1a. What initial expectations does the author have for his sisters' educations?
2a. Why do the author's sisters transfer to another school?
3a. According to this essay, what do students say when they are asked why they attach so much importance to their clothes?
4a. List the five reasons the author gives to support his position on school dress codes. You may want to use the Graphic Organizer on page 797 to help you answer this question.
5a. Is the author effective in persuading the reader to agree with his point of view on school dress codes? Why, or why not? Which of his reasons most strongly supports his argument? Why? Which of his reasons seems the weakest? Why? How effective do you think this essay would be in persuading parents or teachers to take the author's view on school dress codes?
1b. Why does he have these expectations?
2b. Why might the author's sisters have a particularly hard time in their first American school? Do you think their experience in their new school will be different? Why, or why not?
3b. Why might some students feel this way?
4b. Respond to each of the author's reasons with your own opinion. Then summarize your opinion on school dress codes in general.
5b. Whether or not you agree with Mathabane's opinion about school dress codes, reflect on some of the individual points he makes in his essay. Which of his observations do you find to be accurate in terms of your school? Does your opinion on this subject change when you consider this issue from the author's point of view?
Persuasive Essay. Are you part of the audience Mathabane is addressing in this essay?
In the last paragraph of the essay the author restates his position on school dress codes. What words does he use? Why is this an effective thing to do in a persuasive essay? Can you point out any places in the essay where the author has anticipated and countered the reader's response?
Use a organizer like the one below to diagram Mathabane's argument in "Appearances Are Destructive." Look back at the essay and the list of the author's reasons you made for the Analyze question in Investigate, Inquire, and Imagine as you fill in the organizer. Some examples have been filled in to get you started.
1. Write a letter to the author's sisters that explains to them why people sometimes act the way the students in their school acted or that tells them it's okay to be different.
2. Imagine that your school has implemented a standard dress code that states that all students are required to wear the same uniform of white shirt and dark pants. Make a list of other ways in which you might express your individuality.
3. A motto is a short expression used as a guiding principle such as "if you think you can, you can" or "where there's a will there's a way." Invent a motto that expresses something unique about you or that expresses your ideas about individuality and tolerance of people's differences.
Challenging Vocabulary. Often, authors use high-level words in order to impress and convince their audiences. At other times, a simpler term is as effective or more effective. For each of the challenging words below, find one or more simpler terms that mean the same thing. Use your dictionary and/or thesaurus, as well as each word's context in the reading, to assist you.
1. compelling
2. curtailment
3. derail
4. diminution
5. distraught
6. gaudy
7. infringe
8. meretricious
9. ogle
10. taunt
Comparative and Superlative Modifiers. Refer to Language Arts Survey 3.44 and rewrite the following with the correct form of the word in parentheses.
1. American schools are __________ than schools affected by apartheid. (good)
2. The __________ thing for some students is not stupidity and conformity, but the wrong clothing. (bad)
3. In education, computers and libraries are __________ than jewelry and shoes. (important)
4. A dress code is __________ to handle than competition over clothes. (easy)
5. When comparing prices among Nikes, Adidas, and Reeboks, Nikes are __________. (expensive)
6. If we examine when Shakespeare, Faulkner, and Zora Neale Hurston each wrote, we find that Shakespeare's works are __________. (old)
7. Parents who are __________ than others may seem more loving and giving. (rich)
8. Of the following learning tools—computers, calculators, and typewriters—computers are __________. (modern)
9. Fashion can be __________ than academics to some students. (exciting)
10. To many students faced with the choices of being smart, having status, and having respect, a large number often select being smart as the __________ thing. (important)
Researching a Company. Using library resources, newspaper and magazine articles, and the Internet, conduct research on a designer or company that you particularly admire. (You may want to talk with the librarian at your school or local library to get advice on where to start looking.) Find out when the company was started and where its headquarters are, whether it operates only in the United States or internationally, what products it manufactures and where the products are made, what charities it sponsors, how many employees it has, and what its profits were for last year. Also include information on any other topics of interest, such as whether the company has been the target of public protest or has been involved in a lawsuit. Compile your findings into a short report to share with the class. Conclude your report by stating whether any of the information you came across in your research changed your opinion about the company or designer, and if so, which information, and why. Record resources (both Internet and library) you consulted. Write the corresponding information that the textbook suggests you find.
Internet and Library Resources
Information Obtained
