Spar Lit Jr. 6: 연설과 토론을 통해 스파이 Harriet 이해하기

Kindly note:
This is an ESL friendly class, CEFR  level — B1-B2 (intermediate).
Please feel free to write me via Outschool email with questions.
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Expressing our important ideas, stating our points clearly, making ourselves understood, has never been more important for each of us than it is now.  Learning the skills of speech and debate, while understanding great books, continues with Spar Lit Jr. 6: Understanding Harriet the Spy Through debate!

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..."

Harriet the Spy is a book that challenges the reader's critical thinking skills and offers the opportunity for keen-eyed observation and in depth thinking. 

Each class in Harriet the Spy will feature an introduction with lessons in both observation and lateral thinking puzzles to give students the opportunity to further sharpen their critical thinking skills. Optional writing assignments will be provided after each class as well to give learners the opportunity both to enhance oral speaking abilities and explore creative writing.

Harriet the Spy is the 6th in my own series of  Spar Lit Jr. Outschool classes, following my own Spar Lit Jr:  Understanding Literature Through Speech and Debate (A Wrinkle in Time) and Spar Lit Jr. 2: Understanding Literature Through Debate --A Long Way From Chicago and Spar Lit Jr. 3: Understanding The Westing Game Debate and Spar Lit Jr. 4: Understanding From The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler Through Debate, and Spar Lit Jr. 5: Understanding Blue Balliett's Chasing Vermeer Through Debate. These classes, merging literary discussion and debate, can be taken in any order. 

Harriet the Spy tells  the story of Harriet, who in her quest to be a writer, creates a spy route and writes down everything about everyone she sees.   Her funny, quirky observations, even about her closest friends,  are precise and sometimes painfully honest and she writes them down faithfully in her notebook.  Things take an unexpected turn when Harriet's private notebook falls into the wrong hands and before she can stop them, her friends have read the always truthful--and sometimes eye-opening--things she's written about each of them.  How Harriet works to regain the trust of her friends -- and stay honest to herself both as a person and a writer--forms the core of our story of both growth and the meaning of true friendship.

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, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, Chasing Vermeer)  are welcome in this class. No previous experience with Spar debate is necessary. 

Our classes 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 bestselling 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 writing assignments will be provided after each class as well to give learners the opportunity both to enhance oral speaking abilities and explore creative writing and further enhance their critical thinking skills. These assignments range from creative writing to assertion essay writing, mapmaking to design and puzzles. The teacher will provide a personalized response to all finished work. 

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

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 class will run as follows:

5 minutes of general introduction

30 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


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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 (position 1 or position 2)

2 minutes

Both students have 1 minute 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!

2 to 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

30 second
Con student gives a 30 second closing statement (Pro student listens quietly)

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

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Our sessions will run as follows:

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.