Name Period THE IMPACT OF · PDF file_____ I spend time listening to or reading celebrity...

1

Name____________________________________________________________ Period ____________

THE IMPACT OF CELEBRITIES

Reading selection for this module: King, Deborah. “The Impact Celebrities Have on Our Lives.” Deborah King: Master Healer and Teacher: 2009.

READING RHETORICALLY

Pre-Reading

ACTIVITY 1: Getting Ready to Read—Class Survey

Answer the following survey questions to help you determine the impact of celebrities in your lives.

Think about the celebrities that you care about the most. On a scale of 1-5, write the number that

most accurately reflects your feelings.

1 = the least possible 5 = the maximum possible

Your score Class Average

_____ 1. _____ I spend time listening to or reading celebrity news.

_____ 2. _____ I spend money on celebrity magazines.

_____ 3. _____ I care about the details of a celebrity’s life.

_____ 4. _____ I am inspired to do something good because of what a celebrity does.

_____ 5. _____ I wear certain kinds of clothes or hairstyles because I like the way it looks

on celebrities.

_____ 6. _____ I am inspired by a famous athlete to practice my sport.

_____ 7. _____ I want to live my life like a certain celebrity.

_____ 8. _____ I am obsessed with a celebrity.

_____ 9. _____ I enjoy hearing about celebrities getting into trouble.

_____10. _____ I often compare the way I look to a celebrity I like.

Tally the results for the whole class. Find the average numerical answer for each question.

Discuss the results with your partner.

2

Which questions received the highest scores?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Which questions received the lowest scores?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Why did certain questions receive the highest scores and others the lowest? What made

these questions different?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Is the class, as a whole, obsessed with celebrities based on this survey? Explain your

answer.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

3

ACTIVITY 2: Introducing Key Concepts

What types of celebrities are there?

CATEGORIES OF CELEBRITIES:

1. Actors

2. Athletes

3. Business Entrepreneurs

4. Dancers

5. Fashion Designers

6. Inventors

7. Models

8. Politicians

9. Reality TV Stars

10. Scientists

11. Singers

12. TV Show Hosts

13. Writers

14. ________________________________________

15. ________________________________________

16. ________________________________________

CLASS COMPETITION:

Work in a group to brainstorm and record as many names of celebrities for each category.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

4

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

5

Looking at your list, categorize these celebrities into a VENN DIAGRAM. On the top of the left

circle, write “Positive Impact”. On the top of the right circle, write “Negative Impact”. In the

center, write “Neutral”.

6

ACTIVITY 3: Surveying the Text—Making Predictions

Deborah King is the bestselling author of Truth Heals: What You Hide Can Hurt You. A health and wellness expert and attorney, Deborah King is

featured regularly in broadcast media, online, and print, making frequent appearances on national television such as CNN and Fox News. She is also a

featured blogger for Psychology Today, writing on a wide range of issues such as health, politics, domestic violence, and celebrities.

Before you read the article, answer the following questions:

1. Read the biographical information about the author of the article, Deborah King. Does she

sound like she is knowledgeable on the impact of celebrities?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

2. What, specifically in the text of the biographical information, makes her sound credible?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

3. Look at the article. Throughout the article you will see subheadings in bold. What do you

predict each section will be about based on the subtitles?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

4. Read the first paragraph of the article. Based on that first paragraph and the subheadings,

why do you think Deborah King is writing this particular article? What is the author’s

purpose?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

You may choose your answer from the following:

King wants to persuade us that celebrities have a negative impact on our lives.

King wants to persuade us that celebrities have a good impact on our lives.

King wants to explore why we are so obsessed with celebrities.

King wants to explain why she likes celebrities so much.

King wants to explore both the positive and negative impact celebrities have on our lives.

7

5. Read the last two sentences of the article. What do you think the author means?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

6. Now that you have thought about this topic, what else would you like to know about the

impact celebrities have on our lives? Write down 5 questions that you hope the author

discusses in her article.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

8

ACTIVITY 4: Introducing Key Vocabulary

The following words are used in the article, “The Impact Celebrities Have on Our Lives”:

antics apt enthralled humdrum

nefarious obsessed paparazzi salacious

Below are the definitions of the words. In the left column, write the word from the list that you

believe matches the correct definition. Check your answers with the dictionary or your teacher.

Then, fill out the far right column. Discuss your predictions with your group.

WORD DEFINITION PREDICTION: How do you believe this word

relates to the topic?

Expressing too much interest or detail; scandalous; lustful; obscene; indecent.

Evil or wicked

Freelance photographers who follow famous people hoping to get a story

Dull and boring; monotonous

Very interested or fascinated by someone or something; giving total attention to someone or something

Amusing or silly behavior

Doing something often and likely to do it again

To think about someone or something constantly, more than is reasonable or sensible

What words were the most difficult?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

What words did you already know?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

9

ACTIVITY 5: Reading with a Purpose

A thorough understanding of a text requires reading it more than once. The first reading should be

fairly quick, focusing on the main ideas. During this reading, you do not need to understand every

word. Later, you will read the text again carefully and you will deal with the difficult parts.

Review the predictions you made about the reading.

NUMBER the paragraphs in the article.

As you read the first section of the article, circle any new vocabulary words that you recognize from Activity 4.

Put question marks by words, sentences, or sections that are confusing. Do not spend the time now trying to

figure it out.

Put brackets [ ] around the most interesting sentence in the section. Be able to explain why you chose this

sentence.

After reading the article, discuss in your small group the following questions. Record the

responses…

1. How accurate were your predictions?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

2. Share the sentence you marked as the most interesting and explain why. Did more than one

group member choose the same sentence, or were they all different?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

3. Compare words or parts that you found confusing. Someone in your group may offer a

brief explanation of what they believe is the answer, but you do not need to figure out the

meaning yet. It is ok to say, “I didn’t get that sentence either.”

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

10

After you have discussed all the sections of the article, work as a group to write a QUICK

SUMMARY of the article. What is Deborah King’s message about the impact of celebrities?

Be ready to share your summary with the class.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

11

ACTIVITY 6: Re-reading the Text

Annotating a text means marking the text with a highlighter, underlining a word or phrase, using

symbols, or making comments about the text in the margins. Annotation forces you to read more

slowly and carefully, but you need to be strategic in your annotation for it to be effective. On

strategy is to write about the content of the article in one margin and your reaction to the content in

the opposite margin. Of course, you can mark within the text as well.

DIRECTIONS:

1. Re-read the article.

2. In the right margin, write phrases or sentences, which communicate the main point of the

paragraph or the section.

a. Write in the margin “EX” if the author includes an example

b. Write in the margin “DEF” if the author includes a definition.

3. In the left margin, write your reaction to the text. These reactions could be questions, your

own examples, and statements of agreement or disagreement. Here you can use

abbreviations.

EXAMPLE:

Look at the sample annotation of the paragraphs below.

My reaction Paragraph Content

Why?

Fun to gossip!

What are the

reasons?

Miley

Dr. Charlotte DeBacker of the University of Leicester, Department of Media and Communication, carried out a study to try to explain why we are so obsessed with celebrities. She discovered that the younger the participant was, the more apt they were to follow celebrity gossip, even if the gossip was about a celebrity that they had never heard of. Dr. DeBacker said, “Each person has a different reason for wanting to track the every movement of their favorite celebrity, but there comes a time when being amused by their antics transforms into becoming obsessed, and no obsession is a good thing, especially when you look at the type or role models that recent celebrities have become.”

Study by DeBacker-

why obsessed?

Results:

1) kids more

interested

2) different

reasons

3) any obsession

is not good

What do you notice about the notes in the margins?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

12

ACTIVITY 7: Re-reading the Text

Looking at the celebrity examples, work on your own to fill out the following chart.

CELEBRITY EXAMPLE # OF SENTENCES

AUTHOR’S POINT IN USING THIS EXAMPLE

CURRENT EXAMPLE

There was a time when you could stand up and cheer for Babe Ruth. You could be proud that your son had all of his baseball cards and that he wanted nothing more than to be the Babe when he grew up. The average fan, however, didn’t know what Babe did behind closed doors. His private life was private.

You can’t avoid knowing that Winona Ryder has been arrested and convicted of shoplifting, or that Mel Gibson has a problem with alcohol.

Angelina Jolie is another celebrity who, although she had a very rocky and well-known past, has come to be one of the great spokeswomen about the living conditions children in various third world countries face, and was given the title of UNHCR Goodwill ambassador in 2001. “We cannot close ourselves off to information and ignore the fact that millions of people are out there suffering. I honestly want to help. I don’t believe I feel differently from other people. I think we all want justice and equality, a chance for life with meaning. All of us would like to believe that if we were in a bad situation, someone would help us,” Ms. Jolie said during the press conference to announce her ambassador status.

Take, for instance, the story of Heath Ledger. Heath was an actor who had received critical acclaim for some of his work, most notably on the movie Brokeback Mountain. The media followed Heath as more of an afterthought. You may have seen a few photos of him here and there, and sometimes the paparazzi would try to get onto one of his movie sets, but they were very undemanding of his time compared with other celebrities. Then, on January 22, 2008, the media heard rumors that Heath Ledger had been found unconscious in his New York apartment. Minutes later, updates starting flying onto the Internet. Some talked about a mysterious connection with actress Mary-Kate Olsen and his use of hard drugs like heroin; others said Heath had committed suicide. Throughout that day and the next the media and people began gathering outside of his apartment building, leaving flowers and taking video shots to put online and on television. Even a decade before, the news of this celebrity’s untimely demise would have taken at least 12 hours to be aired on television and 24 hours before it would reach print. Instead, due to the speed of the Internet, people were contemplating the cause of his death only minutes after he was found and the authorities were called.

13

King uses specific examples as her primary means of supporting her points. Do you think this is an

effective strategy for this topic? Why or why not?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Look at the examples listed in the chart. King does not spend the same amount of time writing

about each example. In the chart, look at how many sentences she writes about each celebrity. Why

does she write different amounts about each celebrity? What is her point?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Explain your more current examples that King could use to make the same point about each person.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

14

ACTIVITY 8: Looking Closely at Language and Vocabulary

Working in small groups, review the vocabulary words. Then write a newspaper headline and a short article using at least four vocabulary words.

Include enough information in the story to show that you understand the vocabulary words.

The story should be about one celebrity, real or made up. You can include a fan in the story. Use at least on of the vocabulary words in the title.

o For example, your title could be “Lady Gaga Antics Thrill Teens But Scare Children”

and the story could be about how a Lady Gaga performance for charity made children cry and run in panic.

ACTIVITY 9: Thinking Critically

Discuss and record the answers to these questions with a classmate.

In her first paragraph, King says, “The truth is that we are obsessed with celebrities.” Obviously,

she does not mean every single American. So, who is we?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Do you think that her claim is a fair statement? Why or why not?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

King mentions the Roman Spectators of ancient times who watched the gladiators fight to the

death. In her article, is she saying that we are similar to the Roman spectators or different? How?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

15

King mentions the celebrity Babe Ruth, a famous baseball player, and the lives of Mel Gibson and

Winona Ryder. Is King emphasizing how they are similar or different? In what way?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

King states that obsessed by celebrities, we also like to see them fail. Find her examples in the text.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Why, according to King, do we enjoy watching celebrities fail?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

As you noticed in a previous activity, King spends several paragraphs discussing the actor, Heath

Ledger. What was the point or author’s purpose of this example?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

King subtitles her last section “THE MIRROR EFFECT”; however, she does not use the word

“MIRROR” in the paragraphs that follow. Explain what you believe is the “MIRROR EFFECT”.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

What does King say in the article that proves she is not completely against the idea of watching

celebrities? Find at least two examples in the article.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

16

ACTIVITY 10: Summarizing and Responding

Your annotation should now show all of King’s main points in her article. However, what is the

main idea of the entire article? In Activity 5, you wrote what you believed King’s message was.

Now, rewrite your main idea sentences.

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Working with a partner, write the main idea of each of the sections of the article in 1-2 sentences.

Don’t forget to refer back to your annotations! Discuss with your partner what is absolutely

necessary to include and what might be less important.

MAIN IDEAS:

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

17

Write a ONE PARAGRAPH RESPONSE to the article.

A response is your personal reaction to one or more ideas that King discussed—not all of

them!

Try to connect something you read about in King’s article to your own experiences.

Do your experiences cause you to agree or disagree with King?

Do you believe her points are strong or weak?

Since these are your ideas and experiences, you may use the word “I” in your writing!

Be sure to refer to your annotations for ideas about what to write.

One of the most important features of academic writing is using the words and ideas from written

sources to support your own points and ideas. It is important to demonstrate your understanding of

other’s ideas. There are three ways to do this: Direct Quotation, Paraphrase, and Summary.

DIRECT QUOTATION uses the exact words of the original source with quotation

marks.

PARAPHRASE communicates the meaning of the original source but in your own words.

The length is about the same and no quotation marks are needed.

SUMMARY communicates the main point(s) in your own words and is much shorter than

the original source.

When referring to the ideas of others, remember to do the following:

Include the title. Use quotation marks if it is a shorter work like an article or short story.

Underline or Italicize the title if it is a longer work such as a book or a play.

Include the author’s name. The first time you mention the author, use the full name as it

appears in the article, story, or book. After the first time, you may use only the author’s last

name.

If you use the exact words of the author, use quotation marks.

Use appropriate and varied verbs to “lead into” the reference (e.g. argues, believes,

describes, explains, questions, reports, discusses, etc.).

Be sure to comment on the references. Pretend like you are in a serious discussion with the

author, and you want to agree, disagree, question, relate, or argue with him or her.

18

ONE PARAGRAPH RESPONSE to the article

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

19

ACTIVITY 11: Using the Words of Others

One difficulty of citing sources is choosing which sentence or idea to include in your essay.

Evaluate the following direct quotation choices. Discuss your answers with a partner.

1. Which quote best explains why we are so interested in celebrities?

a. “The truth is that celebrities, as much fun as our fantasies may be, can actually serve

a purpose in our lives.” (¶24)

b. “Well, look around you. The truth is that we are obsessed with celebrities.” (¶1)

c. “The truth is this fascination with celebrities has been around for a long time.” (¶8)

WHY?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

2. Which quote is the author’s observation?

a. “ ‘…no obsession is a good thing, especially when you look at the type or role

models that recent celebrities have become.’ ” (¶13)

b. “…we too are waiting for celebrities to flame out and reach some sort of a bottom

that makes them seem a little more human and more like us.” (¶11)

c. “Others theorize that we mentally stalk celebrities because we are waiting for them to

fail.” (¶11)

WHY?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

3. Which of the following would be more worth quoting in your essay?

a. “Some believe we are obsessed with celebrities because we need to have an escape

from the humdrum of everyday life.” (¶11)

b. “Except they have big houses, and a lot of cars, and a whole lot of other stuff.” (¶6)

c. “There was a time when you could stand up and cheer for Babe Ruth.” (¶14)

WHY?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

20

STEPS TO EFFECTIVE PARAPHRASING

When you refer to another text in your own writing, you might quote the text directly, copy the

exact words of the writer in quotation marks, or paraphrase the text.

A paraphrase is what you do when you express another writer’s idea completely in your own words.

When you use your own words, you do NOT need to use quotation marks.

However even if the paraphrase is in your own words, you need to be careful to cite the source of

the idea by giving the title of the text and the author’s name.

Paraphrasing is a valuable skill because…

If the information is not unique or special, it is better than using quotations.

It helps you control the temptation to quote too much from the text.

It shows that you have a complete understanding of the meaning of the original text by

putting it in your own words.

It is impressive!

Learning to paraphrase well takes practice. The following steps will help you:

1. Re-read the original passage until you understand its full meaning.

2. Without looking at the original source, write a few notes or phrases about the meaning of

the passage.

3. Looking at your notes, write a sentence in your own words that communicates the meaning

of your original source.

4. Look back at the original source. Make sure you have accurately communicated the meaning

in your paraphrase. Make any necessary adjustments.

Paraphrase the following quotes from Activity 12:

QUOTE: “…we too are waiting for celebrities to flame out and reach some sort of a bottom that

makes them seem a little more human and more like us.” (¶11)

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

21

QUOTE: “Some believe we are obsessed with celebrities because we need to have an escape from

the humdrum of everyday life.” (¶11)

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

QUOTE: “The truth is that celebrities, as much fun as our fantasies may be, can actually serve a

purpose in our lives.” (¶24)

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Look at your paraphrases:

#1 #2 #3

Yes No Yes No Yes No

Is any important information missing?

Is any information present in the paraphrase that is not in the original quote?

Did the you use your own words and sentence structure?

22

ACTIVITY 12: Negotiating Voices

Soon you will write the first draft of an essay on the impact of celebrities. Refer to the article for

support. When you use quotes from the article, your readers will hear King’s voice; however, your

own voice is also important. Readers need to understand King’s points which you agree, which you

disagree, and which points you only partially agree. Write out the following statements and compare

with a classmate. Check for clarity.

TO EXPRESS AGREEMENT:

1. Deborah King is correct about ________________________________________ because

_______________________________________________________________________.

2. I agree with Deborah King that ______________________________________________.

3. Deborah King and I believe that _____________________________________________.

TO EXPRESS DISAGREEMENT:

1. I think Deborah King is mistaken about _________________________________ because

_______________________________________________________________________.

2. Deborah King’s assumption that ___________________________ is not accurate because

_______________________________________________________________________.

3. Deborah King overlooks the fact that _________________________________________.

TO EXPRESS PARTIAL AGREEMENT:

1. Although I agree with Deborah King that _______________________________________

I disagree that ____________________________________________________________.

2. Although I disagree with Deborah King that _____________________________________

I fully agree that __________________________________________________________.

3. Deborah King is right that __________________________________________________;

however, she fails to see that ________________________________________________.

23

WRITING RHETORICALLY

Pre-Write

ACTIVITY 13: Reading the Assignment

The following is an essay on the topic of celebrities and the impact on our lives. Focus on the

author’s attitude about the topic as you read.

Explain Collin Palmer’s argument and discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree

with his analysis and conclusion. Support your position by referring to the passage and

providing reasons and examples from your own experience, observations, or reading. Refer to

Deborah King’s article, “The Impact Celebrities Have on Our Lives” as a part of the evidence for

your position. Your teacher may also want you to use the results of the survey your class completed

at the beginning of this module as additional evidence.

A Healthy Obsession

I think that all the concern over celebrities in our lives is completely

exaggerated. We teenagers are passionate—maybe even obsessed—about

our favorite stars, but that doesn’t make it a big problem and it doesn’t

mean we want to copy their bad behaviors. People have been fascinated

with the rich and famous since ancient times, so it’s only human nature.

It’s fun to know about whom your favorite star is dating. Knowing the

details about celebrities gives us something to talk about with each other.

I’d rather bond with someone over the latest antics of a celebrity than all

the other dark topics in the news. I also get a better idea of where

fashion trends are going, so that I can feel more confident about what I

am wearing. We can pick up other tips, too. My brother is obsessed with

the most recent Heisman Trophy winner in football, because he wants to

be a famous football player. More than anything, being obsessed with

celebrities is a healthy escape from our boring lives. What’s wrong with

that?

—Collin Palmer

High School Sophomore

24

Explain how the writer agrees or disagrees with Deborah King?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Do you agree or disagree with this writer?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

ACTIVITY 14: Getting Ready to Write

After reading the prompt, discuss and record the following questions with a partner:

What is Collin Palmer’s overall opinion on this topic?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

What are some reasons for his opinion?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

UNDERLINE each argument or reason for Collin Palmer’s opinion.

How do you feel about each of his reasons? DO you agree or disagree?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

25

ACTIVITY 15: Writing Your Working Thesis Analyze your answers in the previous activity to help you decide whether you agree or disagree with Collin Palmer. Write a “working thesis” that will answer the prompt. You may want to use the wording you used for the sentences you wrote in Activity 13 to express how you agree or disagree now with Collin Palmer.

SAMPLE WORKING THESES: Agree / Disagree:

Although I agree with Collin Palmer on a few of his points, he seems to be unaware that celebrity behavior has gotten much worse and has a strong negative effect on our lives.

Disagree / Agree:

I agree with Collin Palmer that we shouldn’t be so concerned about being obsessed with celebrities because for most of us it is harmless fun; however, there are a few people who seem to get carried away and it is a very negative influence.

Agree:

I agree with Collin Palmer that celebrities do not have a negative effect on our lives. Disagree:

I disagree with Collin Palmer’s argument that we shouldn’t be concerned about celebrity obsession because I believe that it has a very negative effect on our lives.

WRITE YOUR WORKING THESIS:

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

26

ACTIVITY 16: Organizing Your Essay

Make a Brief Essay Outline to Support Your Thesis

Writing an outline helps you choose and order the ideas you will use before you begin writing the

essay. This may seem like a time-consuming process, but it will save you time in the long run. In

general, an informal outline of an argument essay often includes the following:

INTRODUCTION

Background Information (Trends, Data, Facts, Importance Today)

Introduce Collin Palmer’s Opinion

Your Working Thesis Statement

BODY PARAGRAPHS

Topic Sentence for every Paragraph

Lots of Support (Possible sources: the article, prompt, survey results, interview, videos,

songs, personal experience, observations)

State the OPPOSING POINT OF VIEW / COUNTER ARGUMENT

CONCLUSION

Restatement of Your Position

Call for Action or Agreement

Prediction of the Future

27

ESSAY OUTLINE

INTRODUCTION

Background Information (Trends, Data, Facts, Importance Today)

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Introduce Collin Palmer’s Opinion

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Your Working Thesis Statement

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

BODY PARAGRAPH #1

Topic Sentence Stating #1 Reason

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Lots of Support (Possible sources: the article, prompt, survey results, interview, videos, songs, personal experience, observations)

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

28


______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

BODY PARAGRAPH #2


______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________


______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________


______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

BODY PARAGRAPH #3


______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

29


______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________


______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

CONCLUSION

Restatement of Your Position

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Call for Action or Agreement

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Prediction of the Future

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

30

ACTIVITY 17: Composing a Draft

Using your outline, write your essay. Do not forget to answer all aspects in the prompt.

ACTIVITY 18: Revising the Draft Working in groups of three or four, each student will read his or her essay aloud. The group will then complete the following tasks on a separate piece of paper. PEER REVISION

1. Each member will state one thing that they like about the essay 2. The group decides which paragraph has the weakest support. Explain to the writer why it is

weak. a. Examples: The paragraph did not have enough support. b. The paragraph did not explain the reason. c. The paragraph did not give enough specific examples.

3. The group brainstorms how the paragraph could be improved. SELF-REVISION

1. What did my group like about my essay? 2. According to my group, which paragraph has the weakest support? Why? 3. What specific suggestions does my group have to make my paragraph better? 4. What was the most helpful feedback from PEER REVISION? 5. In what ways can I apply the comments about one of my paragraphs to the others in my

essay?

Write a SECOND DRAFT of your essay that makes the changes that your peers suggested.

ACTIVITY 19: Editing the Draft Another aspect to improving an essay is correcting grammar, which is called editing. Read the following strategies to help you edit effectively. Choose at least two of the strategies to edit your paper. Write a paragraph that reports the strategies you used and how well it worked. DIRECTIONS:

1. If possible, set your essay aside for 24 hours before re-reading it to find errors. 2. If possible, read your essay aloud so you can hear your errors and awkward construction. 3. Focus on individual words and sentences rather than over all meaning. 4. Look for only one type of error at a time. (Example: look for spelling mistakes only, then

punctuation, etc.) 5. Use the dictionary to check spelling.

Write a FINAL DRAFT of your essay.

31

ACTIVITY 20: Reflecting on the Writing

When you have completed your own essay, answer these questions:

1. What was most difficult about this assignment? _____________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

2. What was the easiest about this assignment? ________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

3. What did you learn about essay writing by completing this assignment? ___________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

4. What do you think are the strengths of your essay? Place a star by the parts that you feel are excellent.

5. What are the weaknesses, if any? _________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

6. What did you learn from this assignment? _________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Name Period THE IMPACT OF · PDF file_____ I spend time listening to or reading celebrity...

Documents

Transcript of Name Period THE IMPACT OF · PDF file_____ I spend time listening to or reading celebrity...