Portfolios that are not completed according to the instructions provided will receive a grade of 0.

Please
read this entire document.

Honors English 11 B
Unit 2 Portfolio Guidelines
Objective: to write a comparison and contrast essay

Lesson 6 Portfolio Assignment (rough draft)

Step 1 – Choose a literary time period/movement
 Early and Colonial America
 The Revolutionary Period
 Transcendentalism
 Romanticism
 Realism/Regionalism
 Modernism
 The Harlem Renaissance
 The Beat Generation
 Postmodernism

Step 2 – Choose a theme from the following list:

 Religion and Faith

 Good vs. Evil
 Community
 Nature
 The American Dream
 Alienation
 Disillusionment of Man
 Freedom
 Equality/Inequality
 Individualism
 Technology
 Family
 Isolation
 Tradition
 Identity (the journey to or loss of)
Step 3 – Choose two works with your theme by different authors from the time
period/movement you have chosen. So, same theme and time period but different
authors.
 Portfolios that are not completed according to the instructions provided will receive a grade of 0. Please
read this entire document.

Step 4 – Complete the following prewriting chart.

Honors English 11 B: Unit 1 Comparison and Contrast

Prewriting Chart
Name:

Theme:

Title of Essay:
Selection #1
Title, author, and genre (TAG)
Year written and time
period/movement
What is the author’s message
about the theme you have
selected?
(e.g., If you selected
“Freedom,” the author’s
message could be:

Freedom is being able to

pursue one’s own unique path
in life.)
How does the author reveal
the theme to the reader?
Reference specific details from
the text here. Write at least 5
sentences.

Selection #2
Title, author, and genre (TAG)
Year written and time
period/movement
What is the author’s message
about the theme you have
selected?
(e.g., If you selected
“Freedom,” the author’s
message could be:

Freedom is being able to

pursue one’s own unique path
in life.)
How does the author reveal
the theme to the reader?
Reference specific details from
 Portfolios that are not completed according to the instructions provided will receive a grade of 0. Please
read this entire document.

the text here. Write at least 5

sentences.
Both Selections
Do the authors have similar or
different messages about the
theme? Explain in at least 5
sentences.

Consider what you know about

the authors and their time
period/literary movement.
Why do you suppose the
authors’ messages are similar
or different?
The Big Idea/Thesis
(Reminder: Your thesis should be placed towards the end of your introduction and restated in
your conclusion)
In one or two sentences,
summarize the big idea of your
analysis (e.g., If you selected
“Identity,” the big idea of your
analysis could be:

“Sunrise” and “Year at Home”

are both postmodern coming-
of-age stories about a young
person’s journey to identity,
but one story is about the
importance of developing a
unique identity while the other
is about valuing a shared
identity.)
* A Word version of this chart has been provided on the Message Board.
Step 5 – Use the checklist below to self-evaluate. Submit this checklist with your chart
in Lesson 6.
Self-Assessment Checklist

The literary selections meet my teacher’s requirements.

My theme, which I selected from the list provided, and title are present.
I have thoroughly and meaningfully considered the similarities and
differences between the texts.
I have included specific details from the texts in my responses.
My big idea is interesting, fresh, and insightful (shows deep understanding).
Portfolios that are not completed according to the instructions provided will receive a grade of 0. Please
read this entire document.

Lesson 10 Portfolio Assignment (final draft)

Do NOT use the first or second person in this essay (no I, me, my, or you).

Step 1 - Use the ideas on your prewriting chart to write your comparison and contrast
essay. Be sure to include the following:
1. Heading with a title
 Name, Teacher, Class, Date – left-justified
 Title – centered and capitalized correctly

2. Introduction
 Interesting opening, TAG (title, author, genre), and thesis (big idea) at
the end

3. Body with clear, appropriate organization (e.g., AABB or ABAB)

 Organization is described in Writing with Power, pages 268-70.

AABB Organizer (block approach)

First Paragraph or Paragraphs
Topic 1 about Selection 1
Topic 2 about Selection 1
Topic 3 about Selection 1

Subsequent Paragraph or Paragraphs

Transition
Topic 1 about Selection 2
Topic 2 about Selection 2
Topic 3 about Selection 2

OR

ABAB Organizer (point-by-point approach)

Body Paragraph 1
Topic 1 about Selection 1
Topic 1 about Selection 2

Body Paragraph 2
Transition
Topic 2 about Selection 1
Topic 2 about Selection 2

Body Paragraph 3
Transition
Portfolios that are not completed according to the instructions provided will receive a grade of 0. Please
read this entire document.

Topic 3 about Selection 1

Topic 3 about Selection 2

4. Conclusion that tells your readers what you want them to take away
from your essay
 Restatement of the similarities and differences in different words (tie your
points together)
 Concluding sentence that leaves a final impression (draw an insightful
conclusion--state what the similarities and differences suggest)

Step 2– Use the following checklist to self-assess. Submit your essay with the
completed checklist.
Self-Assessment Checklist

My essay is correctly formatted (MLA-style heading, in-text citations for

quotations from the texts, and a Works Cited page).
My thesis is towards the end of my introduction, and it states my essay’s big
idea.
I have thoroughly compared and contrasted the way the theme is developed in
both texts and drawn logical conclusions about the similarities and differences.
I have used literary language in my essay (see list of literary terms).
I have included important quotations from the texts, but quotations account for
no more than 10% of my paper.
My essay is organized and transitions are used.
My conclusion ties the ideas in my essay together and ends in a powerful way.
All opinions in this analysis are my own, and I have not cited any other sources
except the two texts I am comparing and contrasting.
My essay is 3 –5 pages long.
There are virtually no errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, and usage in my
essay.