Fall 1999

Students of Secondary Instruction 733 post lesson plans for classes and units of instruction that will remain on this webpage for future years. Should you be interested in contributed to this page, submit a disk with copy composed in Word to Professor Gage at Founders 172 or E-mail copy to him at gaget@northcoast.com. Please digitize all poems and stories related to lesson plans.

Jennifer Bilyeu

10/99

The Blues

Text: "Blues Ainıt No Mockin Bird" By: Toni Cade Bambara

Goal: The students will be able to make connections between their personal life experiences and the literature that they read.

Objective: Students will talk through and write up how insights from the reading illuminate their lives. The students will come to an understanding of techniques the media uses to acquire their information. Using this as the overall focus, students will come to see some of the negative effects of stereotyping, and explore the use of irony and symbolism in the story.

Pre-Write: Journal- (Play Blues music softly in the background.) Write about a time in your life in which your privacy was invaded by a total stranger(s), relative(s), and/or friend(s). What happened? How did you feel? Why? NOTE: Make sure students understand that these journals will be shared aloud in class anonymously.

… Collect the journals and read a few samples aloud without naming names. Use what the students write as a lead into the story.

… Read the story aloud to the students while they follow along in their books.

… While reading the story, stop at the end of each page and ask the students what is going on, clarify the events if needed. On page two, bring up the food-stamp program and make sure the students understand what it is.

… Once the story is completed, the students are to write up their own narrative, relating the events of the story into something that could occur today, using the same themes. If the students arenıt able to complete this they can take it home to finish overnight.

… Next, the students will be separated into small groups of 2-4 people. In these groups, the kids will discuss Bambaraıs short story by answering a list of questions they have been given. One person from each group needs to be the note taker and get the groupsı ideas down on paper. NOTE: Make sure that you (the teacher) provide extra support for the last two groups if needed because their questions are decidedly more difficult than the preceding groups.

Group 1

-How does your journal relate to this story?

-Whose privacy is being invaded? How is their privacy being invaded?

-Who is doing the invading?

-What are the invaders doing? Why?

Group 2

-Who is being stereotyped? -What is wrong with the stereotype?

-What are the invaders assuming about the family? Why?

-How is the assumption incorrect?

Group 3

-What is the purpose of the anecdote about the man who was attempting to commit suicide off the bridge? How does the anecdote relate to Bambaraıs story?

-How does the anecdote about Goldilocks relate to what is happening in the story? Why has the family moved so often?

Group 4

-How do the hawks relate to what happens to the family?

-What is the meaning of the title?

-How many symbols can you find in the story? What are they and what do they symbolize?

… Once the questions have been answered, the students will jigsaw to other groups and share information about their questions and answers.

… Regroup students the as a whole and discuss their answers to the questions. Keep it an open discussion forum.

Post-Write: Journal-- How would you have reacted to the cameramen if you were Granny and/or Granddaddy Cain. What would you have done differently? What would you have done the same?

… Homework: fill out the literary term sheet for this story. Use your notes from today to help you do this.

Assessment: By collecting the journals, the groupsı answers to the questions, and listening to the students during the discussion I will be able to assess whether or not the students understood the story and the main themes.

Literary Terms

1. Fiction- writing that uses imagination rather than history or fact

2. Nonfiction- writing based on history or fact

3. Genre- a literary style (i.e. horror, mystery, dramatic fiction, adventure, etc.)

4. Person against person conflict- a struggle between two or more peoplev

5. Person against nature conflict- a struggle between a person and nature

6. Person against society conflict- a struggle between a person and society

7. Internal conflict- a struggle within a person

8. Introduction- how does the story begin?

9. Climax- what is the high point or turning point of the story?

10. Resolution- how does the story unravel or unwind?

11. Closing- how does the story end?

12. Characterization- the development of characters

13. Protagonist- the main character ("the hero/ine") in the story

14. Antagonist- the force or character who opposes the protagonist

15. Minor character- a less important character

16. Stock character- an unchanging, stereotypical character

17. Dynamic character- a character that changes during the story

18. P.O.V. first person- told from the outlook of the main character: "I"

19. P.O.V. third person limited- told from the mind of a character(s)

20. P.O.V. third person omniscient- told from the all knowing speaker

21. Dialogue- a conversation between two or more characters

22. Monologue- when one character speaks by her/himself

23. Symbol- something that is real/tangible, yet stands for a larger idea, emotion, etc.

24. Setting- time and place of events in the story, the physical background

25. Mood- the emotional feeling or atmosphere in the story

26. Style- the writerıs distinctive form of expression

27. Tone- the general attitude of the writer that is expressed in the story

28. Theme- the main idea(s), points, or topic of the story

29. Irony- when the words mean the opposite of what is said; when the events in the story are opposite of what you expect to happen

30. Suspense- the building of tension or expectancy in the story

31. Foreshadow- hints or clues as to what will happen in the story

32. Flashback- the story is interrupted to go back to an event in the past

33. Metaphor- a comparison between two objects

34. Simile- a comparison using "like, as, so, as if, as though"

35. Personification- giving human qualities to something not human

36. Colloquial words- informal slang expressions

37. Dialect- speech characteristic of a particular group in a geographical area

38. Parody- author pokes fun at a type of literature by imitating it in an exaggerated way

39. Satire- criticism combined with humor and/or wit

40. Imagery- a description of an object or experience so vivid that it recreates a vivid sensory experience for the reader

Shawn English

LESSON PLAN

11/16/99

Animal Farm: Euphemism

Goal- In George Orwellıs Animal Farm, situations often turn out to be different than what they had originally seemed. Propaganda, the art of convincing people that something is true when it may not be, is a powerful and re-occurring theme in this novel. Understanding the function of propaganda in Orwellıs Animal Farm will hopefully lead to an understanding of how propaganda and other such tools are used in our own society. The understanding of such devices and how they are utilized in our society will also hopefully prompt my students to question and analyze the world around them, instead of believing everything that is presented to them.

Objectives-

1) Gain a better understanding of propaganda, including the multiple forms that it comes in, and the many ways that it is utilized in both Orwellıs Animal Farm, and in our own society.

2) See a connection between the propaganda presented in Animal Farm and propaganda that is utilized in our everyday lives in todayıs society.

3) Become familiar with the concept of euphemism, and itıs use in Animal Farm.

4) Be able to write an original propaganda speech utilizing the techniques illustrated in Animal Farm and class discussion.

Materials- George Orwellıs Animal Farm, and a handout on euphemism.

Procedure-

1) Read chapter 5 of Animal Farm aloud to the class. Chapter 5 includes some really great examples of euphemism and double-speak. It is a good chapter to help spark some discussion about the dayıs topic.

2) After reading the chapter aloud, have a short discussion about the concept of propaganda, making sure to pull examples from the book. Include in this discussion definitions and examples of propaganda techniques such as Scientific Fact, Celebrity Endorsement, Fear, the Bandwagon Approach, False Compliments, and Lies.

3) Next, give students a handout that defines, and gives examples of euphemism and double-speak. Discuss the handout with the class.

4) On the backside of the handout, there is a list of euphemistic phrases such as:

Experienced transport mechanism- Used Car

Encore Telecast- Re-run

Sanitary Technician- Garbage man

Department of Defense- War department

Tell the class that they are to examine this list of euphemism and translate these phrases into their more direct or blunt forms.

5) For the remainder of the class and at home, students are to write their own propaganda speech based on a bogus topic of their choosing, ex. Skittles are the worldıs most nutritious food. They will be asked to utilize any of the techniques that were illustrated and discussed in class.

Assessment- There are a few ways to assess studentıs understanding of this assignment, as well as the concepts behind the assignment. The first way that I would assess my studentıs understanding would be during the discussion. If most are able students become involved in the discussion, making connections between the discussion topic, Animal Farm, and possibly the real world, then I would say that they are on the road to grasping the idea behind the discussion. For those who may be shy or unwilling to speak-out in class, the euphemism translation handout would be a good way to further assess understanding. If students are able to translate the euphemisms into their simpler forms, with maybe a little help from the instructor or a dictionary, then they obviously have gotten the idea. The strongest method of assessment would come in the form of the "propaganda speech" assignment. If students are able to come up with a coherent persuasive speech that utilizes one, or a number of propaganda techniques that we discuss in class, I would say that they have a clear grasp of the concept presented.

Follow-up- For the follow-up to this assignment, I would have my students finish the propaganda speech assignment at home if they did not finish in class. The next day, I would let those who wanted to, read their speech to the entire class and explain what propaganda techniques they used. Following the student produced speeches could be a short recap discussion of propaganda using student-produced speeches as examples.

Maggie Welsh

SED 733 - Gage

10/5/99

Lesson Plan #2 - "She Unnames Them," by Ursula LeGuin

I. Goals: To demonstrate to the students how feminism fits into literary discourse. To explore with the students experiments with the rewriting of history. To explore with the students the importance of voice. To have the students experiment with language, details, and description.

II. Objectives: 1) Students see how voice, through memory reflection, reveals the setting (defined as time, place, and historical significance.)

2) Students see how language is a mere notion that carries no significance without (wo)man. 3) Students see how voice reveals the character of the speaker.

III. Materials: 1) Xerox copies of the story, "She Unnames Them," by Ursula LeGuin. 2) Xerox copies of list of definitions.

III. Bridging or Focusing:

We will discuss the history we learned from the "The Lady's Maid," and the memoir writing we looked at in "Country." History and memory will be main parts of the lesson plan today. We will look at how voice reveals setting in "Country," and how it does it in "She Unnames Them," and we will look at the historical significance of today's story in comparison to "The Lady's Maid."

IV. Sequence of Activities:

1) Have two quotes on the board before class begins - explain to the students (briefly) how they relate to the story in terms of feminism rewriting history and the role of feminism within a literary context.

1) "...[the oppression of women] is also a question of sexual ideology, of the ways men and women image themselves and each other in a male-dominated society, of perceptions and behaviour which range from the brutally explicit to the deeply unconscious." Eagleton,129

2) "The message of the women's movement, as interpreted by some of those outside it, is not just that women should have equality of power and status with men; it is a questioning of all such power and status. It is not that the world will be better off with more female participation in it; it is that without the "feminization" of human history, the world is unlikely to survive." Eagleton, 130

2) Students will have read the story the night before class.

3) Pass out list of definitions - class looks over list before step four.

4) The teacher rereads the story aloud to students in class.

5) Discuss general questions/observations about the story and quotes on the board in large group. **the discussion of the quotes should be brief and well-guided - it shouldn't become a political debate; the function of feminism isliterary here. If allusions to the Garden of Eden or biblical references do not come up, bring them up here.

7) Discuss any questions that still remain in large group.

8) The writing assignment (homework) is to take the new language that the speaker of the story has created (or uncreated, if you like) and write a piece of poetry - free verse describing a natural setting, or a single plant or animal without actually naming the object. The language should be rich enough in description that the reader will be able to figure out what it is simply by the detailed sketch provided in the poem. The piece should be rhythmic - definitely poetry, not prose. If the student is so inclined he can include some of the topics we talked about in class - feminism, rewriting history, patriarchy, religion, etc.

V. Assessment

-Are the students able to complete the assignment? Are their poems full of images that are reminiscent of a plant or animal without actually naming it? Does the student try to throw in an allusion to feminism, oppression, or patriarchy?

-Was the discussion fruitful? Did the students understand the issues presented in the story? Were they intrigued by the position of the speaker?

-Did they understand who's point of view the story came from? or where they story took place? Did they understand how LeGuin slowly revealed they speaker's character, setting, and dilemma through a memory?

-Were the students intrigued or bored by the story? Did anyone say it was too hard? Should the lesson be extended into two or three class periods? Was there time to accomplish enough so that the students seemed to enjoy the story?

VOCABULARY - "She Unnames Them," by Ursula LeGuin

1) ALACRITY - cheerful eagerness; sprightliness.

2) APPELLATION - a name or title; the act of naming.

3) BABEL- a scene of noise and confusion where construction of a tower was

4) ELIOT - T.S. Eliot 1888-1965, American-born English poet.

5) EPHEMERAL - lasting for a brief time; transitory.

6) LINNAEAN - Carolus Linaeus (latinized name of Carl von Linne) 1707-1778. Swedish botanist. His Species Platarum is considered the foundation of modern botanical nomenclature.

7) MOOT POINT - subject to debate.

8) MYNAH - any of various Asian birds related to starlings.

9) NOMENCLATURE - a system of names; systematic naming in an art or science.

10) PEEVISH - irritable.

11) TENTATIVE - of an experimental nature; uncertain.

12) UBIQUITOUS - being or seeming to be everywhere at the same time.

Maggie Welsh

Lesson Plan #3

SED 733 - Gage

Looking at Authentic Voice - Little Tree and Captivity

Goals: To explore with the students experiments with rewriting history. To explore with the students authenticity of voice. To explore voices from other cultures.

Objectives: 1) Students will listen closely to the voices of the two pieces and compare them. 2) Students will discuss stereotypes they have or have heard about Native Americans. 3) Students will compare the two pieces in terms of authenticity - importance of the titles. 4) Students will explore the importance of critical reading.

Materials: 1) Sherman Alexie's, Captivity, excerpts from Forrest Carter's, The Education of Little Tree, and copies of the articles by Henry Louis Gates Jr., and Bernard Weinraub.

Bridging: This lesson will come after a brief look into the history of white American and Native American interaction. The class will have heard different perspectives about the turbulent confrontations over the past few hundred years between these two groups - e.g.: the narrative by Mary Rowlandson. The class will also have looked into Native American legends and myths and their oral tradition.

Sequence of Activities: 1) Students will have read Captivity at home the night before class. If they want me to read it aloud in class I will. We will discuss any questions they had about the piece in large group. I won't reveal much about the story or author in the beginning.

2) Next we will read the excerpts from The Education of Little Tree in class. If students have read the piece I will ask them not to reveal what they know about the story or the author to the other students.

3) In small or large group, students will discuss stereotypes they have or have heard about Native Americans (if some of the students are Native American they can discuss discrimination they've experienced - if they're comfortable). They will discuss whether or not these stories remind them of these stereotypes and why.

4) In large group we will discuss what they found out. Do they think both of these pieces were written by Native Americans? Why or why not. Remind them about oral tradition and to look at the two pieces as possibly reflecting this tradition. Which one seems more oral and why?

5) What can they remember about the past classes in which we talked about the history of the relationship between whites and Native Americans. Does this history have anything to do with what they read in the stories?

6) Read them the background information on Sherman Alexie and the New York Times Article about Asa Carter, AKA Forrest Carter. Whose is the authentic voice?...What do they think about the movie producer's opinion that the author's background as "not relevant." What do they think about Mr. Friedenberg's comments in the article? (read them if they can't find them).

7) Writing Assignment: The students must do what Asa Carter did - they must write from a perspective not their own - even opposite to their own. If it makes it easier for some, provide possible topics: abortion, gun control, segregation, or on the lighter side about favorite kinds of music or food - ask the students for suggestions for possible topics to list on the board. The piece should be at least one page. To be discussed tomorrow in workshops.

Assessment: How did the discussion flow? Did the students seem enthusiastic or interested in the topic? Did they have any insights into the issues or stories? What did they notice about the aesthetics of the stories? Did they think that Alexie is a Native American writer or not? What about the comments from Friedenberg - did they agree? Did they seem excited about the writing assignment? Did they complete the writing assignment? Were they able to see an issue from the opposite (or at least from a different) perspective?

Elizabeth Erickson

Fall 1999

3 Day Lesson Plan -

Janice Mirikitaniıs "Breaking Tradition"

Goal:

To foster studentsı appreciation for oneıs family, culture, and ethnicity.

Objective:

After this lesson, students will have a deeper understanding of the significance of traditions and why traditions are crucial to oneıs life. Students will analyze and individually answer the following questions:

-why do we have traditions?

-what role do traditions play in oneıs identity?

-for what reason(s) might some traditions be abandoned?

-How does communication affect the continuity of traditions?

DAY ONE, "TRADITIONS" - TEXT

Plan: Introducing Marikatiniıs poem, writing activity, and discussion.

- Introductory Writing Activity (20 minutes):

1) How are you like/unlike your parents/guardians?

2) Do you communicate well with your family? What are the barriers in communication between you and your parents/ grandparents/ guardians?

2) Are there specific actions/traditions/rituals of your parents/guardians that you consciously choose to not adopt? Why or why not?

3) What are some of your family and/or cultural traditions?

4) Have you been a part in creating any traditions? Explain.

- Class Discussion (20-25 minutes):

Studentıs will discuss and share their answers to the previous questions as the facilitator (teacher) encourages further thought (i.e. "How do you think your parents feel about you not adopting (specific tradition)?", "Do you know the deeper meaning or roots of your traditions?").

-Reading Aloud (5 minutes):

-Homework:

Answer the following questions. Explain to studentıs that this will not be collected, but to be prepared to participate. Their answers will be used and referred to in class discussion on day 2:

1)What are some of your most significant possessions?

2)Whom do you enjoy spending time with? Use names and be specific.

3)What does you bedroom look, feel, smell like? How big is it? Do you share a bedroom with anyone? What is in it?

4) Is there usually food to eat when you are hungry? Name some of your favorite foods.

5)What do you see outside the front door of your house?

DAY TWO, "INTERNMENT" - CONTEXT

Plan: Brief history lesson on Japanese internment, interactive lecture, and quick write.

- Bridging:

Read the poem to reiterate the core of the lesson.

- Overview of Japanese Internment (15 Minutes):

Explain what the internment was, when it occurred, and who was involved. Tell students that Mirikitani, the author of

"Breaking Traditions", and her family were interned during WW II.

- Participatory Activity (20 minute):

During this time, studentıs should have their responses to day oneıs questions in front of them. Allow a couple of minutes for students to read over their answers. Read the following situations and solicit participation:

-Imagine you are going away - you donıt know where or for how long. Out of the list you have made of significant

possessions, you may only bring what you can carry.

What would you take? How would you feel?

Was it difficult or easy to decide what to bring?

-Look at the names of significant people you have written down. Imagine you will not be able to see any of these people again.

What would you do? How would you feel?

Who would you miss the most and why?

-In your new "home" you smell only horses and manure. Your new living conditions consist of one room where you and all of your family must live. A barbed wire fence surrounds the buildings in which you live in with thousands of other families. You cannot do any of the things at your new home that you do regularly.

How do you feel about living like this?

What do you do with your time?

What do you miss most about your "old" home?

-You are served powdered eggs and powdered milk at exactly 6:30 a.m. If you miss breakfast, you have to wait until noon for food. Also, you have to wait in line to get food along with over a hundred other people.

How do you react to the food?

What foods do you miss the most?

Tell students that, after close to 50 years, the US government decided they had made a mistake by putting the Japanese

Americans into camps. Beginning in 1990, survivors were sent an apology and a check. Only half of the original camp population are alive now.

Quick Write (10 minutes):

Read the following lines from "Breaking traditions and have students react, relate or respond to Mirikitaniıs words:

sounds shaken from barbed wire and

goodbyes and miracles of survival

This room of open window where daring ones escape.(lns. 37-39)

DAY THREE, "MAKING CONNECTIONS" - SUBTEXT

Plan: Bringing the past two days together; reading and critically analyzing Janice Mirikitaniıs poem, "Breaking Traditions".

-10 minute Review and Discussion:

Read the poem aloud as students follow along. Ask students to recall the past two days asking, "What did we do yesterday? The day before? Does anyone see any connections or reasons for these activities?".

-40 minute Reading and Participation:

*interpret the passage in a 1-2 page response

*complete a visual representation of the passage

*make connections from the passage to their own life

*disagree/debate with the passage.

(remind students that they must be able to support their responses to the passage)

Group 1:

My daughter denies she is like me,

her secretive eyes avoid mine. (lns. 1-2)

Group 2:

This waiting room where we feel our hands

are useless, dead speechless clamps

hat need hospitals and forceps and kitchens

and plugs and ironing boards to make them useful. (lns. 12-15)

Group 3:

I deny I am like my mother. I remember why:

She kept her room neat with silence, (lns. 16-17)

Group 4:

My daughter denies she is like me

her secretive eyes are walls of smoke

and music and telephones,

her pouting ruby lips, her skirts

her thighs displayed in carnavals of color.

I do not know the contents of her room.

She mirrors my aging. (lns. 40-47)

Assessment :

Class discussions and active participation are the inarticulate assessment of studentsı used to assess understanding. In addition, quick writes from Day 2 and the final group projects will show the degree of studentıs achievement of the overall objective.

Breaking Tradition

for my daughter

My daughter denies she is like me,

her secretive eyes avid mine.

She reveals the hatreds of womanhood

already veiled behind music and smoke and telephones.

I want to tell her about the empty room

of myself.

This room we lock ourselves in

where whispers live like fungus,

giggles about small breasts and cellulite,

where we confine ourselves to jealousies,

bedridden by menstruation.

The waiting room where we feel our hands

are useless, dead speechless clamps

that need hospitals and forceps and kitchens

and plugs and ironing boards to make them useful.

I deny I am like my mother. I remember why:

She kept her room neat with silence,

defiance smothered in requirements to be otonashii,

passion and loudness wrapped in obi.

her steps confined to ceremony,

the weight of her sacrifice she carried like

a foetus. Guilt passed on in our bones.

I want to break tradition‹unlock this room

where women dress in the dark

Discover lies my mother told me.

The lies that we are small and powerless

that our possibilities must be compressed

to the size of pearls, displayed only as

passive chokers, charms around our neck.

Break Tradition.

I want to tell my daughter of this room

of myself

filled with tears of shakuhachi,

the light in my hands,

poems about madness,

the music of yellow guitars‹

sounds shaken from barbed wire and

goodbyes and miracles of survival

This room of open window where daring ones escape.

My daughter denies she is like me

her secretive eyes are walls of smoke

and music and telephones,

her pouting ruby lips, her skirts

swaying to salsa, Madonna and the Stones,

her thighs displayed in carnavals of color.

I do not know the contents of her room.

She mirrors my aging.

She is breaking tradition.

Janice Mirikitani - 1978