1. Green Words and Thesis Development August 2015

2. Warm-Up  YOU HAVE THE “I HAVE A DREAM” SPEECH IN FRONT OF YOU. YOU ARE ABOUT TO WATCH A RECORDING OF MLK JR. DELIVERING THIS SPEECH.  Please listen carefully for the author’s purpose and message.  http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speec hes/mlkihaveadream.htm S:\Senior English\I have a dream...[Martin Luther King].flv http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speec hes/mlkihaveadream.htmS:\Senior English\I have a dream...[Martin Luther King].flv

3. Thesis development  AFTER YOU WATCH THE VIDEO, DEVELOP A COHESIVE THESIS STATEMENT ON WHY THIS SPEECH IS STILL SO IMPACTFUL TO AMERICAN SOCIETY TODAY.  Write this thesis down. Use the same piece of paper to take notes on this PowerPoint  Set the speech aside

4. What is a “GREEN” word?  A “GREEN” word is  ABSTRACT  HIGHLY CONNOTATIVE  VALUE-DRIVEN

5. EXAMPLE:  "Wealth"  Is "wealth" an abstract idea?  Does wealth have connotative significance?  Does your definition of "wealth" say anything about what you value?

6. YOUR TURN  Make a list of 10 words that represent "green" concepts

7. So how does this help me write a better thesis?  Your thesis should be driven by a combination of strong green words  Because of their connotative, value-driven nature, a “green” word-based thesis will automatically drive your paper toward persuasion.

8. Try this:  Look at your list of green words. Create a sentence utilizing three of these words. It can be about anything (school appropriate, of course!).

9. STOP!  Did you just write a three-prong thesis?  If you did CROSS IT OUT!

10. Round 2:  Write another sentence using three of your green words, BUT this time follow this formula:  Create an “although” statement using ONE green word in the dependent clause (at the beginning) and TWO in the independent clause (back half).  Example for The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks: Although the Lacks children grew up in deprivation, their determination and drive to improve their living conditions led them to become more educated and involved citizens.

11. Rewind  Go back to the “I Have A Dream” speech  Highlight (preferably in GREEN) the GREEN concepts in his speech. This is an INDIVIDUAL activity  AFTER you have highlighted, pair up with someone at your table to debate the accuracy of your highlighted words

12. On your original paper:  List 3-5 strong green concepts from the speech  REWRITE your original thesis on the following:  DEVELOP A COHESIVE THESIS STATEMENT ON WHY THIS SPEECH IS STILL SO IMPACTFUL TO AMERICAN SOCIETY TODAY. Use your green words and formula this time.