LAFS.910.W.3.7Archived Standard

The hero's journey is an archetypal plot structure found in novels and epic poems, yet it can also be found in other text formats. After students have read the novella Anthem and the poem "Invictus," they will craft an argument supporting their claim of whether or not the hero's journey is evidenced in shorter texts. They will find and organize evidence, draft their arguments, and perform a peer review as they complete the writing process. This lesson is lesson two in a two-part series.

Type: Lesson Plan

Dramatizing life stories provides students with an engaging way to become more critical readers and researchers. In this lesson, students select American authors to research, create timelines, and write bio-poems. Then, they collaborate with other students in small groups to design and perform a 'panel of authors' presentation in which they role-play as their authors. The final project requires each student to synthesize information about his or her author in an essay. There are tons of additional links and resources included in this lesson plan!

Type: Lesson Plan

Protest songs serve as a means to combat social ills and cover a wide array of topics, including racism, sexism, poverty, imperialism, environmental degradation, war, and homophobia. This lesson makes a connection to popular culture by asking students to work in pairs to research and analyze contemporary and historic protest songs. After learning about wikis, each pair posts their analysis of the protest songs to a class wiki, adding graphics, photos, and hyperlinks as desired. The class then works together to organize the entries. Finally, students listen to all of the protest songs and add information and comments to each other's pages.

This lesson works well with a unit focusing on a piece of literature in which a character(s) actively fights for social, political, or economic justice. For example, this lesson can build on a discussion of the issues that Atticus Finch contends with in To Kill a Mockingbird.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this introduction to Homer's The Odyssey, students will work with peers and technology to determine the elements of an epic hero and the hero archetype. They will analyze how the definition of the hero has changed over time and present their findings through the use of multimedia presentations. In the end, students will be prepared to apply this knowledge to Homer's epic poem.

Type: Lesson Plan

This lesson will be used as a follow up to reading Night by Elie Wiesel. In this lesson, students will research different genocides in history and create a digital presentation to display their research.

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

In this lesson, students will briefly examine the history and myths that led to the creation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein by reading and discussing the article, "Frankenstein, Meet Your Forefathers" (link provided within the lesson). Students will then choose a text to research the backstory for how that written work came to be. A list of detailed research questions is provided, as well as optional book titles for students to research. Students will present their findings through creating a poster that illustrates the interesting points from their research. A number of engaging extension ideas, interdisiciplinary connections, and questions for further discussion are provided.

Type: Lesson Plan

This is the culminating lesson in a three-part series exploring and analyzing Emily Dickinson's style. In part one, students conducted historical and literary research on the Romantic Period, in part two, students used historical and literary research as they read and analyzed a variety of Dickinson’s letters written during the Romantic Period. In this lesson, students will investigate primary and secondary documents on movements that influenced Dickinson and will create a literary reference kit to share with the class - a collection of materials that are representative of the period.

Type: Lesson Plan

In this lesson, students will read multiple texts, conduct online research, brainstorm ideas, and analyze and synthesize information. Students will also practice the arts of note-taking, writing concise and informative summaries, and collaborating with peers to learn more about South Africa's Anti-Apartheid (A.A.A.) movement and the hero who saved them.

Type: Lesson Plan

How do places and experiences affect writers' lives and works? Is where a writer comes from relevant to reading their work? In this lesson, students consider the power of place in their own lives, research the life of a writer, and develop travel brochures and annotated maps representing the significance of geography in a writer's life.

Type: Teaching Idea

Type: Unit/Lesson Sequence