Digital Unit Plan Template

Unit Title: Reading History

Name: Brianna Woods

Content Area: English

Grade Level: 11 & 12

CA Content Standard(s)/Common Core Standard(s):

R.I. #1: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn
from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters uncertain.
R.I. #2: Determine two or more central ideas of a text and analyze their development over the course of the text, including how
they interact and build on one another to provide a complex analysis; provide an objective summary of the text.
R.I. #3: Analyze a complex set of ideas or sequence of events and explain how specific individuals, ideas, or events interact and
develop over the course of the text.
R.I. #9: Analyze seventeenth, eighteenth-, and nineteenth-century foundational U.S. documents of historical and literary
significance (including The Declaration of Independence, the Preamble to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and Lincolns
Second Inaugural Address) for their themes, purposes, and rhetorical features.
Writing Standard #2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts, and information
clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
Big Ideas:
Analyzing and understanding the influence of historical events on literature
Critiquing and critically thinking about how literature reflects society
Comparing the settings of the historical fictions to our modern society
Elaborating on the significance and impact of the historic fiction literature

Unit Goals and Objectives:

Gain comprehension of the themes and main ideas of the literature

Develop their own ideas about the influence of literature
Develop and elaborate with evidence on their arguments
Enhance writing skills through essays and short answers

Unit Summary:
The influential events that occurred within the classics this class is reading are so significant, they are referred to as historical
events. Historical events severely impact the society, whether it is positive or negative. Literature provides detailed insight into
how certain historical events shaped society and their attitudes, morals, and behaviors. Just think about the historical events
that have happened during your lifetime (i.e. 9/11) and how that has drastically affected our society.
The purpose of this unit is to analyze literatures (via media, orally, and writing) that are influenced by a historical event and
critically think about how that event affected society, what message the author was trying to convey, what elements within the
literature are influenced, and why the literature itself is historically significant to its era.

Assessment Plan:
Entry-Level:
Brainstorming / reflecting the essential
question: How do historical events
influence the literature of its era?

Formative:
Flashcards: To study the definitions and
terms used in this unit. Students will
study using the unit Quizlet flashcards.
Timeline: Students will create their own
timeline based off of the literature read
during this unit and explain the
significance of the according historical
event and literature
Quiz: After brainstorming and studying
the flashcards, students will be quizzed
on vocabulary and events in order to

Summative:
Poem: Students will create a short poem
about something in their past that is
significant or influential to them. Peers
will then read it, and they must analyze
the influential event by annotating and
stating the significance
Presentation & Paper Students will write
an essay on the influences,
representation, and effects of historical
fiction based on the literature (and
poems) they are assigned. They must
present their ideas and concepts in either

gauge their knowledge and progress of

comprehending the material

Powerpoint or Prezi format, then present

it to the class.

Lecture / Discussion: Class will discuss

their brainstormed ideas and short
answers they wrote from the Powerpoint
lecture
Mini Socratic Circles: Students will be
grouped together according to what
literature they are assigned to research.
Lesson 1
Student Learning
Objective:
Develop their own
ideas about the
influence of literature

Acceptable Evidence:
Demonstrating prior
knowledge, then
elaborating and
applying it to what is
being learned in the
unit.

Instructional
Strategies:
Communication
Collection
Collaboration
Presentation
Organization
Interaction

Lesson Activities:

Instructional
Strategies:
Communication
Collection
Collaboration
Presentation
Organization
Interaction

Lesson Activities:

Brainstorming and participating in discussion about the

novels and poems in class
Webercise
From Teacher Lecture, answer the following question on slide
4 after watching the attached clip: How does the following
clip portray society in the 1920s after WWI? Do you believe
Fitzgerald portrayed society as positive or negative?

Lesson 2
Student Learning
Objective:
Gain comprehension
of the themes and
main ideas of the
literature

Acceptable Evidence:
Students will gain an
in depth
understanding of the
novel

Studying the vocabulary, creating their own timelines and

discussing the periods impact on literature, quizzes,
lectures, and discussion with classmates.
Poetry analysis practice after reading Wilfred Owens poem
posted on the Teacher Lecture slide 8. Students then
elaborate on the chaos of WWI and how it influenced the tone
of Owens poem.
Another clip will be watched from Teacher Lecture slide 9,
then students must reflect upon it an find correlations to the
literature.

Lesson 3
Student Learning
Objective:
Develop and
elaborate with
evidence on their
arguments
Enhance writing skills
through essays and
short answers

Acceptable Evidence:
Using sources and
textual evidence to
back up arguments.
Use of appropriate
vocabulary, practicing
organization and
structure, and citing
sources properly

Instructional
Strategies:
Communication
Collection
Collaboration
Presentation
Organization
Interaction

Lesson Activities:
Socratic Circles, developing personal poems, writing an essay
to elaborate on ideas then presenting it in class.

Unit Resources:
Sources for essays:
Old Magazine Articles: http://www.oldmagazinearticles.com/
About the Industrial Revolution: http://americanhistory.about.com/od/industrialrev/a/indrevoverview.htm
The British Library: http://www.bl.uk/
The Grapes of Wrath and The Dust Bowl: http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/2013/04/the-grapes-of-wrath-and-the-language-of-the-dustbowl/
How To Write About Historical Fiction: http://www.creative-writing-now.com/writing-historical-fiction.html
BBC History: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/0/
Good Reads: http://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/historical-fiction
Youtube:
18th Century Influences on Literature: https://youtu.be/oFUEioyVaIs
Scene from The Great Gatsby: https://youtu.be/o8wtDY6TZgc
Robert Burns Song: https://youtu.be/b2pGWkjwOBw

Useful Websites:
English With Ms. Woods: http://briwoodsenglish.weebly.com/