LESSON 3.3
Grade your Ideas
Don’t write about the first thing you think of. It’s usually an Old idea: something everyone knows about or something most people do not care about.
Task 3.3.1 Tandem, Small Group, or Class
Pick 2-3 of the activities you chose in Task 3.2.3. Look up 2-3 important people who participated in each one. Have at least 10 people total. (For teaching reasons, we are presenting 24 examples below).
Abebe Bikila
Aristotle
Billy Mills
Dorando Pietri
Einstein
Florence Baker
Jason Lee
Jesse Owens
Jim Buck
John Muir
Kathrine Switzer
Libby Riddles
Olga Korbutt
Percy Fawcett
Pheidippides
Salvador Dali
Stephen King
Steve Prefontaine
Stu Unger
Susan Butcher
Tony Hawk
Tori Boggs
Usain Bolt
Wilma Rudolph
Grading
In Chapter Two (Nonfiction with Narrator Essays) we graded possible subjects like this:
A = Awesome idea. Same as B and people are likely to say “Wow!”
B = Better idea. People do not know much about this and they are probably interested.
C = Common idea. People probably know a lot about this OR probably don’t care about it.
In this chapter (Nonfiction without Narrator Essay) we will use a simpler grading system:
New idea. People do not know much about this and they are probably interested
Old idea. People probably know a lot about this OR probably don’t care about it.
Task 3.3.2 Small Group or Class
Delete the people you feel typical educated American adults probably already know a lot about.
Abebe Bikila
Billy Mills
Dean Karnezes
Dorando Pietri
Florence Baker
Jason Lee
Jim Buck
John Muir
Kathrine Switzer
Libby Riddles
Olga Korbutt
Percy Fawcett
Pheidippides
Salvador Dali
Steve Prefontaine
Stu Unger
Susan Butcher
Tony Hawk
Tori Boggs
Wilma Rudolph
Task 3.3.3 Small Group or Class
Delete people whose activity you feel typical adults probably do not care to read about. We are trying to find a subject that will interest your readers, not just interest you.
| Abebe Bikila BillyMills Dean Karnazes Dorando Pietri Florence Baker Jason Lee Jim Bridger John Muir Kathrine Switzer Libby Riddles Olga Korbutt Percy Fawcett Pheidippides Salvador Dali Steve Prefontaine Susan Butcher Tony Hawk Wilma Rudolph |
Marathons Long-distance running Ultra-marathons Marathons Exploring wilderness Skateboarding Exploring wilderness Exploring wilderness Marathons Dog mushing Women’s gymnastics Exploring wilderness Marathons Painting Long-distance running Dog mushing Skateboarding Sprinting |
Task 3.3.4 Small Group or Class
Make a What Statement table. In the left-hand box put the person’s name and what he or she is famous for. Leave the other two boxes blank. For example:
| LH | VP | RH |
|---|---|---|
| Abebe Bikila, greatest modern marathoner | ||
| Billy Mills, underdog – only American to win 10,000 meter race | ||
| Dean Karnazes, Greatest ultramarathoner | ||
| Dorando Pietri, lost marathon on a horrible technicality | ||
| Eliud Kipchoge, 1st person to run marathon in two hours | ||
| Florence Baker, explored east Africa when women were expected to stay home | ||
| Jason Lee, famous skateboarder turned actor | ||
| Jim Bridger, mountain man who explored American West | ||
| John Muir, explored what is now Yosemite & helped created the park | ||
| John Suter, used huge poodles in Iditarod (Alaska’s 1049 mile dog sled race) | ||
| Katrine Switzer, 1st American woman marathon champion | ||
| Libby Riddles, 1st woman to win Iditarod | ||
| Olga Korbut, revolutionized modern women’s gymnastics | ||
| Percy Fawcett, explored the Amazon; died looking for a lost city | ||
| Pheidippides, Greek warrior whose run started the marathon tradition | ||
| Salvador Dali, artist famous for surrealism | ||
| Steve Prefontaine, beloved American runner who died young | ||
| Susan Butcher, most famous woman musher | ||
| Tony Hawk, world champion skateboarder | ||
| Wilma Rudolph, 1st great American female sprinter |
