What is the primary educational intent for this unit? What are the related CCSS?
The main ideas of the first unit are:
Critical incidents reveal a character’s dynamic nature.
Authors use specific word choice to create tone and enhance meaning.
In the first unit the students will learn to analyze how critical incidents reveal the dynamic nature of the main character; to consider the impact of specific word choice on tone and meaning; to infer and analyze text, both in discussion and through writing. To do it they will read the poem “Birthday Wishes” from the novel and answer multiple-choice questions to analyze the poem for the author’s word choice, tone and meaning. Questions will include determining the meaning of the word from its context. They will write a paragraph for the following task: “Who is Ha?” basing on this poem, “Birthday Wishes,” and one other poem they have read so far in the novel; the students will also describe Ha as a character: her traits, values, or beliefs. Then they will write a paragraph in which explaining their current understanding of Ha, supporting their opinion with the facts from the text of both poems.
Furthermore, the students will analyze how the word choice contributes to the overall meaning. Using facts from the poem “Saigon Is Gone” and the audio text “Forgotten Ship: A
Daring Rescue as Saigon Fell”, they will write two paragraphs analyzing each text in a paragraph, responding to the task “In this text, what is the message each author is intending to convey about the fall of Saigon? Explain how specific word choices help create a tone that contributes to the text’s meaning.” (Grade 8: Module 1 Overview, 2016)
Moreover, they will learn more about the history of war in Vietnam and the specific historical context of one family’s struggle during the fall of Saigon.
The Unit is focused on the following ELA standards:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.1 Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. (English Language Arts Standards, 2016)
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.3 Analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action, reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a decision. (English Language Arts Standards, 2016)
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.8.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts. (English Language Arts Standards, 2016)
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.9 Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research. (English Language Arts Standards, 2016)
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.8.4.A Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence or paragraph; a word's position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase. (English Language Arts Standards, 2016)
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.1 Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. (English Language Arts Standards, 2016)
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.8.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts. (English Language Arts Standards, 2016)
What do students know right now?
There is no information about student’s background knowledge or skills. That’s why, in order to ensure the full and comprehensive participation of the students throughout the Unit 1, the article about the history of war in Vietnam, “The Vietnam Wars” by Tod Olson, is provided. However, the students are supposed to have basic information about war in general and its features – to check this comprehension, the students are offered some pictures of war for analysis at the very first lesson. (Grade 8: Module 1 Overview, 2016)
What should students know and be able to do by the end of each lesson?
These are the targets at the end of each lesson:
Lesson 1: ability to cite text-based facts to support the analysis of the text; to participate in discussions about the text.
Lesson 2: ability to cite text-based facts to support the analysis of the text; to analyze the dialogue or incidents to reveal aspects of a character; to comprehend the meaning of unknown words; to participate in discussions about the text.
Lesson 3: ability to cite text-based facts to support the analysis of the text; to analyze the dialogue or incidents to reveal aspects of a character; to analyze the word choice and its impact; to participate in discussions about the text.
Lesson 4: ability to cite text-based facts to support the analysis of the text; to analyze the dialogue or incidents to reveal aspects of a character; to analyze the allegories and allusions; to participate in discussions about the text.
Lesson 5: ability to analyze the dialogue or incidents to reveal aspects of a character; to cite text-based facts to support the analysis of the text; to comprehend the meaning of unknown words; to use facts from the text to support the analysis; to participate in discussions about the text.
Lesson 6: ability to determine the central idea and the theme of the text; to comprehend the meaning of unknown words; to participate in discussions about the text.
Lesson 7: ability to determine the central idea and the theme of the text; to comprehend the meaning of unknown words; to participate in discussions about the text.
Lesson 8: ability to determine the central idea and the theme of the text; to cite text-based facts to support the analysis of the text; to participate in discussions about the text; to comprehend the meaning of unknown words.
Lesson 9: ability to determine the central idea and the theme of the text; to comprehend the meaning of unknown words; to analyze the word choice and its impact; to participate in discussions about the text.
Lesson 10: ability to determine the central idea and the theme of the text; to analyze the word choice and its impact; to comprehend the meaning of unknown words in context; to participate in discussions about the text.
Lesson 11: ability to analyze the dialogue or incidents to reveal aspects of a character; to cite text-based facts to support the analysis of the text; to participate in discussions about the text.
Lesson 12: ability to cite text-based facts to support the analysis of the text; to analyze the word choice and its impact; to participate in discussions about the text.
Lesson 13: ability to compare the meaning and the tone (to cite text-based facts to support the analysis of the text; to analyze the word choice and its impact; to participate in discussions about the text).
Lesson 14: ability to analyze the word choice and its contribution to the tone and meaning. (Grade 8: Module 1 Overview, 2016)
What should students know and be able to do by the end of the unit?
At the end of Unit 1 the students must be able to analyze the character basing on the details provided in the text and to find the connection between the word choice and its general contribution to the meaning and the tone of the text. Students must also acquire more information about the war in Vietnam and its impact on people’s life. The lesson may also make them reflect about the concept of home and how critical events can reveal a person’s nature.
How can instruction be adjusted to meet the needs of all students?
There is a special column in the lesson plan called “Meeting Students’ Needs” which provides different tips for the teacher which can help to adjust almost each task for different students with various skills and cognitive abilities: various scaffoldings, like hand outs, a Smartboard, hint cards, pre-highlighted sections in the text. Students may also use different kits like a ruler or paper. The teacher can also partner the students speaking the same home language for discussions for more fruitful discussion and better outcomes. (Grade 8: Module 1 Overview, 2016)
What will take place before and during the unit to make sure that all students are successful?
In order to make sure that all the students are a success at doing the tasks, the teacher asks many questions (mostly starting with ‘Why?’) and provides different activities. There are Guiding Questions which help the students to keep the right track. The teacher also provides hints and explanations during the lesson and introduces the lesson targets at the beginning making sure at the same time that everyone understands them (with questions). Moreover, the teacher can use cold call method to check random students’ comprehension. (Grade 8: Module 1 Overview, 2016)
What assessments are used to ensure that all students have reached the desired outcomes?
At the beginning of the unit the students use only self-assessment of their background knowledge and their ability to use it. The unit includes Mid-Unit and End-Unit Assessments which enable to check the students’ comprehension:
Mid-Unit Assessment includes the analysis of the poem and its main character, which is assessed with the replies to the questions and the response paragraph.
End-Unit Assessment includes reading a text and listening to the audio text and a two-paragraph analysis of these texts from the perspective of word choice and its contribution to the tone and the meaning of the text.
Throughout the unit the teacher uses different questions (Why-questions) to check the students’ comprehension of the text and the meaning. (Grade 8: Module 1 Overview, 2016)
What happens when students do not know?
There are no solutions and ready-made explanations for the teacher in case the students fail to do anything. However, there are tips which enable to simplify the students’ understanding and participation in class (they are provided for almost each lesson in the column “Meeting Students’ Needs”). (Grade 8: Module 1 Overview, 2016)
What materials are available for enrichment activities?
The lesson plan provides additional reading which may enhance the understanding of the topic and therefore more profound analysis of the text. Moreover, the teacher is suggested using photographs related to the topic of war and particularly the war in Vietnam. Moreover, there is a “I Notice / I Wonder Note-catcher”, Module Guiding Questions, pictures and photos for nonlinguistic representations of learning target vocabulary, a Model Note-taking, a Fist to Five chart, Quick Write Models, etc. (Grade 8: Module 1 Overview, 2016)
What are the cross-curricular connections?
Is the time for the unit well justified? Explain why or why not.
I think the lesson time is distributed in a right way; there is enough time for each task. However, there may be too little time for some tasks (for example, 10 minutes is surely not enough to successfully analyze and discuss something or to exchange the opinions with the classmates). Moreover, some task times presuppose 100% understanding of the task and no questions from the students, which is actually hardly possible.
What additional literacy activities would enhance the learning in this unit?
The lesson plan provides various literacy sources which can contribute to successful activity in the class and after it. (e.g. the article “The Vietnam Wars,” which gives students basic background knowledge about the history of war in Vietnam):
Tod Olson, “The Vietnam Wars,” Scholastic, February 24, 1995, 16–20.
Joseph Shapiro and Sandra Bartlett, “Forgotten Ship: A Daring Rescue as Saigon Fell,” transcript, National Public Radio, August 31, 2010.
For independent reading the lesson plan provides the following list (Lexile text measures 925L–1185L):
“The Land I Lost: Adventures of a Boyin Vietnam” by Quang Nhuong Huynh;
“Vietnamese American” by John F. Grabowski;
“The Vietnam War” by Cath Senker;
“Water Buffalo Days: Growing up in Vietnam” by Quang Nhuong Huynh;
“Vietnam in Pictures” by Stacy Taus-Bolstad. (Grade 8: Module 1 Overview, 2016)
The class can also read the following books:
“The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien,
“Matterhorn” by Karl Marlantes,
“Dispatches” by Michael Herr,
“A Rumor of War” by Philip Caputo,
“Steel My Soldiers' Hearts: The Hopeless to Hardcore Transformation of U.S. Army, 4th Battalion, 39th Infantry, Vietnam” by David H.
“The Quiet American” by Graham Greene,
“We Were Soldiers Once and Young: Ia Drang - The Battle that Changed the War in Vietnam” by Harold G. Moore,
“Fields of Fire” by James Webb,
“What It is Like to Go to War” by Karl Marlantes
“The Best and the Brightest” by David Halberstam,
“Vietnam: A History” by Stanley Karnow, etc.
Moreover, the students can watch documentary or historical films about the war in Vietnam, for instance, "Vietnam: Looking for Home" (May 2003).
Provided there is time, the students can visit the museum or the exhibition devoted to war n general or the war in Vietnam particularly.
In class the students can prepare different projects, make PowerPoint presentations about this topic, develop a web page.
If the teacher feels that students are ready, he can arrange a discussion club devoted to the aspect of refugees in general and concerning the war in Vietnam.
References
English Language Arts Standards » Reading: Literature » Grade 8. (n.d.). Retrieved March 18, 2016, from http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RL/8/
English Language Arts Standards » Reading: Literature » Grade 8. (n.d.). Retrieved March 18, 2016, from http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/8/
English Language Arts Standards » Reading: Literature » Grade 8. (n.d.). Retrieved March 18, 2016, from http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/L/8/
English Language Arts Standards » Reading: Literature » Grade 8. (n.d.). Retrieved March 18, 2016, from http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RI/8/
NYS Common Core ELA Curriculum. (2013). Grade 8: Module 1 Overview. Retrieved March 18, 2016, from https://www.engageny.org/sites/default/files/resource/attachments/8m1.1.pdf.
