Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You is filled with rich literary elements such as imagery, irony, metaphors, and similes. It also discusses many themes and symbols that are intertwined with various literary elements. These elements will come alive when you use a storyboard to analyze and describe them. In this activity, students will identify and explain examples of themes, symbolism, motifs, or figurative language from the novel. They should be sure to support their choices with details from the text.
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Due Date:
Objective: Create a storyboard that identifies literary elements (themes, motifs, symbolism, figurative language, etc.) found in Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You. Illustrate each literary element you find in the text and write a short description below each cell.
Student Instructions:
Start with a brief overview of what literary elements are, using simple definitions and familiar examples from everyday life. This helps students connect new concepts to what they already know and builds a strong foundation for deeper analysis.
Select short passages from Stamped that clearly showcase a literary element like a simile or theme. Using manageable text chunks keeps students engaged and makes it easier for them to identify key elements.
Ask students to find examples of literary elements in the selected excerpt. Encourage them to highlight words or phrases and discuss their meaning, which fosters critical thinking and close reading skills.
Invite students to illustrate or act out the literary element they found. This hands-on approach helps solidify understanding and makes abstract concepts more concrete and memorable.
Lead a brief discussion where students share what they learned about the literary elements and how they connect to the themes of Stamped. This reinforces learning and builds classroom community.
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You uses literary elements like themes, symbolism, motifs, similes, metaphors, irony, and imagery to explore complex topics such as racism and history. These elements help students analyze and understand the text on a deeper level.
Encourage students to use a storyboard to visually map out themes, symbols, and motifs from the book. Have them provide text evidence and short descriptions for each example to deepen comprehension.
Assign students to read selected passages, then ask them to identify literary elements like themes or figurative language and illustrate them on a storyboard. Finish with group discussion or presentations to reinforce understanding.
Analyzing literary elements helps students uncover deeper meanings in the text, connect historical events to present-day issues, and critically engage with the authors' messages about racism and antiracism.
Examples include the simile “racism as a dinosaur” and “freedom like quicksand.” These figurative phrases illustrate complex ideas in relatable ways for students.