TEKS Lesson Plan/Unit Plan



Focus Plan

Texarkana Independent School District

|GRADING PERIOD: |3rd six weeks |PLAN CODE: |E10.3.4 |

|writer: |Deanna Henderson |Course/subject: |English II |

|Grade(s): |10 |Time allotted for instruction: |One block class period |

|Title: |Writing Memoirs Based on a Shared Event |

|Lesson TOPIC: |Students write a short memoir about a recent, significant shared event that affected their school|

| |or community. They then compare their recollections and present evidence that supports their |

| |version of the events. |

|TAKS Objective: |Objective 4 |

| |The student will, within a given context, produce an effective composition for a specific |

| |purpose. |

|FoCUS TEKS and Student Expectations: |1 (C) organize ideas in writing to ensure coherence, logical progression, and support for ideas |

| | |

|Supporting TEKS and Student Expectations: |1 (B) write in voice and style appropriate to audience and purpose |

| |2 (B) develop drafts by organizing and reorganizing content and by refining style to suit |

| |occasion, audience, and purpose |

| |2 (C) proofread writing for appropriateness of organization, content, style, and conventions |

| |5(A) evaluate writing for both mechanics and content |

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|Concepts |Enduring Understandings/Generalizations/Principles |

| |The student will understand that |

|memoir |synonyms for memoir are journal, record, log, chronicle, and account. Many famous people write memoirs,|

| |such as: Elie Wiesel, Harry S. Truman, Richard Nixon, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Joseph Grimaldi. |

|scenario |a scenario is a possible situation or an imagined sequence of possible events. It might also be an |

| |outline of the plot of a play, opera, or screenplay. |

|dialogue |the words spoken by characters in a book, film, play, or a section of a work that contains spoken words|

| |are called dialogue. Dialogue is conversation or talk of any kind between two or more people. |

|analysis |an analysis is the close examination of something in detail in order to understand it better or to draw|

| |conclusions from it. |

|autobiography |autobiography is an account of somebody’s life written by that person, or a life story written by self.|

| | |

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[pic]I. Sequence of Activities (Instructional Strategies)

A. Focus/connections/anticipatory set

• Before class, identify a recent shared event that all of the students should be able to remember (such as a talent show, a football victory, a school election, September 11, the first day of school).

• Write the following prompt on the board for students to respond to in their journals,

“What do you remember about [event you chose]?”

• Instruct students to provide as many details as possible. You may prompt them with ideas such as the weather that day, their attire, smells or sounds, etc. After 2-3 minutes, have students compare their responses.

• How do they compare in compare in terms of complementary details?

• Are there any contradictory memories?

• Why might some of the recollections differ?

• You might ask, “Were you all in the same place when it happened? How might where you were, who you were with, how you were feeling, or what you were doing before and after the event affect your experience and/or memory of it? Are any of the recollections false, or just different?”

• As an introduction to reading the article, ask students if they know what a memoir is. What, if any, memoirs have they read? Did they ever question any of the facts or details? Do they ever question their own memory? Has anyone ever contradicted a memory they had about a shared event?

B. Instructional activities

(demonstrations, lectures, examples, hands-on experiences, role play, active learning experience, art, music, modeling, discussion, reading, listening, viewing, etc.)

• As a class, read and discuss the article Handout # 1 - “The Translation of Wiesel’s ‘Night’ is New, but Old Questions Are Raised”

• Focus on the following questions: (Handout # 2 – Questions to accompany “The Translation of Wiesel’s ‘Night’ is New, but Old Questions Are Raised”)

A teacher’s copy with questions answered is provided.

C. Guided activity or strategy

• Explain to students that they will write a short memoir about their role in or perspective on a significant, shared event.

• To begin, have students brainstorm some significant events that affected their school, community or nation from which they believe other people might learn something.

• Write the list on the board and have students choose one event to write about. (I recommend choosing a single event so that students can later compare their recollections and interpretations).

• After brainstorming their list of topics, have students work individually to prepare an outline for their story that addresses the six essential questions related to the event: who, what, where, when, why, and how.

• Students should also keep the following questions in mind when writing their stories: (Write on the board for easier student access.)

Why is this event significant to my peers and/or community?

Why is it important that I participated in, witnessed or learned from the event?

What can others learn from my account or interpretation?

• Instruct students that when writing their stories they should balance the facts as they recall them including language and details that relate the drama and suspense of the event.

• Three elements to consider in writing their version of the events include scenario, dialogue, and analysis. (Handout # 3 – Three Elements to Consider in Writing Your Memoir)

• HOMEWORK: Complete your story at home. Be sure to include as much evidence as possible to support the facts you present. Use the following questions as a guide: (included in Handout # 3)

1. Is there a photograph or video that shows your role in this event?

2. Do you have letters, email or other written proof from the time of the event?

3. Is there a third-person account of the event, in writing, that puts you at the scene and/or confirms your participation, such as a newspaper article, email or blog in which you were mentioned?

4. Can the other speaker in your dialogue (or a third party) confirm that the conversation took place as you conveyed it? Can you get someone(s) to verify the conversation?

If desired: Prepare all your evidence and your completed story for submission. In class, compile the stories into an anthology book and submit the finished product to the school library as a history resource. If appropriate, invite students to submit stories to the school literary magazine for publication.

D. Accommodations/modifications

E. Enrichment

II. STUDENT PERFORMANCE

A. Description

Before the class period, the teacher should have the following supplies prepared:

On board: What do you remember about [event you chose]?

Student journals

Pens/pencils

Paper

Whiteboard/markers

Copies of the following handouts

Handout #1 – “The Translation of Wiesel’s ‘Night’ Is New, but Old Questions Are Raised”

Handout # 2 – Questions to Accompany “The Translation of Wiesel’s ‘Night’ Is New, but Old Questions Are Raised”

Handout # 3 – Three Questions to Consider In Writing Your Memoir

Handout # 4 – Rubric for Evaluating a Memoir

Handout # 5 – Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, Elie Wiesel, December 10, 1986

During the class session, the teacher should put the following on the board:

Who, What, When, Where, Why, How

Why is this event significant to my peers and/or my community?

Why is it important that I witnessed, participated in, or learned from the event?

What can others learn from my account or interpretation?

B. Accommodations/modifications

Students needing accommodations/modifications may use the Learning Lab and have extended time.

C. Enrichment

• The article references Mr. Wiesel’s statement about “people who have denied the Holocaust in France and the United States.” Read the author’s memoir, Night; write a letter to Holocaust deniers from the perspective of the author. Present letters in class.

• Write a poem about a traumatic event in your life. How can you use literary, poetic license to express your thoughts and feelings about the event? When writing an autobiographical poem, what details might be more effective than others at expressing your perspective? Be creative, expressive and succinct. Submit poems to your school’s literary magazine for publication.

• Read a memoir or autobiography, such as “The House on Mango Street” by Sandra Cisneros, “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, or “The Diary of Anne Frank.” How do the authors use creative literary devices to bring drama and interest to their stories? Are their stories inherently dramatic? To what degree does their creativity accentuate the inherent drama in their stories? After reading the book, choose a personal event in your own life on which to base a memoir. What creative devices will you employ to accentuate the real-life drama of your story? What moral or lesson will readers learn after reading your story? Submit your finished story to your school’s literary journal for publication.

III. Assessment of Activities

A. Description

Students will be evaluated with a class participation grade for the opening exercise. Students’ memoirs will be evaluated using Handout # 4 – Rubric for Evaluating a Memoir.

B. Rubrics/grading criteria

See Handout # 4 – Rubric for Evaluating a Memoir

C. Accommodations/modifications

The rubric may be modified for students requiring accommodations.

D. Enrichment

Student requiring enrichment may receive extra credit for a finished product.

E. Sample discussion questions

• To what degree, if at all, does questioning the facts in a memoir affect your willingness or ability to learn from the overall lesson or moral the author is trying to relate?

• What responsibility, if any, do you think publishers should have in verifying the facts of an author’s recollections in a memoir?

• If two people publish conflicting versions of a single event, how do you decide if one version is more “true?” Is it possible to have two conflicting versions of a single event that are both factually-based?

IV. TAKS Preparation

A. Transition to TAKS context

Writing the TAKS ELA essay is an integral part of the TAKS 10th grade test. A student must score at least a “2” on the essay portion of the test in order to pass the TAKS ELA test.

B. Sample TAKS questions

You have previously read Elie Wiesel’s Night. Today we are going to read Mr. Wiesel’s acceptance speech which he gave when he received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work advocating human rights and peace worldwide. Imagine what it would have been like to be in the audience as he delivered this speech. Handout # 5 – Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, Elie Wiesel, December 10, 1986

After reading the Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, students will write the following essay:

Wiesel says, “Our lives no longer belong to us alone; they belong to all those who need us desperately.” Write an essay describing a time in your life when a family member or friend might have said this to you.

V. Key Vocabulary

Harrowing, revived, autobiographical, furor, contradicted, arguably, seized, discrepancy, commissioned, expunged, variant, furtive, copulate, reinstated, subtleties, nuances, transparency

VI. Resources

A. Textbook

B. Supplementary materials

“Night” by Elie Wiesel

Handout #1 – “The Translation of Wiesel’s ‘Night’ Is New, but Old Questions Are Raised”

Handout # 2 – Questions to Accompany “The Translation of Wiesel’s ‘Night’ Is New, but Old Questions Are Raised”

Handout # 3 – Three Questions to Consider In Writing Your Memoir

Handout # 4 – Rubric for Evaluating a Memoir

Handout # 5 – Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, Elie Wiesel, December 10, 1986

C. Technology

VII. FOLLOW UP ACTIVITIES

(reteaching, cross-curricular support, technology activities, next lesson in sequence, etc.)

A. Review of skills

A review of the novel Night by Elie Wiesel might be necessary if this lesson plan is not used within a short period of time after completing the book.

B. Next lesson in sequence

• The writing of the TAKS ELA essay may be the next lesson in sequence.

• Over the course of 2 or 3 class sessions, watch two films about the Holocaust – a documentary and a fictionalized account. How do the two films compare in terms of their main characters, content, tone, imagery and narrative line? Is one account more “real” than the other? Is one more objective? Does your reaction to the information provided in the film differ based on the format? Organize a class discussion about these questions and the issues raised in the two films.

VIII. Teacher Notes

• It is suggested that this lesson plan be used in connection with the reading of Elie Wiesel’s “Night.”

• The TAKS ELA essay should be evaluated following the TAKS ELA scoring of 1, 2, 3, 4.

• This lesson plan is based on the following website:



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