Here are my ideas for this unit thus far. Please respond by offering ideas for improvement with the unit and driving question.
I have decided to make my unit center around the novel Speak. I have not taught this book before, and will be teaching it to my LA 101 classes. I figured my driving question could be something like: How have and how are my secrets keeping me from my full potential both personally and academically? It has been awhile since I have read the book, but basically the main character, Melinda, is a victim of rape at a party. She calls in the crime and when the police come, she tells no one why she called the police. Her friends all disown her because Melinda got them all in trouble. The book centers around her freshman year of high school while hiding this secret. I was hoping to make a real life connection between Melinda and my students.
I want to center the book around characterization, self reflection, and research. I plan to have students create a glogster poster as a check point, and the end project may be showing how Melinda has changed as well as how the students have changed by symbolically showing this through art (much like Melinda did with the tree). Students could create a tree or something else and show how the tree grows so does Melinda and so do they. At the top, I could center it around goal making and students can predict what will happen to Melinda and goals for their future. Also, are there any ideas on how I can pull a research component in? I want to have mini lessons on the big six and start teaching MLA with this book. I was thinking of having students take their glogster poster and turning it in to a characterization paper. I fear that a poster, paper, and project may be too much!? I was thinking that the poster and paper (maybe just a quick write) would also be check points, too.
I also am getting lost in the idea of what happens for mini lessons in a project based unit. Is this where I discuss chapters in the book, discuss literary terms, quizzes, etc? Also, how much time should be given to work on the projects in class?
This are just a few of my late night thoughts as I try to sleep...
This would be a great project for freshmen! So relevant! The exploration of what Melinda does and why she does it would be enlightening to students this age. As so many freshmen are just wanting to fit in and find a niche at high school, this book will help illustrate the downfall of keeping it all inside. Letting students know that Melinda's behavior is not abnormal will be important too. Many students do choose to keep it locked up and appear "normal", just to fit in. This would be a great jumping off point for discussing resources at BP and beyond for talking it out.
ReplyDeleteNote that my new essential question is: How have and how are my secrets and fears keeping me from my full potential both personally and academically?
ReplyDeleteAny other ideas about the process, check points, projects, or essential question would be AWESOME!