Independent Novel Study

ASSIGNMENT 4: FORUM: Be Your Novel's Critic

Learning Target (Curricular Competencies):

  • Construct meaningful personal connections between self, text, and world
  • Respond to text in personal, creative, and critical ways
  • Respectfully exchange ideas and viewpoints from diverse perspectives to build shared understanding and extend thinking

Task:

A FORUM is a place where your peers will be able to read and respond to your SUMMARY/CRITIQUE of the novel.You will complete the FORUM/DISCUSSION after you have finished reading the novel.

There are TWO activities in a FORUM:

    1. Go to the main page of the course and click on 5.4 Forum:  Be Your Novel's Critic.  Start a new discussion topic by clicking on Add a New Discussion Topic.
      • SUMMARIZE the novel you read in 100 - 200 words.  CRITIQUE the novel.  Write an entry that will start a discussion about the novel. You DON'T want to give away the ending, but you do want to discuss the merits of the novel and question any aspects of the novel you found puzzling or incongruous or that reminded you of real-life issues.
    2. Reply/Respond to someone else's discussion topic by clicking on their topic and selecting Reply.  Your response should provide an analysis of the discussion in the post and some original ideas. Try using the following prompts to guide your response to another post.  "I wonder…"  "I know…"  "I can…"  Don't just agree or disagree.

Assessment:  Below you will find the exemplary criteria used to assess the assignment.  

Learning Target: (Exemplary 6/6): Exemplary comprehension of the task and clear accomplishment of the objective. The summary demonstrates exemplary understanding of the novel.  The critique/discussion starter is exceptionally thought-provoking and reflects higher level thinking.  Content is clear, concise, and original and makes insightful connections between self and text.  Student demonstrates exemplary active reading skills to comprehend and respond to text in personal, creative, and critical ways.  

Response/Reply:  Exemplary (6/6):  The response/reply is thoughtful, insightful and respectfully exchanges ideas and viewpoints.  Student demonstrates an exceptional level of understanding and communication of shared information.

Submission:

Use the "5.4 FORUM:  Be Your Novel's Critic" link on the main page of this section of the course to to post your forum response to your teacher for marking.