Grade 6 | Response Paper

RESPONSE PAPER

Task: Answer essential questions about “A Day’s Wait” by Hemingway in a 1-page paper that contains an introduction, at least one body paragraph, and a conclusion.

Purpose: Utilize your knowledge of literary elements. Engage in the writing process.

Essential Questions: Which literary element do you think is the most evident in the story? How is it effective? i.e. How does it develop/change/improve your reading of the story? Pick one: Plot; Character and Characterization; Conflict; Point of View; Theme; Setting.

Timeline

First Draft due Friday, October 5^th.

Final Draft due MONDAY, OCTOBER 15th.

Details

¨  You must write an outline of your paper to be submitted with your final draft.

¨  You must attach a completed revision checklist with your final draft.

¨  Final Drafts must be typed in MLA format; 1” margins, Double-Spaced, Page Numbers in Top Right Header, Proper Heading.

*You may hand in drafts at any point during the week, and I will give you immediate feedback. 

RUBRIC

Overarching Goal: Prove that you understand your chosen literary element and have thought about its use in the story.

1= below standard 2= barely adequate 3= average 4= superior 5= exceptional

Content

Interesting/Informative TITLE

Engaging INTRODUCTION

Clarity of TOPIC and PURPOSE

Use of SUPPORTING QUOTES FROM TEXT

Extent to which CONCLUSION indicates significance of topic

Form

CLARITY

UNITY/focus

Appropriate TONE

GRAMMAR, USAGE, MECHANICS

MLA FORMAT

CHECKLIST FOR REVISING RESPONSE ESSAY

Read the questions below. Read your paper again, stopping to answer the questions below in writing.

1.      What is the title? Is it appropriate? Engaging? Why?

2.      Is your main idea clearly stated in your introduction of your essay? If so, quote it. Is it focused? Could it be improved?

3.      Do you provide supporting evidence from the text? Briefly state what evidence you used to support your ideas.

4.      Have you written a conclusion that indicates the significance of your perspective on the topic? What is the gist of it?

5.      What should be added, deleted, substituted, and/or moved from one part of the essay to the other?

6.      Check any typos, spelling, usage, mechanical, or grammatical errors by circling or otherwise indicating them. Make corrections.

7.      Evaluate your paper by circling the appropriate descriptions:

Too little to rate            Weak                Fair                            Good                 Very Good                  Excellent

Pedestrian                     Unconvincing         Interesting        Original            Thought Provoking

Additional notes for Revision:

SAMPLE OUTLINE

Working Title:

I Don’t Understand You:

Man vs. Man Conflict in “A Day’s Wait”

Introduction Form & Example:

  1. Attention Getter: a general statement about your topic.
-- Children and parents often have trouble communicating and this can lead to conflict. 
2. Topic Sentence: state the title, author, and overview of the story.
-- In “A Day’s Wait” by Ernest Hemingway, a son does not communicate his fear of dying to his father. 
3. Bridge: Set up information that your reader needs to know to understand your thesis.
-- The son, Schatz, is ill with a fever and mistakenly believes that he is going to die. His father tries to comfort and care for him but cannot because he doesn't know what it is truly wrong with his son.
4. Thesis: what your body paragraph will discuss
-- The man versus man conflict in a day’s wait is evident in the lack of communication between Schatz and his father.

BODY FORM & EXAMPLE

  I. Topic Sentence

The man v. man conflict begins when Schatz puts on a mask of toughness.

  II. Main Idea

He doesn’t communicate with his father, and so his father cannot help him.

  III. Evidence

Schatz says he is “all right” when his father tells him he should go to bed. He also says “You don’t have to stay in here with me, Papa, if it bothers you.”  

  IV. Explanation/Wrap Up

  Schatz is terrified that he will die and doesn’t want his father to see. However, Schatz’s father is completely clueless. Because he doesn’t know how scared Schatz is, the father goes hunting instead of comforting his son. Schatz’s conflict with his dad is an example of man versus man conflict and a result of their lack of communication. 

CONCLUSION FORM & EXAMPLE

•1. Connect with your Attention Getter

–No matter how much parent’s care for their children and how much children love their parents, it is not always possible to avoid conflict.

•2. Restate your thesis

–The man versus man conflict in “A Day’s Wait” is clearly shown in the relationship between Schatz and his dad because of their lack of communication. However, their conflict is resolved by the end of the story.

•3. Say something to make your reader think

–“A Day’s Wait” makes readers question the effects of what is not said. 

STUDENT-GENERATED DIALECTICAL

"When I put my hand on his forehead I knew he had a fever. 'You go up to bed…you’re sick.' 'I’m all right.'"		Right away the reader sees Schatz put up a brave front. Even though his father can see undoubtedly that his son is sick, Schatz plays it off like it’s no big deal.
"He lay still in the bed and seemed very detached from what was going on."		Schatz is removing himself from his world to make it easier for him to appear brave. Maybe Schatz is also thinking very deeply about the mistaken belief that he will die.
“'You don’t have to stay in here with me, Papa, if it bothers you.'”		Again, the reader sees Schatz is determined to remain brave. He tells his father twice that he doesn’t have to stay here if it bothers him, meaning watching his son die. Schatz is offering his father the chance to avoid witnessing this tragic event and that he is strong enough to go through it on his own.
The father goes out hunting while his son is sick in bed.		The father is unconcerned with Schatz's illness, but he also does not realize that Schatz's believes he will die.
“'You can’t come in…you mustn’t get what I have.'”		Evidence again supporting the idea that Schatz is protecting his family and trying to be a man.
“'Take this with water.' 'Do you think it will do any good?'”		This is a pivotal part in understanding Schatz’s character. Here the reader sees that Schatz feels that his symptoms are incurable and his actions have been driven by that idea.
“'About what time do you think I’m going to die...At school in France the boys told me you can’t live with forty-four degrees.'”		The reader discovers what Schatz has been thinking all day long and what has been motivating him from the start. The thought that he is going to die has driven Schatz to act the way he has.
“'…You aren’t going to die. That’s a different thermometer. On that thermometer thirty-seven is normal. On this kind it’s ninety-eight'…The hold over himself relaxed too, finally, and the next day it was very slack and he cried easily at little things that were of no importance."		The moment Schatz realizes his mistake and that he is not going to die, his demeanor changes and he lets his guard down. The “hold” over him is gone and his body and mind become overtaken by emotion. Schatz goes from being the strong one to being the weakest.