Amy Tan Life and Literature

This week we are using the life and literature of Chinese American author Amy Tan as a means to cultivte academic English skills and TOEFL practice.

Here is part 1 of  the lesson from 1/22/13, which emphasizes READING. In addition, please find a link to the handout on Most vs. Most of the and a copy of the practice exercises. In class we introduced the Integrative Writing Task, studied the difference between Most and Most of the, and read the story Two Kinds and answered comprehension and discussion questions. Homework for 1/22/13 includes:

1. Complete practice exercise for Most vs. Most of the
2. Complete five vocabulary sentences using the words from this lesson
3. Research the author Amy Tan and compose a one-paragraph biography on her life

Here is part 2 of the lesson from 1/23/13, which emphasizes LISTENING. In class we discussed the scoring rubric for the Integrative Writing Task, read sample essays, scored essays, and completed a preview essay test. We also took a quiz on Most vs. Most of the. Here is an additional link to lecture 1 from class about Amy Tan's life. Here is a link to lecture 2, which was a transcript of her contribution to the What I Beleive series on NPR. You can find a link to other similiar podcasts. Homework for 1/23/13 includes:

1. Study section 1 of academic vocabulary in your textbook for a quiz on these words on Thursday, 1/24/13.
2. Read the short story Mother Tongue  here and create ten questions based on the story. 

Here is part 3 of lesson from 1/25/13, which emphasizes SPEAKING. In class we revised the previous day's essays and worked on a new integrative task. We also worked on extemporaneous prompts based on the issues raised in these classes. You can find a link to the speaking prompts here and a link to the survey on immigration here. Homework for 1/24/13 includes:
Answering the questions created by a classmate about Mother Tongue
Composition of a narrative story following the plot lines we studied in class
Study for a simple vocabulary quiz based on the vocabulary from these lessons (here is a link to the words and their definitions)