A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich by Alice Childress

By the early 1970s, when Childress’s novel takes place, the civil rights movement had improved the political situation of African Americans. This activity has been helpful to (EFL/ELL/ELD/ENL/ESOL) students to “see” and have a better understanding of events in a literary work.A novel set in Ihe Harlem section of New York City in the early 1970s published 1973.Īn African American teenager is drawn to use heroin because of the pressures of being black and living in poverty in urban United States.Įvents in History at the Time of the NovelĪlice Childress was born in Charleston, South Carolina, but grew up in the racially segregated Harlem district of New York City in the 1920s and 1930s. Once I review their rough draft, I hand them a worksheet so they can produce a final copy. I usually have students draw the staircase template on a piece of notebook paper and use this platform as a rough draft. Some students draw stick figures, and other students draw way better than I dream of! The item I emphasize is getting the major events correct and listing them in chronological order.

I receive a range of quality in the drawings. I like to have students present their work to the class, or I will post student work in the classroom and have a gallery walk-through. I like this activity because students get to choose events they feel are most important in the literary work and standout to them. This allows students to use more space when drawing/coloring pictures. There are no text boxes for the pictures. I also provided a copy of one template that indicates where the pictures should be written. This simply forces students to be selective with their words when they write their short description. The lined space for the fifth event is limited. The spacing ranges from single space, space and a half, and double space. Each copy has different line spacing to accommodate the different level of writers (or penmanship). This worksheet is one page however, there are three different copies. There is enough space for students to list five major events. I enjoy having students draw and color their art. Students will also draw a picture of each event.

Beginning at the bottom left of the page, students will number each major event in the literary work and write a short description of the event. This worksheet has a staircase pattern that moves from the bottom left to the upper right of the paper. This plot graph is presented in landscape view. I like to model (with the participation of the class) the first event. Many times the first and last major events in a literary work are evident. I would be doing students a disservice if this plot graph was completed for them. Literary works have many events in a plot that can be inserted in the provided lines.

Please note this plot graph is not completed in any way it is blank and has lines provided for students to complete.

A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich by Alice Childress