1. Today’s Objective”
Read “Growing Up Asian in America” by Kesaya E. Noda and view a comic strip in order to analyze structure as it relates to the author’s purpose and aesthetic beauty to explore the author’s portrayal of the American experience.
RL.11.5

2. Respond to the Following Prompt:
If you were asked to write your story about what it means to grow up in america, which genre would you use? (poem, short story, essay, novel, play, song, movie)
Why would you choose this format? (What is it about that format that makes your story more impactful?)

3. Discussion: In groups, discuss the following:
What would you title your story?
Why did you choose that specific structure?
What is the most important element of your “Growing Up American” story?
Consider: How could you make your story resonate with the reader?

4. Transition:
Choose one of the following pieces of classical music or artwork:
Chopin’s Waltz #1 in D flat Major Chopin
Van Gogh’s Starry Night Starry Night
DaVinci’s Mona Lisa Mona Lisa
Rodin’s The Thinker The Thinker
Why might someone think the piece you chose is beautiful? Al

5. What does the phrase “aesthetic impact” mean?
aes·thet·ic [esˈTHedik]
ADJECTIVE
concerned with beauty or the appreciation of beauty:
"the pictures give great aesthetic pleasure
How could the phrase “aesthetic impact” relate to evaluating literature?

6. Look at these line from famous literature:
Many people feel that these lines have aesthetic impact. Choose one of the lines below and explain Why some people might feel it is beautiful.
“What are men to rocks and mountains?” – Jane Austen Pride and Prejudice
“A dream, all a dream, that ends in nothing, and leaves the sleeper where he lay down, but I wish you to know that you inspired it.” —Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities
“Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.” – Emily Bronte, Wuthering Heights
“What matters in life is not what happens to you but what you remember and how you remember it.” –Gabriel Garcia Marquez A Hundred Years of Solitude
“You may write me down in history With your bitter, twisted lies, You may trod me in the very dirt But still, like dust, I'll rise.” – Maya Angelou, “Still I Rise”

7. Open Collections Text page 187:
Read the background on the author.
Read paragraphs 1 and 2.
As you read, consider the following questions:
What is the author’s purpose?
What is the main point of the essay?
How does this essay progress from beginning, middle to end?
How effective is the structure of this essay?

8. Use the “Analyze Structure” Resource Sheet
In pairs, choose one section of the text. (“I am racially Japanese”, “I am a Japanese American”, “I am a Japanese American woman”)
As you read your section, answer the questions on the table on the resource sheet and be prepared to share them with the class.
Click the Icon to access the Resource Sheet:
Ensure that all sections of the text are covered. Grouping can be done according to teacher discretion.

9. SHARE!
Each group will now share what they learned in their section of the text with the entire class.
Complete the chart as the other groups share.
Complete the general questions.

10. Transition… Consider Noda’s story of growing up Asian in America.
There are many stories of growing up American.
Many American television shows tell the story of “growing up in America”
What television shows tell a story of growing up in America?
Why does the story of growing up American continue to be told?

11. Formative assessment:
Read the Calvin and Hobbes Comic Strip.
As you read, consider how the author chooses to structure the strip.
Where does it begin?
How does it end?

12. Comic Strip for Formative Assessment
Your text here
Calvin and Hobbes Comic

13. Formative Assessment Questions:
How does this comic strip attempt to represent/portray the experience of growing up American? Consider what aspect(s) of young life is examined and what the author’s purpose is for that examination.
How does the structure of specific parts of the comic strip contribute to its overall meaning?
How does the structure of the comic strip contribute to its aesthetic impact?

14. homework Use the following sheet to complete the homework.
This homework is one of the preliminary activities to prepare students for the end of the unit PBA.
Click the Document to access your homework:

15. Homework Presentation
You will present your findings about your TV show that shows how the show’s plot, characters, setting, etc. describe growing up in America.