Jesse's Literary Education

Powerpoint Link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/19CRMkPsCleY7DycT52TsOZlBiwB6TDPc/view?usp=sharing Handout: A Critical Handbook of Children’s Literature by Rebecca J. Lukens, Jaquelin J. Smith and Cynthia Miller Coffel Overview: A Critical Handbook of Children’s Literature is what it sounds like, an effort to examine children’s (and young adult) literature with the same academic standard that is usually reserved for adult literature. The book examines everything from current cultural trends affecting children’s literature to the role of plot, character, and setting in the creation of stories. As it does this, it uses the novel Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White as a “mentor text”, a text the book uses to present examples of these techniques and aspects at work. Changes in Children’s Literature             American culture has changed immeasurably in the past ten years and these changes are beginning to be reflected mo...

While reading through the NES, I noticed a passage that said characters were meant to to act as representations of ideals or modes of conduct. Well, I don't necessarily think that is true. I go for a more verite form of character writing (a funny thing considering I write mostly in fantasy/sci-fi or horror) that treats the characters as real people whose behavior aligns with something the author wants to point out rather than raw personification. In truth, I think this might be a point where the teaching establishment is running behind the culture. If a student likes a book, its usually because they like the characters. Aristotle has largely been proven wrong, its not plot that draws people in. One of the worst words a writer can hear (to the point that they're called the seven deadly words) are, "I do not care about these people." So one of the things teachers need to do is give students lessons using stories that have dynamic and interesting (not necessarily likab...

Powerpoint Link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GnFSTm7L_oHNipzPlX8MHFZ-FtigzbQC/view?usp=sharing Teaching Writing That Matters Foreword             Among the consequences that have come about from the nation’s slide towards standardized testing as a means of gauging student growth has been the lowering quality of writing instruction. Students are encouraged to write for test taking situations which not only leave them unprepared for any writing outside of that particular environment, it leaves their growth as writers stunted entirely. The book posits three aspects of writing that current trends have seen atrophy: Reflection, Rhetorical Awareness, and Community. Reflection             Not only a method of communication, writing can be a form of reflection. Indeed, reflection is crucial for learning effective writing. The best writing, whether fictional or otherw...

Looking over the grammar rules implanted a weird nostalgia in me for my school days. Making me remember the days of flipping through the text book in sunlit classrooms. Listening to the teacher as she wrote out sentence structures on the board. It also made me remember why I once heard a Frenchman describe English as an "ugly lurching fool of a language". Commas in particular need some kind of tribunal to ensure their purpose are clear and concise. Never once have I met an English teacher who could give me a complete answer for what commas were used for. The best I got were definitions from the textbook or personal advice. As an aspiring writer and English teacher this bodes poorly for the ease of my professions. Don't even get me started on semi-colons. This is what happens when a bunch of languages are dumped in a bucket and allowed to spawn. I also started to remember learning how to cite. We weren't taught how to do so until Senior year, and even then only ...