The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Keywords:  Vignettes, Metaphors, Symbolism, Identity, Irony, Extended Metaphor
Time Frame: 20 classes (4 days of pre-reading, 10 lessons, 4 days of assessments)

Day 1 (Pre-reading activities)| Day 2 (Pre-reading activities) |Day 3 (Presentations)| Day 4 (Thematic Statements)| Day 5 Assessment#1| Day 6 (p. 3-11)| Day 7 (p. 12-22)| Day 8 (p. 23-32)| Day 9 (p.33-48)Metaphor & Simile| Day 10 (p49 – 69)Theme 5/17 | Day 11 (p.70-89) 5/19 Extended Metaphor & Personification| Day 12 Assessmnet#2 05/20| Day 13 (p.89-102) Symbolism 05/23| Day 14 (p.103-110) 05/24 Theme| Day 15 Review 05/25 | Day 16 Assessment #3 (Multiple-Choice Questions) 05/26| Day 17 05/27 Final Assessments (Written Reponses)|

Unit Summary

In this unit, students will examine how authors of fiction often refrain from providing readers with direct information about the setting and characters in the text, opting instead to use details, description, and figurative language to indirectly tell the story. Students will use close reading to identify and analyze details from The House on Mango Street, using prior knowledge and textual evidence to draw inferences and form hypotheses about the text, thereby increasing their understanding of essential information (setting, characters, narrative techniques, literary devices) as well as their fluency as readers/interpreters of literature. In addition, students will explore the theme of identity and identity development through an extensive study of Sandra Cisneros’s The House on Mango Street.

Enduring Understanding - Students will understand

• Societal and cultural expectations can shape our perceptions of self and others.
• How a writer can use unique writing styles to portray meaningful experiences and enhance reader connections.
• Culture is a powerful lens through which individuals view, understand, and explain the world.
• Cultural Misconceptions are part of our past and present.
• Cultural identity is determined by many factors

Essential Questions to be considered:

• How do our personal experiences shape the way we view ourselves?
• Where does our sense of identity come from?
• How does environment shape our identity?
• What identities, if any, are permanent and which do we have the power to change?
• What roles do neighborhood and community play in shaping who we become?
• How does figurative language affect the reader?

Students will be able to (skills)-

• analyze and interpret Cisneros’ short vignettes and support the analysis with textual evidence.
• respond to a theme from the play.

Students will be able to understand (meaning)-

• how our experiences shape the way we view ourselves and the decision we make in life.
• how segregation restricts the lives of the characters in The House on Mango Street.

Assessment

Informal Assessment: journals, reponses to questions and related issues, quizzes

Formal Assessment:

Day 1-Day 2 : Jigsaw Puzzle-Pre-Reading Activity

Objective: Students will be prepared to

• read The House on Mango Street
• discuss the social context of 1960s for Hispanics in Chicago
• discuss how environment shapes our identity
• develop their research skills
• make predictions about the purpose of the play based on their pre-reading activities.

Aim: How can researching background information enrich our understanding of a text?

Skill/Concept: Research, Identity,

Materials: Internet resources, Guiding Questions

Agenda

Do Now: What do you know about Sandra Cisneros?

Acquisition – Research, Background Information

Mini Lesson:

1. What's the importance of background information/research before reading a text? What sort of backgroud information can we look into?

• Historical – Works are placed in their historical context. 
• Biographical - As with the historical approach, a work may be used to illuminate the writer's psychology (attitude, behavior, temperament), or as biographic data.
• Sociological – Here the focus is on society as a whole, and critics assess the social factors at work in the text, which may be everything from the attitudes a writer inherits from his social background to the markets, which supported his literary efforts.
• Political - It may be the political movements the author supported which interest the critic, but more commonly the poem/novel is assessed on political lines: how fairly or effectively it promotes political action or attitudes. 

2. How will students will in small groups and present the informtion relating to the book The House on Mango Street by Sandra Ciscnero?

• See group# and its members
• Group Presentation Rubric –
  • Presentation must answer all guiding questions and include additional information
  • Presentation must demonstrates clear thorough knowledge of topic presented
  • Each group has 5 – 7 minutes to present
  • Everyone in the group must participate in the presentation
  • Each group must hand in a written report, which will be graded.
  • Presentation must include paraphrase, quotations or summarized information
  • Speakers must be loud enough, clear, and make eye contact.
  • The group must be organized, prepared and working well together with no conflicts. 

Meaning Making: Group work: Research and Present (See group# and its members)

Meaning Making:

Group work: Research and Present

1. Students will be divided into small groups of 4-5 and start working on preparing for the small group presentation.
2. Each group will research the assigned topic and loof for inforamtion to respond to the questions listed.
3. Every member in the group needs to be an active part of the group work.
4. Document the sources for the information as you are doing the research.

Groups and Topics

Group 1 & 6

      Group #1: Mexican Community in Chicago

• http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/824.html
• http://www.aztlan.net/chicagoh.htm
• Chapter 1: http://books.google.com/books?id=JEQCX3cUCcQC&printsec=frontcover&dq=mexican+chicago&source=bll&ots=Q_cPFlHm3w&sig=fkFEeee5a6eLajYbwbkh9R0xa1Y&hl=en&ei=0EO_TbelKsvtOf7z-coF&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=17&sqi=2&ved=0CNwBEOgBMBA#v=onepage&q&f=false

What year did Mexican immigrants first arrive in Chicago? Why? Why did they immigrate to Chicago? And what types of jobs were they recruited to work? How did the new immigrants deal with racism/ethnic tension in Chicago? More Advanced questions: What may have caused the racism/ethnic tension in Chicago? How do you feel about the ways the Mexican immigrants were treated? For example, if you feel if was unfair. They why?

Group #6 (Segregation):

• http://www.lib.niu.edu/1999/iht629962.html
•  http://www.aztlan.net/chicagoh.htm      

What year did Mexican immigrants first arrive in Chicago? Why? Why did they immigrate to Chicago? And what types of jobs were they recruited to work? How did the new immigrants deal with racism/ethnic tension in Chicago? What are barrios? Why are/were neighborhoods segregated in Chicago? More Advanced questions to consider- How was the segregation the same or different in Chicago as in the rest of the country at that time? How do you feel toward the consequences the segregation caused on the new immigrants, in this case, Mexicans?

             Group 2: Mexican Culture (Gender Roles)

• http://golm.rz.uni-potsdam.de/anglistik/Gender.htm
  
• http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:R9sG_xPKQ3EJ:murphylibrary.uwlax.edu/digital/jur/1998/schmitz.pdf+gender+role+in+mexican+culture&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESj588-7JoDYUx8z_MMbF9AMo9RIDIc7BX0SImF95aS0ZOqj6EjKiHJhvwVSkpBk6cgDDDbKWaLkOLr9ff11SnEPDRZNvEmfok4s3scyVh9H--I_2sn3m6bFiS0QpguoBHjinBa6&sig=AHIEtbSc_lN_hjbWSzvV2XQTPNXOlSktWw
• http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:2TdoDMTomYkJ:www.mnstate.edu/vigilant/Machismo%2520V.2.doc+gender+roles+in+mexican+culture&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESiZRD2bEDnLqv1sSdH_dT9b_JJH3E8GeKdfRX_rYCR2BPgMPZ2NKS4VomZJRo91m9sk3K8Pe6mCwiUaoIhLUxTx5wuSHcItj87f9cRx2vNKsn7D79KRePvPTuzGj8fzbDfR-CVT&sig=AHIEtbQ7phchZwu9y9b8NYEnpL9ODQtQTQ

  What is the role of the mother in Mexican culture? What is expected of the daughter in the household? Who has the final say in the household? Do you think growing up in a traditional Mexican family influenced Cisneros as a writer? Why? More Advanced questions to consider- Why do you believe a person's cultural background can influence a person's writing ? Based on the previous questions, do you feel you might be interested in reading Sandra Cisneros' work? Why or why not?

Group 3: About Sandra Cisneros

• http://www.gradesaver.com/author/sandra-cisneros/
• http://www.sandracisneros.com/bio.php
• http://www.gale.cengage.com/free_resources/chh/bio/cisneros_s.htm

  • Who is Sandra Cisneros? Where did she grow up? What was her family life like? What inspired her to write The House on Mango Street? Do you think her early experiences influenced her as a writer? Why? More Advanced questions to consider- What particular life experiences may have motivated Sandra to write some of her novels, in particular, The House on Mango Street? Why? Based on what you have read about Snadra's biography, do you feel Sandra's writing may reflect certain aspects of your life as well? Why or why not?

  Group 4: Chicano/Chicana Identity

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicano
• http://www.mexica-movement.org/timexihcah/WHATISCHICANOANDCHICANA.htm
• http://www.vividhues.com/BSS/chicanomovement.htm

• What is a Chicano/Chicana? What is the difference between a Chicano and Mexican? Why do some prefer to identify themselves as Chicano opposed to Mexican? Do you think it is a derogatory term? Why or Why not? More Advanced questions to consider- Why did other ethnic groups call Mexicans in Chicago "Chicano" or "Chicana"? What feelings did they try to convey through this term? How would you feel if the ethnic group you belong to was given a derogatory nickname? Why?

Group 5: The House on Mango Street Reception

• http://www.bsu.edu/web/gstrecker/PoetryProject/sandracisneros.htm
• http://salempress.com/Store/samples/critical_insights/mango_street.htm
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_House_on_Mango_Stree
• http://www.edb.utexas.edu/resources/booksR4teens/book_reviews/book_reviews.php?book_id=52

• When was The House on Mango Street first published? How was The House on Mango Street received when it was first published? How many awards did it win? What did Cisneros think of The House on Mango Street? Based on all of your research would you read the play/novel? Why or Why not? More Advanced questions to consider- Why did readers like the book ? What may have caused the success of the book's publication? If you could have read the book when it was first published, would you have like the book? Why or why not? Do you think readers' feelings toward the book may change because the time has changed? Why?

Transfer: What experiences growing up would you use to write a series of vignettes about your life?

HW#1: Continue researching your topic and collecting information/data for your group presentation tomorrow.

Day 3: Group Presentations

Objective: Students will teach each other the necessary background information on The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros.

Aim: Why is it important to research background information on a text before reading?

Skill/Concept: Research, Background Information, Presentation

Materials: Research websites, presentation materials, guiding questions

Agenda

Do Now: Take notes and pay close attention to your classmates because there will be a quiz on Friday.

Acquisition – Research, Background Information, Presentaton

Mini Lesson: Why it is important to cite sources when writing a paper, report, etc?
Here are five very good reasons for citing sources:
1. Since plagiarism is an offence under the Code of Student Behavior, the obvious way to avoid a plagiarism charge is to acknowledge all sources used.

2. If readers are interested in something you have used, a proper citation helps them to find exactly where you got your information and to read more about it.

3. As a community of scholars and researchers, we have certain standard practices. One of the tenets of scholarship is that we build our knowledge on the work of those that came before us. Likewise, those who come after us will build on our work. Therefore, it is standard practice to cite all sources. While a student at university, you are an integral part of the community of scholars and therefore are expected to adopt the standard practice of citation.

4. In recognition of those scholars on whose work we build our own, it is only right to acknowledge them, showing respect and gratitude for their contributions to the body of knowledge.

5. Citing sources establishes where your ideas fit into the wider subject area. It demonstrates that you have used multiple sources of information to support your own ideas, allowing you to refute or agree with ideas that have come before. Not only does this prove that you have done extensive research on your topic, it adds credibility and depth to your paper, resulting in a better grade!

Oral Presentation Rubric-

• Title of the presentation must be introduced to the class.
• Presentation must answer all guiding questions and include additional information
• Presentation must demonstrates clear thorough knowledge of topic presented
• Each group has 5 – 7 minutes to present
• Every member in the group must be an active participant in the presentation
• Group members must pace each other appropriately during the presentation and balanced time among and flow between team members effectively. 
• Speakers must be loud enough, clear, and make eye contact.
• The group must be organized, prepared and work well together. 
• Information presented must provide insight and inform the audience.
• Group member must be able to accurately answer almost all questions posed by classmates about the topic.

Report Rubric-

• Report must include a title, introduction, a body of researched information and a conclusion about what you learned.
• Group members and their contribution must be included.
• The report must include paraphrased, quotations or summarized information
• Written report must be complete and comprehensive and accurately matched your actual presentation.
• Report must be logical and relevant to the topic presented.
• The report must provide insight and inform the reader.
• Grammar and spelling must be flawless.

Meaning Making: Group work: Research and Present

• Group work: Research and Present

1. Students will be divided into small groups of 4-5 and start working on preparing for the small group presentation.
2. Each group will research the assigned topic and look for information to respond to the questions listed.
3. Every member in the group needs to be an active part of the group work.
4. Document the sources for the information as you are doing the research.

• Evaluate your group member by using the form

Group Member Evaluation Sheet
Group Number:____________________________
Name of person you are evaluating:___________________
Rate your group members on a scale of 1-5, with five being the best.

Transfer: Why is it important to work with peers collaboratively?

HW#2: Continue editing your group report, which is due tomorrow.

Day 4 – Pre-reading Activity: Thematic Statements and Vocabulary

Objective: Students will work cooperatively to discuss thematic statements, formulating their own opinions and sharing those opinions with the class.

Aim: How can I be better prepared as a reader?

Skill/Concept: Thematic Statement, Vocabulary

Materials: KWL Chart

Agenda

Do Now: Look up the following vocabulary words- a brief definition and part of speech 

1. Vignettes
2. Los espiritus
3. Anchor
4. Babushka 
5. Spartan
6. Tamales
7. Rancheras
8. Resonance
9. Abuelito
10. Comadres
11. Chanclas

Acquisition – Thematic Statements
Mini Lesson: The theme of a literary work is its underlying central idea or the generalization it communicates about life. The theme expresses the author's opinion or raises a question about human nature or the meaning of human experience. At times the author's theme may not confirm or agree with your own beliefs. Even then, if skillfully written, the work will still have a theme that illuminates some aspects of true human experience.
Thematic Statements are statements relating to the theme of a story/book.

Meaning Making: Anticipation Guide

In groups, discuss and response to assigned statement from the list. Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Explain why. Be prepared to share them with the class. Utilize the KWL chart to record your responses.

http://www.thereligionteacher.com/worksheets/KWL-Chart.pdf

1. Our neighborhood/community plays an important role in shaping who we are (our identity).
2. It is our responsibility to give back to our community and effect change.
3. Hope can be a motivating factor that keeps us moving toward success.
4. We lose a part of our identity when we completely assimilate into American society.
5. Gender roles can limit us and trap us in a box.
6. It is a son/daughter's duty to carry on family traditions.

Transfer: How can utilizing the KWL chart help me increase my comprehension of a text?

HW#3: Continue writing your response to the thematic statements, which is due tomorrow.

Day 5 Quiz #1Based on Pre-Reading Activity

E2 5/6/2011                                                Ms D’Amato/Ms. Scurdy

Student Name______________       Score:___________

The House on Mango Street Quiz#1

Part I. (40%)Vocabulary - Define the following vocabulary words from The House on Mango Street:

1.) Vignettes-
2.) Los espiritus-
3.) Anchor-
4.) Babushka-
5.) Spartan-
6.) Rancheras-
7.) Resonance-
8.) Abuelito-
9.) Comadres-
10.) Chanclas-

Part II. (40%) Answer the following questions from student research/presentations on The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros:

1.) What types of jobs were Mexicans recruited to work in Chicago?

________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

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2.) What is the barrio?______________________________________________

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3.) What is the role of the mother and the daughter in Mexican culture?_______________

________________________________________________________________________

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4.) Who is Sandra Cisneros and where did she grow up?___________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

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5.) What was her family life like?_____________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

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________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

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6.) What inspired her to write The House on Mango Street?________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

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7.) What is a Chicano?_____________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

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8.) What is the difference between a Chicano and a Mexican?______________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

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9.) Where was Chicano used as a derogatory term?_______________________________

________________________________________________________________________

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10. When was The House on Mango Street first published and what award did it win?

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

Part II. Write a paragraph responding to one of the following thematic statements:

1. Our neighborhood/community plays an important role in shaping who we are (our identity).
2. Gender roles can limit us and trap us in a box.
3. It is our responsibility to give back to our community and effect change.

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

Part IV. Extra Credit – Response to one of the following advance questions:

1. What particular life experiences may have motivated Sandra to write some of her novels, in particular, The House on Mango Street? Why?
2. How was the segregation the same or different in Chicago as in the rest of the country at that time?
3. Based on what you have read about Sandra's biography, do you feel Sandra's writing may reflect certain aspects of your life as well? Why or why not?

Day 6: Teaching The House on Mango Street – Extended Metaphor, Metaphors pages 3-11 (Resources)

Objective: Students will be able to identify extended metaphors and metaphors in text and understand their meanings. Students will understand the difference between an extended metaphor and a metaphor.

Aim: What is the difference between an extended metaphor and a metaphor?

Skill/Concept: Extended Metaphor and Metaphor

Materials: Mentor Text: The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Agenda

Do Now: Write a metaphor for your family that includes every family member as an element in the unit that has its own metaphor.

Acquisition – Extended Metaphor and Metaphor
Part I: Mini Lesson - What is the difference between a metaphor and an extended metaphor?

Metaphor - the comparison of two UNLIKE things.

• Example: You are what you eat.
• She is the apple of my eye.

Extended Metaphor – A comparison between two unlike things that continues throughout a series of sentences in a paragraph or lines in a poem.

• Example: “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances; ‘As You Like It’ – William Shakespeare
• A Poem "Fog " by Carl Sandburg

  The fog comes
  on little cat feet.

  It sits looking
  over the harbor and city
  on silent haunches
  and then, moves on.

• An extended metaphor is a longer metaphor that continues the comparison for several lines or stanzas; multiple comparisons are made between the two things instead of just one.

  For example:

  • The sea is a hungry dog,
  • He rolls on the beach all day
  • With his clashing teeth and shaggy jaws,
  • He likes to chew on the most ghastly things
  • And spit them out over different land
  • Taking the rubbish with him.

  Here’s another example:

  The Dark Is…

  A swallowed night
  Scary and unknown
  A blanket of black
  A place where nightmares live
  A deep dark hole
  A place where light can’t show
  A place where horror draws you in
  Black tights over your head
  The final sleep
  Something black
  A black cat
  Where nobody goes
  A dark cupboard
  A witch’s cauldron
  Black as black
  Death
  Loneliness
  The night sky
  A question

• YOUR TASK: Read the above poems several times.  ANSWER: (1) Which are your favorite images? Why? (2) Are there any lines that aren’t metaphors?  Which ones?

Part II: Read the story, "The House on Mango Street ", by Sandra Cisneros, and identify examples of metaphors and extended metaphors.

1. Read pages 3-7:
• Identify the metaphor/simile in the vignette “Hairs.” What is being compared?
• For example, My Papa’s his is like a broom, all up in the air. And me…. 

Sampler Response: The whole chapter is a metaphor for the different personalities of Esperanza’s family members:  dad= optimist (broom); Carlos (thick and straight; doesn't need to comb it) things come easy to him; "Nenny's hair is slippery," slides right out of your hand- she's uncontrollable; Kiki (hair like fur) baby of family; pet of family. Description of mother's hair ( bread, candy circles, rosettes, etc.) dependable, sweet, comfort, security.

2. Read pages 8-11:
• Identify the extended metaphor in the vignette “My Name.” Explain what it means.
• For example, It was my great-grandmother’s name and now it is mine. She was a horse woman too…

Sampler Response: “My Name” offers an extended metaphor to describe the personality of  Esperanza’s great-grandmother. Her comparison of her great-grandmother to a horse begins with her noting that she was born in the Chinese year of the horse. She calls her a “wild horse of a woman” and believes she was broken like a horse taken from a herd when her great-grandfather “threw a sack over her head and carried her off.” Her grandmother’s spirit was cruelly broken by a forced marriage and the tedious routines of motherhood and homemaking.
Meaning Making: Read your book for 10 minutes and take notes using the following guiding questions:

Transfer: Using “Hairs” as a model, what experiences growing up would you use to write an extended metaphor about your own life in which you discuss an important physical trait and what it reveals about you.

A vignette is-( Resource)

• representation of a person or scene
• sketch- A short, usually descriptive literary sketch; A short scene or incident, as from a movie.
• a short impressionistic scene that focuses on one moment or gives a trenchant impression about a character, an idea, or a setting and sometimes an object
• VIGNETTE (French, "little vine"): A short composition showing considerable skill, especially such a composition designed with little or no plot or larger narrative structure. Often vignettes are descriptive or evocative in their nature. More loosely, vignettes might be descriptive passages within a larger work, such as Virginia Woolf's "Kew Gardens," or Faulkner's descriptions of horses and landscapes in The Hamlet. The term vignette ("little vine") originally comes from a decorative device appearing on a title page or at the beginnings and ends of chapters. Conventionally, nineteenth-century printers depicted small looping vines here loosely reminiscent of the vinework in medieval manuscripts.

HW#4: Read for 30 minutes. Write a paragraph explaining how the author of your book uses extended metaphors to serve his or her purpose.

Day 7: The House on Mango Street – Vignette pages 12-22

Objective: Students will be able to identify a vignette and write a short name vignette.

Aim: What is a vignette in literature?

Skill/Concept: Vignette

Materials: Vignette Sheet, Mentor Text: The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Agenda

Do Now: What is the personal significance of your given name (first, middle and last)? Does your name mean different things to you, your family, and your friends? What are your nicknames? What do your nicknames mean to you and those who call you those names?

Acquisition – Vignette

Part I: Mini Lesson- What is a vignette?
A vignette is…

• representation of a person or scene
• sketch- A short, usually descriptive literary sketch; A short scene or incident, as from a movie.
• a short impressionistic scene that focuses on one moment or gives a trenchant impression about a character, an idea, or a setting and sometimes an object
• VIGNETTE (French, "little vine"): A short composition showing considerable skill, especially such a composition designed with little or no plot or larger narrative structure. Often vignettes are descriptive or evocative in their nature. More loosely, vignettes might be descriptive passages within a larger work, such as Virginia Woolf's "Kew Gardens," or Faulkner's descriptions of horses and landscapes in The Hamlet. The term vignette ("little vine") originally comes from a decorative device appearing on a title page or at the beginnings and ends of chapters. Conventionally, nineteenth-century printers depicted small looping vines here loosely reminiscent of the vinework in medieval manuscripts.

Part II: Read the story, "The House on Mango Street ", by Sandra Cisneros, and identify the elements of a vignette in literature.

1. Read pages 12 -13:

• What stand out in this vignette “Cathy Queen of Cats”? Explain.
• Why is Cathy's family moving a little farther north on Mango Street?
• What does Cathy represent in this vignette?

2. Read pages 14- 22:

• What is different about this vignette “Meme Ortiz”?
• Why does the dog have two names and what does that represent?

Meaning Making: Complete the following class activity.

• Let's Write About Our Name -( Resource)
• Share your vignette with the class

Transfer: What does my name vignette say about me as a person? Explain.

HW#5: Continue writing your vignette, which is due tomorrow.

Day 7 (Alternative Lesson)

Objective: Students will be able to identify hyperbole and personification in text and understand their meanings.

Aim: How does an author use hyperbole to make their writing more interesting?

Skill/Concept: Vignette

Materials: Mentor Text: The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Agenda

Do Now: Personify the following sentences. Change the words in parentheses to words that would describe a human's actions:

Example: The little arrow (moved) across the computer screen. (danced)
1.The player piano keys (moved up and down). 
2.The leaf (fell) from the tree. 
3.The puppy (barked) when I left for school. 
4.Hair (is) on my head. 
5.The CD player (made a noise). 

Acquisition – Hyperbole and Personification
Part I: Mini Lesson - Why are hyperbole and personification used in literature?

Personification: A special kinds of metaphor in which a nonhuman thing or quality is talked about as if it were human
Examples:

• Opportunity knocked on the door.
• The sun smiled on us.

Hyperbole: a figure of speech that is a grossly exaggerated description or statement. In literature, such exaggeration is used for emphasis or vivid descriptions. Comedians also use it to make jokes. It is using exaggerations to make writing more interesting.

          Examples:

• And fired the shot heard round the world. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, (The Concord Hymn)
• I am so tired I could sleep for a year.

Part II: Read the story, "The House on Mango Street ", by Sandra Cisneros, and identify examples of hyperbole and personification.

1. Read pages 12 -13:

• Identify the hyperbole in the vignette “Cathy Queen of Cats.”  Explain what it means?
• For example, Cathy who is queen of cats has cats and cats and cats.

Sampler Response: Cathy is Esperanza's neighbor who claims to be a distant relation to the queen of France. Surrounded by cats, she befriends Esperanza. However, Cathy tells Esperanza that she is moving north of Mango Street, mostly because the neighborhood is “getting bad.” The hyperbole is an important note to Esperanza's acute awareness of Cathy's family "inheriting the family house" in France. Regardless of the truth of this statement, the fact that socioeconomic borders limit friendships is real: Cathy will only be Esperanza's friend until "next Tuesday. That's when we move away." The root of Esperanza's humiliation and resentment of her situation is real, as Cathy's family will "move a little farther north from Mango Street, a little farther away every time people like us keep moving in." In this, perhaps one of the most heart-wrenching declarations of the story, we see that Esperanza understands that she is an unwanted element in society.

2. Read pages:

• Identify the personification in the vignette “Meme Ortiz.” What does it mean?
• For example, But what you remember most is this tree, huge, with fat arms and mighty families of squirrels in…

Sampler Response: One obvious example of personification is Esperanza’s reference to a huge tree as having “fat arms.” Esperanza uses a simile in describing the appearance of crooked stairs, “as lopsided and jutting like crooked teeth.” She also describes the appearance of the house as “our house with its feet tucked under like a cat.”

Meaning Making: Read your book for 10 minutes and take notes using the following guiding questions:

Transfer: Can you give an example of a time when you used hyperbole to stress the point you are trying to make. For example, The town I grew up in was so isolated, the only friend I had was a deer

HW#5: Read for 30 minutes. Write a paragraph explaining how the author of the book you are reading uses hyperbole and/or personification to make his or her point.

Day 8: The House on Mango Street – Irony Pages 23-32

Objective: Students will be able to identify and analyze different types of irony in a text.

Aim: What is the difference between verbal and situational irony?

Skill/Concept: Irony

Materials: Mentor Text: The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

 Agenda

Do Now: Think about stories you have read or movies you have seen. Give an example of a movie/book ending that you did not expect.

Acquisition –
Part I: Mini Lesson -

Irony: Irony is the use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning; a statement or situation where the meaning is contradicted by the appearance or presentation of the idea. 

Irony is basically divided into three types: verbal, dramatic and situational irony. All three depend on the context of their meaning and how they are used: http://www.kimskorner4teachertalk.com/readingliterature/literary_elements_devices/irony.pdf

Examples:

• Verbal Irony: The boy is so intelligent that he failed in all the subjects
• Dramatic Irony: in many movies the protagonist chalks out a plan to kill the villain. Although the villain is unaware, the audience watching the film, clearly know, how the villain will be murdered by the protagonist.
• Situational Irony:  In the story of David and Goliath, no one expected David to win the fight against Goliath. This is because Goliath was a giant, well build and had a height of more than 9 feet. On the other hand, David was a teenager 5 - 5.5 inches tall. It was his unique strategy of using the sling by which he hit the stone on Goliath's forehead, so hard that he fell down dead. Surely as a reader, we did not expect this outcome.

Part II: Read the story, "The House on Mango Street ", by Sandra Cisneros, and identify examples of hyperbole and personification.

Read pages :

1. What is significant or ironic about the neighborhood kids “waving as he {Louie’s other cousin] drove away”  (vignette: “Louie, His Cousin, & His Other Cousin”.)
2. What kind of irony does this represent?
3. For example, They put handcuffs on him and put in the backseat of the cop car, and we all waved as they drove away?

Sampler Response: Esperanza regards the arrest of Louie’s cousin
for stealing and wrecking the car in a very casual manner. Esperanza can recall having seen the cousin only once, so she would not be particularly concerned about someone she really did not know. She doesn’t even know his name. However, it is also highly likely that the kids have been exposed to enough crime in her life that they have developed a nonchalant attitude toward it. So, they wave goodbye as if he is going away on a trip, which is very ironic considering the circumstances.
 
Meaning Making: Read your book for 10 minutes and take notes using the following guiding questions:

 Transfer:

HW#6: Read for 30 minutes and write a paragraph explaining how the author uses irony in the book you are reading. What does the irony suggest about the character of the book?

Day 9 Pages 33-48

Objective: Students will identify examples of similes and metaphors in text and understand their meaning. Students will understand how Sandra Cisneros uses similes and metaphors to help describe people, objects or places.

Aim: How do similes and metaphors help the reader better understand the text?

Skill/Concept: Simile and Metaphors

Materials: Mentor Text: The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Agenda

Do Now: How is growing into a teenage body (physically, mentally and emotionally) like moving into a new house/apartment? Compare the experiences of moving into a new house/apartment to the experiences of being a teenager. 

Acquisition – Literary Devices: Simile and Metaphors pages 33-48
Part I: Mini Lesson - How does Cisneros use similes and metaphors to illustrate change, maturity, and growth?

• Simile: A simile is a figure of speech comparing two unlike things that is often introduced by like or as. Example: This bed is as hard as a rock.
• Metaphor: A metaphor is a figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one kind of object or idea is used in place of another to suggest a like-ness between them. Example: Nora is a walking, talking encyclopedia.

Part II: Read the story, "The House on Mango Street ", by Sandra Cisneros, and identify examples of similes and metaphors in the text.

1. Read pages 33-38

• Why is Esperanza surprised by Darius’ comment? How does Esperanza describe Darius?
• What does this vignette suggest about Darius?
• Identify the similes and metaphor in this vignette. What is being compared?

2. Read pages 39-48

• What you think motivates Mr. Benny, the grocer, to become so angry with the girls for walking around on the sidewalk in high heels that he threatens to phone the police? Explain.
• Why do the girls run home?
• Identify the similes and metaphor in this vignette. Explain what it means.

Meaning Making: Read your book for 10 minutes and take notes using the following guiding questions:

Transfer: How would you describe your experiences growing up? What would you compare the experience to?

HW#7: Read for 30 minutes. Write a paragraph explaining how the author the book you are reading uses metaphors and similes to help explain/describe adolescence or growth.

Day 10 Pages 49 – 69

Objective: Students will be able to

• analyze author’s intent.
• discuss and debate the themes relevant to The House on Mango Street.

Aim: How can we put together everything we have covered so far to uncover the author’s purpose and deeper meanings in The House on Mango Street?

Skill/Concept: Theme/Central Idea

Materials: Mentor Text: The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Agenda

Do Now: Start filling out the chart below (only answer the 1st row).
Acquisition –
Part I: Mini Lesson: The theme of a literary work is an insight about life or human nature that the writer presents to the reader.

The House on Mango Street, Cisneros shares some of her ideas about sexual exploitation, maturity/growth and prejudice. Use the chart below to understand the themes she presents. Before you read, write down a real-life example of the theme. After you read, present an example from the play.

 Part II: Read the story, "The House on Mango Street ", by Sandra Cisneros, and identify examples of similes and metaphors in the text.

• Read pages 49-55

• What does ‘Hips’ represent to the girls?
• Identify the simile and/or metaphor in the vignettes.
• What do you think these metaphors/simile reveal about the girl’s knowledge of what it means to be a woman?
• How do these metaphors/similes take on symbolic meaning? 
• What do they reveal about the girls and the central idea/theme of the novella?

• Read pages 56-69

• What does the title of the vignette “Geraldo No Last Name” signifies?
• How does Geraldo’s death come about?
• Why is Marin so angry?
• What is the tone of this vignette? What mood does it create for the reader? And Why?
• What do you think is reveal by Esperanza’s choice of words (diction) in this vignette?
• What does this vignette suggest about an immigrant’s place in American society in the 1960s?

Meaning Making: Complete the chart below.

 Transfer: Why do you think Sandra Cisneros wrote The House on Mango Street? What subtle messages, so far have you noticed as we read in class?

HW#8: Read for 30 minutes. Continue filling out the chart, which is due tomorrow.

Day 11 Extended Metaphors and Personification
Objective: Students will be able to identify the extended metaphor and personification in text and understand their meanings.
Aim: How does an author use personification to make their writing more interesting?
Skill/Concept: Extended Metaphors and Personification
Materials: Mentor Text: The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Agenda

Do Now: 1. Copy the following vocabulary words which will be on your quiz tomorrow.

• Canteen - a flask for carrying water; used by soldiers or travelers
• Cumulus - A dense, white, fluffy cloud with a flat base, a multiple rounded top, and a well-defined outline.
• Nimbus - a dark grey cloud bearing rain
• Naphtha - any of various volatile flammable liquid hydrocarbon mixtures;
• Marimba - A large wooden percussion instrument with resonators, resembling a xylophone.

Acquisition – Extended Metaphor and Personification

Part I: Mini Lesson - Why are extended metaphors and personification used in literature?

Personification: A figure of speech (generally considered a type of metaphor) in which an inanimate object or abstraction is given human qualities or abilities.

Extended Metaphor: An extended metaphor is a longer metaphor that continues the comparison for several lines or stanzas; multiple comparisons are made between the two things instead of just one.
An extended metaphor is a metaphor that continues into the sentences that follow. It is often developed at great length, occurring frequently in or throughout a work, and are especially effective in poems and fiction.

• If one starts with the metaphor of "The seeds have already been sown", an extension could be "It remains to be seen whether weeds or flowers will spring forth."

Examples:

• The sea is a hungry dog,
• He rolls on the beach all day
• With his clashing teeth and shaggy jaws,
• He likes to chew on the most ghastly things
• And spit them out over different land
• Taking the rubbish with him.

Mother to Son

BY LANGSTON HUGHES
Well, son, I’ll tell you:
Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.
It’s had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor—
Bare.
But all the time
I’se been a-climbin’ on,
And reachin’ landin’s,
And turnin’ corners,
And sometimes goin’ in the dark
Where there ain’t been no light.
So boy, don’t you turn back.
Don’t you set down on the steps
’Cause you finds it’s kinder hard.
Don’t you fall now—
For I’se still goin’, honey,
I’se still climbin’,
And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.

Here’s another example:
The Dark Is…
A swallowed night
Scary and unknown
A blanket of black
A place where nightmares live
A deep dark hole
A place where light can’t show
A place where horror draws you in
Black tights over your head
The final sleep
Something black
A black cat
Where nobody goes
A dark cupboard
A witch’s cauldron
Black as black
Death
Loneliness
The night sky
Part II: Read the story, "The House on Mango Street ", by Sandra Cisneros, and identify examples of extended metaphors and personification.

• Read pages 70-89:
• Identify the extended metaphor in the vignette “Four Skinny Trees.” Explain what it means?
• What do the trees symbolize in the vignette?
• What does the extended metaphor reveals about Esperanza? How does she view her place in society?
• What is being personified in the extended metaphor? Explain the comparison?
• Why are the trees a source of inspiration for Esperanza?

Meaning Making: Read your book for 10 minutes and take notes using the following guiding questions:

Transfer: Use personification and extended similes/metaphors to describe an inanimate object. OR Compare yourself or someone you know to an inanimate object. Using personification and extended metaphors, to make the comparison and describe both the person and object.
Examples: http://www.englishrocks1.net/Poetry/extended_metaphor_poems.htm
HW#5: Read for 30 minutes. Study for the quiz tomorrow!!

Day 12 Assessment

E2 5/20/2011                                              Ms D’Amato/Ms. Scurdy

Student Name______________       Score:___________

The House on Mango Street Quiz#2

Part I: Vocabulary

Directions: Define the following vocabulary words from The House on Mango Street.
(1 points each)

1. Canteen –
2. Cumulus -
3. Nimbus –
4. Naphtha –
5. Marimba -

Part II: Matching

Directions: Match each word on the left-hand side with its definition on the right.
(2 points each)

6. _____ Simile

7. _____ Metaphor

8. _____ Personification

9. _____Extended Metaphor

a) A comparison between two unlike things in which one thing becomes another. (Does
NOT use the words “like,” “as,” “resembles” or “than.”)

b) A kind of figurative language where a non-human thing or quality is talked about as if
it were human.

c) A comparison between two unlike things that continues throughout a series of sentences in a paragraph or lines in a poem.

d) The simplest form of figurative language where two unlike things are compared using
the words “like,” “as.”

Part III: Identifications

Directions: Read each of the following quotations from The House on Mango Street. In the space provided, write whether it is an example of simile, metaphor, or personification. (5 points each)

10. _____________________  “The kids…almost break like fancy museum vases you can’t replace”
(29).

11. ____________________“The moon is beautiful like a balloon” (68).

12. ______________________“Four skinny trees…They send ferocious root beneath the ground. They grow up and they grow down and grab the earth between their hairy toes and bite the earth with violent teeth and never quit their anger. This is how they keep.” (74).

13. _______________________“Let one forget his reason for being, they’d all droop like tulips in a glass” (74-75).

14. _______________________“My name…is the Mexican records my father plays on Sunday mornings when he is shaving” (10).

15. _______________________“She keeps looking around her like a wild animal in a house for the first time” (68).

16. ______________________“Her legs bunched under the yellow sheets, the bones gone limp as worms” (58).

17. ______________________“Today we are Cinderella because our feet fit exactly” (40)

18. ______________________“As if he just heard the news himself, he crumples like a coat and cries”(56).

19. _____________________ “…the moan of the wooden door as it opens and lets loose its sigh of dampness” (71).

20. _____________________“Great-grandmother…She was a horse woman too, born like me in the Chinese year of the horse—which is supposed to be bad luck if you’re born female—but I think this is a Chinese lie because the Chinese, like the Mexican, don’t like their women strong. ” (10).

21._____________________“Until then, I am a red balloon, a balloon tied to an anchor” (9).

22. _____________________“The naked light bulb” (59)

23. _____________________“My hair is lazy. It never obeys barrettes or bands” (6).

24. _____________________“Like it or not, you are Mango Street” (107).

25. _____________________“This tree, huge, with fat arms and mighty families of squirrels in the higher branches.” (22).

26. _____________________“I’ll shake the sky like a hundred violins” (61)

Part IV: Free Response

Directions: Write your own simile or metaphor for each of the following. (1 points each)

27. jealousy:_____________________________________________________________

28. laughter:_____________________________________________________________

Extra Credit:
Directions: Personify the following things.

29. clouds:

_____________________________________________________________________

30. house:

_____________________________________________________________________

Day 13 Symbolism Pages 84-98

Objective: Student will be able to identify and explain the meaning of symbolism in The House on Mango Street.

Aim: What are some examples of symbolism in literature?

Skill/Concept: Symbolism

Materials: Mentor Text – The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Agenda

Do Now: Describe in detail a garden or other secret spot you visited as a kid (or still go to now). What did/does it represent to you and/or your friends and/or family?

Acquisition – Symbolism
Part I: Mini Lesson – Why do writers use symbolism in literature?

Understanding symbolism deepens the meaning and enhances the reading of many great literary works including short stories, novels and poetry.

Symbolism consists of using a single object within a story that stands for something else. One well-known example is in Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel The Scarlet Letter, where the scarlet letter "A" pinned to Hester Prynne's breast represents adultery. The scarlet letter also has other, more subtle meanings.

Symbolism may be obvious or more subtle or hidden so that the reader must really think and study the work to grasp the author's true meaning.

Religious Symbolism

Religious symbolism is the use of text, images, procedures, or actual physical objects to represent an idea or belief. The most common example is the use of objects to symbolize the faith itself, as in the use of a cross to represent Christianity, or the Star of David to represent Judaism.

Colour Symbolism

Simple colors can also be symbolic, depending on your location, or the context in which they are used. Red, white and blue are symbolic of all things American. Green has come to represent anything which is environmentally friendly. Colors can represent different things depending on where you live. For example, in Asian countries, red symbolizes happiness, marriage, and prosperity; in some countries the color of mourning is white. 

Why Authors Use Symbolism

Many authors embed subtle images into their work to make it deeper, richer, more meaningful and colorful. Writers may also use symbolism to allude to a mood or feeling without coming out and stating that particular emotion. For example, a writer might use the symbol of a lily to represent purity or a ray of sunshine to represent hope.

Phoenix Rising From the Ashes Symbolizes Rebirth

Examples of Common Literary Symbols

• Lily - purity
• Sunshine - hope
• Cross - salvation
• Heart - love
• Grim Reaper - death
• Phoenix - rebirth

Authors Known for their Use of Symbolism

Listed below are a few famous authors who are known for their use of symbolism, and some examples of the use of symbolism in literary works.

• Edgar Allan Poe
• F, Scott Fitzgerald
• Nathaniel Hawthorne
• Herman Melville
• Eudora Welty

Examples of Symbolism in Literary Works

• The Birthmark (Hawthorne) the birthmark is a symbol of human imperfection
• The Wizard of Oz (L. Frank Baum) The Wicked Witch of the West symbolizes evil
• Moby Dick (Melville) the white whale symbolizes an elusive, unattainable goal
• The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald) T. J. Eckleburg billboard of eyes and big spectacles represent the eyes of god watching over the modern, wasteful world of the Valley of Ashes
• The Raven Edgar Allan Poe grief, lost love

Part II: Read the story, "The House on Mango Street ", by Sandra Cisneros, and identify an example symbolism in the text.

1. Read pages 84-98:

• What does the house/home represent for Esperanza? Explain
• What does the image of the house symbolize for women in The House on Mango Street? Explain.
• What does this reveal about the role of Mexican women in the 1960s?
• Why is the vignette “The Monkey Garden” significant?
• Identify the metaphors/similes in the vignette?
• How do these metaphors/similes take on symbolic meaning? 
• What is revealed in the garden? Explain.

Meaning Making: Read your book for 10 minutes and take notes using the following guiding questions:

Transfer: What does the image of a home symbolize to you? Is it important? Why or why not?

HW#6: Read for 30 minutes. Write a paragraph explaining how the author’s use of symbolism in the book you are reading add deeper meaning to the text.

Day 14 Objective: Students will work cooperatively to review the thematic statements, and chart how their opinions/ideas have developed after reading The House on Mango Street.

Aim: How have I developed as a reader?

Skill/Concept: Thematic Statements

Materials: Mentor Text – The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Agenda

Do Now:

Acquisition – Thematic Statements
Mini Lesson: The theme of a literary work is its underlying central idea or the generalization it communicates about life. The theme expresses the author's opinion or raises a question about human nature or the meaning of human experience. At times the author's theme may not confirm or agree with your own beliefs. Even then, if skillfully written, the work will still have a theme that illuminates some aspects of true human experience.

• What's the difference between a subject and a theme?
  A piece of literature may have both a subject and a theme. The subject is a specific topic of the selection. The theme is the generalization about life at large that the specific selection leads you to see.
• How many themes can a work contain?
  A long work may contain more than one theme.
• How to identify a theme?
  Sometimes the theme may be clearly stated. More often, the theme is implied or suggested through other elements. In fact, you can determine the theme by looking closely at other literary elements involved, such as, characterization, symbolism, setting, metaphors/similes, extended metaphors, mood, irony, imagery, etc. In other words, theme is illuminated through these literary elements.

Thematic Statements are statements relating to the theme of a story/book.
Meaning Making: The House on Mango Street, Cisneros shares some of her ideas about community, identity, hope, gender roles, and tradition. Use the chart below to understand the themes she presents. Write down your views before you read the text. Write down your views after reading The House on Mango Street.

 Transfer: Write a paragraph explaining how your views have changed/developed after reading The House on Mango Street?

 HW#7: Read for 30 minutes. Finish responding to the ‘Transfer’ question.

Day 15

Review – Writing an Extended Metaphor
Objective: The student will study Sandra Cisneros’s application of the extended metaphor in her writing. Student will be able to model, understand and demonstrate the use of extended metaphor as a writing tool. 
Aim: Why does Cisneros use extended metaphors in her novella? 
Skill/Concept: Writing an Extended Metaphor 
Materials: Mentor Text – The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Agenda

Do Now:  

A. Vocabulary – Write down the definitions for the following vocabulary words from The House on Mango Street:

1. Evoke – call forth (emotions, feelings, and responses)
2. Distraught - deeply agitated especially from emotion
3. Emphasize - to stress, single out as important
4. Empower - give or delegate power or authority to
5. Tether - restraint consisting of a rope (or light chain) used to restrain an animal

B. Compare yourself or someone you know to an inanimate object. Using personification and similes/metaphors, to make the comparison and describe both the person and object.

Acquisition – Theme and Extended Metaphor

1. Review of Thematic Statement Chart
2. Read “Four Skinny Trees” out loud to the students. Class discussion:

      What is your reaction to the description? Are you surprised that Cisneros

   compares herself to skinny trees? How effective is her comparison?

3. Read “My Name” out loud to the students. Class discussion: What is your reaction to the vignette? Identify the literary element used in the extended metaphor?

Transfer: Extend the personification and simile/metaphor you created (Do Now).  
Use the following guiding questions to extend your metaphor/simile:

1. What does it/she/he do?
2. How does it/she/he smell? feel?
3. What does it/she/he sound like? look like? taste like?