Great readers unite!

I am so very proud to adapt my own 6-week Spar Lit Jr 6: Understanding Harriet the Spy Through Debate into a 6 session 2-week class with exactly the same lessons and content as the long term 6-week version of the class.  Same lessons, same enjoyment of the class except we get to finish the book faster!

Spar Lit Jr:  Understanding Literature Through Speech and Debate (A Wrinkle in Time)
Spar Lit Jr. 2: Understanding Literature Through Debate --A Long Way From Chicago. 
Spar Lit Jr. 3: Understanding Literature Through Debate--The Westing Game
Spar Lit Jr. 4: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
Spar Lit Jr. 5: Understanding Blue Balliett's Chasing Vermeer Through Debate
Spar Lit Jr. 6: Understanding Harriet the Spy Through Speech and Debate
Spar Lit Jr. 7: Understanding Linda Sue Park's A Single Shard Through Speech and Debate
Spar Lit Jr. 8: Understanding The Phantom Tollbooth Through Speech and Debate

are all my own self-created classes.  All of these classes have now been adapted from long-term multi-week classes into multi-session 2-week Spar Lit Jr. Boot Camp versions.

Harriet the Spy, by Louise Fitzhugh, is considered a modern classic, one of the most beloved children's books of the past fifty years, celebrated by kids (who've voted it one of their all time favorites), librarians, and parents alike.  The story of a Harriet, a child spy, who aims to learn as much as she can about her friends, her family and the people in her New York City neighborhood, is a story of friendship, of honesty, of commitment and the makings of a real writer.   Harriet the Spy is the book that has enthralled kids and inspired a whole generation of would be writers, including such luminaries as award-winners Judy Blume, Lois Lowry, Gregory Maguire, and Rebecca Stead.   This is a book for kids who love mysteries, who love to read, who want to be writers, (and who might really love tomato sandwiches). As the Chicago Tribune says, Harriet the Spy is  "a brilliantly written, unsparingly realistic story, a superb portrait of an extraordinary child..."

Both first time students and learners who have taken any of my previous  Spar Lit Jr. classes ( A Wrinkle in Time, A Long Way from Chicago, The Westing Game, Chasing Vermeer)  are welcome in this class. No previous experience with Spar debate is necessary. 

Our 6 session 2-week Harriet the Spy  class will focus on blending the acknowledged technique of Spar debating with understanding literature through debate and discussion.  Spar means “SPontaneous ARgumentation” a quicktime technique that is used to prepare students for formal debate.  Our class will use  Spar debating the key points of literature to explore the essential and critically-acclaimed Harriet the Spy.

The result?  Students will learn to take a position on key issues involving intriguing and provocative  literary questions, while gaining a nuanced and thorough understanding both sides of every issue. All students will gain an enhanced exploration of literature while expanding debate techniques. 

This class has been purposely limited to six students to maximize the participation of every learner.  

Moreover, optional homework assignments have been created to support the learning in each and every class. Learners who choose to complete the optional assignments will receive immediate feedback. 

Spar is quick debate! With debaters given the Pro or Con position, a short Spar debate can illuminate ideas and provide for more nuanced critical thinking. 

Each of the classes will run as follows:

5 minutes of general introduction

20 minutes of interactive  discussion on the chapter or pages set for the class

20 minutes of ongoing Spar pro/con debate involving key literary questions from the weekly reading

15 minutes of recap of the Spar discussions and the points raised by the students.

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How does SPAR debating work?

10 MINUTE MINI DEBATES!

Students face off in pairs to debate a Pro/Con question involving the specific reading from literature for the day.

COIN FLIP TO DETERMINE PRO/CON

2 minutes

Both students have 1 to 2 minutes to brainstorm ideas for their position (evidence/arguments)

1 minute
Pro student gives a 1 minute opening statement to make their case (Con student listens quietly and takes notes)

1 minute
Con student gives a 1 minute opening statement to make their case (Pro student listens quietly and take notes)

30 seconds
Both students think!

3 minutes
Mini crossfire discussion where both students can ask each other questions about opposing statements.

30 seconds
Both students think again to prepare their closing statements

1 minute
Con student gives a 1 minute closing statement (Pro student listens quietly)

1 minute
Pro student gives a 1 minute closing statement (Con student listens quietly)

***


Our 6-session class will run as follows:
Week 1:
Class 1: Chapters 1 and 2
Class 2: Chapters 3 4 5
Class 3: Chapters 6 7 8
Week 2:
Class 4: Chapters 9 10 11
Class 5: Chapters 12 13 14
Class 6:  Chapters 15 and 16

No previous experience with speech and debate or Spar debating required, However,  this class also provides an excellent outlet for speech and debate students interested in enhancing their ability to communicate their ideas with clarity and style that will be useful in classrooms and in ongoing discussions everywhere.