Introduction to Into the Wild Literature Project

For the next month, we will be reading and discussing a very exciting survival novel based on a true story about a young man named Christopher McCandless.  The novel is called Into the Wild and it is written by Jon Krakauer.  Recently, the novel was made into a major motion picture.  The movie version is excellent, but the novel is different and better in many ways.  As we read the novel in and out of class, you will create your own Into the Wild blog project with written blogs and creative gadgets.  Enjoy the adventure!

Go to the link below for an overview of the novel before getting started.  Create your own blog project on Blogger and give it a name that has to do with the book title, your first name, and English project.  Select an image to post on the introduction.  Also, give a brief overview of the novel that you are about to read based on Wikipedia.  Put the summary into your own words and invite other teen readers to join you on this literary adventure.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_the_Wild

Author Biography

Find a trusted source using one of the John Carroll databases or one of the Harford County Library databases about Jon Krakauer.  Read the article and write a one-paragraph biography in your own words that gives the highlights of Jon Krakauer's life and writing career.  Also, find an image of Jon Krakauer and add it to your blog.

A Place in the United States that You Want to See and Experience

Write a creative journal about a place in the United States that you have never been, but would really like to visit and experience for a sojourn.  Before you can write about this place, you may need to look up some travel information about this destination.  How would you get there, what is this place known for, what is the weather like and what would you need to take for this experience?  Then, write about your expectations of your experience while you are there.  Lastly, add some images of this special place in the U.S.

A Desired Adventure

The United States is so diverse, and we only have so much free time to explore, but if I were planning my next vacation, I would like to visit Yosemite National Park in the Sierra Nevada mountain range of California.  This would be so much more of an adventure than a relaxing vacation, but that is what makes it desirable.  I am most inspired to visit Yosemite after seeing a photo exhibit a few years ago of one of America's greatest photographers, Ansel Adams.  You know his work.  He shot black and white photographs of many scenic landscapes in the western United States during the early 1900's.  If you click on the link below, you will read that Ansel Adams, a troubled student and sickly young teen, was inspired to become a landscape photographer after reading about Yosemite National Park.  According to Ansel Adams' experts: " When photographer Ansel Adams looked through his camera lens, he saw more than Yosemite’s rocks, trees, and rivers. He saw art. Hues of wildness surfaced in this great American photographer’s stunning black-and-white prints. And for most of his life, Yosemite National Park was Adams’ chief source of inspiration."  
http://www.nps.gov/yose/historyculture/ansel-adams.htm.


Now, what would I like to do in Yosemite National Park, how would I get there, what would I need for my trip?  

Favorite Famous Quotes in The Novel

Writers Referenced in the Novel and Their Importance to Christopher McCandless

As you read the novel Into the Wild, create a list of well-known writers that Christopher McCandless references or Jon Krakauer references at the beginning of each chapter throughout Chris's journey. Some examples might include Leo Tolstoy, Jack London, etc.  You can use any of the author names after the epigrams at the beginning of the chapters.

You must have at least three authors in your chart or organized list of your choice. Your list should  include the following information:

• The writer’s name

• The books that the author is famous for (google it)

• Favorite line(s) in the quotation by the writer from in Into the Wild with page number from the chapter

• How this author and quotation connects to Christopher McCandless and his outlook on life

• A favorite quotation of yours and why? What might Chris think about your quote? Would he “get it”?  (google inspirational quotations)

• Lastly, when you post your chart  or list on your English blog, add images of the three writers with source information.

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=thoreau

Student Sample of Travel Powerpoint

Check this travel powerpoint out!!!

https://docs.google.com/present/edit?id=0ASU7kqI4cp99ZGR6ZDV3OWRfNTI2ems4cGdn&hl=en&authkey=CMqJn5gC

Keeping Characterization Notes on Christopher McCandless/Alex Supertramp

Characterization Notes on Christopher McCandless

(a.k.a. Alex Supertramp)

Assignment Directions: As you read Into the Wild, take notes on direct and indirect characterization traits about Christopher McCandless. For each chapter, pick out 2-3 descriptions about Chris that really stand out to you. This could be direct descriptions about what Christopher looks like or indirect descriptions about how Chris acts, what he says, how others view him, how he treats others, and anything about Chris that helps you form an opinion about him by the end of the novel. Keep in mind that by the end of the book, you will write an essay that gives your opinion on either side of the following argument presented in the “Author’s Note”:
“Some readers admired the boy immensely for his courage and noble ideals; others fulminated that he was a reckless idiot, a wacko, a narcissist who perished out of arrogance and stupidity – and was undeserving of the considerable media attention he received.”


Create your own chart or go to Class Handouts and open the "Into the Wild" folder.  Download the document called "Characterization Notes on Christopher McCandless"  Fill out the chart as you read and post on your blog when the chart is completed. Mrs. Z. will check your chart on your laptop periodically to see that you are adding notes and keeping up with the character chart as we read.

Mrs. Z.'s Direct and Indirect Characterization Notes on Christopher McCandless

 (Alex Supertramp)

Headings of your chart should be:  Chapter and page #  / Description/quote from novel  / What impression you get about Chris with this character trait or description?

Example for your chart: 
Chapter 1, page 4
Description/quote from book: “Five feet seven or eight with a wiry build, he claimed to be 24 years old and said he was from South Dakota. He explained that he wanted a ride as far as the edge of Denali National Park, where he intended to walk deep into the bush and ‘live off the land for a few months.’”

My impression of Chris:  Chris is not physically fit for walking into such a dangerous environment. He seems a little crazy.

Student Chapter Discussions

Into the Wild Student Chapter Discussions

As a way to get students talking to other students about the novel, you and a partner will take one or two chapters of the novel and hold a meaningful and interesting discussion on those chapters with your class mates. The criteria for your student discussion include the following points:

• A brief summary of any new developments in Christopher’s journey. This might include new places, new people, new hardships, etc., that Christopher encounters in that part of the book.


• A discussion of some of the most important reading questions and vocabulary from the assigned homework.


• A sharing of something in the chapter that is really interesting to you and your partner that we might not have thought about while reading.


• Some visual image that fits the events or themes of your chapter(s).


Your discussion needs to be organized, rehearsed, and include a powerpoint slide(s) for Mrs. Z. to display while you hold your discussion. The discussion should take at least 1 mod.
Grade point value is 100 points.

Chapter Assignments ( 2 people per assignment)

• Chapters 1-3 We will work on as a whole class

• Chapter 4

• Chapter 5

• Chapter 6

• Chapter 7

• Chapter 8

• Chapters 9-11

• Chapters 12-13

• Chapters 14-15

• Chapters 16-17

• Mrs. Zurkowski will wrap up with chapters 18 to the end.