About the Author: Nikki Grimes Born on October 20th, 1950 in Harlem, New York Began writing verse at the age of six Honors: NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English) Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children 2003 Coretta Scott King Author Award 2011 Horace Mann Upstanders Award

Grimes on Reading and Writing “I love language. Language is phenomenal. I have always been fascinated that one word can mean many different things. I love the challenge of painting a story in as few words as possible. I’m also a very direct person and poetry is a no-nonsense genre.” “Keep in mind that every good writer is a good reader. The quality of your writing will always reflect the quality of your reader.” “I was bounced around a lot. I didn’t grow up in a home where I had my own books. My reading was dependent on the library. I read ravenously.” “I love that poetry can make a beeline for the heart.”

Bronx Masquerade Setting: Bronx, New York Nikki Grimes, herself, went to William Howard Taft High School, the setting for Bronx Masquerade

Text to World Connections Langston Hughes Born: 2/1/1902 in Joplin, Missouri Died: 5/22/1967 in New York, New York Who was he? Hughes was poet, social activist , novelist, playwright and columnist. Langston Hughes -" I, Too, Sing America"

Take a few minutes to paraphrase each stanza within your group.

Text to World Connection Part 2 Harlem Renaissance What is it? Location: In the New York neighborhood of Manhattan, New York A time period when the American black community sparked a movement that nurtured a cultural identity through all art forms When was it? Throughout the 1920s and 1930s https://youtu.be/90PTxdsqfsA

Bronx Masquerade Grimes states on her website that “Bronx Masquerade is a novel written in 18 voices. It follows a classroom of high school students over the course of a year, exploring who they are behind the masks they wear, and using poetry to do it.” What types of conflicts do you predict will occur in the book?

Topic Teasers…Do you have a Text to Self Connection? Acceptance Stereotyping Quality of Friendship Growing Up Text to World Connection--the line game https://youtu.be/muKSaNFYL60

You have 5 minutes to write a journal entry that answers these three questions on a blank sheet of paper. Be sure to write in pen. DO NOT USE YOUR JOURNAL. Who do people think you are? Who are you really? Why do you hide this?

Snowball Activity Rules Crumble the paper into a ball. Then, toss the ball into the crate in the middle of the room. Once finished, pick up a “snowball” from the crate. Silently read the journal to yourself. After reading the journal entry, crumble the paper back into a “snowball.” **Do NOT throw or aim a “snowball” at a person.**

Reflect Did anything surprise you? What did you learn from reading your classmates’ journals? How did it affect you? Can you relate?

Diego Rivera Mexican painter Created murals and frescos between the years of 1922-1954 that started a movement in Mexico. https://youtu.be/nB89CIyFs9o

Zorro A masked fictional character who is a disguised as a wealthy Spanish man He is constantly fighting the wealthy tyrants of the society and defending the common people. Insert zorro video clip https://youtu.be/kkJbTOf1yLw

Post Secret What is it? In January 2004, Frank Warren asked people to “free their secrets and become who they are.” People then wrote their secrets on postcards and mailed them to his address. He has compiled numerous books with the secrets.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajE Np9nVO_k&feature=related

Post Secret Use the post it provided to write your own “post secret.” Remember that these are completely anonymous; however, if your hand writing is easily identifiable, you may want to disguise it as best as you can. Once you are finished, please bring it to me. At the start of class tomorrow, I will have these posted for you to read.

Ticket Out Using complete sentences, answer this question on the slip provided: Why do you think Nikki Grimes named her book Bronx Masquerade?

Fan-made Book Trailer https://youtu.be/Y9QmctqFT6g