Sherman Alexie

Above is a picture of Sherman Alexie, author of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. He has a very interesting website at : www.fallsapart.com.
I am going to post our assignment for this week here. We will begin talking about it in class on Monday, October 6th.:

Name: The Cult Div

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Group Multimodal Response

Ladies and Gentleman of Cultural Diversity:

At this point, you should be at page _______. This past weekend I asked you to consider the journal entry prompts as a way to connect our lives with some of the larger ideas, issues, and thoughts touched on in Sherman Alexie’s book. This week in class, you are going to be working with a group to create unique and thoughtful ways to respond to this book. We are going to use these projects in class to promote discussion about the book. So what does multimodal really mean? It basically refers to the many different “modes” of responding or thinking about a given topic, character, idea, etc. This is more than just writing, it is thinking about this book through the many different modes of response such as the visual, auditory, etc.

What does this mean for me?

Part I.

You are to select two other people to work with. Thus…each group should have three people.

Part II.

Once you have your group, you are going to meet to talk about what type of response you would like to create. Your group needs to choose a method of response to the book that will comment on something specific you have read. Your group will be responsible for presenting what you came up with to the class. Ultimately, I hope that these projects will allow you to think and talk about the text in an interesting way. You are also creating a new “text” that responds back to Sherman Alexie’s book.

Here are some of the options. Please choose one per group:

1. Graphic Short Story/Cartoon Response: Junior uses drawing as a means to express himself and his worldview. This response asks your group to re-create some scenes from the book in graphic style. Think about the illustrations he has used, and you can build on them. Feel free, however, to use a different style as well. This should include text as well. (I have some graphic novel examples if you would like to see other styles…The Watchmen, Persepolis etc..)
2. Character Maps: Create an interesting looking and professional map that shows what you think the characters look like, things the characters did, how the characters relate to one another, and what made these characters interesting. You may want to also include how you picture the setting or backdrop for this story.
3. Sequence Log: Your group could pull out what you consider to be the most important events/lines of the book. You should create a detailed handout for the class that outlines the events and lines that your group felt were significant thus far. You should also include WHY you thought they were important and significant. Your finished project should be professional and detailed—it should be typed so we can distribute it to the class.
4. Confessional-Short Video: If you or someone in your group knows how to make videos (the mac lab is conveniently located just down the hall and I have adobe premiere on my computer), your group can create a short (max 5 minutes) video that has one or more than one characters commenting on an event or experience in the book. (Think about how confessionals work on The Real World) You can create the confessional and edit in appropriate pictures or sound.
5. Information on Spokane Indian Tribe and Reservation: Junior talks about living in the Spokane Indian Reservation in Washington. Your group should research the history of the Spokane Tribe and investigate their culture, lifestyle and story. Produce an informative and professional document that will provide the class with a more comprehensive understanding of this culture. Sherman Alexie, the author, grew up there as well. This book mirrors his own life.
6. Found Poem/Song: Using words and lines from the portion of the text that we have read, create a poem or poems…or even a song that touches on the central ideas, themes, and issues you see developing in this book. You will then record your creation or perform it for the class. This should be very detailed and polished. If you choose to record it, you should add music (think podcast here). (If you want another example of a podcast, I have one posted on my teacher website. It is one I made for The Cather in the Rye).

100 points: Project

25 points: Presentation of the Project

We are working on these in class Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. We will begin the presentations at the end of class on Wednesday. The rest will happen on Thursday. If you do not make significant progress during our workdays in class, your group will have to meet outside of class as well.