Semicolon and Combining Sentences

Pay attention as we go through the following, and fill in the notes in your activities template.

Activity 10: Sentence Patterns Intro (1a, 1b, 1c)

SENTENCE PATTERN 1A:Semicolon with a Conjunctive Adverb

Sample: Gary couldn’t go away for

vacation; however, he managed to

have a good time at home.

EXPLANATION: This pattern uses a conjunctive adverb with a semicolon BEFORE the connector adverb, and a comma after the connector is used (but it’s often optional).

Use this pattern when you want to give the reader a clear understanding of the connection between two of your ideas. Note: these are conjunctive adverbs (see below) NOT Coordinating

conjunctions (but, and, so, nor, etc.)

Conjunctive Adverbs (not a complete list)

Accordingly Almost Comparatively Hence Nevertheless Subsequently

Additionally As a result Consequently However Otherwise Therefore

Again Besides Furthermore Moreover Rather Thus

Sentence Pattern 1B:Combining Sentences with a Common and a Conjunction

Sample: The sun shone brightly, so Katie lathered on more sunscreen.

This is the combining of sentences you are used to. Just REMEMBER: if you use a comma, YOU MUST USE A CONJUNCTION (fanboys).

WRONG: The mouse ran across the floor, I wasn’t scared.

CORRECT: The mouse ran across the floor, but I wasn’t scared.

Sentence Pattern 1C:Using semicolons (and sometimes conjunctive adverbs) to combine 3 or more complete ideas

Sentence pattern 1c is just a combination of sentence patterns 1 and 1a. You can combine three or more sentences that are related simply by using semicolons, or you can also add a conjunctive adverb.

EXAMPLES: John got an A; Jennie also got an A; unfortunately, George got a C. (In

this one a conjunctive adverb was necessary) Carmen likes to cook; Janice would rather watch TV; I like to eat

Carmen’s cooking and watch TV with Janice. (In this one, a conjunctive adverb was not required)

Activity 11: SP #1a, 1b, 1c Practice

Complete the practice activities in your activities template to solidify your understanding of our first sentence pattern.

Jigsaw Reading

From the lhsenglish.com, download the next two readings: Schlack: “Not Going to College is a Viable Option” UT: “Why go to College?”

(the final 2 texts are online, so keep the webpage open)

Activity 12: Jigsaw ReadingTo speed things up and stay engaged, we’re dividing up the workload for the last 4 texts. Each group’s assignment will be a little different though.

GROUP DI-RECTIONS

SCHLACK and UT, Private vs Public, and Community College text groups:

1. Read together and highlight as you go.

2. When you’ve finished:a) Write a rhetorical précis FOR EACH TEXT

b) As a group, choose 3 important quotes (or data points) from the text to share with the class

c) Create a visual presentation that includes:i. The text’s title and author(s)ii. The rhetorical précisiii. The quotesiv. Pictures/graphs and anything else of use

3. When finished, save the presentation on Google Drive and share it with me.

GIANG group:1. Split the list of 40 careers up as instructed by your LF2. Each pair will read the careers assigned to you and create a

one-page presentation that shows:a) The wage range of your careers

b) The types of jobs and how many job openings they’ll likely have, along with work experience and degree necessary

c) One interesting fact you learned

3. When finished, your group should combine the ppt pages into a single presentation, saved on Google Drive and shared with me.

ELAM group:

As a group, watch the video online, and pause when you hear something interesting. Rewind and make note of the time intervals to show these points to the class.

Once you’ve got your quotes, follow directions for the Schlack and UT groups.

Activity 12: Jigsaw ReadingAs you watch the presentations by your classmates, complete the templates listed under “Activity 8: Jigsaw Reading” in your activities template.

Activity 13: Summarize and Respond Skim the summaries from each article supplied by your

classmates, as well as from our first reading; take a close look at quotes – do any apply to you?

In your activities template, under “Activity 9: Summarize and Respond”: Fill out the two lists—one for the benefits of going to college directly

after high school; one for the benefits of getting a job. Lastly, consider which decision you’ve chosen, and why. What is

your ultimate goal? Write a full paragraph response.

Pros for College

Pros for Getting a

Job

List Reasons

Here

List Reasons

Here

Activity 14: Intro to Short Sentences and Fragments for Effect

Pay attention as we go through the following two sentence patterns, and fill in the notes in your activities template.

Short Sentences for EffectWatch the following video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8Z8iLxobyg and take notes in your activities template under Activity 14.

Good writers pay attention to sentence variety. They notice how sentences work together within a paragraph and they seek a mix of

different sentence lengths and types. Experienced writers have a variety of

sentence patterns from which to choose.

They try not to overuse one pattern.

There are several versions of short sentences for effect:

1. The declaration: The fad has gone viral.

2. The exclamation: Imagine that!

3. The command: You try it.

4. The rhetorical question: Is marriage really worth it?

The key is to not overuse ANY of these short sentences, even if you’re switching up the type. These simple sentences, if used to often, get boring, choppy, and hard to follow. They only have power if you surround them with complex, intelligent, longer sentences (in which you use your sentence patterns 1, 1a, 1b, 1c etc!)

Look at this sample paragraph, which uses short sentences in the form of: The DeclarationThe Exclamation!

(1) Try to imagine using failure as a description of an animal behavior. (2) Consider a dog barking for fifteen minutes and someone saying, “He really isn’t very good at barking. I give him a “C”.” (3) How absurd! (4) It is impossible for an animal to fail because there is no provision for evaluating natural behavior. (5) Spiders construct webs, not successful or unsuccessful webs. (6) Cats hunt mice; if they are not successful in one attempt they simply go after another. (7) They don’t sit there whining and complaining about the one that got away and have a nervous breakdown because they failed. (8) Natural behavior simply is. (9) Now . . . Apply the same logic to your own behavior and rid yourself of the fear of failure.

Fragments for EffectWatch the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VId5CqHj6M4 and take notes in your activities template.

Activity 15: SP Practice Complete the practice activities in your activities template to

solidify your understanding of our first sentence pattern.

Activity 16: Intro to Job Shadow

Part of this module MT is your senior project job shadow,

which you must set up as absolutely soon as possible.

In your activities template, fill out the list of at least 3

fields in which you are interested.

Next, brainstorm people you already know that you could contact. If you don’t know anyone, Google businesses in and around Lindsay that would fit your needs, locate their addresses and contact numbers, and write this down.

Job ShadowFor more info on the job shadow, we turn to the website again: under Senior Project JUNIOR year tasks

Activity 17 and 18: Life Map and Final Writing Assignment

Most college and career applications require a letter of introduction about oneself—an overview of who you are, what made you you, and what you intend to do with yourself in the future.

This final writing assessment serves three purposes. This single essay is:

1. The final writing assessment for this module, and

2. The “Autobiographical Narrative” for you Senior Project, and

3. A potential essay of introduction for you to edit and use for various college or career applications

Activity 17Preparing to Write: the Life Map

Activity 18 (Writing Task): Autobiographical Narrative

For your final essay in this module, you will write about an accomplishment, a challenge, a mistake, a goal, a lesson, or anything else you’ve experienced that helps define YOU.

Together, let’s visit the senior project Autobiographical Narrative Task page on lhsenglish.com.

On a new Word Document (which you should save as “Narrative Mode Notes”), copy and consider the following properties all narratives typically possess:

1. Situation: background and setup details2. Conflict: explanation of the problem(s) that occur(s)3. Struggle: how the conflict is dealt with (not necessarily physical)4. Outcome: the result of the struggle – “resolution”5. Meaning: “moral” of the story; lesson learned (often the overall point of

the narration)

SENTENCE STARTERS: “It all began when…”

“On this occasion, X felt…”“I remember when…”

The Narrative Rhetorical Mode

Copy these as well: Narrative/Descriptive

Characteristics: uses a personal or anecdotal perspective (anecdote = a

short, amusing retelling of an event) Arranges text by time or space sequence Uses sensory details and illustrations

Often, in ELA, narration tells a story to convey a specific message or theme to the audience

Final Essay and Revision

Follow the steps outlined on the “Autobiographical Narrative” page on lhsenglish (under Senior Project, senior year tasks)

Turn in your essay by the deadline for peer revision

Module Shift: Getting Where You Want to Go

You’ve made your decision; now it’s time to do something about it. This segment of the module provides you with opportunities to search meaningful web sites for information that applies to your future goals.

Activity 18: Collecting Information

Review the “FAQ Guide for College or Work” and select 4 topics for research. Record them in your activities template. For example,

Career topics (choose a specific career: it can even be your job shadow)

1. The kinds of skills needed to enter a career

2. The outlook for getting work

3. The common tasks associated with the work

4. Pay for specific jobs

College topics: (you may wish to choose a specific college)

5. Deadlines and Admission requirements

6. Financial aid requirements or opportunities

7. Process for selecting a major or what majors are offered

8. Details on life in the town where college is located

Activity 19: Researching

Your job is to play around with these websites (or others listed in the FAQ document) in order to find the information you need

California Colleges

California Careers Zone

Take notes of what you learn as you research – anything useful that may help you go about getting the job you want or getting into the college you want. Write your answers in the table on your activities template.

Activity 20: Reflection Consider what you learned about the career or college of

your interest. Does this change things at all? What do you still need to do to achieve your goal of this career or college? Write a “to-do” list, or reflect in one paragraph, about the steps that you need to take this year to make your dream a reality.

Activity 21 and 22: Module Wrap-Up

Before submitting all activities, your job shadow, your life map, and your autobiographical narrative, complete the reflection

questions on your activities template.