Search results for 'tag:Vocabulary tag:Paragraphs' matching tags 'Vocabulary' and 'Paragraphs'

Re: Paragraph Suggestions

Mister Micawber — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 23:48:14 GMT

.
I have already commented on the style problem. Below, I have underlined incorrect or unnatural grammar and vocabulary only:

My combined study partner, Computer is lying on the russet table nearby the desk. Its versatility assists me adeptly in studies. Although it is a machine but profoundly alter my feeble grammar like a goldsmith wrought the gold. A rhomb shaped monitor, with cling gray screen, held on the top of the table. Just below I see my easy-to-press keyboard, with special grouped keys on it. The mouse lies quietly on black sponge pad next to the keyboard. Two audio speakersâ stands at each side of the monitor, with the attached headphone set. All these components connected through wavy cables to the nerve centre, Central processing unit placed at the end shelf of the table. The evening rays, entering through the window, cast a gradient of colors on my smooth carpet lying beneath.

Re: Paragraph Suggestions

Mister Micawber — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 23:25:14 GMT

.
I suppose that this is a vocabulary and composition assignment from your teacher, but this style of writing is inappropriate for such mundane topics. I have underlined problem areas and struck out inappropriate metaphors and other words:

My computer, the ~~caretaker~~ of my studies, lies over the ~~flat~~ table at the ~~other~~ side of my desk. Although it is a machine ~~but~~ in my weak spellings and grammar, it is a life saver. Usually it does my long sentences and paragraphâs final revision ~~is done by it~~. A heavy monitor is ~~lying~~ on the top with a gray protected shield and some sack of books and a cd stand beside it. Just below I see my ~~easy-to-press~~ keyboard carrying the ~~soft sound~~ keys on it. Two audio speakerâs stands at each side of monitor like ~~high~~ trees surround the valley. The ~~fast-pace~~ mouse is firmly stays [verb is appropriate?-- No] on the top of the black sponge pad, next to the keyboard. Down on the shelf stands the nerve center, the central ~~control~~ processing unit with its complicated integrated system. In front of table, ~~I see~~ a small frail stool resting on my ~~bright~~ carpet~~âs outer rim~~.

Re: How to pronounce often?

Anonymous — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 07:46:01 GMT

Dear Howard Leigh Ph.D., If we are going to get into silly mudslinging battles over the word "often" and claiming illigitimacy of posts due to lack of name, qualifications, and misspellings then I suggest that you start with the very word misspelling which contains two of the letter "s". That is, of course, unless you intended to say that the previous poster pelled something incorrectly, but unfortunately I am not the beholder of a Ph.D. and therefore pell as a verb is not in my vocabulary, nor is it in my trusty old Webster's. Again if we follow your rules that misspellings invalidate a post let us return again to your second sentence where you used the contraction for "You are" when I believe you meant to use the posessive form "your", unless you intended to write "yore" and refer to some other ancient post that you believe to be unreliable. Also I should further point out to you that when you spelled "hat" at the beginning of your last paragraph, your word choice does probably contain a "w" at the beginning to make the word "what." But alas, you have a Ph.D. (in some field that you did not mention - grounds for an unreliable post perhaps?) so you were surely aware of these slight misspellings before criticizing those of others. As for me, I happen to pronounce "often" without the "t" because that is how I learned it, but also to keep with pronunciation schemes words like soft - soften, haste - hasten, chaste - chasten, and also hustle, bustle etc. It does make me cringe a little inside when I hear "often" pronounced with the "t," but if, as several have suggested, this pronunciation has resurged as a result of better and broader education and literacy throughout the world, then I believe that coping with the occasional pronunciation with a "t" is something I dearsay I would be happy to accept as a consequence. I apologize for the somewhat pomptuous (yes, with a silent t - props to that comment by the way) nature of this post, but we all should know that advice we receive from the internet on forum websites should be taken with a grain of salt and misspellings and typos are a reality of the high speed electronic age. Cheers, Peter Broch (sans Ph.D.)

Re: Please proof this and possible conclusion help

Philip — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 22:41:54 GMT

First, welcome to the Forums. You may have noticed that this is basically a place for students of English as a foreign language to post questions they have about grammar, vocabulary and writing. Native speakers, however, can also get some help here. There is no need to go directly to a moderator for help that you want.

If you'd like to post this in the writing section of the boards, I'm sure that people will be willing to help you out. However, you first need to clean up the style a bit here: separate the composition into paragraphs. It is nearly impossible to work one's way through this and to make comments. You might also consider posting just a paragraph at a time, with specific questions about grammar or vocabulary.

Argumentative essay 'Against Cosmetic Surgery'

Inka — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:52:47 GMT

Could someone please help me with this argumentative essay? I have to write an argumentative essay against cosmetic surgery. Could someone please look if there are mistakes (grammar mistakes, vocabulary mistakes, logical mistakes), if the text is well-structured, if everything in the text is formal? (if there are informal words, expressions in it I will not get a pass mark)

Cosmetic surgery: the magic potion?

A study by Psychology Today magazine shows that many people are not satisfied with their looks: 60,000,000 do not like their noses; 30,000,000 do not like their chins; 6,000,000 do not like their ears and 6,000,000 do not like their eyes. Unfortunately, science has achieved so far to try to meet our society's unhealthy level of âperfect body'. Cosmetic surgery: the hype of the moment. But is it the magic potion? Certainly not.

To begin with, there is no point in cutting into a healthy body. How small the operation might be, for example cosmetic nose surgery, there is always a chance something goes wrong. The numbers are very alarming: in 20% of all cases, the patient has to recover from the damage he experienced. Although serious risks such as blindness and heavy lung problems are rather rare, less serious risks may not be concealed: chronic pain, allergic reaction, delayed or prolonged healing, ... In any case, cosmetic surgery is far from pain free.

And what is more: a number of surgeries have already failed. âThe magic potion' caused a many people to die because of operations that were far from needed. To take one example: the 36-year old housewife Lorraine Batt, mother of three young children, came to an untimely death as the result of surgery that would make her belly more pretty to look at. Such tragic events are a strong warning that our society has to move into a less appearance-focused one.

In addition, the long-term consequences are often not taken into account. In fact, it is useless to go through a facelift. That is to say: the only thing such a cosmetic surgery does, is to make you younger for a few years. Life goes on and afterwards, the wrinkles come back. It is as unnatural to try to possess eternal youth, as it is to oppose the ageing process. Silicones implants have to be replaced within fifteen years. That seems to be a long time, but the fact that this implies a new surgery, is often forgotten.

Moreover, is it morally right to change the body you are given and transform it into âsomething' you are not? Every single person is unique and that is what makes life so special. Of course some do more resemble (twins and look-alikes), but nobody feels quite the same as you do. The outside appearance is the representation of the inner-self. Therefore, drastically redesigning your looks causes strange effects, take for instance Michael Jackson. If your personality is lacking, your appearance will also lack. This goes hand in hand, cosmetic surgery does not make you a different person.

A common ground to go through this procedure is to make oneself more confident, comfortable and stronger than others. Some youngster see plastic surgery as a quick fix for their physical, and their emotional problems. On the contrary, cosmetic surgery cannot produce miracles, and if teenagers keep thinking in that way, our society is facing an unhealthy future. Cosmetic surgery should not be the option, and it can definitely not be taken lightly. It will change the patient's life, and in ways they may not have expected, which is shown in the paragraphs above.

As wonderful as this piece of modern medical technology may sound, it turns out that cosmetic surgery is not at all that advantageous. That is why the ideal body image has to be thrown away, and has to be replaced by the idea that everyone is special human being, with his/her shortcomings.

Re: Finally i need help with something.

Feebs11 — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 21:36:26 GMT

BeginStudent
Hi ,
I have a little part to check from the project before I will give it tomorrow to my teacher.

This one paragraph (Summary of the project):

It wasn't easy for me to do this project because of the following reasons:
First of all, it was quite an issue for me to choose the most appropriate and most relevant materials. Furthermore, it was hard for me to divide our work load equally, because the project is quite big. We thought that everyone would do a half of the sun-topics for each part. [You start with "me" and then refer to "we" - is there a previous reference to a group doing this research together?]
Second, when I chose the articles the language was really complicated and it wasn't easy for me to understand all the words and to choose the key sentence. While doing this project the most interesting part for me was the reading because we didn't have to write a lot and all the printed material seemed rather interesting. Reading a lot of authentic English articles helped me a lot. I improved my writing skills and my vocabulary extended.

Second paragraph is :
3)How do peope spread heroin?

Heroin is being trafficked all over the world.The biggest producer is Afghanistan.According to research, 87% of heroin is being produced in Afghanistan.Heroin is very easily distribute around the world because it can be compactly packed and easily concealed. ~~Heroin is also being spread all over the world because~~ People can swallow it [the small packages of heroin] like pills and during 24 hours [ 24 hours later] they can ~~puke~~[vomit it up] easily .
Those unfortunate people who swallow the "pills" may die because of it .The "pills" are little bit bigger than the normal size pills and it they can get stuck in the throat or it [the packets] may be torn inside the stomach and cause death, even without using the heroin as a drug .
In conclusion, the heroin may be spread all over the world easily, but the consequences may be shocking .

paragraph three is :
4)What is the history of heroin ?

Heroin was first discovered in ~~1847~~ 1874 by C.R Alder Wright, a British chemist from London, by mixing different substances [what substances? and why?] together. Another scientist was Felix Hoffman~~.He~~ [who also] created ~~the~~ heroin, not as a drug but as medicine to cure people. And he invented the heroin only two days after he discovered ~~the~~ aspirin.
In 1914 , in the USA , the Harrison Narcotics Tax Act was passed to limit the production of heroin all over the country to reduce the number of users.By this law, heroin could be sold to consumers such as addicts that may lie to the seller.As we see, the law didn't reduce the number of users ~~but~~; it just increased that number. In the UK, even though the heroin is considered as an 'A' class drug, it is still available on prescription~~.The heroin is~~ as a painkiller drug .
In conclusion, we see that the history of heroin is a long term history and far back at the time [not particularly far back - heroin was only discovered in 1874] we can see that this drug has been used not just for addicted people but as a medicine as well.

What can you check i really appraiser it .
Thanks.

HAve you said anywhere what heroin derives from? You also need to say that it was originally produced as a painkilling medicine, before its addictive nature was recognised.

Finally i need help with something.

BeginStudent — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 21:03:52 GMT

Hi ,
i have a little part to check from the project before i will give it tomorrow to my teacher.

This one paragraph (Summary of the project):

It wasn't easy for me to do this project because of the following reasons:

First of all, it was quite an issue for me to choose the most appropriate and most relevant materials.

Furthermore, it was hard for me to divide our work load equally, because the project is quite big. We thought that everyone would do a half of the sun-topics for each part.

Second, when I chose the articles the language was really complicated and it wasn't easy for me to understand all the words and to choose the key sentences.

While doing this project the most interesting part for me was the reading because we didn't have to write a lot and all the printed material seemed rather interesting. Reading a lot of authentic English articles helped me a lot. I improved my writing skills and my vocabulary extended.

Second paragraph is :

3)How do peope spread heroin?

Heroin is being trafficked all over the world.The biggest producer is Afghanistan.According to research 87% of heroin is being produced in Afghanistan.Heroin is very easily distribute around the world,because it can be compactly packed and easily concealed.

Heroin is also being spread all over the world because people can swallow it like pills and during 24 hours they can puke it easily.

Those unfortunate people who swallow the "pills" May die because of it .The "pills" are little bit bigger than the normal size pi;; and it can get stuck in the throat or it may be torn inside the stomach and cause

Death even without using the heroin as a drug .

In conclusion, the heroin may be spread all over the world easily ,but the consequences may be shocking .

paragraph three is :

4)What is the history of heroin ?

Heroin was first discovered in 1847 by C.R Alder wrights, a British chemist from London , by mixing different substances together.

Another scientist was Felix Hoffman.He created the heroin , but not as a drug but as medicine to cure people. And he invented the heroin only two days after he discovered the aspirin.

In 1914 , in USA , the Harrison Narcotics Tax Act was passed to limit the production of heroin all over the country to reduce the number of users.By this law,heroin could be sold to consumers such as addicts that may lie to the seller.As we see,the law didn't reduce the number of users but it just increased that number.

In UK,even though the heroin is considered as an 'A' class drug , it is still available to prescription.The heroin is a painkiller drug .

In conclusion , we see that the history of heroin is a long term history and far back at the time we can see that this drug has been used not just for addicted people but as a medicine as well.

What can you check i really appraiser it .
Thanks.

Re: Could you check this out please! I'm an intermediate student of English.

Mister Micawber — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 04:31:45 GMT

First, it needs to be divided into paragraphs. As it is, the length is offputting. Below, I have underlined some problem areas in grammar, punctuation, or vocabulary, and I have struck out unnecessary words (you may have to revise to reconstruct the sentences without these words):

~~All the~~ people ~~around the world~~ buy things everyday. These ~~things people buy~~ depend on the age, personality and needs in that moment ~~of their lives~~ to be happy, for a good product you must agree with the price, quality and guaranty. ~~To start this composition about habits of shopping, I said that~~ I prefer to shop on site for many reasons ~~some~~ ~~often are: that~~ you can touch the product and feel, see how works, you can ask about him, try before you buy ~~before~~ because ~~sometimes~~ if we donât know the product ~~and we buy~~ we could have a bad experience, ask for a lower price, guaranty and make contact with the sales persons ~~who can help you tomorrow~~ if you have something matter with the product, besides this the disadvantages could be that you want to spend a lot of time to buy ~~the product~~ and donât have many options ~~to choose~~. On the other hand, the advantage to buy things on line are you save time, it doesnât cost any parking, and you have a lot of options ~~to choose~~, you can compare prices, quality and types in a short time and in the comfortable chair of your computer, however you have the risk of experience prices, the product isnât work like you need, and you donât know how could be more useful. To conclude, itâs important to know and use the new technology ~~that advance day a day~~, but for me itâs better to mix both shopping habits. If we do this ~~Iâm sure~~ we always would buy the best product ~~with good price and quality to be satisfied with the product~~.

People fought in a Chinese translation forum

Lafingn — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 07:25:09 GMT

Hi, everyone! Happy New Year!

But I'm trying to be happy. I'm pulled into a debate over "the very English standard" in a Chinese translation forum. A "sensible" lad who crammed in China's New Oriental Language School asserts that many usages, including those in nytimes.com, economist.com, native speakers' blogs and more, are actually non-stardard and thus wrong. Even some in Oxford dictionaries now become "obsolete" or "unacceptable". One of his examples is about "which" used as relative pronoun:

A student who talks about 'strong rain' may make himself understood, but possibly not without provoking a smile or a correction, which may or may not matter.

He says which, referring a circumstance here, is a misuse. The original sentence is from the introduction to an Oxford dictionary. By the way, he also laughs at the part "but possibly not without provoking a smile or a correction" because he thinks it's bad English (maybe not very smooth for his limited reading), while I don't agree.

Also denied is another example from American Traditional Dictionary:

He left early, which was wise.

He says every teacher in New Oriental would frown on this because they were taught in school that the relative pronoun "which" should in no way substitute a foregoing sentence in the proceeding non-restrictive attributive clause.

Is that true, or the dictionary wrong?

My next question is what's your opinion about education New Oriental offers, if you happen to know. Since I really doubt about it.

He posted his comments(sorry for his dirty words)ï¼

Should any native English speaker look at what you put down here, he or she will definitely go to see a doctor as this foreigner will not only be amused, but also be suffering from a nausea and vomiting disease. Such trashy and junk words were put together to display how poor and messy your so-called English (in fact, even worse than typical Chinglish) is . You can certainly regard me as stinky because I have been so unluckily gotten into contact with you, a piece of ***. You can rest your mind that I am far inferior to you in this regard. How funny a stupid idiot like you could have an idea of building up a team! Do you believe that there are many other people on this world, who can be as similarly asinine as you are. Just go to the hell and kiss your mom's ass! Your so-called dream ( actually a kind of deliria) will never come true. Otherwise, our society as a whole will run into an overall catastrophe of deterioration of our population quality. BTW, you shall never compare yourself with violinqq, as doing so is like comparing a piece of *** with a brillant piece of jade.

My reply and comments on his English (he says he can't read because "it's a mess"):

while "poor" is my guts feeling to your lanugage, a second thought is carefully given to the reasoning why it should look so awkward. considering the paragraph Aurorean offered as a prototype in many aspects, a thorough examination helps to identify some factors that are about the language per se and that can be quickly wiped off upon notice; the rest factors, however, extend far beyond language due to their much deeper roots in thinking habits upon which words and patterns are selected.

Generally the language in question features lengthy and humdrum, which is often the lesson of Chinese English. On the whole, Chinese tolerates more repetition than English does. Oftimes parallel words and phrases, or structures of like meanings in Chinese break out powerful rather than demolish the strength. But in English, it's the other way around. Silimar elements piled on can be worse than grammar mistakes with their lower efficiency in conveying meaning and the breakup in reading, for it distracts readers, even annoys them. And Chinese is a more detailed languge. While many elements in English are self-evident and can be safely left out, doing so in Chinese is risky and would give an abrupt sense, though it can still be understood with a little extra effort. Chinese English is humdrum not just for a considerable amount of repetition, but also for a lack of lively vocabulary, sentence patterns, and other forceful expressions.

The above mentioned, it becomes apparent why and how literal translation, or writing English from Chinese structures, is problematic.

Let's proceed to the problems packed in the following paragraph, by courtesy of our Mr. Aurorean, the personality of amusing grudges and grievances, not thoroughly denied though could have been, thanks to the benevolence of the translation industry and many open-minded people. Thanks to Mr. Aurorean, for his unabashed display of his self-styled good english, which may otherwise help to benchmark many translators' work.

Should any native English speaker look at what you put down here, he or she will definitely go to see a doctor as this foreigner will not only be amused, but also be suffering from a nausea and vomiting disease.
Comments: very low efficiency. Simply put it like this: Any English native speaker at your words will... Well, "what your put down here" is self-evident in the context so it's needless. Should..... is a relatively big structure here but we don't like it to do a small job. "not only be amused, but also be" is childish logic, it's dull, not interesting, not funny.

Such trashy and junk words were put together to display how poor and messy your so-called English (in fact, even worse than typical Chinglish) is .
comments: just select one between trashy and junk, since either repeats the other here. We know such words "were put together", you don't have to speak it out, which means to emphasize. So it's needless too. poor and messy, just choose the latter, because messy conveys "poor". so-called is not a good word; the meaning is not ironic enough translated from chinese literally. So see my changes:
The bundle of words makes a valueless display of the english of yours. One won't think futher if it's chinglish or not.

See? You don't have to look sissy by shouting words like "such", "how poor", "how messy". You may have never been praised as a sense of humour by females. Well, that's okay. But you should at least know how to say barbed words in a polite manner. Or how you dare to pick up english as a gun?

You can certainly regard me as stinky because I have been so unluckily gotten into contact with you, a piece of ***.
Comments: a master of english don't end a long sentence with "***." the logic is baby level too. not attractive at all. Well, try some Shakespeare way:
What's in the name "Aurorean"
that we don't call by ***
but smells at well

You can rest your mind that I am far inferior to you in this regard. How funny a stupid idiot like you could have an idea of building up a team!
Comments: you know why you look sissy? because you tag and cap others with boorish lore. now calm down and check back your words, you were being so desperate. God won't tag you with "idiot", because he's merciful. We won't too, because it's overtly evident what a kind of thing before us. Your words reflect yourself. you are your words.

Do you believe that there are many other people on this world, who can be as similarly asinine as you are. Just go to the hell and kiss your mom's ass!
Comments: really childish logic. i'm so sorry but your imagination is so flat. You just hurt your mother. You are 30 something. So your mother is a senior now. God bless her. hope she survives you 'cause you two are to split into different ends of the world in the long run. Cherish the rest time.

Your so-called dream ( actually a kind of deliria) will never come true. Otherwise, our society as a whole will run into an overall catastrophe of deterioration of our population quality. BTW, you shall never compare yourself with violinqq, as doing so is like comparing a piece of *** with a brillant piece of jade.
Comments: Yuk, instead just say "I'm worried about your dream" to avoid sissy impression and create gentleman image. don't say "our society as a whole" because you are not supposed to be one of the leadership level right? "an overall catastrophe of deterioration of our population quality" sound lousy: words are too long. simply try "the end of the world", and it's more vivid and impressive. by the way, i'm not that great, and the world won't collapse for my individual existence. I'm so worried about your state of health. check your family tree and see if one or two cases of Alzheimer's disease or mongolian exist. by the way, who grants you the big position to compare? look at yourself, even a far cry from a botched creature by god.

Whose English is more acceptable? I'm in want of your opinions.

Thank you all in advance.

Here's that lesson plan.

DWillard — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 03:14:09 GMT

Hello everybody. I'm new here, so take it easy on me.

LESSON 1

Subject: William Shakespeare â History and Plays

Date: Day 1

Objective:

                  ELA.10.LE.3 Use oral, written, and visual texts to research how
                                         individuals have had an impact on people in their
                                         community and their nation.

                  ELA.7.LE.3 Apply new learning by forming questions and
                                       setting learning goals that will aid in self-regulation
                                       and reflection on their developing literacy

                .
                  METS 1.a.6 -Students understand that access to online learning                                                                              increases educational and workplace opportunities.

                  METS 1.b.1 -Students will be provided with the opportunity to learn in a virtual                                                    environment as a strategy to build 21st century learning skills.

Presentation:

             Step 1. Give a PowerPoint Presentation
                             -Give a historical Background on Shakespeareâs life
                                          - First 20 Years
                                          - Life in London
                                          - Later Years
                                          - The Plays
                                                 - Comedies & Histories
                                                 - Tragedies

               Step 2. Introduce students to webquests
                                           - specifically show them the Shakespeare webquest:
                                              http://questgarden.com/10/81/0/070107150712/index.htm
                                           - show the students how to navigate it
                                           - allow them to navigate it themselves

Materials:

             PowerPoint presentation; quizzes; worksheets

Introduction:

                  Read (melodramatically, of course) the famous âTo be, or not to be...â
                  monologue from William Shakespeareâs Hamlet.

Closure:
                Give relevance to Shakespeare and his work. Discuss what times where like in the                          Elizabethan period and how it could have effected his writing. Compare Shakespeare                      to writers of today.

Evaluation:

                Give a five question mini-quiz covering the topics presented in the PowerPoint. (Be                         sure to inform them of the quiz prior to the PowerPoint presentation to encourage                           some note-taking.)

Homework:

                 Have students fill out a purpose question worksheet (10-12 questions) based on                               the Shakespeare webquest:

                 http://questgarden.com/10/81/0/070107150712/index.htm


LESSON 2

Subject: William Shakespeare â Othello: plot

Date: Day 2

Objective:

                     ELA.3.LE.1 Integrate listening, speaking, viewing, reading, and
                                          writing skills for multiple purposes and in varied contexts.

                     ELA.3.LE.6 Determine the meaning of unfamiliar words and
                                           concepts in oral, written, and visual texts by using
                                           a variety of resources, such as prior knowledge,
                                           context, glossaries, and electronic sources.

                      METS 1.b.5 Students identify common graphic, audio, and video
                                           file formats (e.g., jpeg, gif, bmp, mpeg, wav).

Presentation:

                Guided Reading Lesson
                           1. Create background of the story
                                            -Moors in Europe
                                            - Spanish history
                                            - Othello and Shakespeare

                           2. Provide students with vocabulary words from the story. Use posters: at least 3                                 posters per word or use a PowerPoint slide show (at least 3 slides per word).                                    Present 6-8 words.
                                             - define the word
                                             - give proper usage
                                             - Concretize the word through a mini-quiz

                           3. Have students answer purpose words that cover main ideas and details. (10-                                    12 questions)

                           4. Have students answer discussion questions that cover inferences and                                                judgments. (12-15 questions)

              Activity
                      1.Put students in groups.

                      2.Have groups make âWhat if...â scene where Othello does not carry out the                                       murder of Desdemona.

                      3. Have students record their scenes on a digital camcorder and upload them                                        onto the computer.

Materials:

                      An Othello (Lawrence Fishburn version) highlight DVD, poster materials                                        (construction paper, markers, magazine clippings, glue, etc.), worksheet,
                      digital camcorder

Introduction:

                      Show highlight clips from the movie Othello form a burned DVD compilation.

Closure:
                       Go around the room and ask each student their favorite part of the story.

Evaluation:

                       Have students complete a matching style worksheet. They must match the                                       character to the specific event in Othelloâs plot that they did.
                       (Ex. -   _A__ 1. Iago        A. Convinced Othello to murder Desdemona.)

Homework:

                       Have students keep a journal (on a word processor is fine for students with mild                              learning and behavioral disorders ). Each entry is a summary of the plot by each                             act. Five acts = five summaries.

LESSON 3

Subject: William Shakespeare â Othello: themes

Date: Day 3

Objective:

                 ELA.3.LE.5 Employ multiple strategies to construct meaning
                                            while reading, listening to, viewing or creating text.

                        ELA.3.LE.8 Express their responses to visual, written, and electronic
                                             texts, and compare their responses to those of others.

                        METS 3.a.3 Students have access to and utilize assistive technology
                                             tools.

                        METS 4.a.4 Students collaborate in content-related projects that integrate a                                                         variety of media (e.g., print, audio, video, graphic, simulations, and                                                  models) with presentation, word processing, publishing, database,                                                    graphics design, or spreadsheet applications.

Presentation:

              Step 1. Have a discussion about theme in stories.
                                   - How theme works under genre
                                   - How theme provokes inferences judgement in the reader
                                   - How to read between the lines to understand theme

              Step 2. Have a discussion about theme in Othello.
                                   - Jealousy
                                   - Deception/truth
                                   - love vs. blind rage

              Step 3. Put students into groups for a quick study session before the quiz. Group them                              together my mixing ability levels.

Materials:

                     Overhead projector, quiz sheets

Introduction:

                       Provide a short summary/discussion on the previous dayâs material.

Closure:

                       Give a short statement on Othello, and how it resonates in real life to help                                        concretize the lesson for students.

Evaluation:
                       Have students complete a small multiple choice test covering the past three daysâ                            material. (12 - 16 questions)

Homework:

                       Have students write a five paragraph essay on one or more of the themes found in                          Othello. Themes to choose from: jealousy, leadership, deception & truth, tragedy,                            guilt & innocence.
                       Have students create their essay outlines with the instructional software application                         Inspiration.

Adaptations For Special Needs Students

             1.) Include optical character recognition (OCR) software covering Othello for students                        with visual impairments. Be sure that it includes the play itself, and that it points out                       issues of plot and theme.

              2.) Provide the opportunity for students with mild learning and behavioral disorders to                         use technologies such as word processors to help strengthen and quicken the                                   communication process when note-taking.

              3.) Caption materials (such as the Othello highlight DVD) whenever possible for                                  students with hearing impairments.

               4.) Let students who have speech and language impairments employ augmentative and                       alternative communication (AAC) devices in the classroom. Doing so would better                        include them in the group work the lesson demands.