Professor Kathryn Sutherland considers Jane Austen's portrayal of female characters and her harshly moralistic outlook. [2:26]

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.

This unit uses William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing as a vehicle to help students consider how a person is powerless in the face of rumor and how reputations can alter lives, both for good and for ill. They will consider comedy and what makes us laugh. They will see how the standards of beauty and societal views toward women have changed since the Elizabethan Age and reflect on reasons for those changes. As students consider the play, they will write on the passages that inspire and plague them and on topics relating to one of the themes in the play. Finally, they will bring Shakespeare’s words to life in individual performances and in group scene presentations.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Students read Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing .
Students read two Shakespearean sonnets and excerpts from an Elizabethan morality handbook dealing with types of women, and they respond to them from several different perspectives.
For each work of literature, students do some writing. They learn to write a sonnet; create a Prompt Book; complete a Dialectical Journal; and write an analytical essay about a topic relating to a theme in the play.
Students see Shakespeare’s play as it was intended to be seen: in a performance. They memorize 15 or more lines from the play and perform them for the class. Students take part in a short scene as either a director or an actor.

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 are society’s expectations with regard to gender roles?
Does humor transcend time? Do we share the same sense of humor as our ancestors?
How do we judge people?
How important is reputation?

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.

CLASSROOM FILMS

The Branagh version of Much Ado About Nothing is available on DVD through Netflix and for streaming through Amazon. Other versions are also available on both sites.

In this lesson, students will see if humor can transcend time and if their general rules for comedy can still apply to Shakespeare. They will also become familiar with some of Shakespeare’s insults and compliments and investigate the humor in them. Finally, they will study iambic pentameter and read a Shakespearean sonnet.

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 think about the way the politics of France have taken a turn toward Revolution, and you will reflect on the ways that private individuals confront public politics.In this lesson, students will think about the way the politics of France have taken a turn toward Revolution, and will reflect on the ways that private individuals confront public politics.

This site provides a detailed overview of "Everyman," and includes the full text of the work, related essays and articles, and additional resources.

Analyze the morality and motivation of the novel's famous main character, Jean Valjean, in this video excerpt from Les Miserables, Masterpiece. Based on the classic novel by Victor Hugo, the scene between Jean Valjean and Marius Pontmercy reveals both Valjean's journey from peasant to thief to prosperous citizen, as well as his underlying struggle to feel worthy of his place in the "family of men." [2:08] Teaching materials are included.

Children look to their families with love and trust to guide their understanding about their place in this great big world. Here are some easy-to-use resources to help guide conversations with your child about racism and coming together through one small word-we-in support of racial justice for all.

Behavioral economist Dan Ariely studies the bugs in our moral code: the hidden reasons some think it's OK to cheat or steal. Clever studies help make his point that we're predictably irrational- and can be influenced in ways we can't grasp. [16:52]

A collection of primary sources supporting and disputing the efficacy of Prohibition and the enforcement of the Volstead Act.

Students examine the important theme of morality as they grapple with the contradictions inherent in the characters of Tess and Alec in this excerpt from Masterpiece's 2008 version of Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbervilles. As the scene illustrates, Tess may be seen by others a "fallen woman," but she retains her sense of right and wrong. On the other hand, Alec uses his position in society and wealth to brutalize and manipulate Tess, proving his own lack of morality. See Teaching Tips for how to use the video in the classroom. This resource is part of the Masterpiece Collection. [2:18]