Caged+Bird+essay

//I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings// in-class essay Name ________________________

Maya Angelou was a powerful woman who led an amazing life. She wrote about how the people in her life got her through the bad times and taught her how to deal with the good times. How did she learn these lessons? Who taught them? Did people always know they were teaching her something? Make an **argument** about the kind of lessons Marguerite has learned from the different people in her life. Look at Marguerite’s relationships with two different characters. What has she learned from them? What events lead to that new understanding?
 * Use **evidence** (the character who led to Marguerite learning this lesson).
 * **Analyze** what happened. How did this event lead to this lesson? What did Marguerite figure out?

v ** Total ** || Outline:
 * || v **Introduction** ||
 * /3 pts. || Opening sentence – include the title of the book and the author’s name ||
 * /3 pts. || Make an **argument** about the kind of lessons Marguerite has learned from different people in her life. This is your thesis. (Thesis = topic + opinion) ||
 * || v **Body paragraph #1** – First character ||
 * /3 pts. || Name of character and the lesson they taught Marguerite. (supports thesis) ||
 * /3 pts. || **Context** for the event you’re using in the paragraph. ||
 * /3 pts. || **Evidence**: Event in the story that led to this lesson. ||
 * /3 pts. || **Analyze** why this event led to the lesson. Why did Marguerite learn this now? ||
 * || v **Body paragraph #2** – Second character ||
 * /3 pts. || Transition phrase leading to the next topic. ||
 * /3 pts. || Name of character and the lesson they taught Marguerite. (supports thesis) ||
 * /3 pts. || **Context** for the event you’re using in the paragraph. ||
 * /3 pts. || **Evidence**: Event in the story that led to this lesson. ||
 * /3 pts. || **Analyze** why this event led to the lesson. Why did Marguerite learn this now? ||
 * || v **Conclusion** ||
 * /3 pts. || Start by restating your thesis ||
 * /3 pts. || So what? Explain why this is an important idea outside the story ||
 * || v **Writing** ||
 * /3 pts. || Heading, font, double spaced ||
 * /3 pts. || Spelling, punctuation, sentence structure ||
 * ** /45 ** ||
 * || v **Writing** ||
 * /3 pts. || Heading, font, double spaced ||
 * /3 pts. || Spelling, punctuation, sentence structure ||
 * ** /45 ** ||

Intro: 1st body ¶ 2nd body ¶ Conclusion
 * Opening
 * Thesis = topic + opinion
 * Topic sentence – character
 * Context
 * Event
 * Lesson learned and why
 * Transition phrase
 * Topic sentence – character
 * Context
 * Event
 * Lesson learned and why
 * Restate thesis
 * Why is this important?