Portfolio Entry Slip/Section Markers
Directions: Each entry slip should be placed before the lesson plan and each reflection
sheet.
Name: Rosemary Guarino
Date: August 7, 2002
Name of the Piece: Lesson Plan-"El Ramo Azul"
The Standards to which it is mainly addressed:
1.1 Students engage in conversations, provide and obtain information, express feelings
and emotions, and exchange opinions.
1.2 Students understand and interpret written and spoken language on a variety of topics.
1.3 Students present information, concepts and ideas to an audience of listeners or readers
on a variety of topics.
2.2 Students demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the products and
perspectives of the culture studied.
3.1 Students reinforce and further their knowledge of the other disciplines through the
foreign language.
3.2 Students acquire information and recognize the distinctive viewpoints that are only
available through the foreign language and its cultures.
4.1 Students demonstrate understanding of the nature of language through comparisons of
the language studied and their own.
4.2 Students demonstrate understanding of the concept of culture through comparisons of
the cultures studied and their own.
5.1 Students use the language within and beyond the school setting.
Topic: Students will read the short story "El Ramo Azul" written by Mexican author
Octavio Paz.
Language: Spanish
Level: Although I will use this story with my Honors Spanish III classes, this story would
also be appropriate for Levels IV or V.
Standards:
1.1 Students engage in conversations, provide and obtain information, express feelings
and emotions, and exchange opinions.
1.2 Students understand and interpret written and spoken language on a variety of topics.
1.3 Students present information, concepts and ideas to an audience of listeners or readers
on a variety of topics.
2.2 Students demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the products and
perspectives of the culture studied.
3.1 Students reinforce and further their knowledge of the other disciplines through the
foreign language.
3.2 Students acquire information and recognize the distinctive viewpoints that are only
available through the foreign language and its cultures.
4.1 Students demonstrate understanding of the nature of language through comparisons of
the language studied and their own.
4.2 Students demonstrate understanding of the concept of culture through comparisons of
the cultures studied and their own.
5.1 Students use the language within and beyond the school setting.
Overview/Scenario:
Students will engage in pre-reading activities, read the story "El Ramo Azul," and engage
in discussion about the author's view regarding Mexican identity. Students will learn the
necessary vocabulary to discuss the literary techniques used in the story and compare
them to the techniques studied in their English literature classes. Individually, students
will write a factual newspaper account of the events of the story. In small groups, they
will create and perform an "up close and personal" interview with the characters of the
story in a news magazine format which will be videotaped and shown to other classes.
Action Plan:
The lesson should span seven to ten class days. Given the complexity of the story with its
many images and symbols, the teacher has divided the reading into three sections and
each will be assigned for homework prior to class discussion. Students will perform prereading and post-reading comprehension activities for each section. Finally, students will
consider the story as a whole and try to discern the author's intent in writing the story.
The first section sets the scene for the story, a poor boarding house in a rural town and
introduces the first person narrator, as well as the owner of the house who advises against
the narrator’s taking a walk alone at night.
The second section begins with the narrator contemplating his place in the universe while
looking at the stars and ends with a man approaching him with a knife.
The final section deals with the interaction between the assailant and the narrator,
particularly his intent to take out the narrator's blue eyes with a machete because his
girlfriend desires a bouquet of blue eyes. It concludes with assailant's realization that the
narrator does not have blue eyes and the flight of the narrator from the town.
Each section has its own focus for discussion and is ripe with images.
Students will use brainstorming, class discussion, comparison and analogy, questioning,
research/investigation, and pre-reading and post-reading activities to understand "El
Ramo Azul," and how it exemplifies Octavio Paz's literary work. They will explore not
only Paz’s view of what it means to be Mexican, but also and equally important, his
contemplation about his place in the universe. Students will work individually, in pairs,
and groups of three.
Prior Knowledge:
1. The first "hook" to prior knowledge is the title "El Ramo Azul" (the blue bouquet)
and what students think would be the significance of this title.
2. In the first section the focus is the boarding house. Students can explore what images
the word "mesón" evokes and how the description in the story differs from their
preconceived notions. They can also speculate about the location of the story based
on the description, especially pertaining to insects like butterflies, spiders and fleas.
Also, they will discuss what they know about first person narration from their English
classes.
3. Central to the second section is the author's contemplation of the stars and the
universe. Students can relate to the feeling of being small in relation to the vastness of
the cosmos and will be asked to think of times they have felt that they were a part of
something bigger. Paz also makes reference to the "tamarindo," a tree indigenous to
the area of the Yucatan in Mexico. They will explore what they know about this
region of Mexico, especially as the area of the Mayas.
4. The “campesino” assailant in the last section with his “huaraches” and “machete”
embodies what is typically thought of as a Mexican peasant. Students will be asked to
compare this picture with what they envision when they hear the word “Mexican.”
Learning Experiences:
In preparing to read the story students will be asked to read an article on Octavio Paz
obtained from the following website:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/1998/int/980504/appreciation.global_conv5.html
In pairs they will be asked to fill in the worksheet (Appendix A) in Spanish about salient
points in Paz’s life and his literary techniques, compare answers with their partners and
finally with the class as a whole.
Students will do pre-reading activities which include predicting what the story is about
based on a visual of a blue bouquet and learning key vocabulary in context through a
PowerPoint presentation. They will brainstorm ideas as to what comes to mind in
picturing a “mesón” or boarding house and scan the first section to see if their predictions
are correct. After a thorough reading of the first section, students will perform
comprehension activities. (See Appendix B for comprehension activities for each section
of the story.)
Students will follow a similar procedure for the other two sections. Students will learn
key vocabulary through visuals and perform pre-reading and comprehension activities.
The only difference in the pre-reading activities will be the “hook” to prior knowledge to
generate interest in and consider the context of each section. Before reading the second
section, students will be asked to think of a time when they thought about their place in
the universe and describe to a partner where they were and what they were doing. As a
class, students will brainstorm locations where these thoughts are likely to occur. (e.g.,
the beach, a forest etc.) They will do research on the Internet about the “tamarindo” to
identify where it can be found in Mexico and explain its importance as a spice. Before the
third section, students will be asked to brainstorm ideas about what they visualize when
they picture a “typical” Mexican and in subsequent discussion see how that image jibes
with the image of the “campesino” presented by Paz. They will explore the words
“huaraches” and “machete” on the Internet and explain their use and what they indicate
about perspectives in Mexican culture.
Following discussion of each section, students will reread the story as a whole and
answer the questions that follow the story. They will discuss in groups of three how the
story reflects Paz’s literary techniques and choice of themes, based on the article they had
read. Lastly, they will try to discern Paz’s reasons for writing the story and his point of
view. They will consider the universal theme of isolation, as well as Paz’s presentation of
the dichotomy of Mexican society of those of European descent versus those indigenous
to the country. Discussion as a class will follow.
Individually, students will write a factual account of the story as newspaper reporters,
essentially giving the who, what, when, where, and why in a brief report. Some of the
gaps will need to be filled, as Paz does not specify the exact who, when, and where.
These gaps will require research on the Internet to make logical guesses as to the name of
the town, the period of time when the action occurs, and the background of the characters
of the story.
In groups of three, students will write a script for an “up close and personal” interview
exploring the motivation of two of the characters of the story. They may use the
newspaper articles as background for the interview. One student will enact the role of the
interviewer and the other two will respond as two of the characters: the narrator, the
owner, the assailant or his girlfriend. Students will be videotaped and their performances
will be shown to other classes.
Materials:
1. Students will need a copy of the tribute to Octavio Paz found in Time Online.
Zaid, Gabriel. (May 4, 1998). Global Conversationalist Octavio Paz: 1914-1998.
Time Online. Retrieved February 12, 2002, from http://
www.time.com/time/magazine/1998/int/980504/appreciation.global_conv5.html
2. Students will need the story “El Ramo Azul” which is found in their reader.
Paz, Octavio. (1993). El Ramo Azul. In J.R. Gonzalez (Ed.), Cuentos de Hoy
(pp.10-13). Lincolnwood: National Textbook Company.
3. Teacher will need a computer in the classroom to perform PowerPoint presentations
in pre-reading activities.
4. Teacher and students will need Internet access for research.
5. The teacher needs a video camera in order to tape the “in-depth” talk shows
performed by each group.
6. Teacher and students need the attached activities and rubrics.
Technology Connections:
1. The teacher will use PowerPoint demonstrations containing graphics of the products
mentioned in the story in pre-reading activities.
2. Teacher and students will do research on designated topics using the following
websites:
Excellent articles on the author:
http://hem.passagen.se/plenaluz/paz1.htm
http://dialogo.ugr.es/anteriores/dial15/32-15.htm
http://www.e.u-tokyo.ac.jp/cirje/research/papers/khan/poems/paz.pdf
For research and graphics on insects found in the story:
http://www.isis.vt.edu/~fanjun/text/Links.html
For information on the “tamarindo” tree:
http://www-ang.kfunigraz.ac.at/~katzer/engl/generic_frame.html?Tama_ind.html
For information and maps about Mexico:
http://www.maps-of-mexico.com/
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/north_america/mexico/environment.htm
For research on the machete as a Mexican tool:
http://www.vikingsword.com/rila/index.html
http://www.afromexico.com/tools.htm
For research on huaraches as worn in Mexico:
http://www.arts-history.mx/textilmexicano/indumasconte.html
http://www.mexconnect.com/mex_/feature/ethnic/bv/photo.htm
Extensions:
“El Ramo Azul” offers many possible connections with other disciplines. The most
obvious would be in social studies with the study of Mexico, its history, geography, and
culture. The study of practices and products in the story will enable students to explore
the perspectives of its people. Paz’s reflections on his place in the universe would lead to
discussions in the domains of religion and philosophy. In art the study of Diego Rivera’s
“Sueño de una Tarde Dominical en la Alameda Central” and its depictions of various
people in Mexican society would be a wonderful extension to the study of the characters
in the story. Paz’s description can lead to fruitful research in the realm of science with his
references to climate, insects, vegetation and stars. The ties to previous knowledge of
literary techniques used in English literature cannot be overlooked. Lastly, the teacher
can integrate a grammatical review of the differences in the use of the preterite and
imperfect tenses which are employed by the author throughout the reading.
Appendix A
Preguntas sobre Octavio Paz
Después de leer el artículo de Time sobre Octavio Paz, contesten estas preguntas en
parejas.
1. Escojan 5 datos importantes que podrían incluir en una biografía de Octavio Paz.
•
•
•
•
2. ¿Qué indica el artículo sobre la niñez del autor?
3. ¿Qué tipo de literatura escribió, es decir, los géneros (genres)?
4. ¿Qué dice el artículo sobre las técnicas literarias de Octavio Paz? En su opinión, ¿qué
técnicas vamos a ver en el cuento?
Appendix B
Post-reading Comprehension Activities
Section I
Tarea (Homework) :
Después de leer la primera sección, contesten las siguientes preguntas.
1. ¿Quién habla?
2. ¿En qué persona está escrito el cuento? ¿Qué efecto produce esta técnica?
3. ¿Qué sabemos del lugar?
4. ¿Cuándo tiene lugar la acción?
5. ¿Qué tiempo verbal domina?
6. ¿Quién es el personaje introducido al final de esta seccion? ¿Qué descripición de este
personaje ofrece el autor?
En clase:
Hagan una oración lógica usando estas palabras:
vuelta el dar no decide como puede narrador una dormir
Puntos para discutir en clase:
1. Comparen el mesón del cuento con lo que generalmente asociamos con la palabra
"mesón."
2. Den ejemplos del uso del imperfecto en esta sección. ¿Por qué usa el autor el
imperfecto aquí?
Section II
Tarea (Homework):
1. En esta sección del cuento dominan las imágenes sensoriales. Hagan una lista de
imágenes según el sentido que evocan.
el oído
la vista
el tacto
el olfato
el gusto
2. Busquen información sobre el tamarindo usando el Internet. ¿Dónde crece? ¿Por qué
es importante? Consulten:
http://www-ang.kfunigraz.ac.at/~katzer/engl/generic_frame.html?Tama_ind.html
3. Con la palabra “huaraches” ¿qué nos dice Octavio Paz sobre el nuevo personaje
introducido en esta sección? Consulten:
http://www.arts-history.mx/textilmexicano/indumasconte.html
http://www.mexconnect.com/mex_/feature/ethnic/bv/photo.htm
En clase:
Pongan las acciones del narrador en ordén:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Cruzó la calle y oyó el rumor de unos huaraches.
Miró las estrellas.
Caminó y encendió un cigarrillo.
Sintió la punta de un cuchillo en la espalda.
Puntos para discusión:
1. ¿Qué significa la pregunta: “¿cuál sería esa palabra de la cual yo era una sílaba?”?
2. Explica la imágen: “la noche era un jardín de ojos.”
Section III
Tarea (Homework):
Después de leer la primera sección, contesten las siguientes preguntas.
1. ¿Qué quiere el atacante?
2. Expliquen el título del cuento después de leer esta sección.
3. Describan el atacante.
4. ¿Por qué frotó un fósforo?
5. ¿Qué pasa al final?
6. Con la palabra “machete” ¿qué nos dice Octavio Paz sobre el nuevo personaje
introducido en esta sección? Consulten:
http://www.vikingsword.com/rila/index.html
http://www.afromexico.com/tools.htm
En clase:
Completen las siguientes frases según el cuento.
1. El hombre quería sacarle _________________ al narrador.
2. Era un capricho de _________________ que quería un ramo azul.
3. El atacante llevaba _________________ en la cabeza y _________________ en la
mano.
4. Como el hombre no podía ver bien el narrador frotó _________________.
Puntos de discusión:
1. ¿Es el atacante un personaje completamente antipático? Expliquen su respuesta.
2. Según este cuento, ¿qué indica Paz sobre la sociedad mexicana?
Appendix C
Assignments and Rubrics
Tarea Individual
Escriban un artículo de periódico que explica los detalles del cuento: quién, qué, cuándo,
dónde, y por qué. Como Paz no da los detalles en cuanto al “dónde,” Uds. tienen que
investigar los indicios en el cuento para hacer una advinanza lógica del lugar. En cuanto a
la pregunta “quiénes,” pueden inventar nombres, pero deben dar información sobre la
vida de los personajes después de buscar en el Internet para averiguar cómo serían las
vidas de personas en estas circunstancias. El “cuándo” puede ser cualquier fecha. Depués
del artículo, den una lista de los sitios en el Internet que ayudaron con su búsqueda.
Rubric for Evaluation of Newspaper Article
Criteria
5-6 points
Little evidence
of research
Average to
Good
35-43 points
Some misused
words
7-8 points
Some
grammatical
errors
7-8 points
Some details
7-8 points
Somewhat
organized and
clear
7-8 points
Some evidence
of research
5-6 points
7-8 points
Below Average
25-34 points
Many misused
words
5-6 points
Grammar
Many
grammatical
errors
5-6 points
Communication Few details
5-6 points
Organization
Disorganized
and Clarity
and unclear
Vocabulary
Research for
Background
Very Good to
Excellent
44 to 50 points
Very few
misused words
9-10 points
Very few
grammatical
errors
9-10 points
Many details
9-10 points
Very organized
and clear
Total Points
9-10 points
Evidence of
extensive
research
9-10 points
En grupo de tres
En grupos de tres escriban una entrevista de televisión con dos personajes del cuento en
la cual la periodista va a explorar el motivo de cada personaje. La entrevista no puede
exceder 10 minutos. Pueden usar los artículos como punto de partida para la entrevista.
Grabaré la entrevista para mostrarla a otras clases.
Rubric for T.V. Interview of Characters
Criteria
Below Average
25-34 points
Average to
Good
Very Good to
Excellent
Total Points
35-43 points
VocabularyVariety and lack of
repetition
GrammarUse of correct
grammatical forms
ContentAppropriateness
and quantity
FluencyFlow of Speech
PronunciationProduction of
sound system
Many misused
words
5-6 points
Many
grammatical
errors
5-6 points
Few details
5-6 points
Many pauses
and hesitations
5-6 points
Weak
pronunciation
5-6 points
44 to 50 points
Some misused Very few
misused words
words
7-8 points
Some
grammatical
errors
7-8 points
Some details
7-8 points
9-10 points
Very few
grammatical
errors
9-10 points
Many details
9-10 points
Some pauses
and
hesitations
7-8 points
Satisfactory
pronunciation
7-8 points
Few pauses
and hesitations
9-10 points
Strong
pronunciation
9-10 points
N.B. Given that the presentation will be written by the group as a whole, the points for
vocabulary, grammar, and content will be the same for the entire group. The points for
fluency and pronunciation will be based on individual performance.
Portfolio Entry Slip/Section Markers