In this lesson, you will explore how writers address issues of identity and persona across genres. You will read a famous poem “We Wear the Mask,” and consider how it relates to your other readings.In this lesson, students will explore how writers address issues of identity and persona across genres. They will read a famous poem “We Wear the Mask,” and consider how it relates to other readings.

In this lesson, students will read and annotate the short story “A Warrior's Daughter” and consider the female protagonist's roles in her society. They'll also reflect on their own roles and how those roles change.

In this lesson, students will continue to work on their projects in collaborative groups, preparing to present their group's work in the next lesson.

In this lesson, students will reflect on the project presentations, read two more short stories, and complete Dialectical Journal entries for each.

In this lesson, students will present their projects to the class. They will reflect on their own project and those of the other groups in the class.

In this lesson, students will discuss the rest of “The Things They Carried.” They will also complete a Dialectical Journal entry and share it with the class.

The 12th 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 12th 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. Language study is embedded in every 12th grade unit as students use annotation to closely review aspects of each text. Teacher resources provide additional materials to support each unit.

Who decides who among us is civilized? What rules should govern immigration into the United States? Whom should we let in? Keep out? What should we do about political refugees or children without papers? What if they would be a drain on our economy?

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Students read William Shakespeare’s play The Tempest and write a short argument about who in the play is truly civilized.
Students participate in a mock trial in which they argue for or against granting asylum to a teenage refugee, and then they write arguments in favor of granting asylum to one refugee and against granting it to another.
Students read an Independent Reading text and write an informational essay about a global issue and how that relates to their book.

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.

What role do national identity, custom, religion, and other locally held beliefs play in a world increasingly characterized by globalization?
How does Shakespeare’s view of human rights compare with that in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights?
Who is civilized? Who decides what civilization is or how it’s defined?
How do we behave toward and acknowledge those whose culture is different from our own?

In this lesson, you'll use your detailed outline to write an initial draft of your report. You'll share your writing in triads and receive feedback. Your essay may be chosen for Author's Chair. You'll revise the body of your report and consider ways to embed multimedia elements.In this lesson, students will use their detailed outline to write an initial draft of their report. They’ll share their writing in triads and receive feedback. Their essay may be chosen for Author’s Chair. Students will revise the body of their report and consider ways to embed multimedia elements.

Congratulations on all the writing you have completed in this unit! In this lesson, selected students will present their work. After those presentations, you'll submit your report and write a reflection on what it means to be a civilized citizen.Congratulations on all the writing students have completed in this unit! In this lesson, selected students will present their work. After those presentations, they’ll submit their report and write a reflection on what it means to be a civilized citizen.

In this lesson, students will write about and discuss this question: Who is enslaved in The Tempest? They’ll read, annotate, write about, and discuss act 5. Then students will take on the persona of one of the characters and explain their actions.

Which character in The Tempest has been treated most unfairly? In this lesson, students will continue that discussion. Then they’ll share their annotation of the O’Toole essay and write about whether technology can be used to “suppress and subjugate.” Students will also plan for their “Who Is Civilized?” essay.

In this short unit, students will spend three lessons exploring some of Abraham Lincoln's speeches. Students will explore Lincoln's themes and consider how they address the issues of his time, and they'll analyze the literary and rhetorical devices he used to express his ideas.

Over the next two lessons, students will complete the culminating assessment for this unit.In this lesson, students will read text and answer questions that reflect their reading comprehension. Some questions will ask students to select from a group of answers supplied. Other questions will ask students to construct their own answers and write them in the space provided.

This project unit—a multimedia self-portrait published in digital form—is the capstone of your students' high school careers. It is a chance for them to pause and reflect on where they've been, where they're going, and who they are as a person. Students will reflect on what they want others to know about them: what they want their message to be and what types of media they might use to convey that message. Students will have the opportunity to express themselves in many different formats—through writing, of course, but also through other media of their choosing. Students will be able to convey your message through visual art, photography, a graphic novel, audio, poetry, or video—practically any type of media they want!

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Students will complete a multimedia self-portrait, capturing important aspects of the essence of themselves.
Students will contribute one chapter from their multimedia self-portrait to a class anthology.
Students will present one chapter from their multimedia self-portrait to the class.

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 is late adolescence a moment of internal and external change?
What are the most important qualities of your character—past, present, and future?
How can you portray these key aspects of yourself using multimedia?

BENCHMARK ASSESSMENT: Cold Read

During this unit, on a day of your choosing, we recommend you administer a Cold Read to assess students’ reading comprehension. For this assessment, students read a text they have never seen before and then respond to multiple-choice and constructed-response questions. The assessment is not included in this course materials.

Now it’s time for students to start planning their written chapter. They’ll read prior journal entries and written assignments to help them decide what they want to write about. As they start planning, they’ll consider what anecdotes and memorable characters to include and create a timeline of events.

The purpose of this third informational Benchmark Assessment (Cold Write) is to determine what students know about informational writing. Students respond to a writing prompt, and you will score results as a measure of progress in subsequent assessments. Then students will brainstorm what they want to communicate in their self-portrait and begin to outline their self-portrait.

What do students need to accomplish to complete this project? What part of their work will take the most time? They’ll start to create a planning calendar to establish the steps of their work plan. They’ll schedule due dates for themselves and get feedback on their outline and calendar.

Students will spend time finishing the revision of their written chapter and reviewing possible extensions to include in their work—such as creating an image or writing a poem. They’ll share the ways in which their project work has gone well and any concerns they still have.

Time to write! Students will get started on the first draft of the written chapter of their self-portrait. They’ll spend time focusing on ways to create a strong and memorable opening to draw their readers in.