Unit Plan Standards, Goals, Objectives, and Assessments For this thematic unit, all standards cited are NCTE Standards, found at http://www.ncte.org/standards. All English Core Learning Goals (hereafter: ECLG) are from the Maryland State Curriculum (hereafter: MSC), found at http://mdk12.org/assessments/clg/english.html.
Unit Goals, Objectives and Assessments Day 6: NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 1.1.3: The student will use after-reading strategies appropriate to both the text and purpose for reading by summarizing, comparing, contrasting, synthesizing, drawing conclusions, and validating the purpose for reading.
Objective 6a: Given the first thirteen chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird or pages 1-60 of Black and White, students will be able to create a picture of someone they know who reminds them of a character from the novel (or of the character) with at least four details as measured by the picture in their journals to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 6a: In their reflection journals, students will be asked to think about someone in their lives who reminds them of a character depicted in the novel and create a picture of either the person or the character. They should include four details connecting the two. Students will be given one point for the picture and one for each detail making this refection a five point assignment. Day 7: NCTE Standard 8: Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge.
INDICATOR 1.1.4: The student will apply reading strategies when comparing, making connections, and drawing conclusions about non-print text.
Objective 7a: Given chapters one through fourteen of To Kill a Mockingbird or pages 1-70 of Black and White, students will be able to write about their reaction to the unit thus far as measured by a letter to a friend to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 7a: In their reflection journals, students will be asked to write a letter to a friend about what they have learned in the unit thus far. They should express their opinions on the novel they are reading and the way learning is presented. 3 points- The student had an appropriate opening and closing. The content clearly demonstrated a response to the prompt. 2 points- The student was missing either an appropriate opening or closing. The content referenced the prompt indirectly. 1 point- The student did not have an appropriate opening or closing. The content was not in response to the prompt. 0 points- The student did not respond to the prompt.
Day 8: NCTE Standard 5: Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
INDICATOR 2.1.4: The student will compose persuasive texts that support, modify, or refute a position and include effective rhetorical strategies.
Objective 8a: Given the article on the history of the “n” word in literature and chapter’s one through sixteen in To Kill a Mockingbird or pages 1-81 of Black and White, students will be able to generate a personal response to the material as measured by a reflection journal to an accuracy of 100%.
Formative Assessment 8a: Students will write a reflection telling why they think literature should be left as it was originally written or if they think books with racist languages and images should be rewritten. Students have previously read the article but having experienced more of the book may now feel differently than they had when first reading it. This gives the students an opportunity to revise their thinking. If you are reading Black and White, think about the way that race is presented. How is it different than the way race was presented in older texts? They should keep in mind that this response is intended to persuade the reader to their opinion. Below is the rubric for this assignment: 3 points- The student responded to the prompt in the form of a persuasive paragraph. 2 points- The student did not implement persuasion in the response. 1 point- The student did not respond to the prompt. 0 points- The student did not attempt a response.
Day 9: NCTE Standard 11: Students participate as knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical members of a variety of literacy communities.
INDICATOR 1.2.1: The student will consider the contributions of plot, character, setting, conflict, and point of view when constructing the meaning of a text.
Objective 9a: Given the first seventeen chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird or pages 1-90 of Black and White, students will be able to rewrite scenes from the book from another character’s point of view as measured by the completed “In Another Person’s Shoes” worksheet to an accuracy of 100%.
Formative Assessment 9a: Each group will be assigned a question from this worksheet to consider. Students will be asked to write a response to the prompt which they have been assigned. They should aim to be as true to the character as possible and consider the plot, setting, conflict and characters point of view when constructing the response. Afterward, each group’s response will be shared with the class and based on what we know about the characters of each novel, the class will rate each response as likely, less than likely or unlikely. This assessment will be graded for completeness and the students will later evaluate the effectiveness of their peers in their literature circles.
Day 10: NCTE Standard 5: Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
INDICATOR 2.1.3: The student will compose to express personal ideas, using prose and/or poetic forms.
Objective 10a: Given the explanation of cliques through the video, class discussion and student’s prior experience, students will be able to generate a response as to whether or not cliques are a problem at this school as measured by their reflection journals to an accuracy of 100%.
Formative Assessment 10a: Students will be asked to respond to the following prompt: Do you think cliques are a problem in this school? Or is this being blown out of proportion? Defend your response. This response will be graded for up to three points so students should be sure to respond to both parts of the prompt. The rubric for the assignment is as follows: 3 points- This entry clearly responded to the prompt and included sufficient rationale for the student’s answer. 2 points- This entry responds to the prompt with less than sufficient rationale for the students answer. 1 point- This entry responds to the prompt with little or no rationale for the student’s answer. 0 points- This entry did not respond to the prompt.
Day 11: NCTE Standard 7: Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions, and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate, and synthesize data from a variety of sources (e.g., print and non-print texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their purpose and audience.
INDICATOR 2.3.2: The student will use various information retrieval sources (traditional and electronic) to obtain information on a self-selected and/or given topic. Electronic sources include automated catalogs, CD ROM products, and on-line services like Internet, World Wide Web, and others.
Objective 11a: Given the news cast clip and bullying statistics, students will be able to respond to a list of questions about bullying as measured by their written and oral responses to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 11b: Given the National School Safety Center website, students will be able to locate information on bullying, violence and resources for help as measured by the completed graphic organizer to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 11a: The bullying statistics serves as a pre-assessment to see what students believe to be true prior to the activity. This is to be used for self-assessment as student learning will occur through reconstruction once they have read the facts on bullying.
Formative Assessment 11b: The graphic organizer is also intended for the student’s personal use. This will help them generate ideas for the video project. I will ask them to turn in the graphic organizer and it will be worth three points. Below is the rubric which will be applied to the graphic organizer: 3 points- The graphic organizer has at least one piece of information in every category. 2 points- The graphic organizer has information listed in three of the four categories. 1 point- The graphic organizer has two or less pieces of information listed. 0 points- The graphic organizer has not been utilized.
NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 2.1.2: The student will compose to describe, using prose and/or poetic forms.
Objective 11c: Given the National School Safety Center website, students will be able to write a poem or rap about bullying/ school violence as measured by the poem they create to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 11c: In their reflection journals, students should write a poem or rap about bullying or school violence. This is an assignment designed to allow students some creativity in expressing their ideas about something that can be very personal (especially if they are the victim of any bullying/ violence). By asking them to construct in a poem or a rap, I am attempting to allow them to construct a personal response that may be meaningful to then as it is less traditional. As this is intended for that reason, this response will not be graded for “correctness” but for completion. Students will receive 1 point for attempting the assignment and 0 if they do not.
Day 12: NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 2.1.3: The student will compose to express personal ideas, using prose and/or poetic forms.
Objective 12a: Given the documentary “Bullied”, students will be able to write a reaction to Jamie Nobozny’s account as measured by a “five minute sprint” activity to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 12a: After watching the film, students should take five minutes to write a reaction in their refection journal. This is called a five minute sprint because they should continue to write for five minutes. Even if they run out of things to say, they should keep writing whatever comes into their heads. This exercise is multipurpose in that students will be reacting to the film, recording any ideas they may have for their project and writing for five minutes straight. Some students are intimidated by writing and practicing writing where they can simply record what is going through their heads can be a good way to break down some of the anxiety writing can create for students. As this is intended for that reason, this response will not be graded for “correctness” but for completion. Students will receive 1 point for attempting the assignment and 0 if they do not.
Day 13: NCTE Standard 3: Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
INDICATOR 1.1.1: The student will use pre-reading strategies appropriate to both the text and purpose for reading by surveying the text, accessing prior knowledge, formulating questions, setting purpose(s), and making predictions.
Objective 13a: Given a worksheet on legal terms and in class vocabulary preparation, students will be able to identify key vocabulary for legal terms in To Kill a Mockingbird and Black and White as measured by the completed worksheet to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 13a: Students will receive a handout of legal terms in the book. They should work in partners to complete this activity. This learning will prepare students for reading the next chapter few chapters of the book. Initially, students should complete the words that they know in partners. Then work in small groups to fill in what they do not. We will share this as a class afterward to correct the answers. I will collect the handout on legal terms and it will worth three points. The rubric is as follows: 3 points- The student completed the worksheet. 2 points- The student completed half or more of the worksheet. 1 point- The student completed less than half of the worksheet. 0 points- The student did not do the worksheet.
Day 14: NCTE Standard 6: Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and non-print texts.
INDICATOR 3.1.7: The student will vary sentence types—simple, compound, complex, and compound/complex—to sustain reader or listener interest.
Objective 14a: Given the handout on simple, compound, complex and compound-complex sentences, students will be able to identify sentences as such as measured by another handout to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 14b: Given the audience and purpose decided upon by each group, students will be able to write a script for their videos as measured by their completed draft to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 14c: Given the handout on peer reviewing, students will be able to review another student’s work as demonstrated by the completed Peer Review Worksheet to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 14a: Students will work in groups to complete the handout on sentences. On the board will be a sentence (number 1 from the worksheet). Once students are seated I will ask them to identify parts of the sentence (nouns, verb, and adjectives). Then review independent and dependent clauses with students. I will remind them that sentence variety can make their meaning more precise and descriptive. Students will be asked to look at the handout and see what types of sentences it lists. In their literature circles, they should complete the handout deciding what type of sentence each is. This will be graded for completeness (i.e. 1 point if completed, 0 if not).
Formative Assessment 14b: Students will work in their literature circles to complete the draft of the script for their film.
Formative Assessment 14c: Students will be responsible for peer editing a portion of a script written by one other person (outside of their group). We have discussed the value of peer editing earlier in the year but I have developed a handout to remind them what they should be looking for. I will be able to gather evidence of the learning for Performance Assessment 14a when looking at the Peer Edit Worksheet for each group’s draft as they will have identified each type of sentence in the script as well. By encouraging peer editing, I am asking the students to produce work for an audience other than myself. I am letting them be “teacher” and mark the paper of another student. Hopefully, the editing process will be as instructional for the writer and for the editor. From the drafts and the Peer Edit Worksheet, I will be able to see how clear my directions were and how seriously students are taking the editing process. This will be graded for a total of 3 points (one each for the compliment, suggestion and correction/edit).
Day 15: NCTE Standard 5: Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
INDICATOR 2.1.1: The student will compose to inform by using appropriate types of prose.
Objective 15a: Given chapter 25 of To Kill a Mockingbird and pages 118-130 of Black and White, students will be able to retell the last chapter read from the point of view of another character as measured by their response to the prompt to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 15a: Scout Finch narrates To Kill a Mockingbird and Eddie and Marcus narrate Black and White but what if their stories were not the only ones heard? Students should imagine that they are one of the other characters in the book and rewrite the last chapter of the novels that we have read. How would they be different? Why? This will be worth three points and the rubric is as follows: 3 points- The student’s response included a rewrite and an explanation as to why the story would be different. 2 points- The student’s response did not include both a rewrite and an explanation. 1 point- The student did not respond to the prompt. 0 points- The student did not attempt a response.
NCTE Standard 6: Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and non-print texts.
INDICATOR 2.2.3: The student will revise and edit texts for clarity, completeness, and effectiveness.
Objective 15b: Given the audience and purpose decided upon by each group, students will be able to write a script for their videos as measured by their completed draft to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 15c: Given the handout on peer reviewing, students will be able to review another student’s work as demonstrated by the completed Peer Review Worksheet to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 15b: Students will work in their literature circles to complete the draft of the script for their film.
Formative Assessment 15c: Students will be responsible for peer editing a portion of a script written by one other person (outside of their group). We have discussed the value of peer editing earlier in the year but I have developed a handout to remind them what they should be looking for. I will be able to gather evidence of the learning for Performance Assessment 14a when looking at the Peer Edit Worksheet for each group’s draft as they will have identified each type of sentence in the script as well. By encouraging peer editing, I am asking the students to produce work for an audience other than myself. I am letting them be “teacher” and mark the paper of another student. Hopefully, the editing process will be as instructional for the writer and for the editor. From the drafts and the Peer Edit Worksheet, I will be able to see how clear my directions were and how seriously students are taking the editing process. This will be graded for a total of 3 points (one each for the compliment, suggestion and correction/edit). Day 16: NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 2.1.3: The student will compose to express personal ideas, using prose and/or poetic forms.
Objective 16a: Given the “I Am” poem, students will be able to write about their own lives as measured by the completed poem to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 16a: This assessment is meant to bring together the learning about cliques, social classes, race and other groupings. Students will internalize that while these are factors as to who they are, they are not the sum. I will explain to them that To Kill a Mockingbird is a coming of age story for Scout where she learns a lot about herself and the world around her. Black and White is also a coming of age story as Marcus and Eddie become aware of the realities outside of their school life and friendship. Students are to create your own “I Am” poem from the example. If they would like, they can share their poem with the class. As this is intended for that reason, this response will not be graded for “correctness” but for completion. Students will receive 1 point for attempting the assignment and 0 if they do not. Day 17: NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 2.2.6: The student will prepare the final product for presentation to an audience.
Objective 17a: Given the material studied throughout the unit, students will be able to create a persuasive video for an intended audience regarding a chosen aspect of bullying or discrimination as measured by the rubric created for the project to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 17b: Given instructions on assessing their peers work, students will be able to complete a handout assessing each group’s video as measured by the completed form to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 17c: Given the videos seen during the class period, students will be able to write about a specific film or the project overall as measured by a critique to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 17a: Students will have created a video based on the unit and what they read, seen and explored. In day fourteen the students received a handout with parameters for the assignment. Today we will view the videos. Below is the rubric for this assignment.
Formative Assessment 17b: At the completion of this instructional period, students should turn in one assessment form per video watched, including one for their own group. The assessment form for their own group will assess the contributions of each member’s and included a grade that the student feels each member of the group should receive for the assignment. Attached are the evaluation forms for the assignment.
Formative Assessment 17c: As a reflection, students will write a critique of either a particular film or the project in general. They should be as specific as possible. I have included a graphic organizer that can be used as a modification for the assignment if needed. This is worth 5 points. Below is the rubric with which their critique will be assessed. 5 points- The critique was relevant to the prompt and the opinion was supported by at least three points and included an opening and a closing. 4 points- The critique was relevant to the prompt and the opinion was supported by at least two points and included an opening and a closing. 3 points- The critique was relevant to the prompt and the opinion was supported by at least two points but did not include either an opening or a closing. 2 points- The critique was somewhat relevant to the prompt and was supported by two or less points. 1 point- The critique was somewhat relevant to the prompt and was supported by one point. 0 points- The student did not complete the assignment. Day 18:
NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 2.2.6: The student will prepare the final product for presentation to an audience.
Objective 18a: Given the material studied throughout the unit, students will be able to create a persuasive video for an intended audience regarding a chosen aspect of bullying or discrimination as measured by the rubric created for the project to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 18b: Given instructions on assessing their peers work, students will be able to complete a handout assessing each group’s video as measured by the completed form to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 18a: Students will have created a video based on the unit and what they read, seen and explored. In day fourteen the students received a handout with parameters for the assignment. Today we will view the videos. Below is the rubric for this assignment.
Formative Assessment 18b: At the completion of this instructional period, students should turn in one assessment form per video watched, including one for their own group. The assessment form for their own group will assess the contributions of each member’s and included a grade that the student feels each member of the group should receive for the assignment. Below are the evaluation forms for the assignment.
Day 19: NCTE Standard 3: Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
INDICATOR 2.1.3 The student will compose to express personal ideas, using prose and/or poetic forms.
Objective 19a: Given the lyrics to “Strange Fruit”, students will be able to draw parallels between the song and To Kill a Mockingbird or Black and White as demonstrated by a written response to an accuracy of 100%.
Formative Assessment 19a: I will give the students background on Billie Holiday and play the song and hand out lyrics sheet to students. I will then ask students to write about: (for To Kill a Mockingbird) 1) how “Strange Fruit” might be related to To Kill a Mockingbird; 2) the connection between racism, mobs and lynching in the South, 3) why racism was concentrated in the South; 4) speculate why it was so important for Billie Holiday to sing “Strange Fruit;” 5) and any relationship between societal corruption and the innocent. (for Black and White) 1) If you have read Black and White, consider in particular the relationship between societal corruption and the innocent. 2) How does this impact the main characters? 3) How does the concept of race relate to the novel? Think about the description of the jail in particular when responding to this prompt. I will collect the student responses concerning the song and its relationship to the novel. The response will be worth five points and the rubric is as follow: 5 points- The student responded to all five aspects of the prompt in a cohesive and thoughtful manner. 4 points- The student responded to four aspects of the prompt in a cohesive and thoughtful manner. 3 points- The student responded to three of the aspects of the prompt in a reasonably cohesive and thoughtful manner. 2 points- The student responded to two of the five aspects of the prompt in a somewhat cohesive and thoughtful manner. 1 point- The student responded to one of the five aspects of the prompt. 0 points- The student did not attempt a response.
Day 20: NCTE Standard 11: Students participate as knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical members of a variety of literacy communities.
INDICATOR 1.1.3: The student will use after-reading strategies appropriate to both the text and purpose for reading by summarizing, comparing, contrasting, synthesizing, drawing conclusions, and validating the purpose for reading.
Objective 20a: Given the material presented throughout the unit, students will be able to demonstrate their knowledge of concepts as demonstrated through a written assessment to an accuracy of 80%.
Formative Assessment 20a: As today is the last day of this instructional unit; students will be taking a written assessment. Students will be given the first ten minutes of the period to review their notes or ask any final questions. Students will be given the entire instructional period to complete this assessment. In Exam version A, each response is worth five points. The answer will be assessed for completeness of information and their ability to convey their ideas in an organized manner. In Exam version B, each essay response is worth five points. Again, they will be assessed on completeness of their responses and the way in which it is presented. The matching portion is worth two points per question totaling the assessment at 20 points.
Rubric for tests: Essay questions: 5 points- The response answered all aspects of the prompt in a clear way. The response was free of language use errors. 4 points- The response answered all aspects of the prompt in a clear way. The response contained few language use errors. 3 points- The response answered some aspects of the prompt in a clear way. The response contained few language use errors. 2 points- The response answered some aspects of the prompt in a clear way. The response contained many language use errors. 1 point- The response did not address the prompt in a clear way. The response contained many language use errors. 0 points- The student did not attempt a response.
Materials used throughout lessons:
For this thematic unit, all standards cited are NCTE Standards, found at http://www.ncte.org/standards.
All English Core Learning Goals (hereafter: ECLG) are from the Maryland State Curriculum (hereafter: MSC), found at http://mdk12.org/assessments/clg/english.html.
Unit Goals, Objectives and Assessments
Day 6:
NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 1.1.3: The student will use after-reading strategies appropriate to both the text and purpose for reading by summarizing, comparing, contrasting, synthesizing, drawing conclusions, and validating the purpose for reading.
Objective 6a: Given the first thirteen chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird or pages 1-60 of Black and White, students will be able to create a picture of someone they know who reminds them of a character from the novel (or of the character) with at least four details as measured by the picture in their journals to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 6a: In their reflection journals, students will be asked to think about someone in their lives who reminds them of a character depicted in the novel and create a picture of either the person or the character. They should include four details connecting the two. Students will be given one point for the picture and one for each detail making this refection a five point assignment.
Day 7:
NCTE Standard 8: Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge.
INDICATOR 1.1.4: The student will apply reading strategies when comparing, making connections, and drawing conclusions about non-print text.
Objective 7a: Given chapters one through fourteen of To Kill a Mockingbird or pages 1-70 of Black and White, students will be able to write about their reaction to the unit thus far as measured by a letter to a friend to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 7a: In their reflection journals, students will be asked to write a letter to a friend about what they have learned in the unit thus far. They should express their opinions on the novel they are reading and the way learning is presented.
3 points- The student had an appropriate opening and closing. The content clearly demonstrated a response to the prompt.
2 points- The student was missing either an appropriate opening or closing. The content referenced the prompt indirectly.
1 point- The student did not have an appropriate opening or closing. The content was not in response to the prompt.
0 points- The student did not respond to the prompt.
Day 8:
NCTE Standard 5: Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
INDICATOR 2.1.4: The student will compose persuasive texts that support, modify, or refute a position and include effective rhetorical strategies.
Objective 8a: Given the article on the history of the “n” word in literature and chapter’s one through sixteen in To Kill a Mockingbird or pages 1-81 of Black and White, students will be able to generate a personal response to the material as measured by a reflection journal to an accuracy of 100%.
Formative Assessment 8a: Students will write a reflection telling why they think literature should be left as it was originally written or if they think books with racist languages and images should be rewritten. Students have previously read the article but having experienced more of the book may now feel differently than they had when first reading it. This gives the students an opportunity to revise their thinking. If you are reading Black and White, think about the way that race is presented. How is it different than the way race was presented in older texts? They should keep in mind that this response is intended to persuade the reader to their opinion. Below is the rubric for this assignment:
3 points- The student responded to the prompt in the form of a persuasive paragraph.
2 points- The student did not implement persuasion in the response.
1 point- The student did not respond to the prompt.
0 points- The student did not attempt a response.
Day 9:
NCTE Standard 11: Students participate as knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical members of a variety of literacy communities.
INDICATOR 1.2.1: The student will consider the contributions of plot, character, setting, conflict, and point of view when constructing the meaning of a text.
Objective 9a: Given the first seventeen chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird or pages 1-90 of Black and White, students will be able to rewrite scenes from the book from another character’s point of view as measured by the completed “In Another Person’s Shoes” worksheet to an accuracy of 100%.
Formative Assessment 9a: Each group will be assigned a question from this worksheet to consider. Students will be asked to write a response to the prompt which they have been assigned. They should aim to be as true to the character as possible and consider the plot, setting, conflict and characters point of view when constructing the response. Afterward, each group’s response will be shared with the class and based on what we know about the characters of each novel, the class will rate each response as likely, less than likely or unlikely. This assessment will be graded for completeness and the students will later evaluate the effectiveness of their peers in their literature circles.
Day 10:
NCTE Standard 5: Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
INDICATOR 2.1.3: The student will compose to express personal ideas, using prose and/or poetic forms.
Objective 10a: Given the explanation of cliques through the video, class discussion and student’s prior experience, students will be able to generate a response as to whether or not cliques are a problem at this school as measured by their reflection journals to an accuracy of 100%.
Formative Assessment 10a: Students will be asked to respond to the following prompt: Do you think cliques are a problem in this school? Or is this being blown out of proportion? Defend your response. This response will be graded for up to three points so students should be sure to respond to both parts of the prompt. The rubric for the assignment is as follows:
3 points- This entry clearly responded to the prompt and included sufficient rationale for the student’s answer.
2 points- This entry responds to the prompt with less than sufficient rationale for the students answer.
1 point- This entry responds to the prompt with little or no rationale for the student’s answer.
0 points- This entry did not respond to the prompt.
Day 11:
NCTE Standard 7: Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions, and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate, and synthesize data from a variety of sources (e.g., print and non-print texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their purpose and audience.
INDICATOR 2.3.2: The student will use various information retrieval sources (traditional and electronic) to obtain information on a self-selected and/or given topic. Electronic sources include automated catalogs, CD ROM products, and on-line services like Internet, World Wide Web, and others.
Objective 11a: Given the news cast clip and bullying statistics, students will be able to respond to a list of questions about bullying as measured by their written and oral responses to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 11b: Given the National School Safety Center website, students will be able to locate information on bullying, violence and resources for help as measured by the completed graphic organizer to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 11a: The bullying statistics serves as a pre-assessment to see what students believe to be true prior to the activity. This is to be used for self-assessment as student learning will occur through reconstruction once they have read the facts on bullying.
Formative Assessment 11b: The graphic organizer is also intended for the student’s personal use. This will help them generate ideas for the video project. I will ask them to turn in the graphic organizer and it will be worth three points. Below is the rubric which will be applied to the graphic organizer:
3 points- The graphic organizer has at least one piece of information in every category.
2 points- The graphic organizer has information listed in three of the four categories.
1 point- The graphic organizer has two or less pieces of information listed.
0 points- The graphic organizer has not been utilized.
NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 2.1.2: The student will compose to describe, using prose and/or poetic forms.
Objective 11c: Given the National School Safety Center website, students will be able to write a poem or rap about bullying/ school violence as measured by the poem they create to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 11c: In their reflection journals, students should write a poem or rap about bullying or school violence. This is an assignment designed to allow students some creativity in expressing their ideas about something that can be very personal (especially if they are the victim of any bullying/ violence). By asking them to construct in a poem or a rap, I am attempting to allow them to construct a personal response that may be meaningful to then as it is less traditional. As this is intended for that reason, this response will not be graded for “correctness” but for completion. Students will receive 1 point for attempting the assignment and 0 if they do not.
Day 12:
NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 2.1.3: The student will compose to express personal ideas, using prose and/or poetic forms.
Objective 12a: Given the documentary “Bullied”, students will be able to write a reaction to Jamie Nobozny’s account as measured by a “five minute sprint” activity to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 12a: After watching the film, students should take five minutes to write a reaction in their refection journal. This is called a five minute sprint because they should continue to write for five minutes. Even if they run out of things to say, they should keep writing whatever comes into their heads.
This exercise is multipurpose in that students will be reacting to the film, recording any ideas they may have for their project and writing for five minutes straight. Some students are intimidated by writing and practicing writing where they can simply record what is going through their heads can be a good way to break down some of the anxiety writing can create for students. As this is intended for that reason, this response will not be graded for “correctness” but for completion. Students will receive 1 point for attempting the assignment and 0 if they do not.
Day 13:
NCTE Standard 3: Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
INDICATOR 1.1.1: The student will use pre-reading strategies appropriate to both the text and purpose for reading by surveying the text, accessing prior knowledge, formulating questions, setting purpose(s), and making predictions.
Objective 13a: Given a worksheet on legal terms and in class vocabulary preparation, students will be able to identify key vocabulary for legal terms in To Kill a Mockingbird and Black and White as measured by the completed worksheet to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 13a: Students will receive a handout of legal terms in the book. They should work in partners to complete this activity. This learning will prepare students for reading the next chapter few chapters of the book. Initially, students should complete the words that they know in partners. Then work in small groups to fill in what they do not. We will share this as a class afterward to correct the answers. I will collect the handout on legal terms and it will worth three points. The rubric is as follows:
3 points- The student completed the worksheet.
2 points- The student completed half or more of the worksheet.
1 point- The student completed less than half of the worksheet.
0 points- The student did not do the worksheet.
Day 14:
NCTE Standard 6: Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and non-print texts.
INDICATOR 3.1.7: The student will vary sentence types—simple, compound, complex, and compound/complex—to sustain reader or listener interest.
Objective 14a: Given the handout on simple, compound, complex and compound-complex sentences, students will be able to identify sentences as such as measured by another handout to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 14b: Given the audience and purpose decided upon by each group, students will be able to write a script for their videos as measured by their completed draft to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 14c: Given the handout on peer reviewing, students will be able to review another student’s work as demonstrated by the completed Peer Review Worksheet to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 14a: Students will work in groups to complete the handout on sentences. On the board will be a sentence (number 1 from the worksheet). Once students are seated I will ask them to identify parts of the sentence (nouns, verb, and adjectives). Then review independent and dependent clauses with students. I will remind them that sentence variety can make their meaning more precise and descriptive. Students will be asked to look at the handout and see what types of sentences it lists. In their literature circles, they should complete the handout deciding what type of sentence each is. This will be graded for completeness (i.e. 1 point if completed, 0 if not).
Formative Assessment 14b: Students will work in their literature circles to complete the draft of the script for their film.
Formative Assessment 14c: Students will be responsible for peer editing a portion of a script written by one other person (outside of their group). We have discussed the value of peer editing earlier in the year but I have developed a handout to remind them what they should be looking for. I will be able to gather evidence of the learning for Performance Assessment 14a when looking at the Peer Edit Worksheet for each group’s draft as they will have identified each type of sentence in the script as well. By encouraging peer editing, I am asking the students to produce work for an audience other than myself. I am letting them be “teacher” and mark the paper of another student. Hopefully, the editing process will be as instructional for the writer and for the editor. From the drafts and the Peer Edit Worksheet, I will be able to see how clear my directions were and how seriously students are taking the editing process. This will be graded for a total of 3 points (one each for the compliment, suggestion and correction/edit).
Day 15:
NCTE Standard 5: Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
INDICATOR 2.1.1: The student will compose to inform by using appropriate types of prose.
Objective 15a: Given chapter 25 of To Kill a Mockingbird and pages 118-130 of Black and White, students will be able to retell the last chapter read from the point of view of another character as measured by their response to the prompt to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 15a: Scout Finch narrates To Kill a Mockingbird and Eddie and Marcus narrate Black and White but what if their stories were not the only ones heard? Students should imagine that they are one of the other characters in the book and rewrite the last chapter of the novels that we have read. How would they be different? Why? This will be worth three points and the rubric is as follows:
3 points- The student’s response included a rewrite and an explanation as to why the story would be different.
2 points- The student’s response did not include both a rewrite and an explanation.
1 point- The student did not respond to the prompt.
0 points- The student did not attempt a response.
NCTE Standard 6: Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and non-print texts.
INDICATOR 2.2.3: The student will revise and edit texts for clarity, completeness, and effectiveness.
Objective 15b: Given the audience and purpose decided upon by each group, students will be able to write a script for their videos as measured by their completed draft to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 15c: Given the handout on peer reviewing, students will be able to review another student’s work as demonstrated by the completed Peer Review Worksheet to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 15b: Students will work in their literature circles to complete the draft of the script for their film.
Formative Assessment 15c: Students will be responsible for peer editing a portion of a script written by one other person (outside of their group). We have discussed the value of peer editing earlier in the year but I have developed a handout to remind them what they should be looking for. I will be able to gather evidence of the learning for Performance Assessment 14a when looking at the Peer Edit Worksheet for each group’s draft as they will have identified each type of sentence in the script as well. By encouraging peer editing, I am asking the students to produce work for an audience other than myself. I am letting them be “teacher” and mark the paper of another student. Hopefully, the editing process will be as instructional for the writer and for the editor. From the drafts and the Peer Edit Worksheet, I will be able to see how clear my directions were and how seriously students are taking the editing process. This will be graded for a total of 3 points (one each for the compliment, suggestion and correction/edit).
Day 16:
NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 2.1.3: The student will compose to express personal ideas, using prose and/or poetic forms.
Objective 16a: Given the “I Am” poem, students will be able to write about their own lives as measured by the completed poem to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 16a: This assessment is meant to bring together the learning about cliques, social classes, race and other groupings. Students will internalize that while these are factors as to who they are, they are not the sum. I will explain to them that To Kill a Mockingbird is a coming of age story for Scout where she learns a lot about herself and the world around her. Black and White is also a coming of age story as Marcus and Eddie become aware of the realities outside of their school life and friendship. Students are to create your own “I Am” poem from the example. If they would like, they can share their poem with the class. As this is intended for that reason, this response will not be graded for “correctness” but for completion. Students will receive 1 point for attempting the assignment and 0 if they do not.
Day 17:
NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 2.2.6: The student will prepare the final product for presentation to an audience.
Objective 17a: Given the material studied throughout the unit, students will be able to create a persuasive video for an intended audience regarding a chosen aspect of bullying or discrimination as measured by the rubric created for the project to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 17b: Given instructions on assessing their peers work, students will be able to complete a handout assessing each group’s video as measured by the completed form to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 17c: Given the videos seen during the class period, students will be able to write about a specific film or the project overall as measured by a critique to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 17a: Students will have created a video based on the unit and what they read, seen and explored. In day fourteen the students received a handout with parameters for the assignment. Today we will view the videos. Below is the rubric for this assignment.
Formative Assessment 17b: At the completion of this instructional period, students should turn in one assessment form per video watched, including one for their own group. The assessment form for their own group will assess the contributions of each member’s and included a grade that the student feels each member of the group should receive for the assignment. Attached are the evaluation forms for the assignment.
Formative Assessment 17c: As a reflection, students will write a critique of either a particular film or the project in general. They should be as specific as possible. I have included a graphic organizer that can be used as a modification for the assignment if needed. This is worth 5 points. Below is the rubric with which their critique will be assessed.
5 points- The critique was relevant to the prompt and the opinion was supported by at least three points and included an opening and a closing.
4 points- The critique was relevant to the prompt and the opinion was supported by at least two points and included an opening and a closing.
3 points- The critique was relevant to the prompt and the opinion was supported by at least two points but did not include either an opening or a closing.
2 points- The critique was somewhat relevant to the prompt and was supported by two or less points.
1 point- The critique was somewhat relevant to the prompt and was supported by one point.
0 points- The student did not complete the assignment.
Day 18:
NCTE Standard 12: Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).
INDICATOR 2.2.6: The student will prepare the final product for presentation to an audience.
Objective 18a: Given the material studied throughout the unit, students will be able to create a persuasive video for an intended audience regarding a chosen aspect of bullying or discrimination as measured by the rubric created for the project to a success rate of 100%.
Objective 18b: Given instructions on assessing their peers work, students will be able to complete a handout assessing each group’s video as measured by the completed form to a success rate of 100%.
Formative Assessment 18a: Students will have created a video based on the unit and what they read, seen and explored. In day fourteen the students received a handout with parameters for the assignment. Today we will view the videos. Below is the rubric for this assignment.
Formative Assessment 18b: At the completion of this instructional period, students should turn in one assessment form per video watched, including one for their own group. The assessment form for their own group will assess the contributions of each member’s and included a grade that the student feels each member of the group should receive for the assignment. Below are the evaluation forms for the assignment.
Day 19:
NCTE Standard 3: Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
INDICATOR 2.1.3 The student will compose to express personal ideas, using prose and/or poetic forms.
Objective 19a: Given the lyrics to “Strange Fruit”, students will be able to draw parallels between the song and To Kill a Mockingbird or Black and White as demonstrated by a written response to an accuracy of 100%.
Formative Assessment 19a: I will give the students background on Billie Holiday and play the song and hand out lyrics sheet to students. I will then ask students to write about:
(for To Kill a Mockingbird)
1) how “Strange Fruit” might be related to To Kill a Mockingbird; 2) the connection between racism, mobs and lynching in the South, 3) why racism was concentrated in the South; 4) speculate why it was so important for Billie Holiday to sing “Strange Fruit;” 5) and any relationship between societal corruption and the innocent.
(for Black and White)
1) If you have read Black and White, consider in particular the relationship between societal corruption and the innocent. 2) How does this impact the main characters? 3) How does the concept of race relate to the novel? Think about the description of the jail in particular when responding to this prompt.
I will collect the student responses concerning the song and its relationship to the novel. The response will be worth five points and the rubric is as follow:
5 points- The student responded to all five aspects of the prompt in a cohesive and thoughtful manner.
4 points- The student responded to four aspects of the prompt in a cohesive and thoughtful manner.
3 points- The student responded to three of the aspects of the prompt in a reasonably cohesive and thoughtful manner.
2 points- The student responded to two of the five aspects of the prompt in a somewhat cohesive and thoughtful manner.
1 point- The student responded to one of the five aspects of the prompt.
0 points- The student did not attempt a response.
Day 20:
NCTE Standard 11: Students participate as knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical members of a variety of literacy communities.
INDICATOR 1.1.3: The student will use after-reading strategies appropriate to both the text and purpose for reading by summarizing, comparing, contrasting, synthesizing, drawing conclusions, and validating the purpose for reading.
Objective 20a: Given the material presented throughout the unit, students will be able to demonstrate their knowledge of concepts as demonstrated through a written assessment to an accuracy of 80%.
Formative Assessment 20a: As today is the last day of this instructional unit; students will be taking a written assessment. Students will be given the first ten minutes of the period to review their notes or ask any final questions. Students will be given the entire instructional period to complete this assessment.
In Exam version A, each response is worth five points. The answer will be assessed for completeness of information and their ability to convey their ideas in an organized manner. In Exam version B, each essay response is worth five points. Again, they will be assessed on completeness of their responses and the way in which it is presented. The matching portion is worth two points per question totaling the assessment at 20 points.
Rubric for tests:
Essay questions:
5 points- The response answered all aspects of the prompt in a clear way. The response was free of language use errors.
4 points- The response answered all aspects of the prompt in a clear way. The response contained few language use errors.
3 points- The response answered some aspects of the prompt in a clear way. The response contained few language use errors.
2 points- The response answered some aspects of the prompt in a clear way. The response contained many language use errors.
1 point- The response did not address the prompt in a clear way. The response contained many language use errors.
0 points- The student did not attempt a response.
Materials used throughout lessons: