When I was invited to present a workshop at the Massachusetts ABE Curriculum Frameworks Conference in December 2005, I decided to revisit lessons I had taught in pre-GED and GED classes. One lesson was based on Maya Angelou's essay "New Directions" and the other was based on two excerpts from Toni Morrison's novel The Bluest Eye. Looking at these pieces in light of the newly benchmarked English Language Arts (ELA) frameworks opened me to seeing all kinds of new possibilities for enriching the lessons. In November I tried out some of these new activities with my students. They were a smash hit!

Getting to Know the Benchmarks
In order to prepare for the December presentation, I first needed to get a handle on the organization of the ELA framework. In this article I will focus on the Reading and Writing strands with some references to oral communication and critical thinking. The Reading and Writing standards make most sense to me if I think of them in this way:

• Standard 1 is the main goal. It describes how we want students to be able to put it all together. In ELA Reading, "Learners will comprehend and analyze a variety of texts for various purposes." In Writing, "Learners will use a variety of strategies to convey meaning through written English."
• Standard 2 describes what learners need to know to get there. In Reading, "Learners will acquire skills and vocabulary for reading and comprehending written text." In Writing, "Learners will apply knowledge of English vocabulary, language structure, and mechanics when they write."
• Standard 3 outlines strategies for getting to the goals of comprehending written English and conveying meaning through written English.

The specificity of the benchmarks helps a teacher to track lessons precisely.

To give an example, R3.4c "Underline or highlight key ideas or words while reading" is in the Reading strand (R), Strategies standard (3), level (4), the third benchmark (c). These new standards and benchmarks have helped me to realize that in the past I often got so excited by the possibilities of standards 1 and 2 and the Critical Thinking strand that I gave short shrift to standard 3–Strategies. As I prepared my lessons this time I around, I tried to be better balanced.

Drawing from Angelou and Morrison
Both Maya Angelou and Toni Morrison write about women of color struggling to provide for their children in a time before the Civil Rights movement.

In her essay "New Directions" Angelou tells how her grandmother, Annie Johnson, met this challenge. Annie refused to become a domestic and leave her children. Instead she built on her strengths to establish a lunch stall that eventually grew into a thriving general store. Toni Morrison created Pauline Breedlove, mother of Pecola, in her first novel, The Bluest Eye, to illustrate the destructive power of racial self-hatred. Unlike Annie, Pauline did become a domestic, the beloved "Polly" of the wealthy Fisher family. Annie became a strong, independent woman, an anchor and model for her family. Pauline became Polly, proud and secure in the Fisher home, contemptuous and neglectful in her own.

Fiction: Two Excerpts from The Bluest Eye
Prior to reading the first excerpt from The Bluest Eye, we brainstormed a list of the elements of fiction. I then gave students an outline and explanation of these elements to keep in their portfolios for reference (R1.4e, R1.5e). In the first excerpt, one of Pecola's friends describes a day she and her sister went to see Pecola at Polly's workplace. I gave students a worksheet entitled, "How to Read Like a Detective." Armed with highlighters, they combed the first page hunting for clues to various elements of the setting-season, time of day, past or present, urban or rural, and the kinds of neighborhoods they walked through. Next students tried to figure out point of view — who was telling the story — the author or a character in the story. Once they realized a character was telling it, I asked that they look for more clues-adult or child, black or white, rich or poor. After they had marked the clues and drawn inferences (R3.4a, R3.4c, CT1.3b), they worked with partners, sharing clues and justifying their conclusions. I use pairs whenever possible because it makes students articulate their thinking processes. It also gives them practice in respectfully defending a position (OC1.2h).

Before the students read the next section, describing the visit to Polly's workplace itself, we reviewed similes and metaphors. Still wielding their highlighters, students found similes and metaphors in the text and discussed them with their partners (R1.4b). The visit described in the story is disastrous: Pecola accidentally overturns a hot blueberry cobbler and burns herself. A furious Polly heaps venom on her daughter and comforts the Fisher child. As a strategy to help students summarize the emotional meaning of the passage, I asked each of them to become Pecola and write a letter to her mother about the incident. (I see this as a strategy for reaching benchmarks R1.4e, R1.4). I also find that asking students to write letters as story characters is a good strategy for unblocking those who have trouble writing. Letter writing is a familiar genre that provides a clear purpose and clear audience for the writer.

In her letter, a GED student wrote:

Mama, or as you'd rather me call you, Mrs.Breedlove, I am deeply anguished at the way you treated me at the Fisher's house. I feel that as your daughter you didn't give me my proper place.Does the pink-and-yellow girl have more love for you than me, your own skin and blood? Why soothe her and not me? I got burned and my skin blistered, but you sent me to carry the laundry. Am I not your baby? Do I have to be pink-and-yellow to have your attention? Why, Mama? Why?

The second Bluest Eye excerpt traces Pauline Breedlove's transformation into "Polly," and reveals how her position at the Fisher's came to define her life. Using a teacher- made organizer, students took notes on Polly at home and at the Fishers' (R 3.4e, R3.5a.). Using their notes as a reference, they wrote paragraphs comparing and contrasting Polly at work and at home (W1.3d).

Non-Fiction: "New Directions"
Prior to reading Angelou's work, we discussed as a class the differences between fiction and nonfiction. The students then read the first part of the essay, highlighted clues to Annie Johnson's goals, barriers, and assets, and discussed them with their partners (R3.4a, R3.4c). Applying the techniques they had learned in the first readings, they figured out the narrator and setting in Angelou's essay. For homework, students finished the reading and constructed timelines to show the steps Annie took to establish her business (R3.4).(In retrospect, I think this would have worked better as an in-class partner activity). We did construct a class timeline on the board. Students then worked in pairs to come up with adjectives or phrases to describe Annie Johnson: big, homely, poorly educated, well-organized, self-sufficient, persistent, brave, practical, intelligent, street-smart, caring.(R1.4e). As a class we then used a Venn diagram to compare Annie and Polly (R3.4e). We compared their goals, barriers, strengths, and weaknesses.

"New Directions" ends with a wonderful paragraph exhorting readers to follow Annie's example and strike out on a new path when the road they are on is unsatisfying. I assigned students an essay in which they applied this advice to their own lives (W1.5g). They brainstormed and then organized their essays using a graphic organizer (W3.4a). The resulting essays were wonderful, often deeply moving.

A month or so after we finished this mini-unit, I asked students to write an essay outlining the barriers that kept them from finding time for homework or made it difficult for them to get to school regularly and on time as well as the strengths and supports they had in their lives to help them overcome the barriers. As we brainstormed the essay, we re-ferred to Annie-her seemingly overwhelming barriers and the inner strengths that helped her to succeed (CT2.2 ).

As a teacher, I find that the benchmarks keep me honest. I need to be pushed out of old habits and encouraged to plan lessons that teach the content, skills, and strategies that I have sometimes neglected. As a lead teacher, I find the benchmarks a useful tool in helping other teachers to look at their own practice. I would encourage teachers to meet together and play around with the benchmarks. At first they seem overwhelming, but once they become familiar, they make our jobs easier.

Top of Page

For the Classroom

Introduction to The Bluest Eye excerpt

This reading is an excerpt from The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. Ms. Morrison is a well-known African American writer who has often appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show. The Bluest Eye was her first novel. It is the story of young African American girl named Pecola Breedlove. Pecola's father, Cholly, is an alcoholic.The family lives in an apartment that has been made from an old storefront. Her mother, Pauline Breedlove, works as a maid. In this section of the story, two of Pecola's friends go to see her at the house where Mrs. Breedlove works.

How to Read Like a Detective: Excerpt from The Bluest Eye
Read the questions for Part A before you begin to read. As you read, look for clues to help you answer them. Highlight the clues that you find (R3.4c). When you have finished reading, discuss the questions with a partner. Write your answers and explain how you drew your conclusions.

Part A: Read the first four paragraphs ONLY.

1. Figuring out the setting

• In what part of the country is the story set?
• Is the setting urban, suburban, or rural?
• What kind of neighborhoods are described?
• Is the story set in the present or at some time in the past?
• What is the season?

2. Figuring out who is telling the story
From the first four paragraphs, what do you know about the narrator? (Highlight as you go.)

• Is the narrator the author or someone in the story? How do you know?

• Is the narrator an adult or a child? How do you know?
• What is the race of the narrator? How do you know?
• What is the name of the story's narrator? How do you know?

Part B: Finish reading part 1
Talk and write: With a partner, discuss what happened. Together, write a brief summary of the important points.

Homework: Pretend that you are Pecola. Write a letter to your mother telling her exactly how you feel about the blueberry cobbler incident.

Nancy Coffey has been teaching at Operation Bootstrap since 1990. In 2004 she was MCAE Teacher of the Year. She can be reached at is : nancoffey@yahoo.com