Transcript Of Mice and Men Unit Plan Grade 9

Of Mice and Men Unit Plan
Grade 9
Art Leone
Edu 521.06
Prof. R. Moroney
Summer 2008
Introduction
This unit plan explores the novel Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, on
many different levels. Using multidisciplinary lessons, the students are asked to
make text-to-self and text-to-world connections. The English Language Arts’
standards are prevalent throughout the unit: however, there are several lessons
that also include Social Studies and Math. In addition, Technology standards
are addressed, including the use of assistive technology for a speech impaired
student.
The beginning of the unit focuses on pre-reading exercises dealing with the
history of the time period to help foster a complete understanding of the
characters and plot within the novel. The middle of the unit has the students
reading the first three chapters and there will be a mid-book exam. The final
third of the unit will require the students to read the remainder of the book and
The unit plan will culminate with a final exam and unit project.
Graphic Organizer
Context of Project
Project Specifics:
Subject: English Language Arts
Grade Level: 9th
Team Teaching or Collaboration: No
Class Size: 23 students
Students with Special Needs: 1 Speech Impaired
Student
Students’ Experience with Technology: Internet,
Emailing, Texting, Blogs, Ipods
Class Access to Technology: Computer Station in the
back of the room, the computer lab, personal
computer at home & SMART Board
Aim of Project
When the unit is completed the students will have a thorough
understanding of the themes, characters, setting, plot, and literary
devices used in the story. In addition, they will be able to create and
use a spreadsheet and chart in Microsoft Excel. Students will be able
to answer the following essential questions:
How is the concept of the American dream portrayed in the novel?
How would you survive if you had nothing?
Are there limits to your loyalty to your friends?
How important is it to work together to achieve a common goal?
How can we prepare ourselves to cope with tragedy?
Students will demonstrate knowledge by their participation in group
discussions, test scores, rubrics, and unit project.
Justification
Technology will be used in the classroom for the
following reasons:
Differentiation of instruction is facilitated by multimedia
applications.
Students will learn to better streamline and manage
information and, therefore, enhance “Information Literacy.”
Students will develop higher level thinking skills as they
learn to assess and analyze data.
Students with learning impairments will use technology
in order to participate and better integrate in the inclusive
classroom.
Materials
Chalk
Blackboard
Pens
Paper
Pictures of Animals
Pictures of Main Characters
Crossword Puzzle
Timeline
Final Exam
Smart Board
Microsoft Excel Software
Laptop
Of Mice and Men Textbook
Time Frame
NYS Learning Standards
English Language Arts Standard 1
Language for Information and Understanding
Students will listen, speak, read, and write for information and understanding. As listeners and readers,
students will collect data, facts, and ideas; discover relationships, concepts, and generalizations; and
use knowledge generated from oral, written, and electronically produced texts. As speakers and writers,
they will use oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English language to
acquire, interpret, apply, and transmit information.
English Language Arts Standard 2
Language for Literary Response and Expression
Students will read and listen to oral, written, and electronically produced texts and performances from
American and world literature; relate texts and performances to their own lives; and develop an
understanding of the diverse social, historical, and cultural dimensions the texts and performances
represent. As speakers and writers, students will use oral and written language that follows the accepted
conventions of the English language for self-expression and artistic creation.
NYS Learning Standards Cont’
English Language Arts Standard 3
Language for Critical Analysis and Evaluation
Students will listen, speak, read, and write for critical analysis and
evaluation. As listeners and readers, students will Analyze
experiences, ideas, information, and issues presented by others
using a variety of established criteria. As speakers and writers, they will use
oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the
English language to present, from a variety of perspectives, their opinions
and judgments on experiences, ideas, information and issues.
ISTE Learning Standards
NETS Standard I
Creativity and Innovation
Students think creatively, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products using
technology. Students:
A.
Apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas and products.
B.
Use technology for creative self-expression.
C.
Use systems thinking to explore complex issues.
D.
Identify trends and forecast possibilities.
Nets Standard III
Research and Information Fluency
Students access, retrieve, manage and evaluate information using digital tools. Students:
A.
Locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and use information from a variety of
sources and media.
B.
Evaluate and select information sources and technological tools based on the
appropriateness to specific tasks.
C.
Process data and report results.
Filamentality Project
Lesson #13
Aim: How can we better understand the use of symbolism?
Do Now: Name and describe at least five examples of symbolism used in the
book.
Learning Objective: Students will better understand the literary technique of
Symbolism.
Lesson Overview: Using a SMART Board, the teacher will display a T-chart,
with one column labeled, “Symbol” and the other labeled, “Meaning.” The
“Symbol” column will have a list of symbols used in the book and the teacher
will ask for volunteers to match the meaning of these symbols on the SMART
Board. The next activity will entail the teacher putting a picture of one of
the main characters in each corner of the room. The teacher will then give each
student a picture of various animals. The teacher will tell each student, one
animal at a time, to go to the corner that he or she believes matches the
character.
Rubric Assessment: As a homework assignment, students will post a blog explaining why they
matched an animal with a character from the book during this activity. In addition, they will
comment why they agree or disagree with a classmate’s blog. The teacher will assess their
blogs using a Rubric that will assess the categories, “Position Statement,” “Support for Their
Position,” “Sentence Structure,” and “Capitalization & Punctuation.”
Lesson #17
Aim: How can we review for the final book exam?
Do Now: Complete the character crossword puzzle.
Learning Objective: Students will be better prepared for the final book exam.
Lesson Overview: The teacher will give a crossword puzzle to each student
that will be a review of the characters in the book. For the next review activity,
the teacher will give the students a timeline of the book. The teacher will then
play the beginning of a few songs, one at a time and using a laptop and a CD,
which will correspond to the events on the timeline. The teacher will ask the
students to volunteer their answers to determine the correct event on the
timeline with each song. The final review activity will be in the form of a game
show. The teacher will break the students into four groups. The team with the
most points will receive small prizes.
Rubric Assessment: As a homework assignment, students will self-assess their
collaborative work skills during the game show activity using a Rubric that will assess
the categories, “Working with Others,” “Contributions,” Focus on the Task,” and
“Attitude.”
Technology
Lesson #13
Symbolism Activity - The teacher will display two columns: one labeled,
“Symbol” and the other labeled, “Meaning” on the SMART Board.
The “Symbol” column will have examples of symbolism used in the book and
The teacher will ask for volunteers to match the meaning of these
symbols on the SMART Board.
Lesson #17
Timeline/Music Activity – The teacher will give the students a timeline of the
book. I will then play the beginning of a few songs, one at-a-time and using a
laptop and a CD, that will correspond to the events on the timeline. The teacher
will ask students to volunteer their answers in determining the correct event on
the timeline with each song.
Assistive Technology
A speech impaired student uses a vocal output
device to participate in the classroom lessons and
activities.
Gus! Pocket Communicator is designed for people with
communication or speech disorders who require a small, user
friendly speech system and have the physical ability to use a
hand held computer.
It offers unlimited pages of words and phrases,
along with the ability to create new words and
phrases on-the-fly. This is the most portable and
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