Kevin Wang English Lit 8 (Sections 1 and 3) Warriors Dont Cry Unit Plan Julia R.

Masterman

Unit Rationale

Usually, the rationale for constructing a unit falls within the realm of a concept or topic I want my students to address during the reading of a book or novel. However, in this case, I really want my students to get a sense of what an open symposium style class looks like. To accomplish this goal however, the unit I construct around this novel will have to be formally laid out and methodically planned from the very beginning. Warriors Dont Cry is a great book to start thinking about complex issues of education, gender, race, and justice, and the context, along with the writing, lends itself to potential great discussions, especially when the students generate their own questions. However, this is a difficult text, and in order to get my students to where they need to go, there has to be a very careful process of scaffolding up to deeper discussions.

Materials Needed Books Journals Portfolios/Pocket Folders Discussion Notes ST Participation Notes LCD Projector Primary and Secondary Source Documents Objective Questions/Graphic Organizers Reading Checks Video and Visual Media (Eyes On The Prize) Symposium Worksheets

Standards o o o o o 1.2.8.A 1.2.8.E 1.2.8 H 1.2.8 J 1.2.8. L o o o o o 1.3.8.A 1.3.8.B 1.3.8.E 1.3.8.G 1.3.8.H o o o o o 1.4.8.C 1.4.8.D 1.4.8.H 1.4.8. I 1.4.8.J o 1.5.8.A o 1.5.8.G o 1.5.8.D

Enduring Understandings Students will be able to identify and grapple with how personal narratives can contribute to a political and historical discourse, along with how writing of a non-fiction text can contribute to the formation of a complex individual. Formal Construction Of The Unit In order to keep things moving along with this unit, and a novel which is very dense, students will have to keep to a very specific schedule for work submission.

Sample Week Template Monday: - Plot intensive reading check. Long response to quotations and open-ended responses (25 pts) - The reading checks will be used as a gateway into discussion - Objective questions will be distributed according to the EU will be passed out and discussed. Tuesday: - Historical document/video/artifact analysis. Read, view, and react to the reading for the week. Lecture format for the first half, response and sharing the second half. Wednesday: - 1st group session. Review answers to the reading check and explore the theme or concept assignments for the week

Topic Assigned: _____________________________________________ Questions, Comments, and Observations you want to make in the symposium will be written below. Any questions you want to pose should be answered on this sheet, and a summary of your opening remarks will be written on the space provided below. Questions for Discussion (Open-Ended/With Answers) 1.

2.

3.

4.

Opening Remarks/Observations

Thursday: - 2nd group session. Students will continue working on questions and briefs. - A copy of questions/briefs should be submitted by the end of the period (25pts) - Analysis and feedback of student work (How did the work go? Effort levels. Fairness)

Friday: - Symposium (circle up) -Whip around the room for an introduction to the topics/questions. -Each group will pose questions or talking points to the larger class for answers, along with any other comments or concerns about the reading (promote questioning the actions and the text itself). - Class will be graded using the Harkness model of discussion. Remind the students of discussion roles and their responsibility to their classmates to be productive and respectful. (50-75 pts)