Friday, Sept 13 -close reading Jefferson's Letter to the Danbury Baptist Church

LAST DAY TO RETAKE YOUR SUFFIX TEST

In class:  You have 10 minutes to finish, as much as possible the First Amendment work from yesterday and then we will move on to a close reading of Jefferson's Letter to the Danbury Baptist Church 

          handout in class / copy below.

          You will work with a graphic organizer in the manner we did similarly with the First Amendment yesterday.

DUE Monday, Sept 16; vocabulary practice sheet. and LAST DAY TO TURN IN SUMMER READING.
  On Tuesday, you will have assessment on these words in the form of a matching quiz. class handout / copy below.

  To study your 8 words that will be on the vocabulary test, I suggest you make flash cards. I have them, if you do not.

Letter to the Danbury Baptists 

Thomas Jefferson 

Library of Congress, 1802  

First Amendment to the 

United States Constitution

Library of Congress, 1791 

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free 

exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the 

people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. 

The Final Letter, as Sent 

To messers. Nehemiah Dodge, Ephraim Robbins, & Stephen S. Nelson, a committee of the 

Danbury Baptist association in the state of Connecticut. 

The Final Letter, as Sent 

To messers. Nehemiah Dodge, Ephraim Robbins, & Stephen S. Nelson, a committee of the 

Danbury Baptist association in the state of Connecticut. 

Gentlemen: 

The a)ectionate sentiments of esteem and approbation which you are so good as to 

express towards me, on behalf of the Danbury Baptist association, give me the highest 

satisfaction. My duties dictate a faithful and zealous pursuit of the interests of my 

constituents, & in proportion as they are persuaded of my fidelity to those duties, the 

discharge of them becomes more and more pleasing.

Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, 

that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of 

government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence 

that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should "make 

no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof," 

thus building a wall of separation between Church & State. Adhering to this expression of 

the supreme will of the nation in behalf of the rights of conscience, I shall see with sincere 

satisfaction the progress of those sentiments which tend to restore to man all his natural 

rights, convinced he has no natural right in opposition to his social duties. 

I reciprocate your kind prayers for the protection & blessing of the common father and 

creator of man, and tender you for yourselves & your religious association, assurances of my 

high respect & esteem. 

Th Je)erson 

Jan. 1. 1802. 

BELOW IS A COPY OF THE GRAPHIC ORGANIZER WE ARE USING IN CLASS TODAY.

Thomas Jefferson’s Letter to the Danbury Baptist Church

< READING CLOSELY FOR DETAILS: GUIDING QUESTIONS

As part of skill building in learning to read more effectively there is a methodology to approaching texts.

Every time one looks at a text, it is important to have a purpose and to be able to answer the question why am I reading this text?

Secondly, ask yourself, what should I focus on?

The content and information about the topic?

The structure and language of the text?

The author’s view?

<

• What is the title? _______________________________________________________________

• Who is the author? _____________________________________________________________

• What type of text is it? ___________________________________________________________

• Who published the text? __________________________________________________________

• When was the text published?______________________________________________________

QUESTIONING: I begin my reading with questions to help me understand the text and I pose new questions while reading that help me deepen my understanding.

Reading closely involves:

1) initially questioning a text to focus my attention on its structure, ideas, language and perspective then

2) questioning further as I read to sharpen my focus on the specific details in the text.

Structure:

• How is the text organized? ____________________________________________________________________________________________

• How has the author structured the sentences, lines, paragraphs, scenes or stanzas?

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Topic, Information and Ideas:

• What information/ideas are presented at the beginning of the text? ___________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• What stands out to me as I first examine this text? __________________________________________________________________________________

• What information/ideas are described in detail? ____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• What do I learn about the topic as I read? _____________________________________________________________________________________________

• How do the ideas relate to what I already know? _________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• What do I think this text is mainly about?________________________________________________________________________________________________

Language:

• What words or phrases stand out to me as I read? _______________________________________________________________________________________

• What words and phrases are powerful or unique? _______________________________________________________________________________________

• What do the author’s words cause me to see or feel?______________________________________________________________________________________

• What words do I need to dene to better understand the text? ______________________________________________________________________________

• What words and phrases are repeated? _________________________________________________________________________________________________

Perspective:

• Who is the intended audience of the text? ___________________________________________________________________________________________

• What is the author's/narrator's stance or attitude about the topic or theme? _________________________________________________________________

• How does the author’s language show his/her perspective? ________________________________________________________________________________

• What is the author’s personal relationship to the topic or themes?___________________________________________________________________________

ANALYZING DETAILS

Reading closely involves analyzing and connecting the details I have found through my questioning to determine their meaning, importance, and the ways they help develop ideas across a text.

Patterns across the text:

• What does the repetition of words or phrases in the text suggest? __________________________________________________________________________

• How do details, information, characters or ideas change across the text? ____________________________________________________________________

• How do the text’s structure and features influence my reading? __________________________________________________________________________

Meaning of Language:

• How do specific words or phrases impact the meaning of the text? __________________________________________________________________________

• What words or phrases are critical for my understanding of the text? _________________________________________________________________________

Importance:

• Which details are most important to the overall meaning of the text? _________________________________________________________________________

• Which sections are most challenging and require closer reading? ____________________________________________________________________________

Relationships among details:

• How are details in the text related in a way that develops themes or ideas? ________________________________________________________________

• What does the text leave uncertain or unstated? Why? _________________________________________________________________________________

Vocabulary from First Amendment and Thomas Jefferson’s letter to the Danbury Baptist Church

Please be prepared to define the following words for an assessment on Tuesday, Sept 17

<to abridge (verb)- to reduce

<  redress (noun)- the setting right of something that is wrong

<  approbation  (noun)- official approval

< fidelity (noun)- the strict observance of policy or rules

<  to contemplate (verb)- to consider thoroughly

< sovereign (adjective or noun)- important or a royal leader

< reciprocate- (verb) – to give in return

< to tender- (verb)- to make a formal offer

Based upon the definition of the above words, insert them into the following sentences. Please keep the top part to study and detach the lower part of the sheet. Note: please use the correct tense of a verb.

<  Because the colonists felt their _____________________________ rights as Englishmen were not respected, they chose to form their own government.

< It is heartbreaking to care deeply for another when the feelings are not________________________________________________.

< In order for the federal government to ________________________________the deficit, there must be significant reductions in spending.

< All marines sign an oath of  ______________________________________, whereby they affirm their loyalty to the United States.

< When overwhelmed by the chaos of her daily life, she would retreat from the bustling world into nature to _____________________________________ its peacefulness.

< While justice may be another meaning for __________________________, one must put aside anger and violence.

    Before engaging in any type of public demonstration, the students needed to get the _______________________________________ of the administration.

<  In some cultures, before making a marriage proposal to the bride, one must first _____________________________ an offer to the girl’s father or uncle.