Internship 1 Dr.

Stuart Carroll
Unit Assignment
July 31, 2014
Samantha Hardin
Andrew Moulton

Title:
Skills like White Elephants: Content and Context in the Short Story

Overview:
This unit is focused on Ernest Hemingways Hills like White Elephants. As opposed to the
traditional study of a short story, involving the conventions and elements of fiction, this unit will
instead be organized through comprehension and production skills, namely, reading, writing
(creatively and analytically), listening, speaking, and thinking critically. Additionally, we will
have an opening lesson on context and a closing lesson on Information Technology skills as it
relates to the construction of a web-based portfolio, which will serve as the culminating activity.

Prior Knowledge:
We designed this lesson to teach to a class of 15 students. We see these students five days a week
for 60 minute classes. The class is an IB English A standard-level eleventh grade. No distinct or
disabling learning disabilities. Many of the students do not have English as a first language, but
they are high functioning, most having been in an international school environment for many
years. Students have studied short stories prior to this class in ninth and tenth grade, but they
havent used this particular approach. An easy assumption to make might be that the students
remember these skills well enough without a brief review.
Students do have easy and efficient access to the Internet. They are competent and skilled
computer programmers. In fact, we are planning this unit for a school with a 1-1 program.

Essential Questions:
How can a skills-based approach to studying a text deepen ones understanding of a subject area?

How do the themes expressed in Hills like White Elephants relate to content, context, and
subtext?

How can technology be used to enhance the traditional study of short stories?

Preparing and Sustaining the Learning Environment:

The hook:
We will cut out a tiny white paper elephant that we will hang or stick up somewhere in the room
a couple weeks before the Unit. It moves around each day before class. What is it? What does it
mean? Who notices it?

We would love to take them to the Hemmingway bar, but on a practical level we thought that
constructing a Thinglink map of Hemmingways haunts would be a great way to involve students
in getting a feel for Hemmingways life, adventures, and travels. The Thinglink map activity
would be investigated the day prior to the Unit and would include Key Wests home, the bar on
Calle Fabrica on Mallorca, the African Savannah, Cuba, and the setting where our story takes
place: Barcelona.

Content and Lesson Outline

Day one: Context.
The Project: Foreshadowing the culminating activity, we would show a few examples of
web-based portfolios, deconstructing the pages as a group to understand the key components:
image, content, audio, and video.
Collaborative Groups: There will be five groups of three students determined by us as
effective, well-balanced teams. These teams will encourage students to work with people they
have not worked with previously.
The Lesson: Give students access to our predetermined resource library and have them
research the topic of White Elephants. Where does the name come from?
What is a white elephant according to the different definitions you come up with? Collaborate
and prepare as a group to 1. Present the information in a ten-minute presentation on Day two,
and 2. Individually, demonstrate your findings visually, incorporating at least three media into
the final work, considering that this image will most likely be the header picture of your
portfolio.
Homework: Work on presentation and set up portfolio.

Day two: Speaking. Presentations (Working on speaking skills through general presentation)
Each group of three will present their ten-minute presentation. Groups will be required to stay
within the timeframe of ten minutes. Each member should have equal share in speaking in the
presentation.
Homework: Written reflection answering the questions, What did you notice about the
content of the other presentations? What was most interesting?

Day three: Reading. Read Ernest Hemingways short story Hills like White Elephants in their
collaborative groups. Focus on identifying the elements of fiction (setting, character, plot,
conflict, and theme) drawing on prior knowledge of tenth grade literature class. Also, answer the
question, What did you notice, what is going on? As a closing activity, students are assigned
an element of fiction and asked to write their observations on the board.
Before leaving class, each collaborative group member will be assigned one of the following
roles for a literature circle on Day four: Summarizer and Facilitator, Word Wizard (unfamiliar
vocabulary), and Connector (find links between reading and real world).
Homework: Considering your role, come prepared for discussion on Day four.

Day four: Critical Thinking. With a critical eye, re-read Hills like White Elephants in
collaborative groups enacting the roles of Summarizer and Facilitator, Word Wizard, and
Connector. As a whole group, have collaborative groups present findings alongside one

outstanding essential question. Discuss as a whole group. (Pay close attention to drawing
connections to how the themes expressed in Hills like White Elephants relate to content, context,
and subtext.)

Day five: Listening. Listen to a Podcast about Hemingway and take notes. After listening to
the podcast, students will be required to make their own podcasts in groups about one element of
fiction in the short story. Each group will post their podcast on the digital portfolio.
Homework: Work on the podcast and digital portfolio.

Day six: Analytical Writing. Choose one of the discussion questions that emerged from the
critical thinking exercise on day four and write the introduction to an analytical essay answering
that question.
Homework: Students will continue the analytical writing activity and write the outline for
the entire essay. They should have at least 3 body paragraphs.

Day seven: Creative Writing and Information Technology. Students will complete a
creative writing exercise emulating Hemingways style. First, students will choose a topic. Next,
students will plan out their stories. They need to include all the elements of fiction, some element
of subtext, and use the narrative arc to structure their story. (Our rubric corresponds to this
assignment)
Troubleshoot technical issues with portfolio design.
Homework: Finish short story and digital portfolio.

Day eight: Presentations of the digital portfolios. Invite our students families and year two IB
English students to hear the presentations. See Culminating Activities for finer details of day
eight.





















Assessment: The grading rubric will be as follows:

Grading Rubric for Creative Writing Assignment

Criteria 1 2 3 4 5
Elements of
fiction and
Subtext
Missing many
of the
elements of
fiction and no
reference to
subtext.
At least three
elements of
fiction and/or
subtext are
represented.
The five
elements of
fiction are
clearly
represented in
the story.
Subtext is
attempted.
The five
elements of
fiction are
represented in
the story.
Subtext is
present.
The five
elements of
fiction are
effectively
presented in
the story. The
subtext is both
subtle and
powerful.
Organization
and Story
Structure
There is little
focus and
development
and not much
evidence of
story
structure.
There is some
focus and
development.
The writer has
attempted to
include a story
structure.
There is
adequate
focus and
development.
The story has
a clear
beginning,
middle and
ending.
There is good
focus,
structure and
development.
The story
follows the
narrative arc.
There is very
good focus and
development.
The story
effectively
follows the
narrative arc
with transitions
and flow.
Style
(Refers
specifically
to the style of
Ernest
Hemingway)
Little sense of
register and
style.
The register
and style are to
some extent
appropriate to
the task.
Register and
style are
mostly
appropriate to
the task.
Register and
style are
appropriate to
the task.
Register and
style are
effective and
consistently
appropriate to
the task.
Language
Language is
rarely clear
and
appropriate;
there are
many errors
in grammar,
vocabulary
and sentence
construction.
Language is
sometimes
clear and
carefully
chosen;
grammar,
vocabulary and
sentence
construction are
fairly accurate,
although errors
and
inconsistencies
are apparent.
Language is
clear and
carefully
chosen with
an adequate
degree of
accuracy in
grammar,
vocabulary
and sentence
construction
despite some
lapses.
Language is
clear and
carefully
chosen, with a
good degree
of accuracy in
grammar,
Language is
very clear,
effective,
carefully
chosen and
precise, with
a high degree
of accuracy in
grammar,
vocabulary
and sentence
construction.
Language is
very clear,
effective,
carefully
chosen and
precise, with a
high degree of
accuracy in
grammar,
vocabulary and
sentence
construction.

*Much of the language for this rubric has been adapted from the IB Language A assessment criteria. As this lesson is
designed for an IB course, we wanted to keep the assessment criteria relatively consistent with the IB standards. We
have personalized some of the criteria to fit this assignment.


Family and Community Engagement: The classroom can be insular in Secondary
school, we would like to encourage students to branch out into their communities to inform their
research. For example, students could ask their neighbors what they thought of Hemingway as
they, most likely, grew up alongside his popularity (include this as part of their podcast).
We will invite parents and second-year IB students to the final presentations.

Culminating Activity: Presentations in their collaborative groups of their Web-based
portfolios.
Students will be responsible for creating the environment: is there coffee house feel or a library
feel? Is it a celebration, or a CELEBRATION?!! What are the components involved, who can
take care of them? Who will have the overall picture and attend to details? How will the
classroom be set up? How many chairs do we need? Where can we get them? Is there cake,
coffee, music?

Portfolios will be presented as a team, addressing the intention for the overarching feel of the
portfolio. They need to talk about the key components of image, written content, and audio and
the reasons why they settled upon each considering the overall cohesion of the portfolio.

Portfolio Requirements:
Web-page Content:
Writing Content: The three creative short stories emulating Hemingways writing style
(peer edited using the rubric) as well as the analytical essays (peer edited) should be
embedded on the page.
Image: The portfolio should be image heavy, at least three images, one of which should
be a student original rather than a downloaded image. Downloaded images should be
open source.
Audio: the podcast should be embedded on the digital portfolio.