Potomac's eighth grade English students read and discuss The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. The book is a series of short vignettes that together capture the characters, setting, and stories of a particular neighborhood in Chicago. The vignettes are written from the perspective of a fictional narrator and are based loosely on Cisneros's own experiences as well as those of her students. Some of the vignettes are humorous or action-packed; some are heart-wrenching or shocking. All are deliberate in their use of figurative language, poetic elements, grammar conventions, and pacing.

Each eighth grader composed at least one vignette for inclusion in this digital collection. They wrote in the style of Sandra Cisneros, as they interpreted it based on their notes and our class discussions, yet they set it in a time and place of their own choosing. While some of these vignettes are based on the author's personal experience, many of them are purely fiction, an imagining of characters and circumstances that seemed ripe for this assignment. Students also used this assignment to experiment with new vocabulary words and techniques involving punctuation and sentence structure.

We encourage you to leave comments below vignettes that strike you in some way. Please keep your comments positive and specific; this is not the place for critiques or suggestions. Enjoy the creativity and vibrancy of these students' literary efforts.

Thursday, December 17, 2015

My Bunny

He has stayed. Every sleepless night, when I would cry about how much I wanted to go to sleep but couldn’t...Every night, when I thought there was a bad guy in the house, he let me hang on to him pertinaciously...Every injury, when I would suffer through all of the cuts and bruises, he would be there for me. But he has stayed with me.

He has come back. On some vacations when he would stay at the hotel, he was lost...In the backyard when he would hide in the bushes, he was lost…In the house when he would have the aptitude to hide in every place possible, he was lost. But he would come back for me.

He has suffered. His paw has been cut open, and he suffered...His stomach has been astringently ripped open - with most of the cotton spilling out - and he suffered...He has been rained on, and he suffered. But he would suffer for me.

~ Michael D.

Labels:

8 comments:

  1. AnonymousJanuary 6, 2016 at 10:12 AM

    I liked the words you used to describe your connection with your bunny which made the story much more interesting and dramatic.
    - E.L.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousJanuary 6, 2016 at 10:17 AM

    I liked the vocabulary choice you made with great words like astringent and aptitude. It really enhances your piece. Great Work! ELR

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousJanuary 6, 2016 at 10:41 AM

      Thank you for thinking it makes sense.

      MD

      Delete
  3. AnonymousJanuary 6, 2016 at 10:21 AM

    Wow, the third paragraph was very violent, I like the details and how you start your paragraphs. I thought that was a real bunny until you said cotton was spilling out. Now you can cuddle with tipper.

    JH

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousJanuary 6, 2016 at 10:40 AM

      First, my cat's name is "tiper." Second, thank you for letting me know that you did think it was a real bunny. I intended to do that.

      MD

      Delete
  4. AnonymousJanuary 6, 2016 at 10:41 AM

    I really liked this one. The word choice and organization of the paragraphs were really good, and the story was relatable.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousJanuary 6, 2016 at 10:42 AM

      Thank you for being able to relate to it.

      Delete
  5. AnonymousJanuary 6, 2016 at 1:38 PM

    In a lot of the vignettes the title directly is in referral to something in the story, but you cleverly utilized the title to say something that you didn't need to say directly.

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)