TEACHING LITERATURE

Teaching Literature 1

"Continuing Studies Via Television" (CONSTEL)

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Teaching Literature 2

I. THE NATURE OF TEACHING LITERATURE

A.

Teaching of Literature involves
the teaching of different literary genres
- fiction
- poetry
- drama
- essay


B.

Teaching of Literature involves
teaching literary skills
which extend beyond basic reading skills


C.

Teaching of Literature involves the study of
- literary conventions
- literary movements
- literary terms
- elements
- devices
- techniques

D.

Teaching Literature is also concerned with:
teaching students how to make
literary interpretation

and analysis


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Teaching Literature 3

E.

Teaching Literature entails
Teaching students to acquire and develop:
- sensitivity
- self-awareness
- greater understanding of the world and other people

F.

The teaching of literature should provide students with:
- skills
- attitudes
- abilities
which they can use to become readers for life.

G.
The teaching of literature also involves
teaching the students
- to enter the writer's imagined world
- understand the universality of themes and ideas
- to realize the significant human experiences
- to understand the human emotions and insights conveyed in the different literary texts




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Teaching Literature 4


II. TEACHING GOALS

to develop literary competence, that is the ability
- to internalize the grammar of literature
which would permit a reader to convert linguistic sequences
into literary structure and meanings

It includes the ability
- to see images in a literary text
to mean more than what they are
- to develop sensitivity to the language of literature
- to interpret the creative uses of the language in the meaning-making


Development of critical thinking:

Literature offers the opportunity to our students to
- perceive ideas and evaluate their worth
- take a stand on issues raised in a literary text
- weigh the truth and consequences of certain viewpoints they are exposed to


High level questions call for
- speculations
- injections
- intelligent guesses


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Teaching Literature 5

Development of literary appreciation


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Teaching Literature 6

III. PRACTICE

Techniques in Introducing the Literary Text:
- listening to a song
- making graphic illustrations of the setting, characters or scenes in the story
- making a photograph study
- sampling random lines or passages from a text

Techniques in Presenting the Literary Text:
- Reading the text live by the teacher
- Listening to a recording of the text
- Presenting slides
- Using transparencies
- Jigsaw reading

Techniques to use after reading a Literary text

- Producing mime or dance interpretation

- Reciting the text or reading interpretatively

- Doing a reader's theater

- Responding to the text through journal writing

- Adapting the text to another genre

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Teaching Literature 7

In teaching literature remember to:

- create a student-centered classroom

- allow for more student talk

- supplement the printed page

- emphasize the value of co-operative learning

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TEACHING LITERATURE

"Teaching High School Literature"

Seven Sisters Home School

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