Mini Lesson on The Complete Persepolis

TPA Lesson Plan #____12___

1. Teacher Candidate	Tara Halvorson		Date Taught	3/11/2015
Cooperating     Teacher	John Smith		School/District	District 81
2. Subject	English		Field Supervisor	Katie Higgins
3. Lesson Title/Focus	Exploring the Impact of Color on The Complete Persepolis		5. Length of Lesson	20 minutes
4. Grade Level		11

6. Academic & Content Standards (Common Core/National)	CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.11-12.3 Analyze the impact of the author's choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story or drama (e.g., where a story is set, how the action is ordered, how the characters are introduced and developed). CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.11-12.5 Analyze how an author's choices concerning how to structure specific parts of a text (e.g., the choice of where to begin or end a story, the choice to provide a comedic or tragic resolution) contribute to its overall structure and meaning as well as its aesthetic impact.
7. Learning Objective(s)	The students will be able to analyze the author’s choice to use only contrasting colors and how those choices affect the development of story elements, meaning and aesthetic impact of the text.
8. Academic Language demands (vocabulary, function, syntax, discourse)	Aesthetic - design choices which are meant to give pleasure through beauty Graphic Weight - describes how some images draw the eye more than others, ex: the use of light or dark shades, dark-toned images, or high-contrast images Space - refers to the area between, around, above, below, and within objects Negative Space - spaces surrounding shapes or forms Positive Space - shapes or forms

9. Assessment

Observe students’ participation in discussions. Check for their comprehension of how the author uses contrasting colors to create meaning and aesthetic impact. Assess student made comics for understanding of story development and aesthetic impact

10. Lesson Connections

Schwarz, G. E. (2002). “Graphic Novels for Multiple Literacies”. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 46. 262-265. By providing direct instruction on the art and craft of the graphic novel, students develop an appreciation for how visual elements such as color, perspective, and point of view manipulate the viewers emotions and influence their comprehension of various subjects. Lesson occurs during the reading of the text.  Lessons on the realities of the war in Iran in the 1980’s and war in general have been discussed.  The author’s background and the fact this is a biography has been covered. Students have been taught that the first thing they do in class in to copy the Learning Objective down in their notebooks. Students have class experience in calling out their answers and being courteous and polite and taking turns speaking. Students have shown in previous assessments that they are not taking the art into account in how the story is told.  This lesson will help them to analyze the novel not just for the words, but also for the impact that the art itself has on the story.

11. Instructional Strategies/Learning Tasks to Support Learning
Learning Tasks and Strategies
Teacher’s Role Teacher will display the Learning Objective and take role.                      Teacher will call on a student to read the Learning Objective out loud.  Teacher will ask the class to try to explain what the learning objective means.  Then teacher will transition into the lesson. Teacher will lead students in creating lists of what they think of when they see/read/hear White/Light and Black/Dark. Teacher will introduce specific vocabulary and tie it to the list that was made.  Teacher will mention that these are terms she will be looking for on the upcoming essay. Teacher will show two images of a child soldier from the Iran war in 1980.  Teacher will remind students of the previous lessons on the war and child soldiers.  Teacher will ask the students to define how the differences in color change or do not change the impact of the image. Teacher will direct students to look specifically at pages 138-142 of The Complete Persepolis.  She will ask them to study the use of graphic weight, positive and negative space, and how that affects the impact of the action. Teacher will ask the class why they think the author may have chosen the black or white negative space that she did.  Teacher will focus on the difference between panels 4, 5, and 6 on page 139 and panel 7. Also focusing on panel 1 on page 140, not just the contrasts by why the author may have placed the graphic weight where she did in accordance with the contrasting color halves.  Then finally discussing panel 5 on page 142 and why the author would chose to end on just black and how that affects what is said in the panel. Teacher will ask students to pair up and pass out materials to each group (a bag of paste-able images, glue sticks, and comic frames).  Teacher will instruct students that they will be creating their own comics using the idea of graphic weight, space, and contrasting colors.  Each student will make their own comic, but each pair will share the supplies.  Teacher will explain they students can draw their own comic instead of using the supplies if they wish, but that there must still be a representation of contrasting colors in the comics to help tell the story.  Students may also ask other groups for extra cut-outs if they need more.  The story may be about any topic the students wish to choose, even a fictional story.  Comics must include a beginning and end to the story.  Teacher will circulate around the class to answer and questions and to also keep all students on task. Once comics are done, or most students are done, teacher will ask for volunteers to share their work.  Teacher will inform students to not just tell their story but why they chose to use/not use contrasting colors and graphic weight. Teacher will return to the slide with the Learning Objective while she asks the students if they feel the class had achieved the objective. Teacher will assign pages 155-188 to read for the next day.	Students’ Role        Students will copy the Learning Objective into their notebooks to keep objective for later use. Student who is called on will read the Learning Objective out loud to reinforce memory. Students will individually call out what they think of when they see/read/hear White/Light and Black/Dark, taking turns speaking and being courteous to others. Students will copy down the vocabulary and definitions in their notebooks for later use, such as on the upcoming essay. Students will study the two images shown and tie them back with the memory of the previous lesson on the Iran war of the 1980’s and child soldiers.  Students will call out their opinions on how the differences in color change or do not change the impact of the image and why.  Students will take turns speaking and be courteous. Students will individually study pages 138-142 and assess them using the idea of graphic weight, positive and negative space, and how that affects the impact of the action. Students will take turns calling out why they believe that the author chose to use the black or white negative space that she did.  Students will focus on panels 4, 5, and 6 on page 139 and compare it to panel 7 and explain the difference and the impact.  They will also do the same for panel 1 on page 140.  Finally they will discuss why they think the author chose to end the chapter with a completely black screen and how this affect what has happened and what was written in the panel.  If a student had not spoken in the previous discussions, the teacher will call on them to include them in this one. Students will choose a partner and move to sit together if necessary.  Students will listen to the instructions on how to create their individual comics using the materials that the teacher hands out to them.  Students will choose the story they wish to tell and decide how to place that in the four panels.  Students will work individually on their comic, but may ask their partner or the teacher for clarification as they work.  Students will make sure that their story includes a beginning and end and they it uses contrasting colors and graphic weight to help tell the story. Students will volunteer to share their comics with the class.  They will not only tell the story, but also why they made the choices they did in regards to contrasting colors and graphic weight. Students will compare the knowledge they had about the learning objective at the beginning of the class with what they know now and ask any questions about the learning objective that they are still unclear about.
Student Voice At the beginning of class, a student will read aloud the learning objective and the class will try to explain what it means.  At the end of the class, the teacher will again show the learning objective and ask the class if they have question about it or if they feel they have accomplished the objective.

12. Differentiated Instruction

Listening, speaking, writing, and reading will all be used.  This will help auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learners gather their information.  The comic assignment will also help kinesthetic learners and introverts and ELLs prove that they understand the information.  The use of partners will also help introverted and ELL students to feel more comfortable asking questions and creating understanding, as well as the teacher circulating will allow students to ask questions they may have and did not want to ask in front of the class.  The vocabulary will also be printed and available to those students who read and write too slowly to copy in the time allotted.

13. Resources and Materials Prezi Presentation Dry erase marker Glue sticks Comic format Bags of comic characters/black negative space Printed vocabulary lists from certain students Notebooks (students) The Complete Persepolis (students and teacher)

14. Management and Safety Issues

Class discussions can become hectic if students do not respectfully take turns speaking.  This class will already have experience with this technique.  If they do not courteously take turns speaking, the teacher will resort to calling names and having students raise their hands. Students may lose focus as they choose partners and become off task.  Teacher will give a warning that they only have thrity seconds to find their partner and have a seat.  Should the students not listen, the teacher will clap her hands in a rhythmic manner and the students will releat the clap.  This will happen again and again until everyone’s attention is on the teacher.  Then she will remind the students to immediately find their partners and take a seat.  The clapping will be an experience that the students are already familiar with. Sharing supplies can be a problem with some students.  If a problem should arise, teacher will calmly approach the group and try to calmly mediate the problem.  If the problem continues, the two students will be asked to step outside of the classroom and the teacher will join them to mediate the problem in a quieter and more private setting.

15. Parent & Community Connections

The stories that are created are of the student’s choosing.  The teacher will encourage the students to share their wonderful work with their parents. Page 140, which is being discussed in class, concerns the imagined loss of the author’s family.  This will be included in the discussion of why the contrasting colors were chosen.