Joy Luck Club Lesson Plans

6th quarter plans Tuesday, April 22 • Journal • Grammar • Emily Dickinson poem • Chinese history. Foot-binding. Pretend you are a reporter visiting a culture in which women dominate the men. Men are supposed to be submissive to their wives, etc. Give a name to your culture and describe a cultural practice that discriminates against men. Include quotes of men that you have interviewed. Include headline and byline. (40 pts) • Boys must wear pink ribbon – cultural practice of the classroom, and must obey female students’ commands as long as they don’t contradict class rules. Boys do a diary entry rather than article. Name and origin of the cultural practice. What the cultural practice means. How it affects daily life. How you feel about it. Friday, April 24 • Journal • (phrase as nouns and pronouns, make transparency) Writing for Change lesson 1.1; gendered phrases. Students write down observations. Discuss list in reverse order. How do your impressions change when the order of words changes? What is implied by the placement of male-gendered nouns and pronouns in the first position? • Chinese zodiac • Amy Tan article. Theme of JLC is language. Work in pairs, hand in one ditto per pair. Discuss article. Monday, April 28 • Journal • Skits – action w/translator (preferably 3-4 students per group, students may self-choose but groups will be assigned from now on) Tuesday, April 29 • “Who is” poem • introduce book. reading HW, daily quiz. • mother/daughter exercise. one of your quizzes will require you to know who is who’s mother/daughter. Say “Suyuan Woo’s daughter” and student must respond in time to get participation point. First open-book, then closed-book. • Vocab (sentence w/each word, 20 pts. EC of 10 points: use these words to create a story) bloated (adj, 10): swelled up sulk (v, 13): to be silent or moody wispy (adj, 14): thin, delicate, soft nondescript (adj, 15): plain, lacking distinctive qualities or characteristics translucent (adj, 21): see-through, lets through light but blurs images cultivate (v, 27): to improve and prepare, to promote the growth of, to refine by education pretense (n, 28): the act of pretending, a false appearance intended to deceive blurt (v, 29): to speak abruptly reclaim (v, 29): to take back • for notetaking, set aside four sheets of paper. mother on front side, daughter on back side. text (facts) in left column, interpretation (inferences) on right column. • read beginning together. foreshadowing. symbolism. Wednesday/Thursday, April 30-May 1 • JLC quiz 1-16 • Semicolon grammar packet • Discussion on pp.1-16  5; ideas too big to communicate. unfinished business = uncommunicated idea.  top of 6; communication gap theme  bottom of 6; “unspeakable tragedies”. unspeakable – communication.  Suyuan Woo – started the JLC. first husband was a Kuomingdan officer. escaped to Kweilin during war.  10-12; origin of JLC  11-12; was the JLC justified?  12; “The story always grew and grew”; mother trying to communicate something, the big idea that burst in her head • ESLRs

Friday, May 2 • journal • Honors test Monday, May 5  journal  JLC quiz 16-32 (20 pts)  What happened when An-Mei visited her relatives in China?  How do the aunties surprise Jing-Mei Woo at the end of the Joy Luck Club meeting?  new vocab words for “Scar” and “Red Candle”; vocab sentences due Friday (20 pts)  dowry (n, 35): money and goods that a woman brings to her husband in marriage  insolent (adj, 36): rude, disrespectful  mute (adj, 37): silent, not speaking  shrill (adj, 38): harsh-sounding, high-pitched  concubine (n, 39): a socially recognized or acceptable mistress  betrothed (adj, 44): engaged  scurry (v, 53): to scamper or move briskly, to flurry about  deficient (adj, 59): lacking, inadequate, insufficient  writhing (adj, 60): to twist in pain, struggle, or embarrassment  HW: due tomorrow is the first half of “Scar”  JLC discussion: 16-32  application to the Joy Luck Club (write this stuff down! not going to tell you again. remember its mission – to take the mind off suffering in life. you must have a mission statement for your club at the top. what kind of people do you want? what would the joy luck club do? what game? what kind of food? what kind of things go on an application form? must include some shortanswer questions, like “Why do you want to join the Joy Luck Club”? etc.) (25 pts) Tuesday, May 6  quiz on first half of “Scar”; when you finish, you may begin silent reading (20 pts)  Why did Popo tell An-Mei scary stories?  Describe An-Mei’s relationship with her father.  How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? (1 pt)  HW: return applications. 2 copies of typed and formatted applications are due on Thursday, May 8  JLC discussion: first half of “Scar”  write a story that you could use to scare children away from doing bad things. (p.34; greed, refusing to listen) (15 pts). share these stories.  grammar: colons Wednesday, May 7  journal  quiz on 2nd half of Scar (15 pts)  Describe the scars in “Scar.” How did the characters acquire them?  JLC discussion: second half of “Scar”  poetry: Maya Angelou’s “Still I Rise”. you may work on discussion questions with a partner. Answer any THREE questions in paragraph form. 1. How could you tell that the speaker is an African-American woman? Be sure to use stanzas 1, 8, and 9 to answer this question. 2. List the similes to which the poet compares herself. Why do you think she uses these similes? 3. To whom is the poet speaking? 4. Note the last two lines of stanzas 2, 5, and 7. What do the last two lines of each of these stanzas have in common? Why do you think the poet uses that particular imagery?  grammar: dashes Thursday, May 8 (70 minutes)  SSR  Grammar review  exchange applications and have people fill them out. give applications back to the original owner, who gets to then decide whether to accept or reject the application  JLC discussion: beginning of Red Candle

Friday, May 9  Journal  Grammar quiz  JLC reading quiz: “The Red Candle” (30 pts)  Why does Lindo want her daughter to know about the story of the red candle?  What does the candle symbolize?  How did Lindo “prove” that her marriage was cursed?  balloon JLC trivia game Monday, May 12  journal  vocab (from “The Moon Lady” and “Rules of the Game”) (10 vocab sentences due Friday – 20 pts)  pungent (adj, 65): strong in taste or smell, biting and sharp  decipher (v, 68): to decode or interpret  rickshaw (n, 72): a small two-wheeled cart for a passenger, pulled by one person  warily (adv, 74): cautiously  sullen (adj, 75): resentfully silent, gloomy  apparition (n, 76): a ghostly figure, a sudden or unusual sight  remorse (adj, 76): bitter and guilty regret, moral anguish due to regret over some wrongdoing  penance (n, 80): an action that shows sorrow and remorse for a wrongdoing (often includes self-punishment)  lament (v, 80): to mourn, to express grief  adversary (n, 95): an enemy or opponent  JLC discussion: “The Red Candle”  my desires + someone else’s desires = compromise. as classwork, students draw three of these organizers. (20 pts) Tuesday, May 13  quiz on “The Moon Lady” (30 pts) /SSR/journal check! (50 pts)  Using several specific examples from the text, explain how you know that Ying-Ying St. Clair was disobedient as a child.  Describe Ying-Ying’s relationship with Amah.  Who is the mythical Moon Lady? How did she end up on the moon?  community  introduce Leadership class’ “popular” and “unpopular” kids  define the word, “normal”  “Much Madness is Divinest Sense”  how are you “normal”, how are you unique? Wednesday, May 14  Journal  group presentations: groups read chapters and hand in notes by end of class (have teacher initial rubrics when work is done) Thursday, May 15  quiz on “Rules of the Game” (30 pts)/SSR  What is “the art of invisible strength”? How does Waverly and her mother use it?  Why is Waverly’s mother proud of her?  Why does Waverly get angry at her mother?  group presentations: groups prepare skit  JLC discussion: Moon Lady Friday, May 16  journal  group presentations: groups prepare skit and turn in script by end of class  JLC discussion: “Rules of the Game” Monday, May 19  Voice in the Wall discussion questions 1. How did Lena become paranoid? 2. How do you know that Lena’s mother and father have trouble communicating? Use examples. 3. What are the “voices coming from the wall”? How do they inspire Lena’s imagination?

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Compare and contrast the young Ying-Ying St. Clair portrayed in “The Moon Lady” with the older Ying-Ying St. Clair portrayed in “the Voice from the Wall.” 5. What do you think the “wall” in the story represents? grammar packet

Tuesday, May 20  SSR/one-question quiz on Half and Half  new reading pace: cancel one JLC tests – all incorporated into final exam. some chapters will be read in class.  group presentations: groups prepare discussion questions  JLC discussion: Voice from the Wall  “Rice Husband” due by Thursday Wednesday, May 21  Journal  group presentations: preparation time and presentations begin  table graffiti  JLC discussion: Half and Half  “Two Kinds” discussion questions in class Thursday, May 22  SSR / one-question “Rice Husband” quiz  group presentations: presentations continue  JLC discussion: Two Kinds and Rice Husband when time permits: review grammar packet and do grammar quiz

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Community  True uniqueness – piercing story  bullying intro  bullying article. group work and jigsaw: what was the right thing to do? from several points of view. why is it hard to get along with people who are different? how can exploring someone else’s perspective be helpful in resolving conflicts?  independent work: write about a time when you were discriminated against (not necessarily race) strength acknowledgements cover letter Mr. Tossman’s EWAs Richard Conell’s short story, “The Most Dangerous Game” Rose’s short stories Spoonful of oil from The Alchemist Phlegm poem (unconventional symbol)? Fast Food Nation?

Whereas the major problem for the older generation had been the struggle against fate, the younger generation perceives their essential difficulty to involve the making of choices. (similarity to Jasmine) final project: http://school.discovery.com/lessonplans/activities/books-art/view.html