Evidence Commentary Journals
For most of your independent reading, you will be completing evidence commentary journals. I will check these periodically to see that you understand what you are reading and that you are making connections to prior learning. The journals will be returned with comments and questions to you.
As you read the assigned books, you will write an evidence/commentary journal, to be recorded in a composition book, not a spiral notebook.
As you read the assigned books, you will write an evidence/commentary journal, to be recorded in a composition book, not a spiral notebook.
- First, fold several pages of your notebook vertically, and label the left column “evidence”, the right “commentary.”
- Once you record the evidence, leave space for commentary. I recommend only recording one or two pieces of evidence per page; otherwise, you won’t have room for your commentary. If you have several per page, and you do have room for commentary, then your commentary may be insufficient.
- For each book, select three motifs*. For each motif you select, you will look for ______ pieces of evidence** in the novel and quote that evidence in the left column. You will be provided with motifs to choose from, but if you don't want to use one on the list, you may add your own.
- In the right column, you will record your commentary; that is, you will analyze the quoted evidence by interpreting its meaning and discussing what it means to the work as a whole. Discuss the meanings of metaphors and symbols, the underlying implications of passages, and the connotations of word choices. When a reader reads your evidence and commentary on a particular motif, he should gain deeper understanding of that motif and of the message the author communicates through it. Focus on higher order thinking skills such as analysis, synthesis, and evaluation, rather than simple interpretations.
- When you finish, you will have recorded a total of _______ commentaries (this number will change depending upon the book). Remember the number of commentary entries should match the number of evidence entries.
Sample Evidence- The Great Gatsby
The color green:
“Involuntarily I glanced seaward—and distinguished nothing but a single green light, minute and far away…” p. 26 |
Sample Commentary- The Great Gatsby
The green light definitely does not represent something as simple as a stop and go traffic light; however, it is an object of Gatsby’s attention, and it is distant and far away. Maybe the significance is not the color but the distance. While the light is far away it is dream like, and when Gatsby finally gets close to Daisy, he has to deal with the reality that she did, at some time, love Tom, and that she is now a mother.
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Adapted from assignment by Michael Flinchbaugh