The GiverIn Class Writing Assessment

1. Read through the various prompts and choose ONE for the development of a Compare – Contrast Essay.

2. Using “The Giver as a means for Comparing and Contrasting, brainstorm ideas for your chosen prompt using your Venn Diagram and your Evidence Table.

3. Complete the Compare-Contrast Outline to best organize your ideas and the way you plan to present your information.

4. Begin writing your response by developing a clear “claim”.

5. As you write, use text examples from your Venn Diagram and your Evidence Table. Be sure you “weave” in your text evidence smoothly using full sentences.

6. Re-read your writing and edit your work. Correct spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and grammar errors. Did you add a complete heading?

7. Staple your essay, your outline, your Evidence Table, and your Venn Diagram together and submit for a final grade.

In-class Compare Contrast Essay

Purpose

Practice the first 3 steps of the writing process: ● THINK

● ORGANIZE● WRITE

As you review the prompt options and brainstorm ideas for your Venn Diagram, THINK of a strong claim which adequately responds to the writing prompt.

ORGANIZE specific examples from the text on your Evidence Table to support your ideas.

WRITE a complete Compare-Contrast Essay, presenting your claim and evidence in an organized way.

Venn Diagram Example:

Role that Safety Plays

Jonas’ Society Our Society

Experts choose jobs for 12’s that are a “safe” match for personality

Laws govern all aspects of personal life, including bedtime.

Release is a penalty if you break the rules x3.

Spouse and family members are selected for you to ensure domestic stability/safety

Strict age limits on all activities (even dress or riding a bike)

All unpredictable emotions eliminated by medicine

Even unsafe/disruptive weather has been eliminated!

Freedom to choose your own job puts one at risk of failure, being fired, etc.

Choose how to live your personal life - you might make unsafe decisions.

Death penalty for severe crimes only.

Choose your spouse and family makeup - there are risks involved!

Families can make choices for their children, even if they are sometimes dangerous.

People sometimes do crazy, irrational things out of anger, love, etc.

Our technology hasn’t allowed us to control this yet!

Both societies have jobs to ensure a safe/stable society

Both societies have laws to promote safety

Both societies have a system of punishment for certain crimes

Families are “support structure” for individuals

Expectations/rules differ for people of different ages (voting, car seats, driving)

Drawing evidence from the text

Evidence (Quote or Paraphrase) Analysis

“You know that there’s no third chance. The rules say that if there’s a third transgression, he simply has to be released.” (pg. 9)

The Community has established a system of government based on the citizens’ adherence to the rules. Those who do not comply will be released and sent to Elsewhere. Therefore order, safety and control is maintained.

“If everything’s the same, then there aren’t any choices! I want to wake up in the morning and decide things.” (pg 97)

Through the memories, Jonas learns that the past was different and that choice used to be an option for individuals in a society. He comes to realization that basic freedoms were taken from the citizens and he questions whether this was just or not.

Sample Claim / Intro Paragraph for Compare-Contrast Essay Example

Compare and Contrast the role of “safety” as seen in The Giver to that in our world.

Every person desires to live in a world that is safe and secure, but can a society go too far in protecting its citizens? The Community presented in The Giver is structured in a way so that its citizens are protected and safe from many possible dangers. However, in order to achieve this level of safety, many rules are enforced – rules that infringe upon the personal freedom of its citizens. Similarly, rules are essential in our world for they are necessary to maintain safety and order. Still, while our society balances the human needs for safety and freedom, Jonas’s society took the desire for safety to an outrageous extreme.

Prompt #1

In Jonas’s world, “family units” are designed with a specific intent. Spouses and children are assigned to ensure the best match is made.

Compare and contrast the advantages and disadvantages of the structure of families in Jonas’s world to that of our own.

Prompt #2

In Jonas’ society, only the Receiver of Memory is entrusted with knowledge of humankind’s past. The Receiver advises the Council of Elders when they must make a decision requiring great knowledge.

In our society, who has knowledge of the past? Does our society have a special responsibility with our knowledge of the past?

Compare and contrast the role that the “past” plays in our world to that of the Community in The Giver.

Prompt #3

Rules play a vital role in The Giver. Jonas lives in a society that is completely safe: its inhabitants are comfortable, well-fed, and protected. On the other hand, they have very little freedom because they are not allowed to make choices on their own.

Compare and contrast the “role that rules play” in Jonas’ society to that of our own. How do rules help to shape the lives of each society’s citizens?

Jonas’s Society Our World

Drawing Evidence from the TextAs you brainstorm ideas for your Comparison and Contrast

paragraphs, use the following Evidence Chart to document text evidence to support your position.

Evidence (Quote or Paraphrase) Analysis