Literature-based newspaper: Their Eyes were Watching God

Students will create an Eatonville newspaper depicting the characters and events in Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes were Watching God.

A lesson plan for grade 11 English Language Arts

By Jennifer Swartz

Photo courtesy of The John and Ruby Lomax 1939 Southern States Recording Trip collection at the Library of Congress.

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Learning outcomes

The students will construct a newspaper from Janie Starks’ Eatonville. In doing so, they will show their understanding of audience, newspaper format, sensory details, and sufficient literary support from the text.

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

2 weeks

Materials/resources

• Posterboard
• Assortment of magazines and newspapers available for destruction
• Markers and colored pencils
• Construction paper
• Scissors
• Gluesticks

Technology resources

Computer for typing articles…for neatness.

Pre-activities

Students will read chapters 1–12 of Their Eyes were Watching God. The dialect Hurston uses in the novel can be difficult for some students, so I review using study questions with the entire class.

Review the difference between the subjective point of view used to narrate the novel and the objective viewpoint used in a newspaper.

Activities

I allow students four class periods to work on their newspapers in groups in the classroom. Many students use time outside of class to construct their papers.

1. Determine the size of your newspaper groups. I like to have about five or six students per newspaper team.
2. Review with students the components of an ordinary newspaper:
   • masthead
   • editorials
   • layout
   • weather
   • lead story
   • sports
   • by-line
   • classifieds
   • photography
   • article content: who, what, where, when, how, and why
3. Students may write the articles as objective outsiders, or they may use the townspeople of Eatonville as reporters.
4. In each group, one person must agree to work as the editor for the paper team. This person still contributes to the project, but will help to motivate the group and keep members on task.
5. Any level of student enjoys a head start, so I write story ideas on the board as students share them aloud in class. After that, they’re on their own.
6. Monitor student progress.
7. My students really use four class periods to work on their newspapers (initially). They use their own time to get their articles typed. On day four, students are able to bring all their materials together and permanently arrange them on the posterboard. Project due date is usually one week from assignment date.
8. Students present their newspapers in groups at the front of the classroom while I grade the newspapers according to the rubric. At this time, students are able to discuss their thoughts about the assignment and if they really have a greater understanding of the novel after a closer reading of its first half.
9. Finally, we hang the newspapers on the walls of my classroom or in the school library…they could inspire a new reader of Hurston’s work.

Assessment

Rubric can be downloaded in Word or RTF format.

Supplemental information

Biographical information is available in Word or RTF format.

Comments

I am always searching for alternative methods to resource and teacher-designed tests. This activity is extremely adaptable to other novels and can be used in many different grade levels.