Black and White is about two all-star basketball players Eddie and Marcus. Marcus is black and Eddie is white. They are inseparable both on and off the court. In order to pay for their senior year festivities Eddie has the idea for them to do minor stickups to pay for the various expenses. One night something goes terribly wrong and their future is in jeopardy. Black and White explores how each character experiences this mistake and the criminal justice system by switching perspectives every chapter between Marcus and Eddie. Friendship will be tested and nothing will ever be the same.
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Written Response
Purpose: Through this assignment students will continue the narrative of one of the main characters—Marcus or Eddie—in Black and White while incorporating the aspects of narrative writing in their essays. By having the continuation of the story take place 6 months after the conclusion of the book, students will have to make inferences based on what they read, as well as use their imagination to portray what will happen with Eddie or Marcus. This will extend students’ thinking by writing in a different perspective than their own.
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Prompt: In Black and White the perspective switches between Marcus and Eddie each chapter. With this in mind, write a narrative in the format of a Black and White chapter from the perspective of either Eddie or Marcus that takes place 6 months after the conclusion of the book. It should be clear which character you chose.
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Podcasting
Purpose: With this podcast students will extend upon what they read in the book into writing a news report. While it must be based on an event that happened in the book, students can infer how an event would unfold and show that through the lens of the podcast. In addition, through utilizing a podcast to portray an event in the book, students can use their creativity and imagination how a character would sound or act in given the situation. This will encourage students to look deeper into the text as to how a particular character would act or respond.
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Prompt: Compose and perform a news report based on one of the events from Black and White. In your news report you must interview and/or incorporate at least one character from the book. This will be in the format of a podcast, thus, make sure to keep in mind the tone of characters, music and background noise choices, and transitions.
Standards: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.2; CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.3 |
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Digital Storytelling
Purpose: This is an opportunity for students to showcase major themes and events they noticed throughout Black and White. By utilizing a book trailer students are able to bring everything together with a visual representation. In addition, by incorporating at least one quote, students will have to connect how a particular scene or saying relates to the overarching theme. Most importantly, a book trailer provides a creative way to present a summary of the book and get their classmates and/or audience excited about reading it.
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Prompt: Create a book trailer for Black and White. Much like a movie trailer, your book trailer should get your audience excited to read the book. It should include major themes and/or events in the book, but make sure not to give away too much information (especially the ending!). In addition, you must incorporate one quote from the text in your book trailer. All outside sources (i.e. pictures) must be cited at the end.
Standards: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.1; CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.2 |
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Part 4: Infographic
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Purpose: Students will make a connection between the fictional novel, Black and White, to a prevalent theme/topic in the outside world. Through this students will practice finding evidence to support their claims and looking for reliable and accurate resources. Rather than using a traditional research paper, utilizing an infographic, students must be concise in what they find and present the most relevant information, while including visuals to support their claims. Through this, students will have a deeper understanding of a theme in the book and how it is applied in the “real world.”
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Prompt: Create an infographic based on a theme you noticed in Black and White. Your infographic should include at least one chart, graph, or visual to support your research. In addition, you should use at least two different sources that are cited.
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