Grade 8: Literature Students Present Spring Projects
Students in Jane Maslanka’s English class have worked since spring break to read selected novels, analyze content and themes, and create self-designed projects that demonstrated their understanding. Similar to the culminating projects following the Civil Rights trip, the results of this assignment were creative and original.
Students in Jane Maslanka’s English class have worked since spring break to read selected novels, analyze content and themes, and create self-designed projects that demonstrated their understanding. Similar to the culminating projects following the Civil Rights trip, the results of this assignment were creative and original.
“All three of the book choices are memoirs, and share the story of coming of age under persecution,” explains Jane. “They were read after, and in comparison to, Elie Wiesel's Holocaust memoir, Night.”
Matthew Nekritz read Persepolis, an autobiographical graphic novel by Marjane Satrapi. His collage reflected the visual style of the novel and showed the self-discovery of the main character, a Muslim girl coming of age in Iran. “The theme can be summed up with the line, ‘I am more than just Muslim,’” said Matthew.
Kate Frankmore read I am Malala, the story of women’s rights activist Mahala Yousafzai. Kate created a timeline of significant events in the young woman’s life, hitting on themes like family, education, and the fight between good and evil. “Her life is a symbol of standing against the bad in the world,” shared Kate.
Joey Waldbaum chose to present his project as a series of six shadow boxes depicting the stages of a Japanese-American woman’s life. The book he chose, Nisei Daughter, described the character’s challenge of integrating cultures in America during the 1930s and the effects of internment in the 1940s after the start of World War II.
The assignment also involved keeping a journal documenting progress toward the objective. Journals recorded thoughts, reflections, ideas about the themes and the creative process. Presentations wrapped up early this week and students have moved on to a study of Shakespeare.
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Graland Country Day School is a private school in Denver, Colorado, serving students in preschool, kindergarten, elementary, and middle school. Founded in Denver in 1927, Graland incorporates a rich, experiential learning approach in a traditional classroom setting, emphasizing the development of globally and socially conscious leaders who excel academically.
