This lesson reviews the literary devices at work in John Updike's "Ace in the Hole." Students consider professional athletes who didn't pan out before taking an in-depth look at Updike's techniques.

Students will complete a close reading of Ted Kooser’s poem, Abandoned Farmhouse.  Students will use their knowledge about the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl to determine the setting and characters in the poem. After analyzing the author’s style, use of figurative language, and structure of the poem, students will write an ORIGINAL POEM in the spirit of Abandoned Farmhouse by using the same syntax.  Using the original poem and a template as a guide, students will compose a poem that reveals who they are through the voice of important objects in their homes.

In this lesson, students experiment with creating mood in their stories using digital photographs for inspiration. Students examine a list of mood words, then try to write and create moods that match the photos they see. Students may optionally read from a list of short stories that all excel at creating mood.

In this lesson, students explore their creativity by outlining and writing the first chapter for a children's book. Students first read and discuss the tone of the beginning of a famous children's book before creating ideas and sharing them with the class.

The 11th grade learning experience consists of 7 mostly month-long units aligned to the Common Core State Standards, with available course material for teachers and students easily accessible online. Over the course of the year there is a steady progression in text complexity levels, sophistication of writing tasks, speaking and listening activities, and increased opportunities for independent and collaborative work. Rubrics and student models accompany many writing assignments.Throughout the 11th grade year, in addition to the Common Read texts that the whole class reads together, students each select an Independent Reading book and engage with peers in group Book Talks. Students move from learning the class rituals and routines and genre features of argument writing in Unit 11.1 to learning about narrative and informational genres in Unit 11.2: The American Short Story. Teacher resources provide additional materials to support each unit.

People often say that mankind should learn from history. Charles Dickens, whose books are considered classics, set his novel A Tale of Two Cities in the past. He wanted his readers to learn from the bloody French Revolution and from the widespread brutality in London. Both cities (Paris and London) offer the reader a glimpse into dark and dangerous times. As students read about Dickens's Victorian setting and learn his view of the French Revolution, they will think about what makes a just world. Students will have a chance to think about their own experiences, and, using techniques they have learned from Charles Dickens, they will do some writing that sends a message about your own world.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

To complete the unit accomplishments, students will:

Read the Charles Dickens novel A Tale of Two Cities.
Read several short pieces, including a biography of Dickens and excerpts from other literature, to help them understand Dickens’s world and the world of the novel.
Explore new vocabulary to build their ability to write and speak using academic language.
Practice close reading and participate in several role plays and dramatic readings to help them experience the dramatic writing style of Charles Dickens.
Write a vignette and a short narrative piece, and practice using descriptive detail and precise language.
Write a reflection about the meaning of Dickens’s novel.

GUIDING QUESTIONS

These questions are a guide to stimulate thinking, discussion, and writing on the themes and ideas in the unit. For complete and thoughtful answers and for meaningful discussions, students must use evidence based on careful reading of the texts.

How does good storytelling affect the reader, and how can a good story promote change in the world?
What was the Victorian view of gender roles?
How can power be abused?
What is loyalty ? What are the limits of loyalty?

In this lesson, you will focus on filling your writing with vivid detail. You will complete a brainstorming exercise and work on your writing assignment.In this lesson, students will focus on filling their writing with vivid detail. They will complete a brainstorming exercise and work on their writing assignment.

Students will view and discuss Yellow Rain Jacket, paying particular attention to the artists choice of content and composition. They will learn about composition by creating a frame and choosing areas of an image that they wish to emphasize.

Students will take on a mystery, Sherlock Holmes style, to uncover the secrets, history, and deeper meanings of Moyo Ogundipe's painting Soliloquy: Life's Fragile Fictions.

Students will be able to: explain why Ogundipe used particular colors, patterns, and images for his painting; discuss what the snakes and birds symbolize in the picture; and express in their own words at least three reasons the different elements of the painting are a treasure.

Students will explore the statue of St. Ferdinand, King of Spain with an eye for detail. They will use the ideas and mock techniques from the statue to design a royal figure for themselves.

Students will be able to: identify descriptive attributes of a sculpture; relate to an artwork in a personal and meaningful way; identify a symbol that represents their 'royal identity'; and present an artwork to the class and explain its design.

Students will analyze and compare the Japanese Lacquer Box to pencil boxes used in school. They will then explore why the lacquer box was deserving of such attention to detail by learning about the story represented on the box. They will then design their own boxes based on a different Japanese story, with careful attention to detail.

This lesson focuses on the author's use of language; moreover, how it is used to convey mood, images, and meaning. Students are tasked here with examining a selection identifying examples of stylistic devices within the passages. Next, students discuss possible reasons for author's selected style choices. The lesson is detailed with examples from Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God, yet the lesson may be altered to be used with other instructor selected text.

For this assignment, students will learn about the difference between mood and tone in writing. They will watch a video explaining the difference, work through a website with words writers would use to convey tone or mood, and end with an assignment where they will describe the tone or mood in pictures and passages from books.