Animal Farm (Summer Reading) Book Project:
Close Reading and Highlighting
1. Close Reading: Interacting with the novel
A close reading is careful and purposeful reading of a text. Better put, it is careful
and purposeful rereading. It is an encounter with the text where students really focus on what
the author had to say, what the author’s purpose was, what the words mean, and what the
structure of the text tells us. In effect, a close reading of a book will have proof of careful
and purposeful rereading in the margin of every page. There will be comments, questions,
summaries, synthesis, and reactions throughout the book. Basically, the instructor should be
able to read what the student was thinking while rereading.
Ideas conveyed in Close Reading:
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What does the author have to say?
What is the author’s purpose?
What do the words mean? What language does the author use to convey
meaning?
What does the structure of the text tell us?
2. Highlighting: Interpreting literary devices
The second component of the Animal Farm Book Project is tracking and
interpretation of literary devices employed by the author, George Orwell.
Highlight/bracket/underline these devices AND explain your choices in the margins. For
example, a simile compares two things using like or as. Underline the simile from beginning
to end and explain what two things are being compared in the adjacent margin.
Track the following elements throughout the novel. Highlight/bracket/underline and write
commentary, proving you’ve interacted with the novel as you read. Make a key (color
suggestions in parentheses). Be sure to have 5 examples each for the following literary terms.
Before submitting your book, please number your examples within the “type” of literary term.
(ie: Number your examples of symbolism1-5.)
Concepts to be tracked in Highlighting:
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symbolism (pink) ~ A symbol is something that stands for itself and something
else.
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irony (blue) ~ situational irony, dramatic irony and verbal irony (Find five examples
of each of the different types of irony.)
o
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situational irony: The opposite of what one expects to happen ends up
happening in the story.
o dramatic irony: The reader knows something concerning the plot of the
story that characters do not know.
o verbal irony: A character speaks the opposite of what they mean
(sarcasm).
propaganda (green) ~ This is the systematic attempt to influence one’s thinking
and behavior.
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theme (yellow) ~ This is a central idea which flows through the text. It is
discovered by the reader while he or she is tracking the climax of the story. The
theme is the universal truth one learns while watching the protagonist confront
his or her greatest conflict. This is not a single word. It is an over-arching
sentence used to explain the confrontation of the main character and his or her
central conflict. Essentially, it is what the reader learns by watching the main
character battle his or her central conflict. Example Theme: “Thirst for and
abuse of power can corrupt an individual or group.”
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character (orange) ~ This is a major “player” in the plot of the novel. Choose one
to track and write five observations about him or her.
The standards are here to show the connection of the CCSS and our project. These are not to
influence your project in any way.
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CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.1 Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of
what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
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CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze in detail
its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined
by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.
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CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.3 Analyze how complex characters (e.g., those with multiple or
conflicting motivations) develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and
advance the plot or develop the theme.
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CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.9-10.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word
relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
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CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.9-10.5a Interpret figures of speech (e.g., euphemism, oxymoron) in
context and analyze their role in the text.
Contact Person (s):
Ms. Garringer [email protected]
Mr. Mommaerts [email protected]
Ms. Orth
[email protected]
262.359.2201
Email is the best method for us to discuss the novel. If you have not heard back from me in forty-eight
hours, I did not receive your email. I will answer each note to the best of my ability and try to get you a
prompt response.
Summer Sessions:
There will be some voluntary summer sessions where students can come are learn how to close read the
book. The dates will be posted on Tremper’s Web site. Typically, the sessions are scattered throughout the
summer and they last ninety minutes to two hours.
Purchase the book:
There will be no outside order of the book. Each student is responsible to purchasing his / her own book.
The cost of the book ranges between $5.00 -$6.00 dollars.
Complete the project: The Animal Farm close reading assignment with be due near the middle of
September. There will be several school days to provide further instruction on the project.