Lesson #1

Lesson Plan #1 (four hours)

Integrated Learning Scenario:

Invisible Man (part two) Summer Seminar #2

The Blog Page for This Lesson:

http://apenglishghs2010.blogspot.com/2009/07/summary-of-second-session-post-session.html

Reading and Literature Strand: 8.33 Analyze patterns of imagery or symbolism and connect them to themes and/or tone and mood. 9.7 Relate a literary work to the seminal ideas of its time. 11.6 Apply knowledge of the concept that a text can contain more than one theme. 11.7 Analyze and compare texts that express a universal theme, and locate support in the text for the identified theme. 12.6 Analyze, evaluate, and apply knowledge of how authors use techniques and elements in fiction for rhetorical and aesthetic purposes. Composition Strand: 19.30 Write coherent compositions with a clear focus, objective presentation of alternate views, rich detail, well-developed paragraphs, and logical argumentation.

Students have read Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison and have prepared pre-session notes on the novel as a “ticket” for participating in the student-led discussions. Pre-Session #2 You will show me this work as a "ticket" before the session. It's the hottest ticket in town. * Continue to follow a motif you have chosen. Write down a motif you tracked along with at least five places you found the motif. (Some motifs will appear in every chapter.) A brief mention of how the motif appeared & the page number will suffice). You don't need to analyze or explain the motif at this point. * Follow the key moments (scenes) in the protagonist's identity development in relation to his environment. Where does the environment change? Where does his understanding of his environment change? Where does he change in response to his environment, especially in terms of ideology (what he believes and thinks is important), vocation (what he does), and sexuality? I'm especially interested in the choices the protagonist makes in response to his environment. Mark down the most important moments in the novel that deal with the protagonist's identity development (at least five). A brief comment about the moment & the page number will suffice. http://apenglishghs2010.blogspot.com/2009/07/first-session-post-session-1.html (scroll down to #4) At the beginning of the session I remind students of some of the big ideas we focused on in the last session and will focus on in this one including the relationship between environment and identity, the causes of alienation, and the ways authors depict themes through symbolic imagery and action. Each student then engages in a think-pair-share activity. Each student thinks of the scene that s/he would most like to discuss and why. Each student then shares that scene and explanation with a nearby peer. The student who listened then shares with the class a summary of the scene and explanation of what makes it worth discussing.

Students participate in student-led discussions generated from their pre-session notes. Each student writes three discussion questions for the motif s/he has been tracking and for the scenes s/he noted. The discussion questions should be focused upon illuminating how the way the novel is written (the choices the writer makes, the techniques the writer employs) contribute to the meaning and effect of the novel (in this case a bildungsroman). I then roll the dice and choose a discussion leader who will introduce the motif and ask a question. The leader then facilitates the discussion for fifteen minutes. I take notes through the discussion. At the end of fifteen minutes I read from the notes to point out strong insights. I also correct misunderstandings, point students toward related parts of the novel, and ask follow up questions. I then roll the dice for a scene discussion leader. And on we go… After the student-led discussions I lead a charting of the novel’s motifs while students take notes (motifs along the x-axis, chapters along the y-axis). As we do this I ask the unit’s identity formation essential questions as they pertain to the content. I ask students to propose other scenes ones we haven’t delved into during the student-led discussions or during the charting of motifs. I ask questions and model observations about how the choices made by the author contribute to the author’s exploration of the unit’s big ideas. With some guidance the students then write a prompt that gets them to use their pre-writing and in-class activities to produce an AP composition. (See note below on “culminating performance”.)

Write a composition in response to the prompt generated by the class. Here’s an example from the summer of 2009: Use your "personal key" (the events, objects, motifs you have tracked through the novel) to illustrate the purpose of the novel as you understand it. (Instead of "purpose" you might deal with the "meaning and effect" of the novel as a whole.) Write an essay (oh, five hundred to a thousand words or so) responding to the prompt. I'll be looking for an idea (not a single sentence) about the significance of the novel as a whole that boldly and insightfully encapsulates Ralph Ellison's exploration of the identity development of an African-American man in hostile environments. Then, I'll be looking for close, careful analysis of specific passages in the text that support and develop your bold, insightful central idea. Finally, I'll look for the final conclusions your careful analysis has driven you toward. http://apenglishghs2010.blogspot.com/2009/07/summary-of-second-session-post-session.html (Rubric attached) Here’s how I discussed the rubric with the students in class and on the blog: "A+/A" essays will thoroughly and convincingly develop a bold, insightful idea about the novel's apparent meaning and effect with commanding, precise, and well-chosen details from the novel. "A-/B" essays will develop a plausible response to the prompt with enough relevant supporting evidence to come across as reliable. "B-" essays will often develop a plausible but superficial response to the prompt with some errors and omissions in interpretation of details. "C/C-" essays will often include significant errors and omissions in the central idea and in the supporting details, though these essays will show an understanding of some aspects of the text. Essays with lower scores will not meet requirements or will show little to no understanding of the prompt and/or the text.