ELA.9.C.1.4

This lesson is #3 in an ELA/Civics Integrated Text Unit designed to support students with the integration of civics into the ELA classroom through the reading and study of Homer’s The Odyssey. This lesson should take place after students have read excerpts from Part 2 of The Odyssey. Students will use knowledge from lessons one and two as well as information from Article II of the United States Constitution to identify and explain the different presidential responsibilities such as receiving foreign heads of state. They will then create a “White House Press Briefing” outlining the U.S. President’s events of the day which includes a visit from a foreign head of state- Odysseus-who has come to the United States to learn more about how the United States borrowed from Greece when creating a constitutional republic.

Type: Lesson Plan

This 5-part student-centered activity places students in the role of a local emergency management team that is tasked by the County Board of Commissioners to develop a County Hurricane Emergency Management Plan (CHEMP). In part 4, students will work within their teams to create the three components of their presentations. Students will plan their oral presentation to the County Board of Commissioners as well as create a visual presentation and a written document. The teacher’s role will be to present the task, monitor student engagement, and provide feedback as the teams complete the three components of their portion of the plan.

Type: Lesson Plan

This lesson provides students the opportunity to explore how the word ‘swagger’ has transformed over centuries through the writings of poets such as Shakespeare and rappers such as Jay Z. Students will read an article from NPR titled “What do Jay Z and Shakespeare Have in Common? Swagger” and thereafter will be asked to analyze vocabulary from the article, respond to text-dependent questions, and complete a summary of the term swagger analyzing its previous and present day definitions.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will analyze protagonist, antagonist, conflict, resolution, and hubris in three classic myths: "Odysseus and Polyphemus," "Athena and Arachne," and "Echo and Narcissus." They will write an essay explaining the message of each myth using examples from the myths and discuss the impact of the recurring theme of hubris on the ancient Greek audience.

Type: Lesson Plan

This lesson includes a close-reading and text-marking activity using two soldiers' letters, one from the Civil War and one from The War on Terror. Students will discover by looking at word choice and sentence structure how language styles have changed over time.

Type: Lesson Plan

Students will collaborate to revise an expository piece of writing by expanding their details and varying their writing structure in this lesson.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will create story boards to show their analysis of plot, characters, and setting in Act One of Romeo and Juliet. Students will then use the information analyzed with the the reading of Act One and the story board creations to answer a short response question.

Type: Lesson Plan

Practice writing different aspects of an expository essay about scientists using drones to research glaciers in Peru. This interactive tutorial is part four of a four-part series. In this final tutorial, you will learn about the elements of a body paragraph. You will also create a body paragraph with supporting evidence. Finally, you will learn about the elements of a conclusion and practice creating a “gift.” 

This tutorial is part four of a four-part series. Click below to open the other tutorials in this series.

• Drones and Glaciers: Eyes in the Sky (Part 1)
• Drones and Glaciers: Eyes in the Sky (Part 2)
• Expository Writing: Eyes in the Sky (Part 3)
• Expository Writing: Eyes in the Sky (Part 4)

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Learn how to write an introduction for an expository essay in this interactive tutorial. This tutorial is the third part of a four-part series. In previous tutorials in this series, students analyzed an informational text and video about scientists using drones to explore glaciers in Peru. Students also determined the central idea and important details of the text and wrote an effective summary. In part three, you'll learn how to write an introduction for an expository essay about the scientists' research. 

This tutorial is part three of a four-part series. Click below to open the other tutorials in this series.

• Drones and Glaciers: Eyes in the Sky (Part 1)
• Drones and Glaciers: Eyes in the Sky (Part 2)
• Expository Writing: Eyes in the Sky (Part 3)
• Expository Writing: Eyes in the Sky (Part 4)

Type: Original Student Tutorial

Luis Martínez-Fernández was born at the beginning of the Cuban Revolution. Dr. Martínez-Fernández immigrated to the United States with his family when he was 2 years old after the Bay of Pigs Invasion. His family moved to Lima, Peru after his father was offered employment there. Dr. Martínez-Fernández’s family left Peru after the President of Peru was ousted from power. The new government in Peru concerned Dr. Martínez-Fernández’s father and the family moved to Puerto Rico where they become U.S. Citizens. Dr. Martínez-Fernández moved to the U.S. after graduation from The University of Puerto Rico. He is a Professor of History, an author, and is civically engaged through his nationally syndicated column.

Type: Video/Audio/Animation