The Drawbridge Character Monologue assignment builds upon the now-familiar text that was explored in 1.04 – The Drawbridge: PEE Paragraphs, asking students to consider the world of the text beyond the written page.
Created by Katherine Pearce, the lesson invites students to choose a character, consider why they made the choices they did, and then infer what that character was like prior to, and after, the events of the short story.
English Course Pack: Unit One – Literacy Skills

This assignment is part of the The Full English Course Park. This piece is part of Unit One: Literacy Skills, which focuses on creating a strong foundational understanding of literacy skills, PEE paragraph writing, and embedding quotations as textual support.
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1.05: The Drawbridge: Character Monologues

Step One: Selecting the Character
Students are encouraged to share the character they have selected, and explain why they made those choices. This will allow others in the class, who are having a difficult time beginning the process to build from the existing ideas.
Step Two: Organizing Ideas
Using the accompanying graphic organizers, students can begin recording what was said in the short story. This will provide a record of specific support from the text.
Once complete, the students will move on to the inferring sections, and use the specific details to support the choices they are going to weave into their monologues. This will ensure that students have a strong understanding of what they’re going to include, and why they’re going to include it in their final piece.
Step Three: Writing the Monologue
Students should now begin writing their monologues. Once they are complete, they can use the accompanying checklists to ensure that students know what is required to demonstrate the highest levels of success.
The attached Writing / Media rubrics link to specific curricular expectations, and include guiding questions.
If you already have a strong amount of Writing / Media evaluations, you may wish to create an Oral / Reading rubric, using this task to formally evaluate those strands.
Even if you do not include strand-specific rubric, you can use the informal demonstrations of learning from this task to fill in existing learning gaps in your grade records, where it supports student success.
The Impact
This product encourages students to make a media product that can be watched through the technology in your classroom. It creates a foundation to create more involved media texts as the course moves forward, with any concerns being identified and problem solved early in the course.
Students will develop a level of comfort for class presentations, as well as strengthen their understanding of how to use supporting evidence beyond embedding references in persuasive pieces.
English – Unit One: Literacy Skills

1.08 – Questioning: Slide Deck (English Lesson)
The Questioning slide deck follows the same framework that all the literacy skills slide decks do. It starts by asking students what the skill entails, … Continue reading 1.08 – Questioning: Slide Deck (English Lesson)

1.07 – Made out of Meat – Short Story Visualizing and Inferring (English Lesson)
Terry Bisson’s story, They’re Made Out of Meat, is a perfect way to put inferring into practice. After reading the story aloud, students are asked … Continue reading 1.07 – Made out of Meat – Short Story Visualizing and Inferring (English Lesson)

1.06 – Inferring: Slide Deck (English Lesson)
This slide deck introduces students to the literacy skill, Inferring. It is designed to be moved through slowly, scaffolding an understanding of Inferring for students … Continue reading 1.06 – Inferring: Slide Deck (English Lesson)

1.04: The Drawbridge: PEE Paragraphs (English Lesson)
The Drawbridge PEE Paragraph activity brings together all of the learning that has taken place so far. The beginning of the lesson should be run … Continue reading 1.04: The Drawbridge: PEE Paragraphs (English Lesson)

1.03: Embedding Quotations: Slide Deck (English Lesson)
Embedding Quotations is a necessary skill that students will use throughout their years in secondary and post-secondary education. This slide deck introduces the idea of … Continue reading 1.03: Embedding Quotations: Slide Deck (English Lesson)

1.02: Alligator River (English Lesson)
Alligator River is a short story that will have your class yelling at each other, screaming at each other, becoming enraged at each other. And … Continue reading 1.02: Alligator River (English Lesson)

1.01: The Nametag Project (English Lesson)
The Nametag project begins the school year with students creating a piece that visually represents who they are and presents the challenge for them to … Continue reading 1.01: The Nametag Project (English Lesson)
English Course Packs: Full Units
Unit One: Literacy Skills
Unit Two: Poetry
Unit Three: Literature Circles
Unit Four: Creative Writing & Choose Our Way Tales
Unit Five: Essay Writing
Unit Six: Culminating Tasks

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Michael Barltrop has been teaching since 2006, integrating comics, video games, and TTRPGs into his classroom. He has been the head of English, Literacy, and Universal Design. Feel free to reach out through Twitter @MrBarltrop!
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