1. The Color of Water By James Mcbride
Notes, Guided Reading Activities & Resources

2. The color of water: Notes
Understanding the author’s deliberate choices in how he has presented his autobiography
He tells his life story in juxtaposition (side-by- side comparison) to his mother’s

3. Memoir
A collection of short, personal “vignettes” highlighting important experiences to illustrate a critical period in the author’s life;
provides highlights or snapshots
Characterized by Use of literary devices such as metaphors, hyperbole

4. A historical account of the author’s life as told by him or her;
Autobiography
A historical account of the author’s life as told by him or her;
Tends to be practical delivery of verifiable facts
Characterized by language that is more formal and less “artistic”

5. Narrative
A single scene from the author’s life which clearly illustrates his or her character;
Characterized by Rich, imagery-laden, descriptive writing

6. Pre-Reading Mini CRJ
Read the prologue; use evidence from the text to write a CRJ on ONE (1) of the following questions raised by the introduction:
What predictions can you make about the content of this text?
What inferences can you draw about the author’s purpose for writing?
How would you evaluate mcbride’s relationship with his mother?
Use clear evidence from the text of this short introduction to support your claim

7. Reading a Narrative: “The Chase”
Read Annie Dillard’s “The Chase” twice:
The first time, you should just read the text–
consider the author’s purpose for choosing this specific incident to illustrate her childhood. What is she telling you about her self (then as well as now) with this narrative
The second time you read the text, you’ll be looking for the prepositional phrases. Identify them by underlining, Circling, or highlighting them.
Consider what is left when you’ve eliminated the prepositional phrases
Also, consider the author’s purpose for including so many prepositional phrases in her narrative

8. To Be, or not To Be… -That is the infinitive Verb Phrase!

9. The Infinitive Verb Phrase:
Infinitive verb phrases ARE NEITHER VERBS NOR ARE THEY PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES. They act as nouns, adjectives, & adverbs.
TO + Action Verb = Infinitive Verb Phrase (and not a verb or preposition)
Prepositional phrases contain a preposition + a direct object (noun)
How will you know you’re dealing with an infinitive and not a verb? Remember to look for the “to” before the action.
How do you know it’s an infinitive and not a prepositional phrase? If there’s a verb immediately following, then it’s not a direct object

10. “The Chase”: Collaborative Learning
Appoint roles (Scribe, Reporter, facilitator)
All members are responsible:
Share the prepositional phrases you identified in the text
come up with a final tally for your group
In a single document, your group will answer the questions at the end under the heading “Journal Writing” & “Questions on meaning” (addresses the author’s purpose)

11. Amy Tan’s Narrative, “Fish Cheeks”
Part I: (on your own, when you’ve finished the quiz)
Identify the prepositional phrases in the text. (highlight, underline, or circle).
Tally up your results
HINT: There are over 50 in the essay
Watch for infinitive verb phrases: “to” + verb = infinitive verb phrase and not a prepositional phrase

12. Narrative Style: Connecting with the text
On your own, Think of an occasion when, for whatever reason, you were acutely aware of being different, or not necessarily fitting in:
Briefly describe the circumstances of the situation
How did you react?
Did you try to hide your difference in order to fit in, or did you revel in your uniqueness?

13. Think-PAIR-SHARE: Narrative Style
Part II (With a partner)
Think about paragraph 3- why does tan linger over the descriptions of the food?
What is Tan’s purpose in writing this essay? Does she just want to entertain readers, or might she have a “weightier” goal? Be prepared to defend your response

14. Characterization:
Characters are primarily described by his or her speech, actions, thoughts and to a lesser extent, their effect on others
Personal practice:
Think carefully before deliberately selecting three (3) of the best descriptive adjectives to characterize:
You
Each of your colleagues in your collaborative learning groups
you should have six-Nine adjectives total– three for each of you

15. Practice: Discuss and deliberately select 2-3 adjectives to best characterize our narrators
Guarded
Strong
Cold-hearted
Emotionally-tough
Courageous
Secretive
Over-protective
Brave
Independent
Isolated
Religious
Competitive
Mysterious
Admirable
strict

16. Practice: Discuss and deliberately select 2-3 adjectives to best characterize our narrators: Ruth
Skillful
Secretive
Discreet
Hardworking
Open-minded
Depressed
Closed
Transparent
Stubborn
determined
Wise
Independent
Messy
Serious
Dedicated
Defensive
In-love
Strict
Caring
Strong
Tough
MYSTERIOUS

17. James CONFUSED REBEL CURIOUS WISE SMART DYNAMIC AFFECTIONATE NAÏVE
SENSITIVE PROUD CREATIVE DECRIPTIVE INDEPENDNT CARING DIFFERENT DEPRESSED PASSIVE WONDERING LOST WANDERING DETERMINED COMPLICATED
CONFUSED
REBEL
CURIOUS
WISE
SMART
DYNAMIC
AFFECTIONATE
NAÏVE
SELF-PERSERVING
TOUGH
INSECURE
TALENTED
James

18. James Competitive Curious Compassionate Attentive Intelligent Confused
Open-minded
Conflicted
Determined
conscientious

19. Conscientiously select 2-3 adjective describing characters from The Color of Water
Tateh
Mameh
Andrew “Dennis” mcbride
Richie
Helen
Francis
“Jack”
Dee dee
Dennis Jr.
Big Richard
Hunter Jordan

20. Conscientiously select 2-3 adjective describing characters from The Color of Water
Tateh (Zach)
Mameh (Carlos)
Andrew “Dennis” mcbride (Saja)
Richie (snober)
Helen (Kerah)
Francis
“Jack”
Dee dee (Miguel)
Dennis Jr.
Big Richard
Hunter Jordan (Jordan)

21. Characterizations
Conscientiously select 2-3 adjective describing THE character YOUR GROUP HAS from The Color of Water
With your group, identify evidence from the text to act your definitive support each descriptive adjective.
Cite the page # & a faithful transcription of the text
your group will present your analysis (considering inferences, social relevance, consequences for peripheral characters) to the class

22. Ruth and Her Children

23. Literary Devices Tone Diction Syntax
Deliberate word choice of an author
Relies on audience’s inference toward connotation vs. denotative meaning of words
the deliberate arrangement of words in a sentence or group of sentences to set an intentional mood or tone or to place emphasize specific ideas
The feeling or mood created by the author’s choice of diction, syntax, punctuation, literary devices and what information is conveyed in a piece of writing

24. Examples Diction Syntax Tone Examples:
House vs. Home, Thoughtful vs. Dreamer, Manipulative vs. persuasive
Example: “My mother was very secretive about her past because it was so painful for her.”
Vs. “Because it was so painful for her, my mother was very secretive about her past”
Example: Consider greeting cards
how is the tone of a birthday card different a condolence card? Or consider the difference between a congratulatory card vs. a birthday card.
Mother’s day cards vs. Halloween cards
What about the role of punctuation?
Homework
Homework…
Homework?
homework!
Homework?!

25. More Literary Devices Imagery Figurative Language
Descriptive language deliberately selected by an author to illustrate an image in the mind of the reader
Similes and metaphors make comparisons between ideas.
Symbolism emphasizes & elaborates on a specific idea, often reappearing throughout the text

26. 1st period Practice: Think-Pair-Share
(4 mins) On your own, Read the final line on page 91 all the way until the end of the first paragraph on page 96.
(5 mins) With an elbow partner,
identify specific literary devices (including Imagery and Figurative language) in this selection and
Determine the tone of this passage
(7 mins) Be prepared to defend your selections and reasons to the class

27. 4th period annotation Practice
(4 mins) On your own, begin Reading from the first full paragraph on page 90 all the way until bottom of page 95.
As you read, Consider literary elements such as Tone & figurative language (similes, metaphors, personification, symbolism)

28. Annotation gallery walk
(3-4 mins per page of text = 12 minutes total)
With the members of your group, Annotate each of the pages mounted to posters by identify specific literary devices (including Imagery and Figurative language) in this selection as well as tone, diction, and syntax
Rotate until all six pages have been annotated
(7 mins) share out findings with the whole class

29. Cooperative Learning Groups
With your assigned groups, determine explore the text to find examples of literary devices we discussed in class.
Assign roles:
Facilitator: Keeps the group focused, motivated and on-task, effectively and efficiently manages Time
Recorder/Reporter: Documents common response for the group
Researcher: Uses the text and all other available resources to conduct necessary research to help develop the most thoughtful response to each prompt for the group

30. Tone: Narrator
Explore the language (consider diction & syntax) used as each of the two narrators tells his or her story
What are some notable differences can you detect in way ruth and james each tells his or her story?
Consider the role of a narrator: How does Point of View impact the tone of the piece and audience’s perception of events?

31. Point-of-view
What role does point-of-view play in interpreting the text?
Consider the perspective of each of the narrators– how would the story be different if told from Richie or helen’s point of view?
Why didn’t James choose to include his siblings’ perspective in this story?

32. Figurative Language:
Find (3) THREE examples in the text illustrating McBride’s use of similes, metaphors, imagery, symbols, hyperbole, and/or personification.
Please note, Each example you find should illustrate a different element of figurative language
For each example you’ve selected, describe the effect it has on the reader

33. Themes:
AN obvious theme for this text is the search for identity, as James and Ruth both share his and her own struggle with establishing a sense of self-worth and value.
What are some of the major themes, or reoccurring ideas in the text?

34. Tone:
What is the tone of the piece? Be prepared to defend your explanation with significant examples from the text.