Reading Dialogue Journals

RDJ Due Dates:

Core 1- No RDJs due

Core 2- No RDJs due

Core 3- No RDJs due

Core 4- RDJ #12 is due Thursday, April 29th

RDJ #12 is the LAST RDJ of the school year. Students may still re-submit RDJ #10, #11, or #12 to earn back half of the points they missed until May 14th.

After May 14th, I will no longer accept re-submits of late or missing homework or RDJ re-dos.

Good example of character analysis from a student’s RDJ: The main character in my book is Percy Jackson. He is the protagonist. I can tell because he has heroic character traits such as bravery and honor. For example, on page 287 it he takes on a two-story tall monster to let his friends help each other fight. Percy is a round and dynamic character. Percy is a round character because you can see different traits in him. For example, he can be a good, kind person and then change into a ferocious fighter. In chapter 11, he protects Annabeth from other demigods.  Then on page 187 it says,”I was so mad, I imagined my eyes glowing just like the Minotaur’s”.  He also changes all throughout the story. At the beginning, he is confident that the half-bloods can beat the army. Then about half-way through the book, he is thinking about surrendering to Kronos (the villain). I can tell that Kronos is the villain because he has character traits such as ruthlessness and cunning.  Kronos is a flat and static character because he only shows his bad side and he never changes. He is always trying to kill Percy.  For example, on page 20, Kronos says,” We’ve been expecting you for days”.  Kronos had enough cunning to put a spy in the half-blood’s midst and get tons of information on Percy. He also has ruthlessness traits. Kronos won’t even let his body guards get near him (page 283).  The author did a very good job of developing the characters.

Student example of similes and metaphors in her book: In Dear John there are a lot of similes and metaphors.  I have picked out one simile and two metaphors. The simile I found was on page 325 and it read: “The realization left me feeling as empty as a paint can.”  This simile is comparing how empty John feels to the emptiness of a rusted paint can. The first metaphor I found was on page 258: “…ribbons of cigarette smoke drifted in the air.”  That is comparing ribbons and smoke from a cigarette. The other one I found was on page 321: “in the morning, I watched the sun come up, a golden marble emerging from the earth.”  This is comparing the sun rise to a golden marble coming from the earth.

Student example of mood and tone in their book: The tone was hopeful in this book. The author conveys hope when Jenna, the other main character is trapped and can’t seem to escape, but in the end she does escape because she never lost hope. On page 176 it says “Jenna tried the iron door. It was bolted but there was a small gap between the door and the wall, and Jenna wondered if she could push something through the gap and somehow undo the bolts. She looked around the cell but Simon had not been so considerate as to leave her a hacksaw…” This quote shows Jenna trying to think of a way out, but does not give up when one doesn’t work The mood of this book was exciting. The reader feels excited throughout the book because it has lots of action and other exciting moments in it. An example of this is on page 456 it says “Simon was not to be put off. He threw himself toward Septimus, only to discover that the Flyte Charm had developed an alarming bias to the right, and he was now heading strait for Spit Fyre’s nose. A dragons nose is a sensitive spot, especially on a young dragon, and Spit Fyre did not take kindly to being hit hard on it. Instinctively the dragon opened his mouth to take a big bite out of Simon, only to be overtaken by the most enormous sneeze.” This quote talks about a fight between Septimus and his dragon versus Simon.

RDJ #12 Topics: These are your RDJ topics for RDJ #12

• Personification: What examples of personification did the author use in your book? Why? How does figurative language help to create pictures in your mind? Remember to provide specific examples (page numbers AND quotations) to support your topic. Examples of personification (giving non-human things human qualities): “The wind whistled in my ear”, “The basketball danced on the rim”, “The ocean beat itself against the beach”.
• Direct and Indirect Characterization: How did the author use direct characterization to describe the characters in your book (remember, direct chracterization occurs when the author TELLS you about the character)? How did the author use indirect characterization to describe the characters (this is when the author SHOWS you about the character)? What did this tell you about the character? Why? Remember to give specific examples from your book that support your opinion (page numbers AND quotations).
• Tone and Mood: What is the tone of your book (how the author feels about the book)? What is the mood (how you feel about the book)? Why do you think the author created the tone that he/she did? How does the tone affect how you feel about the book? Give examples to support your opinion.
• Do NOT forget to discuss the genre of your book (science fiction, realistic fiction, fantasy, etc…).
• Do NOT forget to make a connection with your book: does your book remind you of another book or series you’ve read? Does the main character remind you of yourself, someone you know, an actor/actress, or a character from another book you’ve read? Does an event in the book remind you of an event that occurred in your own life, the life of someone you know, the life of a character from another book you’ve read, or something you saw on tv? Does the author write similar to another author you’ve read?)

RDJ #11 Topics:

• Similes and Metaphors
• Types of characters (flat/round, static/dynamic, protagonist/antagonist)

RDJ #10 Topics:

• Theme
• Making Inferences

Set up your igoogle account

RDJ Intro. Letter

RDJ Handout - For your RDJ, write about 1-4 of the topics under “How the Author Wrote”. Make sure you follow the RDJ rubric handed out in class!!

How to create your RDJ - Use this document to create your RDJ using Google Docs. It gives step-by-step directions to help you be successful when submitting your RDJ to me.

Good Examples of RDJs- Here are a few good examples of RDJs and a good example of how to make a connection between your book and another source (another book, author, character from another book, or yourself or someone you know).

 RDJ Rubric - This is how your child’s RDJ will be scored. Please refer to this rubric before submitting RDJs.

RDJ Planning Sheet - Use this graphic organizer to help plan out your RDJ.

RDJ Rotation- This is the schedule of RDJ due dates.

Please use your RDJ introduction letter or your RDJ handout for topic ideas and suggestions!

Your reading dialogue journals should be submitted via Google Docs. Click the link below to visit Google Docs. Note: You must be signed in to your igoogle account to create a Google Doc.

http://docs.google.com/#

Please remember that I do NOT want a summary of the book you are reading! Use the RDJ handout (posted at the top of this page) if you need help thinking of a topic to write about! Remember to make CONNECTIONS with your novel and GIVE EXAMPLES from your novel to support your opinions (quotes, page numbers, etc…)!