People in Places

 

7th Grade English with Mr. Kim

 

Syllabus

First Trimester

Summer Reading - 7th Grade

The Water is Wide

Of Mice and Men

Anahita's Woven Riddle

Second Trimester

First Crossings

To Kill a Mockingbird

Third Trimester

Marco Polo

Immigrants in Philadelphia Neighborhoods (IPN) Project

Romeo and Juliet

Essential Questions

The theme of 7th Grade English is People in Places. Taking a cue from the Social Studies course in Geography, we have carefully chosen books where setting takes a crucial role in the story, just as it often does in our own lives. As you read these stories, ask yourself these questions:

1. How are individuals shaped by their environment? Does family setting, community, and one's place in a social/ethnic/economic group shape who the individual becomes?
2. How do the characters in our literature fit into their "places"? How do they learn to adapt to or survive in their environments?
3. What does the story teach us about how we ought to interact with our environment? What are some good or bad principles of changing, influencing, or managing our environment?
4. What is the role of marginal communities in a region? How can we analyze conflict as a function of setting?
5. How do we, as members of the PC community, establish an inviting place for people of all backgrounds and experiences?

Think also of the role of the setting in the craft of the story itself:

• How does the setting of a story help shape the narrative structure of the story?
• What kind of clues do the features and details of the setting give about how the story will turn out? How do they clue us in on the themes of the story?
• How does the movement and action in the setting reflect the deeper themes and meanings of the story?

We'll also be looking at different ways that we can visually organize information in maps and charts, so that we can communicate a clear picture of connections within that information.

Finally, I want us to think about how stories themselves are like journeys, maps, and places. As we read and experience each new text, think about how the quality of that experience is different from one book to the other. What makes a place special? What makes a map meaningful? What makes one journey different from others? Each new book is going to be unique in what it will teach and how it will affect us. You will like a few more than others, and you will like them for different reasons than others will. I hope this class will be a tour that will open your eyes to seeing and appreciating literature with a new perspective.

Student Blogs

What Should Be On Your Blogs:

1. Riddle
2. Definition & Etymology of vocab word
3. Quote from Anahita's Woven Riddle
4.