Daily Lesson Plan Breakdown

3 Weeks 13 days

Wednesday, September 10, 2014: Day 1 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: The Lottery Shirley Jackson
[Introduction to the Revolutionary Literature Unit]
Content Standards:
10.2.1 Reading for all Purposes: Literary and historical influences determine the meaning of traditional
and contemporary texts:
a. CCSS:RL.9-10.1: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text
says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
h. CCSS:RL.9-10.10: By the end of grade 10, read and comprehend literature, including stories,
dramas, and poems, at the high end of the grades 9-10 text complexity band independently and
proficiently.
Goals:
1. Students will be able to understand how authors use their readers bias to surprise and
manipulate.
2. Students will be able to recognize and identify elements of foreshadowing in a text.
Materials: Class set of Shirley Jacksons short story, The Lottery, foreshadowing handout.
Homework Due: None
Learning Activities:
1. Just Write: Just about every regular class period will begin with a Just Write. Just Write is a
free writing activity that is intended to get students to consider an assigned prompt through
their writing. It is important to me that writing be a daily part of my classroom, and I believe
that these activities can be used not only to get students to practice writing every day, but also
to reflect upon assigned readings, brainstorm for upcoming assignments or practice grammar
concepts. The just write prompt for today is: What do you wish were different about this class?
This is the first in a series of Just Write prompts intended to get students to think about issues at
the classroom, school, city, national or world level that they would like to change. I will tell
students that the purpose of this particular series of Just Writes is to brainstorm ideas that they
would like to write about for the Persuasive Essay culminating assessment for the unit. Students
will have 7 minutes to write and then we will take 3 minutes to share. (10 minutes).
2. The Lottery First Reading: Students will be given time in class to complete a first reading of
Shirley Jacksons The Lottery. (15 minutes)
3. Think-Pair-Share: After completing the reading, students will break up into pairs to discuss the
following questions: (10 minutes)
a. Were you surprised by the ending?
b. If not, at what point did you know what was going to happen?

c. What associations do you have with the word lottery? How did this association play
into your expectations for the story?
d. Do you think Shirley Jackson assumed her audience would have this bias?
4. Class Discussion: We will discuss students answers to these questions as a class. As we advance
towards the third question, I will introduce the concept of assumed reader bias and ask students
about how Shirley Jackson plays her readers positive connotations with the word lottery
against them. (10 minutes)
5. The Lottery Second Reading: Students will read The Lottery again, this time with knowledge
of the ending. Using the foreshadowing handout, students will keep track of elements of
foreshadowing within the text, as well as moments in which the audiences positive association
with the word lottery is exploited. (15 minutes)
Homework: If not finished in class, complete the reading log for tomorrows class.
Assessment: I will assess student comprehension of the lesson by collecting their foreshadowing
handout at either the end of class today, or, if they need more time, the beginning of class on Thursday.
I will give a holistic assessment of this activity. If students correctly identify examples of foreshadowing, I
know that the lesson has been successful. If it is clear that many students do not have a grasp on
foreshadowing, I will add a mini-lesson of some kind into a future lesson to explain, answer questions
and clarify.
Teacher Notes and Resources:
1. Link to The Lottery
http://sites.middlebury.edu/individualandthesociety/files/2010/09/jackson_lottery.pdf
2. A Note on Deciding to start the unit here: Although The Lottery is not linked directly to the
American Revolution, because of the time period in which it is set and the ease with which the
text can be used to introduce the concept of bias, I feel that it is a good start to the unit. In
addition, it serves as a bridge between this unit and the Colonial Literature unit that preceded it.

Thursday, September 11, 2014: Day 2 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: Introduction to the American Revolution
Content Standards:
10.1.2: Oral Expression and Listening: Effectively operating in small and large groups to accomplish a
goal requires active listening.
CCSS:SL.9-10.1: Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (oneon-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9-10 topics and issues,
building on others ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
10.2.1: Reading for all Purposes: Literary and historical influences determine the meaning of traditional
and contemporary texts:
e. Relate a literary work to primary source documents of its literary period or historical setting.
10.2.2: Reading for all Purposes: The development of new ideas and concepts within informational and
persuasive manuscripts.

f. CCSS:RI.9-10.9: Analyze seminal U.S. documents of historical and literary significance (e.g.
Washingtons Farewell Address, the Gettysburg Address, Roosevelts Four Freedoms speech,
Kings Letter from Birmingham Jail including how they address related themes and concepts.
Goals:
1. Students will be able to identify the main reasons behind the American Revolution.
2. Students will be able to explore the pros and cons of revolution through perspectives of the
colonists.
Materials: Debate Questions handout
Homework Due: Reading Log for The Lottery (if not turned in on Wednesday)
Learning Activities:
1. Just Write Prompt: The just write prompt for today is: If you could change anything about
Poudre High School, what would it be? This is intended to help students brainstorm for the
upcoming persuasive essay assignment. Students will have 7 minutes to write and then we will
take 3 minutes to share. (10 minutes).
2. Ms. Umetsu Lecture: Ms. Kendall Umetsu will stop by the classroom to teach my students about
the context of the American Revolution. Because she has a strong background in history, we
thought it would be a good idea for her to come in and discuss the historical context with my
students. Understanding the historical context to the writing that we will read throughout this
unit is essential to student success. (30 minutes)
3. Debate Preparation: The class will be split down the middle, (counted off by the 1-2-1-2
approach) into loyalists and patriots to prepare for a debate during Fridays class period from
the perspective of the colonists over whether or not revolution should be staged. A list of
questions that will be addressed during the debate will be given to each student. (20 minutes)
Homework: Nothing, unless you would like additional preparation for the debate.
Assessment: Due to the two part nature of this lesson, it will be difficult to truly assess student
understanding until the debate and reflection that will take up the bulk of the time during Fridays
lesson. See assessment information for Friday.

Teacher Notes and Resources:

1. Co-Teaching: In order to introduce my students to The American Revolution, I thought it would
be a good idea to invite my friend and colleague Kendall Umetsu to teach a 30 minute mini
lesson in which she outlines the reasons that colonists wanted revolution. Kendall was the first
person that I thought of for this lesson, seeing as she has a background in both English and
History.
a. Meta-Cognitive breaking of the reality this unit: Inviting Kendall into my classroom (or,
more realistically for the future, another teacher with a background in history) seemed
like the best way to go about introducing this unit, not only because co-planning is
required for this assignment, but also because I think it can be really valuable to invite
cross-disciplinary teachers into your classroom. The issue that I ran into though, is that

due to time constraints, I cant in good conscience ask Kendall to help me plan a thirty
minute mini lesson at this time. I spoke with Kendall about inserting her into my unit
plan, and she was enthusiastic about it, but I went back and forth on whether or not to
include this because I knew that I couldnt ask her to put her expertise to use right now
and also because to plan the 30 minutes out myself would be a betrayal of the whole
point of co-teaching. If I planned out exactly what I wanted her to teach, thered be no
reason to invite her into my classroom in the first place, and it wouldnt really be coteaching. Im not sure that I handled this right here, but its something that Im
struggling with.
2. Debate: I love having students debate a topic in class. Its a great way to assess student
understanding of a subject while getting them engaged through a fun, competitive activity. One
thing that I always struggle with is how structured debates should be. I facilitated a debate in my
Contemporary Humanities class for 450 in which I had students debate from the perspective of
Hobbes and Locke. What Ive found is that without enough structure, everything falls apart, but
with too much structure, the competitive nature falls apart. The compromise that Ive found
here is to have all students discuss the questions that will be asked during the debate, but that
Ill just call up students to debate the individual questions during the debate itself rather than
having some complicated process to order who comes up and when.
3. Good resource to review over the debate between the Loyalists and the Patriots:
http://oll.libertyfund.org/groups/78

Friday, September 12, 2014: Day 3 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: Debating the Revolution
Content Standards:
10.1.1: Oral Expression and Listening: Content that is gathered carefully and organized well successfully
influences an audience.
CCSS:SL.9-10.4: Present information, findings, and supporting evidence clearly, concisely, and
logically such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and organization, development,
substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience and task.
10.1.2: Oral Expression and Listening: Effectively operating in small and large groups to accomplish a
goal requires active listening.
CCSS:SL.9-10.1: Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (oneon-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9-10 topics and issues, building on
others ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
10.3.2: Writing and Composition: Organizational writing patterns inform or persuade an audience.
CCSS:W.9-10.2: 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.
Goals:
1. Students will be able debate the pros and cons of revolution through the perspective of
colonists.

2. Students will begin to identify persuasive elements.

Materials: Nothing
Homework Due: Nothing
Learning Activities:
1. Just Write Prompt: The just write prompt for today is: What do you wish were different about
Fort Collins? This is intended to help students brainstorm for the upcoming persuasive essay
assignment. Students will have 7 minutes to write and then we will take 3 minutes to share. (10
minutes).
2. Debate Preparation: Following up on our activity from yesterdays class period, students will
have ten minutes to get into their groups to prepare for the debate from the perspective of the
colonists over whether or not to incite revolution. (15 minutes)
3. Debate: Students will spend the middle section of class engaging in a debate from the
perspective of colonists over whether or not to revolt against the British Empire. The questions
will be drawn from the question sheet given to students the students during Thursdays class,
and I will facilitate the debate by asking follow up questions based on the points students make.
(25 minutes)
4. Reflection: Following the debate, students will compose a reflection on the debate asking the
following questions: (10 minutes). This reflection will be collected as a ticket out the door.
a. Which side did you feel was more successful? Why?
b. Which points appealed to you the most?
c. Were you most persuaded by points based on logic, emotion or presentation?
Homework: None
Assessment: I will assess students based on their participation in this activity. Assessing based on
participation can be difficult, so I feel that it is essential to break this down in a number of ways. While I
would prefer that all students participate vocally during the debate, I recognize that due to time
restraints and the number of students in the class, it will be impossible for everyone to speak. Therefore,
the debate itself will serve as a holistic assessment for my students understanding as a whole, and the
reflection itself will be graded. 10 points will be awarded to students who thoroughly answer each
question, 7-5 points for partial answers and 0 points for no answers or non-sequitors.

Monday, September 15, 2014: Day 4 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: Introducing The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
Content Standards:
10.2.2: Reading for all Purposes: The development of new ideas and concepts within informational and
persuasive manuscripts.

f. CCSS:RI.9-10.9: Analyze seminal U.S. documents of historical and literary significance (e.g.
Washingtons Farewell Address, the Gettysburg Address, Roosevelts Four Freedoms speech,
Kings Letter from Birmingham Jail including how they address related themes and concepts.
Goals:
1. Students will be able explain the historical importance of Benjamin Franklin.
2. Students will be able to identify what primary source texts reveal about the historical context of
the American Revolution.
Materials: Video introducing Benjamin Franklin,, individual chapters of The Autobiography of Benjamin
Franklin for the entire class, Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin summary sheet.
Homework Due: Nothing
Learning Activities:
1. Just Write Prompt: The just write prompt for today is: If you could change anything about the
United States, what would it be? This is intended to students brainstorm for the upcoming
persuasive essay assignment. Students will have 7 minutes to write and then we will take 3
minutes to share. (10 minutes).
2. Introducing Benjamin Franklin: In order to introduce Benjamin Franklin, I will ask the class what
they already know about his life and his role in American History. We will then watch a quick
video that gives an overview of his life. (15 minutes)
3. Autobiography Discussion: In order to preview the concept of authorial bias, my students and I
will discuss autobiographies as a genre. What do autobiographies cover? How do they differ
from fiction and nonfiction? What would you want to highlight if you were writing an
autobiography of your life? What would you want to leave out? (10 minutes)
4. Reading The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin: Because we will not have time to read the
entirety of The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, we will instead do a jigsaw style activity in
which every student read two chapters and then get into groups of five the next day to discuss
what they have read. Students will be counted off by 1-2-3-4-5, and the chapter assignments
will be as follows:
Students labeled as 1s Chapter I. Ancestry and Early Life in Boston and
Chapter II. Beginning Life as a Printer
Students labeled as 2s Chapter VII. Beginning business in Philadelphia and
Chapter VIII. Business Success and First Public Service.
Students labeled as 3s Chapter X. Poor Richards Almanac and Other
Activities and Chapter XI. Interest in Public Affairs
Students labeled as 4s Chapter XIII. Public Services and Duties and Chapter
XV. Quarrels with the Proprietary Governors.
Students labeled as 5s Chapter XVIII. Scientific Experiments and Chapter XIX.
Agent of Pennsylvania in London
It is unfortunate that we will not have time to read the entire text, but I feel that this is a logical
way to get the information across to my students. It is important to me to provide students with
in-class reading time, so we will spend the remainder of the class period reading. (25 minutes)
Homework: Finish reading your assigned chapters and fill out your sections of the summary sheet.

Assessment: Similar to the class period in which students prepared for the next days debate, because
this is essentially day 1 of a two part lesson, this will be a difficult lesson to assess other than very
informal pre-assessments during the class discussions about Benjamin Franklin and the autobiography
genre. More on assessment for tomorrows Tuesdays class period.
Teaching Notes and Resources:
1. Video introducing Benjamin Franklin: The Benjamin Franklin Story Link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2ZhMM0L6tk
2. A note on reading time: While I would prefer to spend the entire class period working on
activities, discussion and various forms of assessment, I know that it is not realistic to assume
that my entire class will read the entirety (or, in some cases, any) of their assigned reading.
Knowing thisand that students have classes other than my ownit is important to me that I
include in class reading time. While it is unfortunate that todays lesson does not include closure
or much in the way of activities, I believe that this will work better for my class in the long run.
3. Co-Planning: The idea to use a jigsaw type activity as a way to compensate for not having
enough time to teach the entirety of The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin was hatched by
fellow English educator Kelly Wimler.

Tuesday, September 16, 2014: Day 5 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: Continuing The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
Content Standards:
10.1.2: Oral Expression and Listening: Effectively operating in small and large groups to accomplish a
goal requires active listening.
CCSS:SL.9-10.1: Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (oneon-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9-10 topics and issues,
building on others ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
10.2.2: Reading for all Purposes: The development of new ideas and concepts within informational and
persuasive manuscripts.
f. CCSS:RI.9-10.9: Analyze seminal U.S. documents of historical and literary significance (e.g.
Washingtons Farewell Address, the Gettysburg Address, Roosevelts Four Freedoms speech,
Kings Letter from Birmingham Jail including how they address related themes and concepts.
Goals:
1. Students will be able to demonstrate their understanding of Benjamin Franklins life by creating
a timeline.
2. Students will be able to explain three important inventions of Benjamin Franklin
Materials: Summary sheet, white sheet paper for timeline, markers.
Homework Due: Benjamin Franklin summary sheet
Learning Activities:

1. Just Write Prompt: The just write prompt for today is: If you could change anything about the
world, what would it be? This is intended to students brainstorm for the upcoming persuasive
essay assignment. Students will have 7 minutes to write and then we will take 3 minutes to
share. (10 minutes).
2. Jigsaw: Students will get into groups of five to compare their separate readings from The
Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. They will finish filling out their summary sheets through
conversation ,questioning and collaboration. (20 minutes)
3. Benjamin Franklin Timeline: In their jigsaw groups, students will create a timeline of the life of
Benjamin Franklin. This timeline will ask students to synthesize their understanding of Benjamin
Franklin to create a cohesive document of his life. (20-30 minutes)
4. Ticket out the Door: The ticket out the door for today will be a list of three important inventions
by Benjamin Franklin. This will be collected and evaluated as a formative assessment. (10
minutes if time!)
Homework: No homework
Assessment: Student understanding of the life and times of Benjamin Franklin will be assessed based on
their group work for the timeline activity. Because this is an in-class assignment, no assignment sheet or
rubric will be provided. However, I will outline my expectations by writing them on the whiteboard.
Expectations are as follows:

Timeline includes at least 10 events

These events include at least 4 inventions
Years are included with the events

Groups will be graded based on this criterion. Although I recognize that some students or parents may
find giving out group grades rather than individual grades unfair, I feel that this practice is essential for a
number of reasons. First, group collaboration is essential to the Oral Communication and Listening
Standard and second, this practice helps to keep all grade members accountable. The timeline will be
recorded in the grade book out of 20 possible points.

Wednesday, September 17, 2014: Day 6 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: Understanding Bias
Content Standards:
10.2.2: Reading for all Purposes: Ideas synthesized from informational texts serve a specific purpose.
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.
10.3.1: Writing and Composition: Elements of informational and persuasive texts can be refined to
Inform or influence an audience.
CCSS.W.9-10.1b: Develop claims and counterclaims fairly and thoroughly, supplying the most
relevant evidence for each while pointing out the strengths and limitations of both in a manner
that anticipates the audiences knowledge level, concerns, values and possible biases.
10.4.1: Research and Reasoning: use primary, secondary and tertiary written sources to generate and
answer research questions.

CCSS:W.9-10.7: Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question
(including a self-generated inquiry) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when
appropriate: synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the
subject under investigation.
Goals:
1. Students will be able to demonstrate understanding of authorial bias and assumed reader bias.
Materials: Class set of The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, Bias PowerPoint, FOX NEWS, MSNBC,
and BBC Clips, Newspaper article to analyze for ticket out the door activity.
Homework Due: None
Learning Activities:
1. Just Write: For my anticipatory set, I will have students take out their Writers Notebooks.
They will have 7 minutes to write about the themes in The Crucible (The main text that we
read for the previous unit). Going off of this, students will analyze what these themes allow
us to infer about the author. What did Arthur Miller believe? What was he concerned with?
What did he agree and disagree with? How did he convey these views to his readers? (10
minutes).
2. Teaching Input: We will begin the class with a discussion of The Autobiography of Benjamin
Franklin. I will address student concerns with the text, as well as a few questions about what
this text tells us about the time period. From there, I will segue into the main point of the
lesson by asking students how this text stacks up against their prior knowledge of Benjamin
Franklin. (20 minutes)
Discussion Questions: What about his life does he highlight? What does he leave out?
Hopefully, I will able to get even students who dont know much about Benjamin
Franklin to understand that he included very little about his personal life.
3. Modeling / Whole Class Practice: After completing the discussion, I will give a very brief
PowerPoint presentation of Bias as a concept. This will include the definition of authorial
bias (the bias an author displays towards his or her subject) and reader bias (the bias that a
reader brings to the text), as well as an example of both. We will also discuss how writers
assume reader bias by understanding their audience. From there, I will show students clips
from FOX News, MSNBC and BBC reporting on Obama Care. Together we will discuss the
bias of the newscasters as well as the bias that they assume and react to in their audience,
be it for or against their given view points. (20 minutes)
4. Closure: Students will be given a newspaper article. They will identify the authorial bias as
well as the assumed reader bias. This will be their ticket out the door for the day. (10
minutes)
Homework: Brief Research Project into the life of Benjamin Franklin will be due during Thursdays class,
but students do not need to work on it outside of class.
Teaching Notes and Resources:
1. News Clips:

a. FOX News Obamacare: Deception by Design https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTBvz3pn9QU

b. MSNBC News Obamacare is an Undeniable Success https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEwy5dYJhCk
c. BBC News Obamacare reforms come into force https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yrp1UleAo9g
2. Ticket Out the Door Newspaper Article - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/17/obamajudicial-nominees_n_6328390.html?utm_hp_ref=politics
3. Adaptation: This lesson was adapted from one that I wrote for the Coherent Assignment
Sequence project that I produced in Teaching Composition.
Assessment: I will give a formative assessment of student understanding by collecting the ticket out
the door and examining whether or not the majority of students were able to identify A) Authorial
Bias and B) Assumed Reader Bias within the Huffington Post article.

Thursday, September 18, 2014: Day 7 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: Researching Benjamin Franklin
Content Standards:
10.1.1: Oral Expression and Listening: Content that is gathered carefully and organized well successfully
influences an audience.
CCSS:SL.9-10.4: Present information, findings, and supporting evidence clearly, concisely, and
logically such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and organization, development,
substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience and task.
10.4.1: Research and Reasoning: use primary, secondary and tertiary written sources to generate and
answer research questions.
CCSS:W.9-10.7: Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question
(including a self-generated inquiry) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when
appropriate: synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the
subject under investigation.
Goals:
1. Students will be able to demonstrate effective research strategies while investigating the life of
Benjamin Franklin
2. Students will be able to give a brief oral demonstration
Materials: Access to the computer lab, projector
Homework Due: None
Learning Activities:

1. Modeling Effective Research Strategies: Using the projector, I will model effective research
strategies by asking students for a topic to research and then searching it using EBSCO Host,
Google Scholar, and others. (15 minutes).
2. Research Time: In small groups, students will spend the majority of class researching the life
of Benjamin Franklin to find information that he left out of his autobiography. (35 minutes)
3. Brief Presentations: Students will then give a very brief oral presentation in which they state
three things they found that was left out of Benjamin Franklins autobiography, as well as
why they think Benjamin Franklin choose to leave them out. (10 minutes)
Homework: Read the Declaration of Independence
Teaching Notes and Resources:
1. Trustworthy Online Sources: EBSCO Host, Google Scholar, JSTOR, Purdue Libraries, .edu

Friday, September 19, 2014: Day 8 60 Minutes

Madeline Hunter Lesson Plan Template
Class: 10th Grade American Literature
Teacher: Mr. Vanjonack
Objective/Purpose: After analyzing and discussing the rhetorical and persuasive features in The
Declaration of Independence, students will be able to utilize these features in their own writing.
Standards:
Standard 2.2:

Standard 2.3:

Standard 3.2:

Ideas synthesized from informational texts serve a specific purpose.

a. Use integration of knowledge and ideas to:
a. Analyze seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth century foundational U.S.
documents of historical and literary significance (including The Declaration
of Independence) for their themes, purposes and rhetorical features.
Knowledge of language, including syntax and grammar, influence the understanding of
literary, persuasive and informational texts.
a. Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in different
contexts, to make effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more
fully when reading or listening (CCSS:L.11-12.3)
a. Vary syntax for effect, consulting references for guidance as needed; apply
an understanding of syntax to the study of complex texts when reading.
Elements of informational and persuasive texts can be refined to inform or influence an
audience.

Standard 4.1:

a. Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using

valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence
a. Introduce precise, knowledgeable claims, establish the significance of the
claims, distinguish the claims from alternate or opposing claims, and create
an organization that logically sequences claims, counterclaims, reasons and
evidence. (CCSS: W.11-12.1a)
b. Develops claims and counterclaims fairly and thoroughly, supplying the
most relevant evidence for each while pointing out the strengths and
limitations of both in a manner that anticipates the audiences knowledge
level, concerns, values, and possible biases. (CCSS:W.11-12.1b)
Self-designed research provides insightful information, conclusions and possible
solutions.
a. Gather relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources,
using advanced searches effectively; assess the strengths and limitations of each
source in terms of the task, purpose, and audience; integrate information into the
text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism and overreliance
on any one source and following a standard format for citation. (CCSS: W.11-12.8)
b. Evaluate quality, accuracy and completeness of information and the bias, credibility
and reliability of sources.

Materials/Resources Needed: Class Set of The Declaration of Independence, Elements of Persuasive

Writing PPT, Persuasive Essay Assignment Sheet, Persuasive Essay Rubric
Duration: 60 minutes
Anticipatory Set: For my anticipatory set, I will have students take out their Writers Notebooks. They
will have 7 minutes to write about their experience reading The Declaration of Independence. How do
you think it was perceived by the majority of people living in the colonies? Why do you think they
responded in this way? (10 minutes).
Teaching:
Input: We will begin with a discussion of The Declaration of Independence. This will be a brief
discussion about the text as a whole and why it is so seminal. (10 minutes)
Questioning Strategies: How do you think the colonists and imperialists reacted to The Declaration of
Independence? What makes this an effective document? How is it structured as a persuasive text?
Small Group Practice: In pairs, students will use the structural outline of The Declaration of
Independence. (10 minutes)
Teacher Input / Modeling: After completing the discussion, we will move into a very brief PowerPoint
presentation over the elements of persuasive writing. This will include the position statement, claims,
support and rhetorical devices. I will model the skill of identifying these traits of persuasive writing by
identifying examples in-front of the class. (15 minutes)

Guided Practice: As a class, we will revisit The Declaration of Independence and highlight for position
statement (blue), claims (green), support (red) and rhetorical devices (yellow). (15 minutes)
Teaching Input/Closure: I will introduce the Persuasive Essay that will serve as the culminating text for
the unit. I will hand out the assignment sheet and rubric, and answer any questions that may come up.
(10 minutes)
Homework: The final version of the persuasive essay is due September 29th. A rough draft of the
introduction is due on September 24th and a rough draft is due on September 25th.
Assessment: Assessment for this lesson will be entirely holistic and informal. I will check to see if
students are understanding the elements of persuasive writing by seeing how the class as a whole does
at highlighting for position statement, claims support and rhetorical devices.
Teaching Notes and Resources:
1. Citation: This essay was adapted from one that I created for the Coherent Assignment Sequence
in Teaching Composition.

Monday, September 22, 2014: Day 9 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: Thomas Paine and Common Sense
Content Standards:
10.2.1: Reading for all Purposes: Literary and historical influences determine the meaning of traditional
and contemporary texts:
e. Relate a literary work to primary source documents of its literary period or historical setting.
10.2.2: Reading for all Purposes: The development of new ideas and concepts within
informational and persuasive manuscripts.
f. CCSS:RI.9-10.9: Analyze seminal U.S. documents of historical and literary significance (e.g.
Washingtons Farewell Address, the Gettysburg Address, Roosevelts Four Freedoms speech,
Kings Letter from Birmingham Jail including how they address related themes and concepts.
Goals:
1. Students will be able to identify elements of persuasive writing in Common Sense
Materials: Excerpts of Common Sense and Crisis, Persuasive Writing Analysis Sheet, Excerpt from
Thomas Paine Video.
Homework Due: None

Learning Activities:
1. Just Write: The just write prompt for today is: Which of the issues that youve written about
would you be the most interested in exploring further for the persuasive essay assignment?
What interests you about this topic? This activity is intended to help students synthesize the
last couple weeks of Just Write activities to brainstorm a topic for the upcoming assignment.
Rather than sharing writing with the class, students will do a think-pair-share at the five minute
mark and tell a partner what they are thinking about writing for the essay and why. (10
minutes).
2. Anticipatory Set: I will ask students to brainstorm writers, politicians, actors, or other figures
who helped to change public opinion on an issue. We will brainstorm these on the board and
then we I will introduce Thomas Paine as a writer who helped change the tide of public opinion
in 1776 in favor of revolution. We will then watch a short video about how writing helped lead
to revolution. (10 minutes)
3. Small Group Reading: I will divide the class into groups of 2 or 3 students each. Half the groups
will be given excepts from Common Sense and the other half from The Crisis. Each group will be
given the Analyzing Persuasive Writing graphic organizer. Each group will read, discuss and fill
out their graphic organizer. (20 minutes)
4. Class Discussion: As a class, we will discuss what they learned from their assigned readings and
how they identified persuasive elements within the text. (15 minutes) Questions will be included
below:
a. What elements of persuasive writing did you find within the text?
b. Would you have been persuaded by this text?
c. Which arguments were more persuasive to you: those that appealed to the head or the
heart?
d. What examples did you find of strongly worded statements?
e. What were the most powerful excerpts?
5. Ticket out the Door: Students will write a ticket out the door in which they will explain how they
might use some of these elements in their Persuasive Essay Assignment. (5 minutes)
Homework: Come in having excerpt of the U.S. Constitution
Assessment: I will assess whether or not students have taken away ideas of how to incorporate
elements of Paines writing into their work by looking over their tickets out the door.
Teacher Notes and Resources:
1. Thomas Paine Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJbGgZowCcA
2. Excerpts from Crisis and Common Sense:
http://www.oberlin.edu/faculty/gkornbl/H397F10/Common%20Sense%20-%20excerpts.htm
http://www.history.org/history/teaching/enewsletter/volume6/images/dec/persuasive_writing
_go.pdfhttp://www.history.org/history/teaching/enewsletter/volume6/images/dec/thomas_pai
ne_info.pdf

Tuesday, September 23, 2014: Day 10 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: The U.S. Constitution and Brainstorming

Content Standards:
10.2.1: Reading for all Purposes: Literary and historical influences determine the meaning of traditional
and contemporary texts:
e. Relate a literary work to primary source documents of its literary period or historical setting.
10.2.2: Reading for all Purposes: The development of new ideas and concepts within informational and
persuasive manuscripts.
f. CCSS:RI.9-10.9: Analyze seminal U.S. documents of historical and literary significance (e.g.
Washingtons Farewell Address, the Gettysburg Address, Roosevelts Four Freedoms speech,
Kings Letter from Birmingham Jail including how they address related themes and concepts.
Goals:
1. Students will be able to read and comprehend The U.S. Constitution.
Materials: Excerpts of the U.S. Constitution, Schoolhouse Rock Video, Comma Usage handouts
Homework Due: Come in having excerpt of the U.S. Constitution
Learning Activities:
1. Just Write: The just write prompt for today is: Which issues received the most attention in the
U.S. Constitution? (10 minutes)
2. Schoolhouse Rock: Students will watch the Schoolhouse Rock video on the creation of the
constitution. Anticipatory set! (5 minutes)
3. Lecture and Discussion: (20 minutes)I will give a brief lecture over the U.S. Constitution,
including its founders, its concerns and how it operated in reaction to the events of the
revolution. This will lead into a discussion in which the following questions are addressed:
a. What still holds up today about the constitution? What seems outdated?
b. Who were the primary stakeholders in writing the document?
c. How do you think different groups would react to the document?
4. Grammar Mini Lesson: Mini Lesson will have students breaking off into pairs to identify the 6
main rules of comma usage by exploring examples of each unnamed rule. (15 minutes)
5. Research Time: Students will be given the remainder of class to research their evidence for the
persuasive essay. (10 minutes)
Homework: Rough Draft of Introduction Due Tomorrow
Teacher Notes and Resources:
1. Schoolhouse Rock: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FzAJyK0ovo8
2. Co-Teaching: The idea of using Schoolhouse Rock in the classroom, as well as a number of the
discussion questions for the day were brainstormed with the help of Kendall Umetsu.
3. Co-Teaching: The idea to teach comma usage by doing a think-pair-share type activity was given
to me by fellow educator, Andrew Walker.

Wednesday, September 24, 2014: Day 11 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: Political Cartoons and Position Statements
Content Standards:
10.2.1: Reading for all Purposes: Literary and historical influences determine the meaning of traditional
and contemporary texts:
a. CCSS:RL.9-10.1: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text
says explicitly as well inferences drawn from the text.
b. CCSS:RL.9-10.4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text,
including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word
choices on meaning and tone.
10.3.2: Writing and Composition: Organizational writing patterns inform or persuade an audience.
a.i. CCSS: W.9-10.2a: Introduce a topic, organize complex ideas, concepts and information to
make important connections and distinctions, including formatting (e.g., headings) graphics
(e.g., figures, tables) and multimedia when aiding comprehension.
Goals:
1. Students will be able to identify elements of persuasive writing in political cartoons.
2. Students will be able to produce a position statement.
Materials: Political cartoon examples
Homework Due: Rough Draft of introduction
Learning Activities:
1. Just Write: For my anticipatory set, I will place the New Years Resolution political cartoon on
the overhead. This is a nonpartisan cartoon that features political parties and politicians making
New Years Resolutions, with a man in a shirt labeled VOTER resolving to Be smarter than to
believe everything politicians say. I will ask students to write down questions they have about
the cartoons subject, message, and images. Students will then pair up with a partner to discuss
(10 minutes)
2. Guided Practice: After students have written down these questions, I will make three columns
on the white board: 1) Cartoons Message, 2) Subject of the Cartoon, 3) Use of images or artistic
techniques. I will have students share their questions and we will organize them under the three
categories. (5 minutes)
3. Class Discussion: After we are finished writing these questions, we will transition into a class
conversation that will hopefully get students to agree, using evidence, on the position of the
cartoon. Once students have reached the understanding of the cartoons message, we will write
a position statement for the cartoon. (5 minutes)
Questioning Strategies: What is the artists bias? How are the democrats and republican
portrayed? Why do you think there is a caricature of Obama but not a republican
candidate? What is the overall message of this cartoon? How do you know?
4. Direct Instruction: As a class, we will discuss the position statements that students have included
in their introductory paragraphs. Together, we will make a list of effective qualities to shoot for
when crafting a position statement and ineffective qualities to avoid. (5 minutes)

5. Group Practice: In pairs and using the strategies learned during the beginning of the lesson,
students will respond to two other political cartoons, creating position statements for each. (10
minutes)
6. Individual Practice: Students will then create a political cartoon for the topic that they are
writing about for their Persuasive Essay assignment. The cartoon should be advocating the same
point that they are seeking to make in their essay. (10 minutes)
7. Group Practice: Students will then trade cartoons with a partner. Using the same strategies that
we have been using for professional political cartoons, students will seek to determine the
meaning of their partners cartoon. Utilizing the position statement handout, student will then
create what they believe to be the position statement of the cartoon. Some students will share.
(10 minutes)
8. Closure: For closure, I will have students take out their rough draft of their introductory
paragraph of their Persuasive Essay. Students will see where their position statement might best
fit into the paragraph. I talk about how the position statement is one of the most important
components of any persuasive essay. I will tell students that they will be expected to include a
clear, concise position statement in their Persuasive Essay. (10 minutes)
Homework: Persuasive Essay Due Monday
Assessment: I will assess for student understanding of position statement by A) Observing the examples
of political cartoons students create for their persuasive essay, as well as the position statements they
attempt to write for their partners. During closure, I will circulate around the room checking whether or
not students need help adding, refining or editing their position statement.
Teacher Notes and Resources:
1. Lesson Adaptation: This lesson was adapted from a lesson plan that I wrote the Coherent
Assignment Sequence project in Teaching Composition.

Thursday, September 25, 2014: Day 12 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: Persuasive Texts in Todays Society
Content Standards:
10.1.2: Oral Expression and Listening: Effectively operating in small and large groups to accomplish a
goal requires active listening.
CCSS:SL.9-10.1: Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (oneon-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9-10 topics and issues,
building on others ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
c. Make decisions about how to establish credibility and enhance appeal to the audience.
10.2.1: Reading for all Purposes: Literary and historical influences determine the meaning of traditional
and contemporary texts:
a. CCSS:RL.9-10.1: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text
says explicitly as well inferences drawn from the text.

b. CCSS:RL.9-10.4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text,
including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word
choices on meaning and tone.
e. Relate a literary work to primary source documents of its literary period or historical setting.
10.2.2: Reading for all Purposes: The development of new ideas and concepts within informational and
persuasive manuscripts.
b. Provide a response to text that expresses an insight (such as an authors perspective or the
nature of conflict) or use text-based information to solve a problem not identified in the text
(for example, use information from a variety of sources to provide a response to text that
expresses an insight).
Goals:
1. Students will be able to identify how elements of persuasive writing are present in todays
society.
2. Students will be able better understand what revision tactics they must apply to their rough
draft by work-shopping a peers persuasive essay.
Materials: Advertisements
Homework Due: Rough Draft
Learning Activities:
1. Just Write: The just write prompt for today is: Where do you see elements of persuasive writing
in your everyday life? (5 minutes)
2. Anticipatory Set: For the anticipatory set, we will screen an axe body spray advertisement and
analyze the elements of persuasive writing that are dominant within the text. (10 minutes)
a. Discussion Questions: Do you want to purchase this product? Why or why not? What
age demographic is it intended for?
3. Creating an Advertisement: Students will get into groups of five, take a promt and create an
impromptu advertisement for the given product. (10 minutes)
4. Performance: Students will have 60 seconds to perform their impromptu advertisements.(5
minutes)
5. Workshop Time: Using the rubric, students will have the remainder of the class period to get
into small groups to workshop each others persuasive essays. (30 minutes)
Homework: Persuasive Essay Due Monday
Assessment: I will give students a formative assessment of their ability to A) Produce an impromptu
commercial in front of the class and B) students oral speaking abilities. Because this is a brief assignment
given at the start of class and finished by the middle, I will not give a grade for this assignment.
However, I intend to use this as a pre-assessment for the upcoming Transcendentalism Unit, in which
the ability to give an effective Oral Presentation will be a much larger focus.
Teacher Notes and Resources:
1. Commercials:
a. Axe Clean Cut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbNMrOA1QVY
b. Other Commercials if students need more examples:

i. Wal Mart Find yourself: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fSWSAWJZtQ

ii. McDonalds He Loves Me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLnFHKppZWk

Monday, September 29, 2014: Day 13 60 Minutes

Lesson Topic: Wrapping up Persuasive Writing and Introducing Transcendentalism
Content Standards:
10.2.1 Reading for all Purposes: Literary and historical influences determine the meaning of traditional
and contemporary texts:
a. CCSS:RL.9-10.1: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text
says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
h. CCSS:RL.9-10.10: By the end of grade 10, read and comprehend literature, including stories,
dramas, and poems, at the high end of the grades 9-10 text complexity band independently and
proficiently.
Goals:
1. Students will reflect upon their writing and work towards self-evaluation
2. Students will be able to define transcendentalism.
Materials: Self-evaluation form, Intro to Transcendentalism video
Homework Due: Final Draft of Persuasive Essay
Learning Activities:
1. Reflection: (20 minutes) Rather than complete a Just Write, today students will fill out a
reflection form in which they complete a self evaluation and reflection for their persuasive
essay. Student responses will be factored into the final grade. The reflection sheet is included on
the weebly, but some sample questions are as follows:

a.
b.
c.
d.

What went well? What do you feel could be improved?

Where did you anticipate reader bias?
Where did your own bias lead you to leave something out of the text?
How well would you be persuaded by this text? Why?

2. Digital Composing: Students will be given time to peruse each others persuasive essays. (20
minutes)
3. Introduction to Transcendentalism: Students will watch a video introducing them to
Transcendentalism. (20 minutes)
4. Ticket Out the Door: For the ticket out the door, students will define transcendentalism, write
down two things they liked about it and two things they didnt like about it, and whether or not
they find it to be relevant to their daily life.
Homework: Nothing

Assessment: Students will be assessed on the persuasive essay using the rubric given to them at the
offset of the assignment. Although this is technically a summative assignment for the unit as a whole,
because re-dos will be offered to students who choose to take advantage of the policy, I like to think of
this as a formative assessment.
Teacher Notes and Resources:
1. Introduction to Transcendentalism Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlRLbqVBT7U
2. Co-Planning: The idea to use reflection in this manner was given to me by fellow educator
Andrew Walker.