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K–12 teaching and learning · from the UNC School of Education

Varying views of America

http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=194

A lesson plan for grades 9–11 English Language Arts

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Students will study tone and perspective while reading and analyzing Walt Whitman’s “I Hear America Singing,” Langston Hughes’ “I, Too, Sing America,” and Maya Angelou’s “On the Pulse of the Morning”. The teacher begins this lesson with a mini-lesson reviewing the elements of tone and point-of-view. Then after students divide into groups, they read each of the poems, write a brief summary of each poet’s message, and identify the tone and point of view about the subject providing specific text for support. Using a Venn diagram, students indicate the similarities that exist among the poems and synthesize the information by answering questions provided by the teacher. This lesson concludes with a class discussion about the groups’ findings about the poems. In addition to providing a graphic organizer, Venn diagram, and assessment rubrics, Readwritethink suggests several links to the poems being studied.

North Carolina Curriculum Alignment

English Language Arts (2004)

Grade 9

  • Goal 5: The learner will demonstrate understanding of various literary genres, concepts, elements, and terms.
    • Objective 5.01: Read and analyze various literary works by:
      • using effective reading strategies for preparation, engagement, reflection.
      • recognizing and analyzing the characteristics of literary genres, including fiction (e.g., myths, legends, short stories, novels), non-fiction (e.g., essays, biographies, autobiographies, historical documents), poetry (e.g., epics, sonnets, lyric poetry, ballads) and drama (e.g., tragedy, comedy).
      • interpreting literary devices such as allusion, symbolism, figurative language, flashback, dramatic irony, dialogue, diction, and imagery.
      • understanding the importance of tone, mood, diction, and style.
      • explaining and interpreting archetypal characters, themes, settings.
      • explaining how point of view is developed and its effect on literary texts.
      • determining a character's traits from his/her actions, speech, appearance, or what others say about him or her.
      • explaining how the writer creates character, setting, motif, theme, and other elements.
      • making thematic connections among literary texts and media and contemporary issues.
      • understanding the importance of cultural and historical impact on literary texts.
      • producing creative responses that follow the conventions of a specific genre and using appropriate literary devices for that genre.

Grade 10

  • Goal 5: The learner will demonstrate understanding of selected world literature through interpretation and analysis.
    • Objective 5.01: Read and analyze selected works of world literature by:
      • using effective strategies for preparation, engagement, and reflection.
      • building on prior knowledge of the characteristics of literary genres, including fiction, non-fiction, drama, and poetry, and exploring how those characteristics apply to literature of world cultures.
      • analyzing literary devices such as allusion, symbolism, figurative language, flashback, dramatic irony, situational irony, and imagery and explaining their effect on the work of world literature.
      • analyzing the importance of tone and mood.
      • analyzing archetypal characters, themes, and settings in world literature.
      • making comparisons and connections between historical and contemporary issues.
      • understanding the importance of cultural and historical impact on literary texts.

Grade 11

  • Goal 4: The learner will critically analyze text to gain meaning, develop thematic connections, and synthesize ideas.
    • Objective 4.01: Interpret meaning for an audience by:
      - examining the functions and the effects of narrative strategies such as plot, conflict, suspense, point of view, characterization, and dialogue.
      - interpreting the effect of figures of speech (e.g., personification, oxymoron) and the effect of devices of sound (e.g., alliteration, onomatopoeia).
      - analyzing stylistic features such as word choice and links between sense and sound.
      - identifying ambiguity, contradiction, irony, parody, and satire.
      - demonstrating how literary works reflect the culture that shaped them.
    • Objective 4.02: Develop thematic connections among literary works by:
      - connecting themes that occur across genres or works from different time periods.
      - using specific references to validate connections.
      -examining how representative elements such as mood, tone, and style impact the development of a theme.