Shameless Plug: Teaching ACES

 Never fear, fellow teacher - your question of the day is just a scroll below!

Teaching ACES step-by-step

You are using these questions to help prepare your kids for the reading comprehension multiple choice questions, but do you have a solid plan for getting them to answer the constructed response section?  If not, consider below:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/XET-Teaching-ACES-for-Constructed-Responses-12163122

ACES provides a formula for students to think about when formatting a constructed response or short answer question. It is the basic structure for organized writing and is often used to set students up for larger works that will require thesis statements and paragraphs. It is also often used on state testing.

The poem "Ozymandias" is used to break down each component in each lesson.

Teaching this basic structure can be time consuming and irritating for both student and teacher. This pack aims to alleviate some of that stress on both by scaffolding the process and having students practice one element at a time, building upon previous lessons until all elements are mastered.  It can be done in a series of four days or less, if needed, but I prefer to teach this one day a week over four weeks.

After going through the example, students get a chance to practice each part ( lesson one is only A, lesson two is A and C, lesson three is A, C, and E, and the final lesson is A, C, E, and S.

The primary text is "Ozymandias" by Shelley and students will practice on each section using passages from "Fire and Ice" by Frost, The Four Loves by C. S. Lewis, Dune by Herbert, and Invisible Man by Ellison.

Each lesson has a student worksheet to let them practice with a small reading passage.

I created this last year for use with my inclusion class and it worked wonders.  It made it where they could grasp what we were asking for and by breaking it down into chunks, they were not overwhelmed.  I have an honors class this semester and will be using it with them as well.

The Stars and Stripes

Read the first stanza from "The Star Spangled Banner."

Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

According to this stanza, where is the flag?

a. flying proudly over the fort
b. flying proudly over the land of the free and the home of the brave
c. destroyed by a bomb that burst in mid air
d. the author doesn't know where the flag is




















Scroll down for the answer.




___________________
See that question mark at the end of the stanza?  The author is asking if the flag is still up.  Therefore the correct answer is d.


~

Somebody Saaaaaaave Me!

 Read this panel from Amazing Spider-Man #162

In this issue, what literary device was writer Len Wein using for (what he thought) was a humorous effect?

a. onomatopoeia
b. visual imagery
c. graphic contrast
d. allusion












Scroll down for the answer.



______________________
a., b., and c. are incorrect.  While all three of these literary devices are used in this panel, none of them drive the humor.  Make sure the answer fits ALL of the question.  A partially wrong answer is a completely wrong answer.
d. is correct since it is a take off on the old Superman cartoons where he would often say, this looks like a job for....(take of glasses, rip off shirt, and say in a deeper voice) SUPERMAN!
Bonus points to anyone who knows what the title is an allusion to.

What's Sacred to You?

Read this excerpt from All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Remarque:

"Good God, what is there that is sacred to me?- such things change pretty quickly with us."


What is this passage an example of?

a) allusion
b) tone
c) metaphor
d) external conflict














Scroll down for the answer.

________________________________

a) allusion isn't the answer because nothing famous is referred to
b) Tone is the answer because the character's response is very disillusioned and depressed
c) metaphor isn't the answer because you aren't comparing one thing to another
d) external conflict isn't the answer because the two characters aren't in conflict here



Thanks to the ultra smart Miranda from Mrs. Stamey's class for this question.  Based on the quality of this question, I'm sure she is a die hard Carolina fan!  Go Heels!

Yum!

When the cannibal showed up late for dinner, they gave him the cold shoulder.


The above is an example of:

a. dramatic irony
b. pun
c. irony
d. metaphor







Scroll down to see the answers








_____________________________________

The correct answer is b. pun since there is a play on the words "cold shoulder."

Caps for Sale

Read the following passage taken from the book Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina:

Once there was a peddler who sold caps. But he was not like an ordinary peddler carrying his wares on his back. He carried them on top of his head.

First he had on his own checked cap, 

then a bunch of gray caps, 

then a bunch of brown caps, 

then a bunch of blue caps, 

and on the very top a bunch of red caps.

He walked up and down the streets, holding himself very straight so as not to upset his caps. As he went along he called,

“Caps! Caps for sale! Fifty cents a cap!”

In the above passage, what does the word "upset" mean?

a. tip over
b. make someone sad or irritated
c. to stand straight up
d. to move fast




















Scroll down for the answer.
















_____________________
a. is the correct answer

b. is incorrect - you didn't read, did you?  Whenever the EOC asks you what a word means and it seems to be an easy word - watch out.  Many easy words have multiple meanings.

Did You Ever Think as a Hearse Goes by....

 Read the following passage from Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman and answer the question:

Mr. Vandemar, on the other hand, simply walked. It was too consistent, too steady and inexorable a walk to be described as a stroll: Death walks like Mr. Vandemar.

Which literary device represents Death?

a. allusion
b. hyperbole
c. tone
d. personification

Scroll down for the answer.

________________


Answer: D - one of the clues that alerts the reader of personification is that sometimes the thing personified will be capitalized (like Death here).  This is not always the case, but when you see something like Death or Time capitalized, then think personification.

Thanks to Ms. Parsons for this question!  I was trying to come up with some clever thing to say about Death and her class, but nothing really seemed to work (they were all either cheesy, morbid, or both), so... :(

Polar Night

 Read the following passage from "Polar Night" by Norah Burke. The story is about a female polar bear who is getting ready for winter. At this point in the story, she has just killed a seal and heard a noise. She hid and this is what happens next:

Presently she saw upright seals coming along the shore. They were rather rare creatures, these, and dangerous for all they were so weak. The places they lived had light and noise, and smelled of good food. The she-bear often drew near the places, attracted by those smells. She hunted these land-seals too, and ate them when she could. They were not like the sea-seals, though. They wore seal fur, and their skins were rubbed with seal blubber, but there was a different taste inside.

Based on this passage, the term "land-seal" probably means:

a. sea lions
b. leopard seals
c. some unknown animals
d. humans







Scroll down for the answer...





_____________________

The correct answer is d. humans.  We get this because these creatures have lights and are dangerous.  The only creatures to create light that can also be a threat to polar bears are humans.  The fact that they are referred to as "seals" in any capacity comes from the fact that the perspective is from a bear who does not understand everything.  

Leaks

Look at this ad found in the restroom at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh:

What literary term is being used in this ad to draw attention and help viewers remember it later when they may need these services?

A. situational irony

B. rhetorical device

C. hyperbole

D. pun

Scroll down for the answer.

_______________________________________________________

Humor is subjective, but also quite effective in helping readers/viewers remember something they saw.  For advertising, remembering the product or service is essential.  This ad is using bathroom humor (in the bathroom, naturally) to stick with the reader.  That most likely narrows it down to a. situational irony or d. pun (though neither of these are required to be humorous).  In this case, the joke is the play on the word "leaks", so d. pun is the correct answer.

What? What?

 Look at this cartoon strip:

What is most likely the word that was blanked out in the last panel?

a. something profane
b. "bingo"
c. "irony"
d. no word was there, just ". . ."








Scroll down for the answer.





________________________
O.K., this shouldn't have been too hard.  Let's stop and think.  A teacher is putting this up, so chances are that he is not going to put something profane on the site.  So we can rule out A.  Irony is something unexpected and it would be unexpected that an irony detector detects everything but irony, so C. is a good answer.  While it might look as if he is repeating her last word, "Bingo" makes no sense, so we can rule out B.  D. would only work if the cartoonist was expecting you to figure out the joke, so it might could work.  So we have b, which works, and d, which might would work.  Always go with the sure thing.  C. is the correct answer.

Never...Where?

 Read this passage from Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman and answer the question.

"It's a bit small," said the woman.

"Compact," corrected the camel-hair coat, smoothly. "Easy to take care of."

Based on context clues provided in the passage, which word best describes the meaning of the word compact?

a. spacious

b. decorous

c. tight

d. abundant

Scroll down for the answer.

_______________

Correct Answer: C. 

Thanks to Ms. Parsons for this question!  I have it on good authority from one of her students whose first name starts with the letter S that Ms. Parsons is the best teacher in all of East Duplin High!

I Still Want the Running Man Home Edition Board Game

 Read this passage from The Running Man by Richard Bachman:

    "Oh dear God," Amelia Williams moaned.

    Richards looked down at himself casually.  His entire right side, from ribcage to calf, was bright and sparkling red.

    "Who would have thought the old man had so much blood in him?" Richards said.

What literary term is the last line said by Richards?

a. allusion

b. cliche

c. personification

d. metaphor

In reality, Richard Bachman turned out to be a pen name for Stephen King.

Scroll down for the answer.

__________________________

a. is the correct answer.  It is difficult to pick out allusions (this one came from Macbeth) if you have not read the text that is alluded to, so you probably would have to have ruled out the other answers to figure this one out.

b. a cliche is a worn out phrase.  Since you are probably not familiar with this line, you can rule out cliche.

c. and d. are literary terms you are probably familiar with.  There is no nonhuman thing getting human characteristics and there is no comparison, so they are clearly not the right answer.  

~

Take a shot at this one

 Look at the following image:

This is an example of which literary term?

a. pun
b. situational irony
c. metaphor
d. alliteration







Scroll down for the answer.







________________
The correct answer is:
   a. pun



See teachers, this is why you should consider creating some questions yourself or having your students do it as a project and send them to me.  Otherwise, you're in for a lot of these corny ones.  Fair warning.

A Fable

Read the following fable:

The Donkey and His Masters

  A donkey, belonging to an herb-seller who gave him too little food and too much work made a petition to Jupiter to be released from his present service and provided with another master. Jupiter, after warning him that he would repent his request, caused him to be sold to a tile-maker. Shortly afterwards, finding that he had heavier loads to carry and harder work in the brick-field, he petitioned for another change of master. Jupiter, telling him that it would be the last time that he could grant his request, ordained that he be sold to a tanner. The donkey found that he had fallen into worse hands, and noting his master's occupation, said, groaning: "It would have been better for me to have been either starved by the one, or to have been overworked by the other of my former masters, than to have been bought by my present owner, who will even after I am dead tan my hide, and make me useful to him."


The best lesson of this story is:

a. He that finds discontentment in one place is not likely to find happiness in another.
b. Good can be found even in difficult times.
c. There is hope for those who wait patiently.
d. He who hesitates is lost.







Scroll down for the answer.







____________________________
a. is the correct answer.


~

The Martian - Makes No Sense

 Read the following excerpt from Andy Weir's novel The Martian.  The protagonist has been stranded on Mars and has been keeping a log of his thoughts and actions while stuck there.  This excerpt begins with NASA officials trying to figure out how to get him home and ends with one of the protagonist's log entries.

     "Any idea on how to keep him alive for four years?"
     "Nope."
     "Work on that, too."
     "Will do," Venkat said.
     Teddy swiveled his chair and looked out the window to the sky beyond.  Night was edging in.  "What must it be like?" he pondered.  "He's stuck out there.  He thinks he's totally alone and that we all gave up on him.  What kind of effect does that have on a man's psychology?"
     He turned back to Venkat.  "I wonder what he's thinking right now."

LOG ENTRY: SOL 61
     How come Aquaman can control whales?  They're mammals! Makes no sense.


What literary device is being used for humorous effect?

a. juxtaposition
b. allusion
c. pun
d. rhetorical device

Scroll down for the answer.








_________________________________________
a. is correct.  Juxtaposition is the placing of one scene right next to the other scene.  Here we follow up on a serious issue with a silly one for humorous effect.

Missing this question? That's a paddling.

Read the following quote from Anthem:

"The first blow of the lash felt as if our spine had been cut in two."

What is the quote and example of?


A: alliteration
B: metaphor
C: hyperbole
D: simile












Scroll down for the answer.

______________________________________
You can make a case for two answers here:
C: because the comparison could be construed as an exaggeration to show how much the lash hurt -or-
D: because he uses like or as to describe something that is something else.




Thanks to Meredith, Roslyn, Jarvis, and Aaron from Ms. Brooks class for this question!  I'm sure you guys never had to worry about a whipping, but it took quite a few of those to for me.  I had several teachers that had paddles in their room ready to apply the "Board of Education" to any student in need of learning.

What Has It Got in Its Pocketsess?

 View the picture below:

What two literary terms drive the humor in this image?

a. verbal irony and periphrasis
b. alliteration and dramatic irony
c. allusion and pun
d. archetypes and imagery






Scroll down for the answer.




______________________________
a. is incorrect - verbal irony requires that something is said.  Nobody talks in this picture.  
b. is incorrect.  While it does seem that there may be some dramatic irony going on, it really doesn't add to the humor.  Plus there is no alliteration whatsoever in this picture.
c. is correct!  It is an allusion to The Hobbit, obviously, but the humor comes in that it is also an allusion to the cartoon series Precious Moments. Allusions are difficult if you are not familiar with the source material being referenced, so you may need to rely on eliminating other answers that you know are incorrect and then choosing from the ones left.  The pun is the word precious, being used by both stories.
d. is incorrect, but is the best wrong answer.  There are archetypes in this picture, but they are not being used for humorous intent.

She's a Mankiller

 Read these panels from Marvel Team-Up #8 When Spider-Man teams up with Hellcat to fight the Mankiller:

Which line from the dialogue is an example of an allusion?

a. "You're willing to battle for the things you believe."

b. "I'm a regular Patrick Henry."

c. "Are we going to stand here yapping all night?"

d. "Because you're a loner, Spider-Man... an outcast."

Scroll down for the answer.

______________________________________________________

An allusion is a reference to another literary work or historical person/event.  These can be difficult to spot if you are not familiar with what is being alluded to.  In this case, Spider-Man is referring to famous American patriot, Patrick Henry ("Give me liberty or give me death!"), so the correct answer is B.