Daily Edit The government officials urged all those effected by hurricane irene to stay indoors or if without shelter to seek cover at city hall.

Into the Wild

Theme Read the article and identify helpful passages – You know where you are weaker here—use this article to address these areas of concern When you are finished reading, work with a partner to make a list of – what a theme statement is and – what it is not

Creating an Outline Follow these steps: – Identify a theme – Find evidence from the text that supports that theme – Develop a thesis statement – Create an outline to guide your writing

Example: Smoke Signals

Identifying a Theme A person builds his or her identity based on the truths he or she accepts and believes. Even if a story is not honest, that story can still be true. Clinging onto resentment hinders a person’s ability to move on and accept loss.

What Evidence Supports It? Hair shows changes in character identity When Victor learns the truth about his father, he changes himself Thomas built part of his Indian identity from Dances with Wolves Susie Song knows Arnold’s full story and is able to accept him as a father while Victor cannot. Thomas is true to himself regardless of Victor’s criticism. The motif of storytelling allows Thomas to build the identity he wants others to see.

Developing a Thesis Statement In (title of text), (Author’s name) uses (literary device) in order to express that (theme). In Smoke Signals, Sherman Alexie uses the hair as a symbol in order to express that a person’s identity shifts depending on the stories he or she believes to be true.

Revising Your Thesis Statement Your thesis statement will naturally grow as you develop your paper more Revisit it at the end of your outline and consider: does this still fit? If not, change your thesis so that it fits the truths you prove and the evidence you use

Develop an Outline This is where you put it all together Your outline should be organized in the way that best suits you (I prefer lists because that’s my style, and how my brain works)

Homework Work on the outline tonight It is not due to me until Friday—really refine it and make it something you could base an essay on Because this is a concept we’ve learned and reinforced, this will act as a take home quiz grade Tomorrow, we will spend part of class addressing questions about this assignment