Anticipation Guide: Huck Finn

Directions: Before beginning The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, answer A (agree) or D (disagree) to the following statements, and be prepared to discuss your answers in class. After our class discussion, you will then choose one question to write a one page response to, expressing your feelings and opinions.

Statements:
1. In life we always get what we deserve in the end.
2. Running away is the best way to solve our problems.
3. People of different races can’t get along with each other.
4. Life always produces it’s own problems and trials to solve and overcome.
5. Having a good home with loving parents prevents most of life’s problems.
6. Playing is more important than working.
7. It’s not fun to learn and go to school.
8. Children must have someone to take care of them or they won’t survive.
9. People seek out their own little adventures in life.

Mark Twain: Huck Finn

Here are a list of useful websites pertaining to the life and times in which Twain was writing Huckleberry Finn:

African-American History Timeline

History of Slavery


While it is difficult to find sites that look at the Victorian era in an unromanticized way, these sites provide some unique perspectives:

American Literature Timeline

Advertising Adventures

History Matters

Keynote

Junior Keynote Presentation for Monday, October 10, 2011

Group One: What is the significance of the Mississippi River area?
Group Two: What is equality? Does it exist in a utopia?
Group Three: What are the characteristics of 12-14 year old boys?
Group Four: What are types of civilization?
Group Five: What role does fear play in society?
Group Six: Is war necessary to have a successful society?
Group Seven: Does society need authority?

The Keynote presentation must have three slides.
• Slide 1 : Definition of your topic
• Slide 2: What does it look like?
• Slide 3: Make a connection to our society.
• Use a graphic or picture for each slide.

Argumentative Essay Checklist

Name_________________________________________Date__________________Period__________

Argumentative Essay Checklist

Opening Paragraph
 General sentence introducing the topic, also called a “hook”
 Outside example of topic (NOT anything about Hamlet! Think books, movies, political events, news stories, etc.)
 Transition from outside example to Hamlet
 Two part thesis statement (must be arguable, supportable and specific. Do not write “Hamlet kills lots of people, including Polonius and Laertes.” Thesis statement must be underlined.

First Body Paragraph
 Topic sentence about the thesis position
 Transition to first point of thesis (who, where, what, when)
 1st concrete detail from Hamlet. Must be embedded in the sentence and include a lead-out.
 Underline CD and include act and scene numbers (ex: IV, iii, 132-133)
 Include a MINIMUM of two sentences of commentary. Commentary is interpretation or explanation of the CD and IS NOT summary!!
 Transition to second point of thesis (who, where, what, when)
 2nd concrete detail from Hamlet. Must be embedded in the sentence and include a lead-out.
 Underline CD and include act and scene numbers.
 Include a MINIMUM of two sentences of commentary, NOT summary!
 Concluding sentence

Second Body Paragraph
 Topic sentence about the thesis position
 Transition to outside source (CD). Tell who said it OR the title of the article/website. (ex: Harvard professor, Dr. David Neiman, explains, “Ophelia was a product of her time” and that it wasn’t her fault she was suicidal (32).
 Commentary (minimum of two sentences)
 Transition to second outside source (see above)
 Commentary
 Concluding sentence

Third Body Paragraph
 Topic sentence
 Counter argument – can use an outside source for this. If so, it needs to be embedded and contain a parenthetical citation.
 Refutation – can use an outside source for this. There needs to be ONE outside source (minimum) for this paragraph with detailed explanation.
 Concluding sentence

Closing Paragraph
 Restate thesis and summarize claims. Do not just cut and paste your thesis/arguments here.
 Universalize – why do we care about this topic? What does it have to do with our current lives? Do NOT use sweeping statements, i.e., “If Hamlet had only had a true friend none of this tragedy would have occurred.” Or “We should all be friendly to everyone.”
 Clinching sentence – sums everything up in a powerful closing sentence.

Works Cited Page
 Is on its own page
 Title says Works Cited. Nothing else.
 Includes Hamlet as a source
 Contains three other sources that are academically sound
 Is alphabetized
 Is double-spaced
 Left hanging margin on first line of each source. Additional lines are indented five spaces.
 Double-check format of each source. You are accountable for the correct format. If you have questions, ask before the essay is due.

Organization
 Cover sheet with original, creative title, your name, date and period. Must be typed.
 Final essay
 Works Cited page
 Edited rough draft
 Peer edit sheet with name of peer editor
 3 Research Logs


REMEMBER:
 Use third person throughout the essay
 Document your sources correctly
 Include a Works Cited page
 Underline thesis and all CDs
 Do not include questions in the essay

Counter-Argument Example

First, I will state my assertion. How about: Schools should make hot chocolate available to students in the morning and at lunch time.

Second, brainstorm supporting arguments: Hot chocolate contains lots of milk which is full of calcium and protein. Growing kids should have three servings of dairy each day. They can be served hot or iced, so they would be appealing both in summer and winter. They are a popular drink among older teens and adults whom students are likely to emulate. Hot Chocolate would replace sodas for lots of students, improving their nutrition. Hot Chocolate seems more ‘special’ than canned sodas or juice, so maybe it would make students feel more positive about school.

Third, decide on a couple of main arguments to include in my thesis statement: I think I’ll include the nutrition aspect and their popularity. So, my thesis might be ‘Schools should make hot chocolate available to students in the morning and at lunch time because they would improve students’ nutrition and they are popular.’ That’s kind of long. I’ll shorten it to ‘Schools should serve hot chocolate because they are nutritional and popular.’ I’ll start with that.

Fourth, identify an audience: I’ll try to convince parents.

Fifth, think of the concerns or arguments parents might raise. (These will be the counter-arguments I will answer in my paper.) Well, I know parents might argue that kids shouldn’t have too much sugar. They might think of the hot chocolate with whipped cream on top and say hot chocolate has too much fat. They might be concerned that they are messy—more likely to be spilled than a soda with a lid. No, I think that would be more of a concern if I were writing for the administrators; I’ll leave that one out. Maybe parents would worry about how expensive the drinks are.

Sixth, think of answers to the parents’ concerns and counter-arguments. Well, for the too much sugar argument, I could recommend sugar-free hot chocolate. I could also compare the amount of sugar in a hot chocolate with how much is in a soda. I could also check and see if it was the same kind of sugar: I have read that the high fructose corn syrup in sodas is worse than regular sugar. That would take a little research, but it should be easy to find out. What else? Oh, yes – fat. Everybody has heard of "skinny" hot chocolates made with non-fat milk, so I could include that in my recommendation. Now for the last one: expense. Hot chocolates are kind of expensive compared with a soda. How could I answer that concern? If students learned
to make them and ran a student stand in the cafeteria, they wouldn’t be so expensive; there wouldn’t have to be a profit built in – although I suppose the equipment is expensive. Maybe instead of some of the other prizes and awards that the parent club buys, they could pay for hot chocolate tickets to give out as incentives or awards. Ok, I think that is enough to start with.

Seventh, write down an outline. Ok. First, I have my thesis statement.

Then, my first section is going to be Improved Nutrition. Under that I can include the calcium, protein, the nutritional needs of growing kids, and the substitution for the "empty calories" in soda. I think this would be a good time to put in the counter-arguments related to nutrition. My second section will be about Popularity of Hot chocolate. I could even take a short survey of students and use a statistic to show that more kids would drink milk if it were in hot chocolate instead of a regular ol’ carton. I could put in how they can be served in summer or winter and about how kids aren’t likely to "outgrow" them because they are popular with older teens and
adults. This could be where I answer the counter-argument about expense with some ideas about kids being willing to work at a student-stand and about giving out tickets as awards. Now I need to enter the counter-arguments related to nutrition. I could say ‘Some parents might counter that hot chocolate is high in sugar, and fat. However, those arguments fail to take into consideration the fact that hot chocolate can be made with sugar-free flavorings, and non-fat milk – or even soy milk.’ I could add ‘Also, when one considers the sugar content of the sodas they will be replacing, this argument seems even weaker." Then I could I answer the counter-argument about expense with some ideas about kids being willing to work at a student-stand and about giving out tickets as awards.

And my paper is practically written at this point!

Counter-Argument Activity Directions

Counter-Arguments


I. Once you are in a group, identify a topic about which you know enough to take and support two or more positions. Here are some possible idea-starters:
• Community issues involving bike paths, bus routes or schedules, parks, recreation opportunities for teens, etc.
• School issues such as electives, schedules, lunchroom conditions or offerings, extra-curricular programs, social groups or activities, behavioral or discipline issues, rules, policies, etc.
• Individual issues such as health, leisure, career planning, etc.

In the River’s Edge Park example, the topic is Developing a Park.

II. When you have picked a topic, ask questions about it until you come up with at least two positions you can support with reasons today. (In your argumentative essay on Hamlet you have had the opportunity to do research to build your support.)
• You might start by asking questions that begin with “How can we ...?” or “What should we do about …?” These will result in several possible positions.
• Questions that begin simply “Should we …?” will result in only two positions -- for and against.

In the River’s Edge Park example, the question was “What kind of development should take place?” or “What kind of a park should it become?” Although only one position is presented, we can guess that other positions might have been: It should become a sports-oriented park; it should appeal to a wide variety of users; it should attract the greatest number of users possible; it should reflect the history of the area, etc.

III. Next, divide your group into half. We’ll call these two half-groups Thesis Teams. Each team will take a different position on the topic. Your team will write a thesis and outline the support you would use in a argumentative paper, including anticipating counter-arguments.

Steps for the Thesis Group

1. Formulate your position on the issue.
2. Brainstorm possible evidence you could use to support your position. (Turn this in too).
3. Decide on two or three main supporting arguments and incorporate them (and your position) into a thesis statement.
4. Identify the audience you want to persuade. (e.g. parents, teachers, coaches, etc. No “preaching to the choir” allowed!)
5. Brainstorm possible counter-arguments or concerns your audience might have. (These would be their “Yeah, but…” responses.)
6. Jot down possible answers to your reader’s counter-arguments.
7. On a piece of paper, write a brief outline of a paper, incorporating your supporting arguments and your answers to the reader’s counter-arguments.
8. Turn in your completed outline (2 outlines for 1 group—remember you’ve split yourselves into 2 teams at this point) to your Period’s In-Box in the classroom, or email to MrsLarson322@gmail.com

Counter Argument: Park Planning

Criteria for Good Thesis Statements

1. Arguable – Reasonable people could disagree
2. Supportable – Can be backed up with evidence, reasons
3. Specific – Not vague, not too general, not too broad
4. “Maps out” the paper – Gives the reader a guide to the organization of the argument
5. Third person – No “I” or “me” in the paper


Park Planning for River’s Edge Park

Tucked away among neighboring houses along the Willamette River is a small pocket of nature: Blackberries ripen under the great trees; ivy runs down the bank, obscuring the remnants of trails down to the gravel bar; an osprey lifts off from its nest in a dying treetop. This is River’s Edge Park, a small parcel of mostly overgrown land, forgotten for decades by most of the city. Now, plans are being made to develop this corner as part of a master planning process for all of the city parks. The question is, What kind of development should take place? Taking into consideration the size and natural features of the park and the interests of the immediate neighbors, it is clear that the best plan is for a relatively undeveloped, mostly naturalized park with limited amenities and parking.

The size and physical features of the park are the most limiting factor. Barely 10 acres, only the top half of the park is flat and well above the annual winter high water. Only this area is suitable for siting any permanent structures, and its small size argues for the simplest of amenities: A picnic table or two, benches, a viewing platform, a play structure, and a small lawn will fill the area. Some may insist on adding more parking spaces here. However, to do so would require either removing the spreading maples that give the park its character and beauty or eliminating the lawn and picnic area.

Down a steep and unstable bank lies the other half of the park. This is gravel bar, flooded each winter and overgrown with young willows. This part is best left to nature. Some may argue that this is the jewel of the park and should be cleared and made more accessible. However, while a trail may be cleared to the water each spring, any attempts at developing this part will be thwarted each year by the high water. A winter channel cutting close to the bank creates an island of the lower half. Each year’s flood chokes the area with massive debris. Since heavy equipment is not allowed in such a riparian area, the effort and expense of clearing it each year would exhaust the Park Department’s maintenance budget – as well as its personnel.

Finally, the park is currently and will continue to be designated a neighborhood park – not a city or regional park. So, the interests of the neighbors should weigh most heavily in any decisions. Their preferences range from leaving it exactly as it is to adding small improvements. They favor one or two tables, a play structure, and clearing back the brush on the upper level. Any grand ideas for changing this park aren’t coming from the people who actually use it.

In conclusion, River’s Edge Park is already very close to what it should become: A natural area where people can picnic in view of the river, neighborhood children can play, and the adventurous can traipse down the bank and skip stones or wade. And perhaps we can help nature along a bit by adding a nesting pole for the osprey against the day that the winter storms take down that dying fir tree.

DIRECTIONS:
In a Google Doc, highlight the thesis. Underline the counter-arguments.

ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS:
1. How does the writer support his position? Explain.
2. How is each counter-argument answered or refuted? Explain.