Bellringer: April 30Answer in YOUR

NOTES!!!What do you think?• Technology will be the salvation of

humankind.

• Technology will be the destruction of humankind.

KNOWING OUR FATE

Technology and Nature in “There Will Come Soft Rains” by Ray Bradbury

Before We Begin

Things I need to know about the text

Literary terms I need to review

“There Will Come Soft Rains” by Ray Bradbury

Things to know about the story

before we begin.

SUMMARYThis is a science-fiction story that is set in the

aftermath of a nuclear holocaust. The futuristic house is the only one remaining in the city and still serves its now absent family, following the

same daily routines as it always has. In the end, a fire starts and the house is destroyed.

Let’s take a look at SMART houses…

Living Tomorrow: house of the future (4:37)

Permanent ShadowMore information on the nuclear blast effects

“There Will Come Soft Rains”by Sara Teasdale

There will come soft rains and the smell of the ground,

And swallows circling with their shimmering sound;

And frogs in the pools singing at night,And wild plum trees in tremulous white;

Robins will wear their feathery fire,Whistling their whims on a low fence-wire;

And not one will know of the war, not oneWill care at last when it is done.

Not one would mind, neither bird nor tree,If mankind perished utterly;

And Spring herself, when she woke at dawnWould scarcely know that we were gone.

How does the poet imagine nature would respond to the eradication of humankind?

Organization

“There Will Come Soft Rains” is in chronological order.

This, of course, means that the story plays out in order of time.

In fact, the house actually keeps a time schedule that should help take the reader through the routine of the day.

“There Will Come Soft Rains” by Ray Bradbury

• Literary concepts to know about the story before we begin.• Science Fiction• Characterization• Irony• Imagery

• Figurative Language

Characterization

Direct

Indirect

The process of creating a character.

Just describing something

superficial that can’t be used to

identify personality

When an author just states a character’s personality

ThoughtsSpeech Effect on Others Actions Looks

When an author shows a character’s personality though their

Irony

Verbal Dramatic Situational

characterized by a contrast between

what the expectations of a situation are and what is really the

case

Something merely funny or

unfortunate

When someone says the opposite of what is meant

When the audience knows

something a character doesn’t

When an actual outcome is a

reversal of the expected one

Imagery

Adjective and adverb use Verb selection

Figurative Language

Vivid descriptive language that appeals to the

senses

An actual picture

Using descriptive words to describe things (blue, tall, round) or actions (quickly, sadly)

Selecting strong verbs to add extra

description (He shuffled vs. He

walked)

A comparison that isn’t literally true, but emphasizes

some similar aspect

Figurative Language

MetaphorSimile

*Personification*

A comparison that isn’t literally true, but emphasizes some

similar aspect Just describing

something (He is really tall)

Comparing two things, usually by saying something is something else or by converting one item into an

adjective

Comparing two things using like

or as

Assigning human characteristics to

something inhuman

Before reading summary

Based on what we just discussed, how might Bradbury use imagery, characterization, and

irony? Share with your elbow partner.

During Reading

• We are going to use PALS to read “There Will Come Soft Rains.”

• We are going to use the full 32-minute cycle to get as far as we can in one day.

• See your PALS reference sheet for instructions if you should forget a step.

Step 1: Coach and Read (5 minutes per partner)

Partner A Partner B

Begin reading out loud for 5 minutes.

Follow along silently as your partner reads out loud. If partner struggles with words/sentences, help.

Follow along silently as your partner reads out loud. If partner struggles with words/sentences, help.

Start over and read out loud for 5 minutes.

Step 2: Retelling (2 minutes)

check Partner A Partner B

  Ask partner: “Tell me about the first part of what we just read.”

Tell your partner what happened first. Then ask

your partner, “What happened next?”

 Continue to swap roles until you’re told to stop.

Step 3: Paragraph Shrinking (5 minutes per partner)

Check Partner A Partner B  For the next five

minutes, continue reading from where you both left off, but only read 1 paragraph out loud at a time.

• Follow along silently. Help your partner if he or she struggles with words/sentences.

• At the end of each paragraph ask: “Who or what was the paragraph about?”

• After the answer, ask your partner: “What is the most important thing you have learned about that who or what?”

• Finally, say, “Tell the main idea in 10 words or fewer.” Count to help your partner keep track. Ask your partner to shrink it if necessary.

 

Switch roles after 5 minutes, and continue until told to stop.

Step 4: Prediction Relay (5 minutes per partner)

check Partner A Partner B  Your job is almost the

same as last time. Only now you predict what the next paragraph is about before beginning to read.

• Your job is almost the same as before. • Now the first step is to stop your partner at the

end of the paragraph and ask: “How correct was your prediction?”

• Then ask: “Who or what was the paragraph about?” After the answer, ask your partner: “What is the most important thing you have learned about that who or what?”

• Finally, say, “Tell the main idea in 10 words or fewer.” Count to help your partner keep track. Ask your partner to shrink it if necessary.

 

Switch roles when told to do so, and continue until you’re told to stop. 

Vocabulary WorkHere are some words from the text

that you should probably learn

Bounded

• DEFINITION: Walk or run with leaping strides.

• EXAMPLE: The cheerleaders bounded down the hall.

• EXAMPLE FROM THE TEXT: “In the nursery the jungle burned. Blue lions roared, purple giraffes bounded off.”

Cavorting

• DEFINITION: jump or dance around excitedly.

• EXAMPLE: On graduation day, the grads were cavorting through the street.

• EXAMPLE FROM THE TEXT: “The nursery walls glowed. Animals took shape: yellow giraffes, blue lions, pink antelopes, lilac panthers cavorting in crystal substance.”

Kneading

• DEFINITION: the act of pressing or squeezing repeatedly

• EXAMPLE: The physical therapist spent time kneading my shoulder.

• DEFINITION FROM THE TEXT: “The rooms were acrawl with the small cleaning animals, all rubber and metal. They thudded against chairs, whirling their mustached runners, kneading the rug nap, sucking gently at hidden dust.”

Sublime

• DEFINITION: supreme, splendid.

• EXAMPLE: The 18 layer wedding cake was sublime. I ate most of it myself.

• EXAMPLE FROM THE TEXT: “And one voice, with sublime disregard for the situation, read poetry aloud in the fiery study, until all the film spools burned, until all the wires withered and the circuits cracked.

Perished

• DEFINITION: suffer death in a violent, sudden, or untimely way

• EXAMPLE: The potted plants in the yard perished in the storm. There was little left.

• EXAMPLE FROM THE TEXT: “’Not one would mind, neither bird nor tree, if mankind perished utterly;’”

After Reading

Answer the following: How does Bradbury create his theme about the

relationship between technology, humans, and nature?

Think About:• The outcome of the story• The roles of tech, humans, and nature• His use of: Personification• His use of: Characterization• His use of: Irony

Remember to

use your new

words!

HOMEWORK:

Complete the response for “There Will Come Soft Rains” and submit it next class.