Teacher Commentary

There is a reproducible diary page in the student handouts. If your students don’t bring it up first, acknowledge that most serfs did not know how to read and write, so they would have to imagine being one of the few who were literate.

Model what this assignment might look like. Using a Think Aloud, show students how to look at their Possible Evidence chart and turn their notes into sentences from a diary. For example I might say, “My notetaker says that many serfs were farmers and that they worked all day. I made a claim that the life of a serf was horrible and exhausting. I think I will start, ‘Dear Diary, Today I got up before the sun and made a simple breakfast for my husband and two children. I wish I could get more sleep, but I have to work so hard all day long.’” I would demonstrate the writing in real time in front of the students with a document camera or smartboard. DO NOT JUST SHOW THEM A FINISHED PRODUCT. Students need to hear and see how the sentences were created.