Persuasive Writing Assignment
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Persuasive Writing Assignment
April Raintree (scroll down for the Hole in my Life assignment)
Choose ONE of these two scenarios and write a persuasive letter or speech.
Option #1
In the novel, Cheryl is angry because she feels her teachers are leaving out or modifying history, particularly with respect to Aboriginal/Metis history. Pretend you are Cheryl and write a letter to the school board persuading them to include a more accurate history of the treatment of Aboriginal/Metis peoples in Canada. Although this book was published in 1984 before much of the information about residential schools became common knowledge, you may include current events to support your arguments as well as supports from the novel itself. If you use information from an outside source, you must acknowledge that resource or it is plagiarism. Here are some links to help you:
http://www.edu.gov.mb.ca/k12/docs/policy/abpersp/ab_persp.pdf
Option #2
After Cheryl's death, April learns of her nephew, Henry Liberty. The end of the book suggests that April will gain custody of Henry. Gaining custody of a child can be a long and arduous process and there would likely be a hearing to determine April's eligibility to gain custody of Cheryl's son.
Write a letter to Judge Mitchell, asking her to allow April to have custody of Henry Raintree. You should use evidence from the novel to demonstrate all the reasons why April would make a good caregiver and would be a better option than putting Henry into foster care.
Hole in my Life
In the 9th paragraph of chapter 11 of the novel, Jack reveals that he wrote a letter to the Judge on his case asking him to reduce his sentence to time served. He doesn’t include this letter in the novel. Re-read the paragraph that outlines the contents of that letter and imagine the specifics of what Jack might have written. Using the information from the novel and your understanding of Ganto’s experiences, write that letter to the Judge. Review your notes on persuasive writing and consider what Gantos has going for him and why you think the judge should reduce his sentence.