1. THE AMERICAN DREAM Get out paper and a writing utensil

2. THEME  Define Theme as a literary term. What is it? How does it show itself in a work of literature?  A theme is an underlying message that the author wants the reader to understand. It is generally not stated directly and is, instead, shown through how the characters change, the conflicts presented in the story, the different settings of the story, how the story resolves, etc…

3. THE AMERICAN DREAM  What do you think the stereotypical American Dream is?  What do you think the immigrants from the 1700s and 1800s believed was the American Dream? Do you think it’s the same today?  How might the American Dream have changed for immigrants of today? What about the natural born American Citizens?

4. THE AMERICAN DREAM What is your American Dream? Write down a list of specific words to represent YOUR dream!

5. THE AMERICAN DREAM  What are the elements of your American Dream?  What words have you included to represent these elements?  Why have you included these specific items?  How did you decide on the components of your Dream?  What did you leave out and why?  How does your American Dream compare to the stereotypical one? To other word clouds within this classroom?

6. THE AMERICAN DREAM The Immigrants part one: An American Tale Watch the clip and try to decipher what the character's think America has to offer them. Why do they wish for those things? Copy and paste the following link to find the song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2 bC07e7PReM

7. THE AMERICAN DREAM The Immigrants part two: “The Boxer” by Simon and Garfunkel How does this American Dream differ from the cat song? (Google the title w/ lyrics)

8. The Modern American Dream: Alicia Keys and Jay Z “New York” What ideas of the American dream seem to be represented in this song?

9. THE AMERICAN DREAM HOMEWORK: DUE BY FRIDAY  On your own, write a few paragraphs answering the following questions. Define and explain your own American Dream. Select a song to match your individual Dream. Print or hand write the lyrics and title/musician of the song you have chosen Explain how the song connects to your own beliefs. YES. You may use your cell phones to look for the perfect song. But you CANNOT share your ideas with anyone. I want you to write for yourself first, then we’ll share if we have time.