Multi-Genre Research 1

Multi- Genre Research Project

Nathan L. Tamborello

The University of Houston

Fall 2017 - ENGL 4319

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I decided to choose a fairly popular literary non-fiction high school book for my multi-

genre research project, which encompasses historical analysis, memoir writing, and creative

elements to dissect and present over Elie Wiesel's Night. This book is a follow up to the middle

school inclusion of Number the Stars and serves to not only teach about the context and content

of a memoir, but also one that is rooted in such a historically significant event. All genres will

be eventually compiled into a binder, book, or visual presentation. The content follows the

following rubric and guidelines:

The Project: You will choose 2 genres from the following list. Each genre should be

compiled into a binder or presentation, with the intent of the overall project to be historical

context, keeping in mind your relation to the novella’s themes and ideas.

The genres include: Print Media, Visual with Words, Visual Display, Informational, and

Creative Writing. You will choose 2 different genres to create a report on, which will be turned

in as one project presentation.

PRINT MEDIA

Ø Create a newspaper article as if you were a German during the time of Elie

Wiesel’s stay in Auschwitz. Think about your voice: are you a part of the political

propaganda? Are you a double agent spreading propaganda? The article must be 3

paragraphs in length and include one picture. (This can be drawn or real)

OR

Ø Write a Letter to the Editor where you express your concerns as a German citizen

about Hitler’s uprising. This must be 3 paragraphs and include detailed

descriptions of what you see, how you feel, and what’s going on in Germany

around you at the time.

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VISUAL WITH WORDS

Ø Imagine you are a Nazi in Hitler’s Third Reich. Create a propaganda flier that

will be passed out to German citizens convincing them that you are the good guys

and the US is bad. You can take visual cues from actual propaganda of the time,

but make sure your flier is original and creative.

OR

Ø Create a movie poster for Night. Be sure to incorporate themes, motifs, or

symbols from the novella into your poster, including the broader historical setting.

Include a short tag line for your movie poster and a credits scrawl at the bottom.

Think about who you would cast and who you would want to direct it.

VISUAL DISPLAY

Ø Research the layout of the Auschwitz concentration camp and create a map in

which you detail that layout. Make sure to pinpoint areas of interest or places

referenced in Night. Be sure to include a Map Legend.

OR

Ø Imagine that Night is being made into a movie. Choose a short excerpt from the

novella and adapt it into a storyboard, where you choose shots, dialogue, setting,

and props within the frame. Include a paragraph summary about why you chose

the shots, props, and dialogue that you included.

INFORMATIONAL

Ø Pretend you are interviewing Elie Wiesel in real life. Create 5 questions and

answers for the mock interview. Explain who you are interviewing him as

(reporter, friend, student) and make sure you connect his answers with certain
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references from the novella, i.e. why would you think he would respond the way

he does?

OR

Ø Create a timeline for the events of the Holocaust, starting with Hitler’s rise to

power and ending with his ultimate suicide. Include major points of interest and

detail where Wiesel falls within the context of the historical timeline that you

created.

CREATIVE WRITING

Ø Write 2 poems focusing on themes of the novella. They can either be about

Wiesel or the Holocaust in general. Use any of the poem layouts that we have

studied. Be sure to include a 2-3 sentence breakdown of your poems and what

they mean to you.

OR

Ø Research an actual victim of the Holocaust. Create an obituary for them, where

you write about their life, their family, who they were before being interned, and

how they died. Include any pictures you may find through your research.

TEKS

Night is typically read in 9th grade, so I structured my TEKS to align with English I

standards.

§110.31. (2) Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Theme and Genre. Students

analyze, make inferences and draw conclusions about theme and genre in different cultural,
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historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support their

understanding. Students are expected to:

(A) analyze how the genre of texts with similar themes shapes meaning;

This research project is all about incorporating the theme and motifs found within Wiesel’s

novella to the broader historical context which it resides within.

(6) Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Literary Nonfiction. Students understand,

make inferences and draw conclusions about the varied structural patterns and features of literary

nonfiction and provide evidence from text to support their understanding. Students are expected

to analyze how literary essays interweave personal examples and ideas with factual information

to explain, present a perspective, or describe a situation or event.

(7) Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Sensory Language. Students understand,

make inferences and draw conclusions about how an author's sensory language creates imagery

in literary text and provide evidence from text to support their understanding. Students are

expected to explain the role of irony, sarcasm, and paradox in literary works.

(8) Reading/Comprehension of Informational Text/Culture and History. Students

analyze, make inferences and draw conclusions about the author's purpose in cultural, historical,

and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support their understanding.

Students are expected to explain the controlling idea and specific purpose of an expository text

and distinguish the most important from the less important details that support the author's

purpose.

(12) Reading/Media Literacy. Students use comprehension skills to analyze how words,

images, graphics, and sounds work together in various forms to impact meaning. Students will
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continue to apply earlier standards with greater depth in increasingly more complex texts.

Students are expected to:

(A) compare and contrast how events are presented and information is communicated by

visual images (e.g., graphic art, illustrations, news photographs) versus non-visual texts;

(B) analyze how messages in media are conveyed through visual and sound techniques

(e.g., editing, reaction shots, sequencing, background music);

(C) compare and contrast coverage of the same event in various media (e.g., newspapers,

television, documentaries, blogs, Internet); and

(D) evaluate changes in formality and tone within the same medium for specific

audiences and purposes.

(14) Writing/Literary Texts. Students write literary texts to express their ideas and

feelings about real or imagined people, events, and ideas. Students are responsible for at least

two forms of literary writing. Students are expected to:

(B) write a poem using a variety of poetic techniques (e.g., structural elements, figurative

language) and a variety of poetic forms (e.g., sonnets, ballads)

(20) Research/Research Plan. Students ask open-ended research questions and develop a plan

for answering them. Students are expected to:

(A) brainstorm, consult with others, decide upon a topic, and formulate a major research

question to address the major research topic; and

(B) formulate a plan for engaging in research on a complex, multi-faceted topic.

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(21) Research/Gathering Sources. Students determine, locate, and explore the full range

of relevant sources addressing a research question and systematically record the information they

gather. Students are expected to:

(A) follow the research plan to compile data from authoritative sources in a manner that

identifies the major issues and debates within the field of inquiry;

(B) organize information gathered from multiple sources to create a variety of graphics and

forms (e.g., notes, learning logs); and

(C) paraphrase, summarize, quote, and accurately cite all researched information according to a

standard format (e.g., author, title, page number).

(22) Research/Synthesizing Information. Students clarify research questions and evaluate

and synthesize collected information. Students are expected to:

(A) modify the major research question as necessary to refocus the research plan;

(B) evaluate the relevance of information to the topic and determine the reliability, validity, and

accuracy of sources (including Internet sources) by examining their authority and objectivity;

and

(C) critique the research process at each step to implement changes as the need occurs and is

identified.

(23) Research/Organizing and Presenting Ideas. Students organize and present their ideas

and information according to the purpose of the research and their audience. Students are

expected to synthesize the research into a written or an oral presentation that:

(A) marshals evidence in support of a clear thesis statement and related claims;

(B) provides an analysis for the audience that reflects a logical progression of ideas and a clearly

stated point of view;

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(C) uses graphics and illustrations to help explain concepts where appropriate;

(D) uses a variety of evaluative tools (e.g., self-made rubrics, peer reviews, teacher and expert

evaluations) to examine the quality of the research; and

(E) uses a style manual (e.g., Modern Language Association, Chicago Manual of Style) to

document sources and format written materials.