Scars

1. Scars What stories do our scars tell?

2. Pre, during, and after reading for The Glass Castle Pre-Glass Castle activities will include: • Writing prompt about bullying or being bullied • Reading Thank you, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco* • Formative assessment: 3-2-1 Exit Cards During-reading activities will include: • Mapping our own scars* • Telling the story of one of our scars* • “Exploding the moment” and multi-genre writing* • Summative assessment option: Readers’ Theatre During/After-reading activities: • Mapping the scars of a character in The Glass Castle • Writing an analytical paragraph about the significance of one of these scars (Two PIEs: point, illustration, explanation) • Crafting a final poem or another piece in the writing genre of your choice (see A-Z taxonomy of writing genres) that “tells the story” of one or more of the scars; creating a Glog to tell this story

3. The bullying continued everyday for weeks. The tall girl, whose name was Dinitia Hewitt, watched me with her smile while we all waited on the asphalt playground for class to start. At lunch, I ate my lard sandwiches with paralytic slowness, but sooner or later, the janitor started putting the chairs up on the tables. I walked outside trying to hold my head high, and Dinitia and her gang surrounded me and it began. As we fought, they called me poor, ugly, and dirty, and it was hard to argue the point. The Glass Castle, page 140

4. Pre-reading for The Glass Castle • In your Table of Contents write “Bullies.” • Write at least ¼ page about your experience with bullying. Ideas: • Perhaps you were bullied and picked on at some point in your life. What happened? How was it resolved? How did it make you feel? • Maybe you were the bully. Why did you behave the way you did? • We have all witnessed acts of verbal or physical bullying, big and small, write about something you witnessed. You will share this with the class. (I would write/model with students)

5. Pre-reading for The Glass Castle “Who here hates Lizzy Lizard?” Nick Eggert’s voice could be heard through the whole bus. I tried to disappear into the cold vinyl of my seat, but there was no escape in this confined and fast moving space. I was trapped. I slid over to the frost covered window, put my head down, and pretended- once again- that I could not hear what they were saying. I hoped they wouldn’t see the flushed red of my cheeks. I had no one to talk to so I focused on untying and retying the laces of my figure skates, listening as Nick and his friends made a few more comments about my name: “I think a better name is Lizzy Loser!” “No, we know it’s Lizzy the Lezzy!”

6. Pre-reading for The Glass Castle • Write, pair, share. • On the sheet of paper draw the face of a girl. Use the whole piece. • Listen actively as we read Thank You, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco. Every time Trisha has an experience that you think will leave a physical or emotional scar, rip off a piece of the paper. These can be conflicts she has with other people or experiences she has on her own.

7. Pre-reading for The Glass Castle • Tape your pieces back together. • On the “new” face, write down any words you remember from the text that you associate with her scars.

8. Pre-reading for The Glass Castle3-2-1 Exit Cards • Complete an exit card that you will turn in on your way out the door. On the card write: • 3 observations you made from the story or from the activities of the day. • 2 predictions you make about the plot, characters, and/or thematic ideas in The Glass Castle. • An answer to the following question: What do our scars say?

9. Pre-reading for The Glass Castle Jeanette Walls tells the story of her turbulent childhood growing up in extreme poverty. Her parents struggle with their own compulsions and addictions and provide little stability for Jeanette. Instead, Jeanette and her three siblings are regularly uprooted by their aimless parents. Despite these obstacles, Jeanette becomes a successful journalist and writer who is able to look back on her formative years with a indifferent affection.

10. During-Reading for The Glass Castle Then Dad got into an argument with the doctor. It started because Dad thought I shouldn’t be wearing bandages. “Burns need to breathe,” he told the doctor. The doctor said bandages were necessary to prevent infection. Dad stared at the doctor. “To hell with infection,” he said. He told the doctor that I was going to be scarred for life because of him, but, by God, I wasn’t the only one who was going to walk out of there scarred. Dad pulled back his fist as if to hit the doctor… Afterward a nurse asked if I was okay. “Of course,” I said. I told her I didn’t care if I had some silly old scar. Pages 13-14

11. During Reading for The Glass Castle • In your Table of Contents write “My Scars.” • Open to a new page in your notebook. • Draw a map of your body in which you identify some of your own scars. Mark each scar with an X or some sort of mark. • Label each mark with a signifying word that is symbolic of the event that left the scar.

12. During Reading for The Glass Castle • Pick one of your scars, and write further about it (1/4th page minimum). Tell the story of that scar.

13. During Reading for The Glass Castle Mrs. B’s Story: I was in 4th grade at Breck school, and the year had not been going well. I hadn’t been Elizabeth or Lizzy for months: I was Lizzy Loser or, even worse, Lizzy Lezzy. I tried so hard to fit in or just even go unseen so I would be left alone, but everyday there was a someone who would pass me in the hall and whisper something cruel to me. Mr. Palmer’s science class was usually a place where I could hide well. All we did was take notes. There were no labs, so there was little chance for student interaction and minimal chance for bullying.

14. During Reading for The Glass Castle • “Explode the Moment.” Review your piece, and look for any “juicy” words. Circle three or four of these words. • Write the story of this scar again. This time focus on the importance of one of the words and the details of this word. This will change the way you begin your story and what you write about your story. • Use descriptive and, when possible, figurative language. • Optional: “Explode the Moment” using one of the writing genres from the A-Z taxonomy. • Readers’ Theatre possibility?

15. During Reading for The Glass Castle Mrs. B’s “Explosion of the Moment” version: Cruelty was passed out like gum when I was in elementary school. Cruelty was passed out like gum On the bus, in the halls, always between classes Phonology mattered, clarifying Loser, Lezzy, Lizzy Broken words strung together became weapons

16. During/After Reading forThe Glass Castle The bullying continued everyday for weeks. The tall girl, whose name was Dinitia Hewitt, watched me with her smile while we all waited on the asphalt playground for class to start. At lunch, I ate my lard sandwiches with paralytic slowness, but sooner or later, the janitor started putting the chairs up on the tables. I walked outside trying to hold my head high, and Dinitia and her gang surrounded me and it began. As we fought, they called me poor, ugly, and dirty, and it was hard to argue the point. Page 140

17. During/After Reading forThe Glass Castle • In your Table of Contents write “Character Scars.” • Select a character and map this character’s physical and emotional scars. • For each mark include a word that symbolizes the event that caused the scar. • For each scar, include a passage from the text that indicates why or how an event or action created the scar. Include page numbers.

18. During/After Reading forThe Glass Castle • Independent Analytic Writing Assessment: Write one paragraph that analyzes the significance of one scar in your character’s life. Use two PIEs in this paragraph. • PIE • Point- Include a point you make that specifically supports and expands the idea of the topic sentence. • Illustration- Incorporate a passage from the text that supports point. • Explanation- Explain how the illustration supports the point.

19. During/After Reading forThe Glass Castle • Choice Writing Assessment: Tell the story of the character’s scars. Focus on a single scar or connect multiple scars from your character’s map. • Write out your story in one of the genres we have spent time writing/reading/discussing. • Share your story on a Glog.