ECRomantics

English III: Extra Credit Project Options for American Romanticism
Due on the day of the Test.....

The amount of extra credit you will earn for this project will depend on the quality of your work.

1.   Create a piece of artwork. You may choose whatever medium you would like: watercolors,
     colored pencils, pastels, etc. You could base it on any of the following:
               A.   Rip Van Winkle, the town, the “spirits” playing ninepins, etc.
               B.   Tom Walker, the Devil, Faith or any scene from the story
               C.   A seascape scene as suggested by “The Tide Rises...” or “A Psalm of Life”
               D.   The USS Constitution today or in a battle from history
               E.   The Chambered Nautilus
               F.   A banyan tree

2.   Write an original story in the American Romantic tradition. Your story should have:
               A.   Characters
               B.   Setting
               C.   A simple plot
               D.   A theme
               E.   At least three elements of American Romanticism as discussed in class/in the book

3.   Write an original poem in the American Romantic tradition. Your poem should have:
               A.   A simple, Romantic topic
               B.   Meter, if possible
               C.   Rhyme scheme, if possible
               D.   Similes, metaphors, personification, if possible
               E.   A theme consistent with American Romanticism

4.   Research any of the five authors, Irving, Longfellow, Lowell, Holmes, or Whittier and then
     choose from the following:
               A.   Write up a basic report about his life, literary traits, importance, etc.
               B.   Create a tri-fold brochure (use Print Artist?) with your author’s information
               C.   Design a power point presentation (different from mine!)
               D.   Create a simple website
               E.   Or any other form of reporting or presenting you can come up with

5.   Make a collage of images that relate to American Romanticism. This could be for the
      movement in general and/or include images from the stories/poems we read.

6.     Create & burn a soundtrack for 1 or 2 of the stories by Washington Irving:
        A.   For “Rip Van Winkle”: an overall theme song, a song for him, a song for his wife, a
             song or two for his adventures in the woods, a song for his return, and/or a song for his
               life afterwards. (These are just ideas)
      B.   For “Tom Walker”: an overall theme song, a song for him, a song for his wife or her
               fate, a song for the devil, a song for the bargain he makes, a song for his new job/life, a
               song for his fate at the end. (Again, these are just ideas.)

7. Using an online puzzle maker (like www.puzzlemaker.com) or computer program, create a
     review crossword puzzle (or other type of puzzle, just make sure to make me an answer key,
     too) for any of the following:
               A.   Rip Van Winkle and/or Tom Walker
               B.   Devices of poetry terms you need to know for the poems we studied
               C.   Author information on the 5 authors
               D.   The whole unit (would be worth more points if done well!)