Making Connections:

Seeing Your Life Through Annes Eyes

As you read through Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, keep in mind that the
writings and thoughts recorded were written by a thirteen-year-old. The diary
contains very passionate and mature ideas for someone so young. Yet, I hope we
can agree that age should not, and does not, limit an individuals capacity to
influence and impact the lives of others. Anne Frank certainly left behind a lasting
legacy.

Dialectical Journal Project:

1) You are to keep your very own diary of sorts. You are free to record your
reflections and ideas in a notebook of your choosing or in a digital fashion.
Whatever method you choose, just make sure that your work is accessible and
easy to locate. I will be checking your journal periodically and trust that you will
be able to plan your time efficiently.
2) For every assigned reading section, you are to record at least three powerful
quotes from the diary that stood out to you. These textual references do not
need to summarize the entire selection, but rather they should impact you on a
personal level, allowing you to reflect and comment on the particular reference
easily.
3) Divide your journal into two separate columns. On the left, you will record
the direct quote from the diary. On the right, you will provide your written
response and connection to the quote.
4) Please be neat, detailed, and intentional in your responses. I disdain busy work
and am not assigning this project to see how many quotes you can copy down.
Rather, I am interested in seeing how well you can connect to the
literature by drawing upon personal experiences from your own lives.
5) I will be conducting periodic journal checks, in which you will be expected to turn
in the completed journals for a grade. It is your responsibility to stay on top
of your workload. I will provide the class with suggested checkpoints
for work completion, but the completion of that work depends entirely
upon you.
6) Good luck and enjoy digging deep into the writings of Anne Frank!

*Check out the example below

Below is an example of what your Dialectical Journal should look like. Organize your
paper or your digital document into two columns. On the left side, you will record a
direct quote from the diary, including the date and page number where the quote
can be found. On the right, record your personal response, including your initial
response and a personal connection. Be sure that your response contains substance
and falls within 6-10 sentences in length. You will all do great! Im eager to read
your work!

Anne Frank: Dialectical Journal

SECTION #1
Meaningful Quote (Date & pg.
#)
June 20, 1942
Its an odd idea for someone like
me to keep a diary, not only
because I have never done
before, but because it seems to
me that neither I nor anyone
else will be interested in the
unbosomings of a thirteen-yearold schoolgirl. Still, what does it
matter? I want to write, but more
than that, I want to bring out all
kinds of things that lie buried
deep in my heart (Frank 2).

Personal Response & Connection

(6-10 sentences)
Response: I am immediately drawn to Annes
character. She strikes me as an intelligent and
mature young woman who has devoted great
thought to the world around her. In fact, its
the most surprising to read that Anne never
believed that her diary would serve any grand
purpose. After all, who would imagine that the
writings of such a young, inexperienced teen
would have had such an impact on the
compassion and understanding of mankind?

Date

Connection: I am reminded of my own youth

and the many times I felt ill-equipped or
inadequate in certain situations. Yet age or
lack of experience should not limit us in the
slightest. We should not be held back by such
fears, but encouraged to act anyway. Thats
what Anne chose to do. In spite of her doubts,
she wrote and in doing so, she recorded the
true account of life in the Secret Annex, a
story filled with circumstances of survival,
loss, hope, and perseverance.
Response and Connection

Quote #2 (Frank pg. #)

Date

Response and Connection

Quote #3 (Frank pg. #)

SECTION #2