1. How does the art of rhetoric make speeches captivating?
2.24

2. LT & Agenda As a litterateur, I can: Agenda: LT/Energizer/HW Sarah Kay
Define the categories of sentences lengths and sentence structures
Analyze how John F. Kennedy uses syntax in their speeches.
Agenda:
LT/Energizer/HW
Sarah Kay
Sentence Lengths
Sentence Structures
JFK – Inaugural Address
Posters
Homework – Revise Speech

3. Entering the Classroom
I expect you to be ready to begin class when the bell rings. To this end, please:
grab your Springboard book from the shelf.
Take out a writing utensil and your Energizer notebook
Please put away any electronic devices.

4. In your Energizer Notebook…
Record today’s learning target – As a litterateur, I can:
Define the categories of sentences lengths, sentence structures, and order
Analyze how John F. Kennedy uses syntax in his speech.
Homework: revised 3-5 sentences in your rough draft
And answer today’s Energizer:
What is the difference between sentence length and sentence structure? #dyb
Highlight your best sentence in the rough draft of your speech.

5. There are four types of sentence lengths:
Telegraphic: sentence is shorter than 5 words
Short: sentence is approximately 5 words in length
Medium: sentence is approximately 18 words in length
Long: sentence is 30 words or more in length #onesentencetorulethemall

6. Which is which?
Work with your partner to decide what category of sentence length the following are a part of:
“I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!”
“So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself – nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”
“Suffer not yourselves to be betrayed with a kiss.”
“But let us begin.”

7. But why?
Turn to your partner and discuss:
What do speakers like Houston Kraft, Mike Smith, Get Lit, and Sarah Kay serve to gain by employing sentence lengths as a tool in their speeches?
What does sentence length do to the audience?

8. Sentence Types, Round One
Type one: Simple
One thought
Sentence is about one thing
That one thing has a verb or verbs (action) only connected to it
Example
Stories entertain.
Stories and riddles entertain.
Stories entertain and amuse.
Type two: Compound
Two – many thoughts
Sentence is about at least two things
Multiple verbs
Example
Stories entertain, and riddles amuse.
Few animals live in China’s plains; in remoter areas wildlife is abundant.

9. “Bachelor No. 3 was my father.” “My mother reluctantly obeyed.”
Simple or Compound?
“…I had never thought of my mother as an embarrassment, but the sight of all the kids in school staring at us before the bell rang was enough to make me pretend I didn’t know her.”
“Bachelor No. 3 was my father.”
“My mother reluctantly obeyed.”
“The bell finally rang and it was time for us to leave.”
From “Funny in Farsi by Firoozeh Dumass

10. Round Two: Complex and Compound-Complex Sentences
Type three: Complex
One thought
Another thought (or thoughts) that connect (or depend) on that one
One part doesn’t make sense without the other part
Example:
I like Cassandra Clare’s stories, because they have compelling characters.
Type four: Compound- Complex
Multiple thoughts
At least one connected (or dependent) thought
Example
Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein, and her story remains famous because people are fascinated with it.

11. Complex or Compound-Complex?
“Reluctantly, I obeyed, yet wondered why all of a sudden I had to take a bath.”
“traditional adobe houses are covered with mud, but modern adobe homes are sometimes covered with a plasterlike material that is called stucco.”
“The blocks bake in the sun for about two weeks, and the result is strong adobe brick that can be used for construction.”
“I sat frozen in the bathtub, not knowing what to do.”
From Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane and Strasser’s Mom’s Writing Textbook

12. Sentence Order: Cumulative, Periodic, and Balanced
This type of sentence makes complete sense if brought to a close before the actual ending; part of the sentence makes sense without the other.
EX: We reached New York that morning after a turbulent flight and some exciting experiences, tired but exhausted, full of stories to tell our friends and neighbors.
Periodic
This type of sentence makes sense fully ONLY when the end of the sentence is reached.
EX: That morning, after a turbulent flight and some exciting experiences, we reached New York.
Balanced
The phrases and clauses in this type of sentence balance each other by virtue of their likeness of structure, meaning, or length.
EX: “He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters.”

13. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address
As you listen:
T2T for Kennedy’s use of syntax (length and structure)

14. Kennedy’s Syntax
Work with your group to create a poster with the following information:
Title with your assigned Sentence Structure
An example of your assigned syntactic structure from Kennedy’s address
Analysis of sentence – length (T, S, M, L) and order (C, P, or B)
Its effect on the audience
Your opinion about how to vocally deliver it (pause point, increase/decrease pace, increase/decrease volume, speed)

15. Exit Slip
What’s the difference between sentence length, sentence structure, and sentence order?
What’s the effect of Kennedy’s use of syntax in his Inaugural Address?
Which aspect of syntax (sentence length, structure, and order) do you think will be easiest for you to implement in your speech? Hardest?
How’d you do with today’s learning of defining syntax and analyzing Kennedy’s use of syntax in his speech?
1 = not good. Today didn’t work for me.
5 = fine. I got it, but it’s still a bit fuzzy.
10 = great. All this makes total sense to me.