Kurt Vonnegut at the Blackboard. Voices in Time I want to share with you something I’ve learned. I’ll draw it on the blackboard behind me so you can follow more easily [draws a vertical line on the blackboard]. This is the G-I axis: good fortune-ill fortune. Death and terrible poverty, sickness down here—great prosperity, wonderful health up there. This is the B-E axis. Now let me give you a marketing tip. Another is called “Boy Meets Girl,” but this needn’t be about a boy meeting a girl [begins drawing line B].
Now, I don’t mean to intimidate you, but after being a chemist as an undergraduate at Cornell, after the war I went to the University of Chicago and studied anthropology, and eventually I took a masters degree in that field. One of the most popular stories ever told starts down here [begins line C below B-E axis]. There’s to be a party at the palace. And when she shows up she’s the belle of the ball [draws line upward].
Now there’s a Franz Kafka story [begins line D toward bottom of G-I axis]. Journal of the Short Story in English - Les Cahiers de la nouvelle. The Big Read | National Endowment for the Arts. Homepage. Rest in peace, dead words! Learning outcomes Students will: become familiar with and the use of a thesaurus. understand the concept of a synonym. work cooperatively within groups. increase vocabulary. utilize a word bank/wall. improve writing skills. Teacher planning Time required for lesson 2 hours Materials/resources Thesauruses Two sample papers, one with “Dead Words” and the same paper with the “Dead Words” replaced.
Pre-activities Review by discussing what synonyms are and allow students to provide examples. Activities Day 1 Place students in groups of no more than 4 or 5 and distribute thesauruses. Day 2 Before students arrive, arrange tombstones in various places around the room. Synonym Scavenger Hunt/Follow-up Activity Bring a stack of 20 to 30 narrative picture books to class. Assessment Students will demonstrate: visible use of improved vocabulary within writing samples. vivid descriptions used in writing samples.
Supplemental information Comments.