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S T U D E N T G U I D E

Sonnet 8

What does the speaker in Millay’s sonnet think about traditional gender roles?

View this lesson at ThinkCERCA

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Table of Contents

Vocabulary Building

  • Map a Word

Direct Instruction Guide

  • Cornell Notes: Figurative Language

STEP 1: Connect

  • Finding Your Purpose for Learning
  • Think-Pair-Share

STEP 2: Read

  • Pause and Reflect
  • Test Prep Strategy: Summarizing a Text (Optional)

STEP 3: Engage with the Text

  • Highlight and Annotate

STEP 4: Summarize

  • Write a Summary

STEP 5: Build an Argument

  • Collaborate: Share your argument builder

STEP 6: Create your CERCA

  • Peer Editing Activity
  • Writing Reflection

Throughout the guide, look for the laptop icon to find steps to complete online!

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Optional Extensions

  • Activity: Writing a Sonnet
  • Inquiry to Research: Asking Questions of the Texts

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SYNONYM (SIMILAR OR LIKE WORD)

ANTONYM (OPPOSITE WORD)

PICTURE OF�VOCABULARY WORD

SENTENCE USING VOCABULARY WORD

VOCABULARY WORD

PART OF SPEECH

V O C A B U L A R Y B U I L D I N G

Map a Word

Choose a word from the vocabulary list that is linked in the lesson. Write the word in the box below. Then fill in the other boxes on this page.

Completing this process will help the word "stick" in your memory!

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D I R E C T I N S T R U C T I O N G U I D E

Cornell Notes: Figurative Language

What elements of language are mentioned in the lesson?

The elements of language referenced in the lesson are…

What is the difference between a simile and a metaphor?

The difference between a simile and metaphor is…

Why do authors use personification?

Authors use personification to...

Take notes on the lesson using the organizer below:

Watch the Direct Instruction lesson at learn.thinkcerca.com

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D I R E C T I N S T R U C T I O N G U I D E

Cornell Notes: Figurative Language (continued)

Summarize and Reflect

In your own words and in complete sentences, write a 3–4 sentence summary of this skills lesson. An accurate summary will cover the lesson's central ideas and include important details to support those ideas.

Record your summary here:

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S T E P 1 : C O N N E C T

Finding Your Purpose for Learning

When you've finished reading the overview, answer the following questions in the space below:

What more would you like to learn about sonnets? What would you like to know about the rules of creating this type of poem?

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Read the Topic Overview provided at learn.thinkcerca.com

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S T E P 1 : C O N N E C T

Think-Pair-Share

  1. Think: On your own, think about your experiences related to the topic.

  • Pair & Share: With a partner, group, or a trusted listener, share the parts of your response that you feel comfortable sharing.
  • Reflect: If time permits, reflect on your experience. What ideas did others share that you hadn't considered? How were your ideas alike?

Complete the writing activity in Step 1: Connect at learn.thinkcerca.com

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S T E P 2 : R E A D

Pause and Reflect

When you’ve finished reading, go back and find the questions in the text marked “Pause and Reflect.” These questions will help you connect the text to yourself, to other texts, or to the world around you.

Use the space on the left below to answer the reflection questions. Then, discuss your answers, noting how they were similar or different.

Record “Pause and Reflect” answers here:

Record discussion reflections here:

Read the text for this lesson at learn.thinkcerca.com

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S T E P 2 : R E A D

Test Prep Strategy: Summarizing a Text

Before you answer questions about a text, summarize it! Writing a summary allows you to anticipate questions that teachers and test-makers might ask.

First, read the poem. Then, write a 2-3 sentence summary below. Your summary should use the SOAPSTone strategy—identifying the Speaker, Occasion, Audience, Purpose, Subject, Tone—to summarize the poem.

  • "The speaker of the poem..."
  • "He/She is speaking at the moment when..."
  • "The audience is readers who might feel __ about __"
  • "The purpose of the poem is to convey the idea that __"
  • “ The tone changes from __ to __ to __ etc."

Refer to the reading for this lesson at learn.thinkcerca.com.

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S T E P 3 : E N G A G E W I T H T H E T E X T

Highlight and Annotate

In this step, you will analyze the text closely, then discuss your findings to begin developing reasoning for your argument.

  1. Read the text again, highlighting and annotating important details. Follow the prompts provided.

The highlighting prompts will help you with the final writing task. You will find evidence to support your own argument or informational piece, as well as models of excellence that will help you better understand a writer’s craft in narratives. The evidence you highlight will be available when you begin building your draft in the next step.

  1. If time permits, pair and share your highlights and annotations with a classmate. Pay close attention to this conversation! Your thinking is important reasoning you may include in your final draft.

Return to learn.thinkcerca.com to complete Step 3: Engage with the Text.

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S T E P 4 : S U M M A R I Z E

Write a Summary

Summaries help you process your thinking about a text and are often a great way to start off an argumentative or informational essay. A good summary shows you have knowledge about a topic.

Practicing summarizing also helps you prepare for the main idea questions posed on many standardized assessments. In addition, summarizing is a helpful skill for working with others, such as when you need to confirm your understanding of what someone else has said. That's a useful skill for all parts of life.

  1. ��Use the sentence stems provided to summarize the text.

Your summary should:

  • Be brief
  • Include the main idea and key details
  • Represent these ideas fairly and accurately �
  • If time permits, pair and share with a classmate. Read each other’s summary, and discuss how they are similar or different. What did you say were the main idea and key details? Were your summaries fair and accurate? Why?

Return to learn.thinkcerca.com to complete Step 4: Summarize.

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S T E P 5 : B U I L D A N A R G U M E N T

Collaborate: Share your Argument Builder

When you’ve completed the argument building step, share your results with others, and listen to how they responded to the same question. Ask questions and give feedback to help strengthen your partners’ reasons and evidence.

Share

Listen

What does the speaker in Millay’s sonnet think about traditional gender roles?

What does the speaker in Millay’s sonnet think about traditional gender roles?

1.

2.

3.

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S T E P 6 : C R E A T E Y O U R C E R C A

Peer Editing Activity

  1. Do a self-assessment of your CERCA. Use the online Rubric for the lesson on learn.thinkcerca.com, checking each box where you find evidence that you have achieved the criteria.�
  2. Next, collaborate with a peer or peers to read each other’s drafts. Again, use the Rubric to evaluate each other’s work.�
  3. Share insights into what might make your pieces stronger. Find two positive attributes and one area of growth for each draft you review.�
  4. Revise your piece using what you learned from your self-assessment and the feedback from your peers.

Complete Step 6 to create your CERCA at learn.thinkcerca.com

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S T E P 6 : C R E A T E Y O U R C E R C A

Writing Reflection

Before you submit your final CERCA, write a brief reflection describing your experience.

An area for growth for me on this piece or in my writing in general is…

The strongest areas of this piece of writing are…

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Through self-assessment and/or peer editing, I learned…

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Optional Extensions

The following activities can be used as optional extensions to this lesson.

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O P T I O N A L E X T E N S I O N : A C T I V I T Y

Writing a Sonnet

Background

Sonnets come in multiple varieties, including Italian (or Petrarchan) and Shakespearean. Typically, sonnets have 14 lines.

A Shakespearean sonnet follows these conventions: the poem’s 14 lines are divided into 3 quatrains (groups of 4 lines) and one final couplet (2 lines). The rhyme scheme in the poem follows this pattern:

  • Lines 1–4: abab (meaning lines 1 and 3 rhyme and lines 2 and 4 rhyme)
  • Lines 5–8: cdcd (lines 5 and 7 rhyme; lines 6 and 8 rhyme)
  • Lines 9–12: efef (lines 9 and 11 rhyme; lines 10 and 12 rhyme)
  • Lines 13–14: gg (lines 13 and 14 rhyme)

Sonnets are usually constructed around a topic or theme, and feature a “turn,” or change, after line 8. After this turn, the poet resolves the situation presented in the first part of the poem. Visit the Poetry Foundation website to locate examples of sonnets. Map out the rhyme scheme and structure of the poem you selected.

Write

Take what you’ve learned and create your own sonnet. Choose a theme or topic—it could be a place, an object, or a time of year. Write a poem that follows these patterns and that features a “turn” after line 8. You can also experiment with other techniques used in sonnets, such as meter, in your work.

Share

Share your sonnet with a classmate. Then, discuss as a class. What themes emerged across sonnets? Discuss the experience of writing within this structure. Did you find working within a set number of lines and following a given pattern helpful, or challenging?

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O P T I O N A L E X T E N S I O N : I N Q U I R Y T O R E S E A R C H

Asking Questions of the Texts

As you engage with texts in any subject, you can actively ask questions about the author’s purpose, intended audience, and occasion to understand the message. The table below provides examples.

Approaches

Example

Questions about the author

Is the author an authority on this topic? What was the author’s motivation in writing this piece?

Questions about the audience, purpose, and occasion of the text

Why was this poem written? Why was it published at this time?

Questions about civics, economics, geography, and history

When and where did people first write sonnets?

Questions about concepts and ideas

Why did the author choose to write a poem, rather than a short story, essay, or other type of work?

Questions about self and community reflections

Why do people write different types of poems?

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O P T I O N A L E X T E N S I O N : I N Q U I R Y T O R E S E A R C H

Asking Questions of the Texts (continued)

Use the table below to record questions about the text you read.

Approaches

Questions

Questions about the author

Questions about the audience, purpose, and occasion of the text

Questions about civics, economics, geography, and history

Questions about concepts and ideas

Self and Community Reflections

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