Christmas Activities Non-Fiction Close Reading "Defending Scrooge?"

What's Christmas with out Dicken's classic "A Christmas Carol"? These close reads will examine two different perspectives on the character of Scrooge, and whether he was truly a villian or a practical genius. The new Common Core State Standards place a greater emphasis on critical thinking and implementing expository and nonfiction texts into the English Language Arts curriculum. Understanding the basics of analyzing the rhetorical situation, mood and tone, and author's purpose and point of view are essential to understanding nonfiction texts. This 4-5 day unit teaches the fundamentals of analyzing informational text with the unique acrostic "R.E.A.D.S"

Close “R.E.A.D.S”
Recognize (purpose, tone, point of view)
Evaluate (support)
Analyze (rhetoric)
Develop (questions and judgments)
Summarize (the main idea of the text)

This multi-faceted unit integrates listening skills, reading strategies, and writing skills, as students analyze each of these elements to develop practical skills in analyzing nonfiction texts.

This Unit Includes
1. Common Core Alignment
2. Student Notes and Handouts
3. Teacher "day by day" schedule
4. Articles for Analysis
5. Writing Task and Rubric
6. PPT lectures to facilitate student notes (54 slides)