War Is...
Upon consideration of the perspectives on war from their classmates, the poet Stephen Crane in "War is Kind," and various characters from All Quiet on the Western Front, students will write an editorial for the school newspaper in which they share opinions about war.
A lesson plan for grade 10 English Language Arts
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Learning outcomes
Students will:
- analyze the idea of war from the perspectives of classmates, the poet Stephen Crane, and various literary characters from All Quiet on the Western Front.
- write an editorial for the school newspaper in which they share opinions on war.
Teacher planning
Time required for lesson
2 days
Materials/resources
- class set of All Quiet on the Western Front
- copy of Stephen Crane’s “War Is Kind”
- teacher-selected copies of editorials with opposing views on the topic of war to use for examples
click on the following link for information about writing editorials: How to Write an Editorial.
Technology resources
None
Pre-activities
In writing, students should complete the following statement:
“War is_________.” Then, students should write a paragraph explaining their response.
Activities
- Students will respond in written form to the statement: “War is___.”
- Students will explain their responses in paragraph form.
- In a class discussion, the teacher will survey the students for their responses and will display them in a bubble map on the overhead.
- After class discussion the teacher will share the poem “War Is Kind,” leading the class in understanding the poet’s attitude is sarcastic. (It is suggested that the teacher show only the title before revealing the entire poem in order to engage the students’interest).
- The teacher will also share various quotations from the novel which reveal characters’ differing attitudes toward war. (attached)
- Students are divided into small groups. Each group is given one quotation and asked to determine the character’s attitude toward war. Groups will choose one group member and that member will share with the class as a whole.
- The teacher will then share various appropriate editorials of opposing opinions with the class. Not only will the teacher point out the differing perspectives on the topic, but she will also discuss the requirements of an editorial by sharing the article “How to Write an Editorial.”
- Students will be given the following homework assignment: Editorial about War (attached).
- The next day students will pair up and evaluate each other’s editorials using the Peer Edit: Editorials Rubric (attached). Students will then revise and write a final draft.
Assessment
Teacher should read the students’ “War Is…” journals, writing comments and/or questions meant to prod students in extending their ideas.
Teacher grades students’ editorials using the Peer Edit: Editorials Rubric.
Supplemental information
Attaachments:
Related websites
N/A
Comments
Because of Operation Iraqi Freedom, students have been eager to discuss the topic of war, making the teaching of All Quiet on the Western Front relevant and timely. In fact, teachers are encouraged to point out that Crane’s sarcasm in “War Is Kind” can be turned around when students consider the perspective of the Iraqi people. Also, this assignment can be extended to create a “War Is…” bulletin board of wartime images. Finally, the length of the editorial may be altered to suit the needs of the students.
This lesson was created as part of the NCDPI Writing Lessons for Writing Features Workshop (feature: focus).
North Carolina Curriculum Alignment
English Language Arts (2004)
Grade 10 — English II
- Goal 1: The learner will react to and reflect upon print and non-print text and personal experiences by examining situations from both subjective and objective perspectives.
- Objective 1.02: Respond reflectively (through small group discussion, class discussion, journal entry, essay, letter, dialogue) to written and visual texts by:
- relating personal knowledge to textual information or class discussion.
- showing an awareness of one's own culture as well as the cultures of others.
- exhibiting an awareness of culture in which text is set or in which text was written.
- explaining how culture affects personal responses.
- demonstrating an understanding of media's impact on personal responses and cultural analyses.
- Objective 1.02: Respond reflectively (through small group discussion, class discussion, journal entry, essay, letter, dialogue) to written and visual texts by:
- Goal 3: The learner will defend argumentative positions on literary or nonliterary issues.
- Objective 3.02: Produce editorials or responses to editorials for a neutral audience by providing:
- a clearly stated position or proposed solution.
- relevant, reliable support.
- Objective 3.03: Respond to issues in literature in such a way that:
- requires gathering of information to prove a particular point.
- effectively uses reason and evidence to prove a given point.
- emphasizes culturally significant events.
- Objective 3.02: Produce editorials or responses to editorials for a neutral audience by providing:
- Goal 4: The learner will critically interpret and evaluate experiences, literature, language, and ideas.
- Objective 4.01: Interpret a real-world event in a way that:
- makes generalizations about the event supported by specific references.
- reflects on observation and shows how the event affected the current viewpoint.
- distinguishes fact from fiction and recognizes personal bias.
- Objective 4.01: Interpret a real-world event in a way that:
- Goal 6: The learner will apply conventions of grammar and language usage.
- Objective 6.01: Demonstrate an understanding of conventional written and spoken expression by:
- employing varying sentence structures (e.g., inversion, introductory phrases) and sentence types (e.g., simple, compound, complex, compound-complex).
- analyzing authors' choice of words, sentence structure, and use of language.
- using word recognition strategies to understand vocabulary and exact word choice (Greek, Latin roots and affixes, analogies, idioms, denotation, connotation).
- examining textual and classroom language for elements such as idioms, denotation, and connotation to apply effectively in own writing/speaking.
- using correct form/format for essays, business letters, research papers, bibliographies.
- using language effectively to create mood and tone.
- Objective 6.02: Edit for:
- subject-verb agreement, tense choice, pronoun usage, clear antecedents, correct case, and complete sentences.
- appropriate and correct mechanics (commas, italics, underlining, semicolon, colon, apostrophe, quotation marks).
- parallel structure.
- clichés, trite expressions.
- spelling.
- Objective 6.01: Demonstrate an understanding of conventional written and spoken expression by:
