Seventh Grade - ELA
1: Semester 1
Unit 1: The Pearl
Lesson 1
Steinbeck
Students are asked to research John Steinbeck and answer question 4: "How do some of the themes in his literature reflect his own life experiences?" which requires linking an individual's experiences to ideas in texts. The unit prompt "Ideas to Think About — How do people's experiences shape and change their perspectives?" directs students to consider how experience influences viewpoint. The Wrapping Up section states that Steinbeck's farm work influenced his writings, reinforcing the connection between an individual's experiences and the ideas/themes expressed in his work.
Lesson 2
The Scorpion
Students are asked to describe how Kino's life changes from the beginning to the end of Chapter 1 (Question #4), which asks them to connect the scorpion event to Kino's fear and anger. The lesson includes an 'Ideas to Think About' prompt about how control of one's environment affects success/happiness and discussion questions that ask students to explain how feeling out of control affects Kino's perspective and to compare social classes in the story. The wrapping up section explicitly asks students to observe the family's sudden change and the social/economic divides between village natives and townspeople.
Lesson 3
The Pearl
Students are asked to explain Kino's poverty and the value of his canoe (Questions 1 and 2), which connects an individual's circumstances to economic events. Discussion prompts ask students to consider how poverty or wealth can change a person's life and to predict how Kino's life will change after finding the pearl, prompting consideration of how an event (finding the pearl) will influence an individual. Parent-plan discussion questions ask students to interpret Juana's prayer and the quotation about pearls raising the King of Spain, which invites analysis of how ideas about wealth and power influence people and social outcomes.
Lesson 4
Related Research
Students choose to research either La Paz or the history of pearl diving, gathering facts about setting, culture, and the pearl industry. The text includes a prompt asking students to consider "How do people's ability to control their environment affect their success/happiness in life?" and a paragraph explaining Kino's limited resources and how the discovery of the pearl changes his expectations. The wrap-up asks students to think about how their research will help them "better understand the novel and the characters' choices and circumstances."
Lesson 5
Songs
Students are asked directly why Kino became "every man's enemy" and why people suddenly become interested in him, prompting analysis of how the event of finding the pearl affects others' behavior. In Activity 2, students write songs that reflect how cultural ideas (songs) relate to Kino and his people, and they are asked to compare the "Song of Evil" to the "Song of the Family," which links ideas to individual reactions. The Parent Plan discussion questions ask students to explain why the priest and the doctor come and why education affects power, requiring students to analyze motivations and social interactions triggered by Kino's discovery. The Stylistic Devices Log directs students to identify symbolism (the pearl as dreams and wishes) and irony showing how the pearl changes Kino's relationships, tying ideas and events to individual outcomes.
Lesson 6
For Sale
Students read Chapter 4 and answer questions that require identifying how the pearl buyers' collusion affects the pearl divers (Q1, Q2) and how the pearl changes Kino and Juana differently (Q5). Students create a symbolism web for the pearl and are prompted to explain how the pearl's meaning shifts as characters change. Discussion prompts ask students to explain how money and education affect power and why villagers fear wealth will change people, requiring analysis of how ideas (wealth) influence individual behavior and events.
Lesson 7
The Attack
Students complete the Wants activity by recording what each character wants (The Doctor, Juana, Kino, The Priest) and draw symbols that reflect whether those wants are good, evil, valiant, self-centered, or thoughtful. Students answer and discuss questions that ask how the pearl has changed Kino and Juana's relationship and consider the consequence that Kino's killing an attacker and village oppression force the couple to flee. Students generate four discussion questions (Right There, Think and Search, Author and You, On My Own) and provide possible answers, including an Author and You example linking villagers' oppression to other historical examples.
Lesson 8
Escape
Several comprehension questions require students to explain how Kino's desire for the pearl (an idea) leads to tangible losses in his life and family (events and individual consequences) as in QUESTION #1 and the Wrapping Up section. QUESTION #2 asks students to analyze how the physical setting (rocks, paths, caves) affects Kino and Juana's escape, linking environment-driven events to characters' actions. The Ideas to Think About prompts and discussion questions (role of power and wealth; symbolism of the pearl; moral of the parable) explicitly ask students to consider how ideas (wealth, power, greed) influence individuals and events.
Lesson 9
Parables
Students are asked to explain the moral or lesson of each parable to a parent and to describe the lesson of specific parables (The Pearl, The Good Samaritan, Wo and Jah, and What About the Bike?). The parent prompts ask students to compare the Parable of the Pearl to Steinbeck's The Pearl and to note irony and consequences (for example, that Kino "pays" for the pearl with his happiness and family's future). The oral retelling activity requires students to tell a parable and then ask an audience to explain the lesson, prompting discussion of characters' actions and their moral effects.
Lesson 10
Writing a Parable
Students are asked to make a list of the moral lessons taught in The Pearl (Activity 1) and to decide on a lesson to base their parable on, which requires identifying central ideas. The lesson's "Things to Know" and skills sections tell students that characters are developed through actions, thoughts, and dialogue and that setting can influence theme; Activity 3 explicitly asks students to "consider how the place and time of your parable will influence the theme or message." The Parent Plan asks students to support their chosen lesson with evidence from the text.
Final Project
Think-Tac-Toe
Students answer Part D question 1 asking how Kino is changed by the pearl, which requires analyzing how an event/thing (the pearl) affects an individual. Students answer Part D question 2 about what the pearl symbolizes and Part D question 3 about Steinbeck's stylistic devices, which prompt linking ideas (symbols, themes, stylistic choices) to characters and events. Students prepare a mock trial of Kino and write speeches defending or prosecuting him using evidence from the book, and they discuss how the poem "Money" relates to the novel—activities that require explaining how ideas and events influence characters and outcomes.
Unit 2: A Girl Named Disaster
Lesson 1
Nhamo
Students are assigned the role of Cultural Commentator and instructed to record what they learn about culture and characters, describing customs, homes, clothing, beliefs, food, or other cultural elements from the first four chapters. Discussion questions ask students to describe Nhamo's relationship with her family and to explain what she is worried about given the cultural practice that children belong to the father's family. A prompt asks students to explain how the villagers depend on the natural environment for survival and Special Notes prompt students to compare traditional spiritual beliefs with introduced Christianity.
Lesson 2
Sickness
Students read Chapters 5–7 and answer explicit questions that link ideas to actions, for example explaining that villagers believed a witch brought cholera and therefore would try to find that person. Students explain why the family traveled to the trading post to see the nganga to identify the supposed witch, connecting beliefs to individual and group behavior. Students are asked to "consider why survival rates would be lower" in the village, which prompts thinking about how conditions and events influence outcomes.
Lesson 3
A Visit with the Muvuki
Students are asked to read Chapters 8–10 and to create four discussion questions that target the big ideas in the text, including at least one open-ended and one inference question, which requires analysis of relationships in the chapters. The lesson's "Ideas to Think About" prompts students to consider how Western influence affects the community and how traditional cultural beliefs can prevent progress, directing attention to how ideas influence individuals and events. The Wrap-up and Parent Plan questions ask students to consider why Nhamo has no options and how the muvuki tricks and controls people, prompting analysis of how an individual's ideas and actions affect other characters and events.
Lesson 4
Escape
Students are asked to read Chapters 11–14 and as Literary Luminaries choose passages and explain their reasons for selecting them aloud, which prompts them to articulate relationships and significance within the text. Discussion questions ask students to explain why Ambuya told Nhamo to run away and why the muvuki and Aunt Chipo lied, prompting students to consider characters' motives and how beliefs and actions affect events. The Wrapping Up notes that Catholicism was brought by Europeans and influenced schooling and decisions in the story, connecting ideas (religion) to characters' choices.
Lesson 5
Lake Cabora Bassa
Students are asked to act as a Travel Tracer to describe where characters move to and from and to explain what role the setting plays in the conflict, which asks them to analyze how environment (an event/setting) interacts with the character's situation. The parent-plan discussion questions ask students to explain why Nhamo holds pretend tea parties, tells stories, and makes up songs, prompting students to analyze how ideas or behaviors influence Nhamo's emotional state and actions. The "Ideas to Think About" prompts ask students to consider how humans depend on the natural world and how the struggle to survive can change a person's outlook, encouraging students to connect ideas/events with individual responses.
Lesson 6
Abandoned Farm
Students are prompted to answer discussion questions such as "How has Nhamo's outlook or perspective on life changed now that she is fighting for survival?" and to evaluate Nhamo's choice to enter the abandoned house and what she discovers, which directs students to connect events to a character's thinking and actions. The "Ideas to Think About" prompts ask students to consider how survival, geography, and dependence on the natural world affect people, guiding analysis of how events and environment influence an individual. The Line Locator activity requires students to select key passages and explain why they are important, and to write a thinking question that asks readers to go beyond facts, encouraging analysis of cause/effect and significance in the text.
Lesson 7
Baboons
Students read chapters 21–23 and are asked guiding questions such as "How do humans depend on the natural world for survival?," "How can the struggle to survive change a person's outlook and priorities?," and "How does the geography of the land affect a person's survival?," which prompt consideration of interactions between a character and her environment. The Skills section asks students to "synthesize and make logical connections between ideas within a text" and to "support those findings with textual evidence," and Option 1 explicitly asks students to research baboon social dynamics and write 8–10 sentences explaining how baboons live and interact. The Parent Plan and Wrap-Up discussion questions also ask students to describe the baboon Nhamo found and to consider symbolic ideas (Nhamo's totem and what lions represent).
Lesson 8
Survival
The lesson prompts students to consider interactions with the prompt "How can the struggle to survive change a person's outlook and priorities?" (Ideas to Think About). Activity 1 asks students to "consider the different ways Nhamo is able to use materials available to her in the natural environment," linking Nhamo's actions to environmental events. Parent discussion questions ask students to identify what Nhamo did to physically and emotionally survive, describe the social interaction of the baboons, and explain what Nhamo's stories teach about her culture, which touches on relationships among individuals, events, and ideas.
Lesson 9
The Leopard
The lesson asks students to explain how Nhamo has changed from Chapter 1 to the present, prompting comparison of the character before and after events. The "Ideas to Think About" and wrapping-up notes ask how the struggle to survive and the geography/natural environment affect a person's outlook and survival decisions. The discussion question about why Rumpy decided Nhamo was a member of the troop asks students to analyze how one individual's actions and motivations influence another character's behavior and status.
Lesson 10
A Rude Awakening
Students are asked to serve as a Dialogue Designer and create an imagined conversation that "must center around one or more events" from Chapters 31–34, requiring them to recreate interactions between characters. The postcard task requires students to write 4–6 sentences explaining what Nhamo has endured, how she survived, and how she has changed, linking events to character response. The storyboard task asks students to choose six important scenes that reveal both the action of the story and Nhamo's character development and to ensure scenes reflect the culture and geography of her village. The discussion prompts ask students why Nhamo felt afraid when approaching the women and what she learned about Zimbabwe, prompting explanation of events' effects on her.
Lesson 11
Out with the Old
Students are assigned to read Chapters 34–38 and take on the role of Real-life Connector, recording connections between the book, their life, and the world. The Questions to Discuss prompt students to explain character motivations and consequences (e.g., why Dr. Masuku hurt Nhamo's feelings; why Baba Joseph refused medicine because of his religion; what caused Nhamo's reaction to the dog). The "Things to Think About" section asks how lives are shaped by experiences, inviting analysis of how events influence individuals.
Lesson 12
A New Beginning
Students answer specific 'why' and cause-and-effect questions on the Student Activity Page (e.g., "Why did Nhamo have to leave her family?", "Why did Nhamo have to stay on her island so long?", "Why was Nhamo able to leave the island?"). Students are asked to characterize Nhamo using text evidence and to describe her biggest problem and how it was solved (Part IV). Discussion prompts and parent-plan questions ask students to explain where Nhamo feels most at home and why and to consider advice given by Dr. van Heerden and Dr. Masuku, which requires linking people, events, and ideas.
Unit 3: The Hobbit
Lesson 1
Bilbo Baggins
Students are asked to describe how Tolkien characterizes Bilbo at the beginning of the chapter (Question #1) and to interpret Gandalf's line about Bilbo having more in him than he knows (Question #3), which asks students to explain a character's traits and potential. Parent discussion prompts ask students to explain why Gandalf may have chosen Bilbo and how Bilbo changes from the beginning to the end of the chapter, requiring students to connect character decisions and development to events. The setting-map activity has students trace the dwarves' journey and record important events and the chapters where they occur, linking events to places in the text.
Lesson 2
Trolls
Students are asked to reflect on how their opinions of Bilbo change after reading (parent prompt: "Ask your child what her feelings are about Bilbo… After she reads Chapter 2, ask her if her opinions have changed and why or why not"), which asks them to explain how events influenced their ideas. A comprehension question identifies Gandalf as the agent who saves Bilbo and the dwarves, prompting recognition of an individual causing an event. The wrap-up and the Tolkien activities ask students to consider how Tolkien's life and experiences influenced his writing and to explain reasons for their interview questions or collage image choices, connecting experiences/ideas to creative work.
Lesson 3
The Elves
Students chart events from Chapters 3 and 4 on a Setting Map and record descriptions on an "Events of the Journey" page, connecting locations with what happens there. Activity 2 asks students to find and record examples of foreshadowing and flashbacks on a three-column chart, and the flashback prompt explicitly links past events to character motivations. The Parent Plan skills state students should "identify events that advance the plot and determine how each event explains past or present actions or foreshadows future action." Discussion prompts ask students to compare elves and dwarves and to connect themes, characters, and situations to their own lives.
Lesson 4
Gollum
Students are asked to consider guiding questions such as "How can power change a person?" and "What happens when power is given or taken away?", prompting analysis of ideas (power) and individuals. Question #3 asks students to explain how Gollum feels about the ring and Question #4 asks what makes it a ring of power, linking the object/idea to character behavior and events. Discussion prompts ask students to explain how the ring gives Gollum power, predict how Gollum's and Bilbo's lives will change, and to record events and examples of foreshadowing from the chapter, which requires students to connect events, individuals, and ideas.
Lesson 5
Wolves, Goblins, and Eagles
Students answer questions asking how the wolves and goblins work together to trap the dwarves, requiring them to explain interactions between individuals and events. Students describe Gandalf's and the eagles' actions and how those actions change the outcome, linking individual actions to events. Students are prompted to record examples of foreshadowing and to write a brief description of chapter events, which asks them to note how earlier ideas or events anticipate later outcomes. Students respond to discussion prompts about how Bilbo's experiences change others' views and whether Gandalf knows about the ring, prompting consideration of how ideas and perceptions influence characters.
Lesson 6
Skin-Changer
Students are asked to explain why Gandalf introduces the dwarves two at a time and at intervals to Beorn (Question #2), prompting analysis of how Gandalf's actions respond to Beorn's temperament. Students map the journey and "briefly describe what happened in this chapter," and are asked to record examples of foreshadowing or flashback, which requires relating events to one another. Parent-plan discussion questions ask students to explain why Gandalf did not plan to finish the adventure and whether Beorn will be a good friend, prompting students to connect individual traits and relationships to events and outcomes.
Lesson 7
Spiders
Students are asked direct questions about character change and consequences, for example Question #3 asks how Bilbo feels after he rescues the dwarves and the Wrapping Up discussion asks "Do you think Bilbo has changed at all from the meeting in his home?" Students are prompted to explain how the dwarves' opinion of Bilbo has changed and to identify situations that support the theme that size and strength are not always the most valuable assets. Students also record chapter events and an example of foreshadowing when they draw the path from the Forest Gate to the spiderwebs and write a short sentence about the chapter's events.
Lesson 8
Elvenking
Students are asked to explain how Bilbo has changed from the beginning of the story up to Chapter 9 and to consider how power and experiences mold people (Getting Started and Introducing the Lesson). The Skills section directs students to identify events that advance the plot and determine how each event explains past or present actions or foreshadows future action. Question #1 asks students to analyze Thorin's motive for not telling the Elvenking (linking an individual's idea to expected events), and the Problems & Solutions activity and answer key require students to identify who solved problems and how those actions produced outcomes (e.g., Bilbo freeing the dwarves).
Lesson 9
Men of the Lake
The lesson prompts students to explain Bilbo's plan and to discuss how the ring of invisibility helped Bilbo, asking them to connect an idea/object to a character's actions. Reading questions ask students to describe how the Master and the Men of the Lake feel when the dwarves arrive and why Bilbo has more spirit than the others, which requires interpreting characters' reactions and motivations. The mapping and "Events of the Journey" activity asks students to trace events, record chapter numbers, and note examples of flashback or foreshadowing, prompting students to relate events and narrative devices to character experience.
Lesson 10
The Dragon
Students answer text-based questions that require explaining cause and effect (e.g., why the dragon wakes when Bilbo steals a cup and how Bilbo becomes the group's leader). Students analyze the idea of greed and power as motivators by identifying how Smaug's hoarding changes the economy and how control of wealth affects events and people. In Activity 2 students collect and evaluate contemporary and historical examples of greed and power, classifying and ranking events by impact, which connects ideas (greed/power) to real individuals and events.
Lesson 11
Bard
Students are prompted by the "Ideas to Think About" section to consider how power and greed motivate people and lead to disastrous outcomes and how power or wealth can change a person. The reading questions and plot summary require students to identify events (Smaug's attack, townspeople blaming the dwarves, Bard killing Smaug) and the townspeople's planned response, linking individual actions to events. The "Wrapping Up" and "Questions to Discuss" explicitly direct students to explain why Thorin refuses a council and to evaluate whether townspeople should be upset, which asks students to connect Thorin's greed (an idea) to his decisions (individual actions) and resulting events.
Lesson 12
The Arkenstone
Students are asked to explain why Bilbo sneaked out and gave the Arkenstone to Bard and the Elvenking, requiring analysis of Bilbo's actions and their effects on other characters. Discussion prompts ask students to describe how power and wealth change characters (e.g., Thorin and Smaug) and how Bilbo's possession of the ring influences him, linking ideas to individual behavior. Questions and the Quest Cube activity ask students to explain how events (the approaching goblins and Wargs) force alliances and how quest elements contribute to central themes and the mood, connecting individuals, events, and ideas.
Lesson 13
The Battle
The "Ideas to Think About" section asks students to consider how power or wealth can change a person and how power and greed can motivate people and lead to disastrous outcomes. The "Questions to Discuss" include applying Thorin's deathbed quote to real-world examples and asking why Bilbo cares more about peace than treasure, prompting students to connect ideas and character motivations. The Wrapping Up paragraph summarizes Thorin's change of heart and notes how characters' perceptions and events (the battle, apologies, and restored peace) result from those motivations, providing material for discussing interactions among ideas, individuals, and events.
Final Project
Responding to Literature
Students are asked to write body paragraphs that address "How did the characters change?" and "What important timeless lesson was taught in the novel," and the prewriting web explicitly labels sections for "How the characters changed" and "An important lesson learned." The rubric emphasizes use of textual evidence and interpretation, requiring students to support opinions with direct quotes, events, or figurative language. The unit test and activities also ask students to describe what Bilbo did in specific situations and to identify literary devices (foreshadowing/flashback), which require connecting events to character actions.
Unit 4: A Single Shard
Lesson 1
Korea
Students are instructed to "consider the unique relationships that exist among the characters and how they develop as the story progresses," which directs attention to interactions between individuals over time. Students complete an "Elements of Korean Culture" chart comparing "Today" and "Centuries Past," recording how events and ideas influenced cultural elements. Discussion prompts ask students to explain how Korean culture changed and identify causes (leaders, wars, technological advances, foreign influence), which asks them to link events and ideas to cultural outcomes.
Lesson 2
Tree-Ear
Students are asked to read the first two chapters while considering the unique relationships the main character has and how these people influence him. Guided questions ask students to evaluate Tree-ear's decision about the lost rice and to explain why Tree-ear watches Min, requiring students to analyze character interactions and motives. Discussion prompts ask students to describe the relationship between Tree-ear and Crane-man and to judge whether working for Min is a good opportunity, prompting consideration of how individuals affect one another and how social roles influence choices.
Lesson 3
Hard Work
Students are prompted to consider interactions by the "Ideas to Think About" questions (e.g., "How do the events in a person's life shape his or her relationships?" and "How do the jobs in a culture reflect the values and structure of the culture?"). The comprehension questions ask students to explain motives and causes (e.g., "Why doesn't Tree-ear want Crane-man to help him chop the wood?" and "Why is Tree-ear willing to keep working for Min...") which requires reasoning about how characters' ideas and circumstances influence actions. The parent/discussion prompts ask students to explain Min's impatience and why earning a meal matters to Tree-ear, asking for interpretation of how events and values shape behavior.
Lesson 4
Food and Pottery
Students are prompted to explain what happened in yesterday's reading and to discuss similarities and differences between 12th-century Korean culture and their own, which engages them with events and cultural ideas in the text. Students are asked to consider questions such as "How does the natural environment help shape a culture?" and "What can the food of a people tell us about their culture?", prompting analysis of how environmental ideas influenced cultural practices. Students are also asked to think about how art and food reflected natural resources and what future people could learn about culture from those artifacts, connecting ideas to cultural actions.
Lesson 5
The Royal Emissary
Students are prompted to explain how the natural environment shapes culture and to add details to "Elements of Korean Culture," which asks them to connect environmental resources to cultural practices. Students are asked to consider how each step of the pottery-making process is dependent on resources from the environment and to explain that dependency. Discussion prompts ask students to interpret Tree-ear's thought about "The work of a human, the work of nature" and to describe Tree-ear's ethical struggle over telling Min about Kang, which requires thinking about how individuals' ideas and actions interact.
Lesson 6
Village Life
Students are asked to research Linda Sue Park and "consider how the events of her life and her relationships influenced her writing," take notes from interviews/bios, and write a short paragraph explaining how the author's experiences influenced her work. The "Linda Sue Park" question set asks students why the author chose to write fiction about Korean culture and what they think the author is trying to teach readers in A Single Shard. The wrapping up directs students to "think about how her perspective, experiences, and background influence the story."
Lesson 7
Opportunity
The Parent Plan lists skills to "analyze the connections of relationships between and among characters" and to "analyze the development of the plot through the internal and external responses of the characters, including their motivations." Discussion questions ask students to explain why Min will never teach Tree-ear (connecting the idea of potter tradition to Min's behavior) and why Tree-ear is anxious to please Min (linking motivations to actions). The Tree-ear mini-book activity directs students to identify specific opportunities (events), record how each benefited Tree-ear, and explain how he used those opportunities to help himself or others, requiring students to connect events, individuals, and ideas with textual evidence.
Lesson 8
Korean Pottery
Students are directed to visit Metropolitan Museum and other museum pages and are asked to "consider how the artwork reflects the Korean culture and geography," which prompts analysis of how cultural ideas influence pottery design. The "Questions to Discuss" explicitly asks students to explain how Korean pottery reflected the environment and culture and gives examples (animals, plants, advanced artistic skill), so students must link ideas about nature and culture to the artifacts. The Kimchi Pot activity asks students to use motifs and symbols they observed to decorate their own pot, requiring students to apply cultural ideas to a creative product.
Lesson 9
Words of Wisdom
Students answer targeted why/how questions (e.g., Question #1 asks why Tree-ear goes on the journey, Questions #2–#3 probe motivations and influence between characters) that require analyzing how individuals' actions and relationships affect events. The "Ideas to Think About" prompts explicitly ask students to consider how relationships affect decisions and emotions. The Quotes activity asks students to interpret Crane-man's ideas and connects those ideas to Tree-ear's behavior (e.g., how Crane-man's wisdom comforts and guides Tree-ear on his journey). Discussion prompts ask students to analyze how pride, tradition, and familial relations influence characters' choices and outcomes.
Lesson 10
The Fox
The Crane-man passage describes how a cultural belief about foxes ('foxes possessed evil magic') influences Tree-ear's fear and behavior, and later how his understanding changes when he recalls Crane-man's words. Activity 2 asks students to read multiple folktales with foxes as central characters and "think about the purpose of the story and what it teaches," prompting consideration of ideas/themes. The Parent Plan lists skills that students are to practice, including identifying events that advance the plot and analyzing recurring themes across works.
Lesson 11
Relationships
Students are asked to consider explicitly how relationships affect decisions and self-view in the "Ideas to Think About" prompts and to discuss whether Tree-ear's prediction came true, prompting cause-effect reasoning. In the Relationship Web and Relationship Words activities, students describe Tree-ear's relationships with Min, Crane-man, and Min's wife and must support descriptions with textual examples of characters' thoughts, words, and actions. Discussion prompts ask students to explain Tree-ear's shame after the bandit attack and to analyze why Min gives Tree-ear a wheel, which requires students to connect events and individual motivations. Reading comprehension questions require students to identify events (bandit attack, Emissary Kim's compassion) that affect character outcomes and choices.
Final Project
Comparison and Contrast Writing
Students are prompted in the Brainstorming activity to consider how Tree-ear's relationships with Min and Crane-man affect his decisions and emotions and how those relationships provide him opportunities. The Essay Organizer (Option 1) directs students to describe similarities and differences between the relationships and to provide support from the text for each point. The Comparison and Contrast Essay Rubric and the end-of-unit test (which asks students to list opportunities Tree-ear was given) require students to use specific textual examples to support their analyses.
Unit 5: Independent Study
Lesson 1
Independent Study Introduction
Students read a multi-perspective article about the Dakota Access Pipeline that presents viewpoints of various stakeholders. Students complete a Point of View chart listing each stakeholder (e.g., Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, developers, environmentalists) and write reasons for supporting or opposing the pipeline. Students are prompted to put themselves in others' shoes and to consider how motivation and context influence a person's point of view.
Lesson 2
Bias and Propaganda
Students read two contrasting news articles about Sir Sam Hughes and are asked to describe how he is portrayed in each and to identify specific bias techniques with textual examples. Students read an article about U.S. propaganda in Afghanistan and answer questions about what propaganda techniques were used, why leaflets were distributed, and whether they likely changed Afghans' views. Students watch and analyze advertisements to identify intended audience, the idea or product promoted, and evaluate how effective the propaganda techniques are at influencing that audience.
Lesson 4
Finding Information
Students use the gathering grid to record how an event (the Gulf oil spill) affected the environment and local economy by filling rows such as "What kind of effect did the oil spill have on the environment?" and comparing entries from multiple resources. Activity 5 requires students to "Find at least three opinions on your essay question, each from a different stakeholder, and find at least three supporting details for each of them," prompting students to link individuals (stakeholders) to their ideas and supporting evidence. Activity 6 asks students to reflect on how their position "evolved" after examining other points of view, and the Evaluating Websites rubric asks students to consider author, purpose, and bias, which connects authors/organizations (individuals) to the ideas presented in texts.
Lesson 5
Writing the Essay
Students are prompted to acknowledge and rebut opposing points of view in the Counterarguments paragraph and to reflect on which points of view were new and how learning about different points of view affected their opinions. The lesson asks students to support main ideas with facts, details, examples, and explanations from multiple authoritative sources and to synthesize research into a written presentation. Students are instructed to use transitional words to demonstrate connections between research and claims when revising their essays.
Lesson 6
Presentation
Students are asked to present their position and explain multiple points of view (e.g., the Poster task: "Explain the multiple points of view on your topic") and to create a propaganda piece that shows both their position and the opposing view. Students are also directed to anticipate and address counterarguments in persuasive compositions and to use evidence from research to support conclusions (Parent Plan skills).
2: Semester 2
Unit 1: Greek Myths
Lesson 1
Ancient Greece
Students are prompted by the "Ideas to Think About" items such as "What do the stories of a culture teach us about the beliefs and values of the culture?" and "What consequences can result from the desire for power?" which ask them to connect ideas and outcomes. Question #1 asks students to analyze why Greeks chose to worship gods who looked and acted like perfect people, prompting students to explain how cultural ideas influenced worship practices. The Wrapping Up section asks students to recognize recurring themes of power, deceit, and revenge and to relate those themes to human behavior, encouraging analysis of how ideas and motives influence events and people.
Lesson 2
The Gods and Goddesses
Students answer explicit questions that link gods' actions to natural events (e.g., they explain volcanoes as Typhon belching fire, storms as Poseidon striking his trident, and seasons as Persephone's abduction causing Demeter's grief). Students create character cards and a family tree that require identifying relationships among Zeus, his siblings, and his children. Discussion prompts ask students to consider how stories and beliefs reflect culture and why myths were told to explain natural phenomena.
Lesson 3
The Stories
Students are asked to consider how artistic expression and stories reflect the beliefs and values of a society (Ideas to Think About) and to explain which god or goddess they respect and why, using examples. Students are prompted in Activity 2 to analyze what people in the past were trying to convey with myths, how the stories could bring order, and what questions the stories answered. Students are instructed to think about a god's story and associated symbols when creating a pot or poem, connecting ideas about the gods to cultural representation.
Lesson 4
Minor Gods, Nymphs, Satyrs, and Centaurs
Students are asked in the reading directions to "consider how greed and the desire for power lead to devastating consequences" and to watch for rewards and punishments, prompting analysis of how ideas (greed, desire for power) affect events and characters. Question #1 (Prometheus) and Question #2 (Why did Zeus send Pandora's box?) require students to explain motivations and causal relationships between characters' actions and resulting events. Day 2 Question #3 explicitly asks students to provide examples from the myths showing how greed and desire for power cause conflict and consequences, and the play activity asks students to dramatize stories, demonstrating character interactions and motivations.
Lesson 5
Mortal Descendants of Zeus
Students answer comprehension questions asking why Acrisius locked his daughter (oracle prophecy) and why the king sent Perseus to kill Medusa (the king's desire to eliminate Perseus to gain power), which require identifying how ideas and motives drive actions. The "Ideas to Think About" prompts explicitly ask students to consider consequences of the desire for power and how that desire affects decisions and moral judgments. The "Wrapping Up" section asks students to connect the king's and grandfather's actions to the ideas of abusing power and trying to change fate, linking events and outcomes to underlying ideas.
Lesson 6
Vainglorious Kings
Students answer direct questions that require analyzing interactions, such as explaining how the Oedipus story reinforces the theme that people cannot change their fates and identifying examples of how zeal for power leads to consequences. The Icarus comparison chart asks students to compare 'role of invention,' 'result of not listening to father,' and 'Icarus' desire,' prompting analysis of how ideas/choices produce events. Parent-plan skills explicitly instruct students to "explain how the values and beliefs of particular characters are affected by the historical and cultural setting" and to "synthesize and make logical connections between ideas within a text and across two or three texts, and support those findings with textual evidence."
Lesson 7
The Trojan War
Students are prompted by the "Ideas to Think About" questions to consider how stories and beliefs reflect a society's culture and how artistic expression reflects values. Parent discussion prompts ask students to consider "What lessons can be learned from Helen's story?" and to argue who should have won the battle, which invites consideration of characters' choices and values. Students must retell and summarize the story, selecting the most important events and placing characters and actions (e.g., Paris, Helen, Menelaus, the Trojan Horse) in sequence using props.
Final Project
A New Twist on an Ancient Myth
Students are asked to identify the conventions and theme of an original myth and to develop a retelling that preserves the main themes while changing setting and events, which requires thinking about how ideas (themes) relate to characters and plot. The Parent Plan and Skills list require students to "analyze, make inferences, and draw conclusions about the author's purpose in cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text" and to "synthesize and make logical connections between ideas within a text and across two or three texts." The "Ideas to Think About" prompt asks students to consider how stories and beliefs reflect a society's culture, prompting consideration of relationships between ideas and social individuals/events.
Unit 2: Tales from the Middle Ages
Lesson 1
Medieval Times
Students are asked in Activity 2 to identify peasants, knights, and lords on the manor map and to consider the relationships that existed within the feudal system, including advantages and disadvantages. Students write 3–4 sentence commentaries from the perspectives of a knight, a lord, and a peasant and are asked to consider how these perspectives may greatly differ. Activity 1 has students record observations about jobs, homes, military defense, and inventions on a manor map and compare them to neighborhoods today. The Parent Plan explicitly lists analyzing different forms of point of view and making inferences about cultural/historical contexts as skills.
Lesson 2
Beetle
Students compare the narrator of "A Dialogue on Poverty" to Beetle (Question 2) and identify what the narrator and Beetle lack physically and emotionally (Question 3), which asks them to connect a social condition (poverty) to character states. Discussion prompts ask students to explain why Jane keeps Beetle out of the birthing room and why Beetle responds the way she does to the rescued cat, requiring students to infer how one character's actions or choices influence another's knowledge and behavior. The activity asking how first-person point of view affects the poem versus third-person prompts students to consider how narrative perspective shapes understanding of events and ideas.
Lesson 3
Summer
The Getting Started section directs students to consider the relationship between Beetle and the midwife, noting the midwife's treatment, the mutual dependence, and Beetle's growth as a person. The Ideas to Think About prompts ask students to consider how relationships shape who we are and how we approach the world. The Reading and Questions task makes students the Discussion Director and requires them to write and answer four discussion questions about big ideas, with at least one question focusing on a relationship and one on survival.
Lesson 4
Special Delivery
Students are asked to act as a Line Locator to find three to five lines or passages they think are key to the story and explain why they are important, which asks them to identify interactions and significance in the text. The Venn diagram activity directs students to compare a personal event with Alyce's delivery of the calves, specifying similarities and differences and prompting reflection on how the event changed Alyce. Discussion questions ask students to explain why villagers are superstitious, how Alyce sets villagers up, how Will's and Alyce's relationship changes after she saves him, and why delivering the calves makes Alyce proud, prompting analysis of how actions, events, and ideas affect characters and relationships.
Lesson 5
A Baby
Students are asked to read Chapters 9–11 and create a conversation that "must center around one or more events" from those chapters, which requires recreating interactions between characters. The Wrapping Up paragraph and the Questions to Discuss ask students to explain why Alyce's relationships change, how Alyce's actions differ from Jane's, and how Alyce's decision to leave relates to events, prompting analysis of cause-and-effect between individuals and events. Several discussion prompts explicitly link characters' actions and attitudes (e.g., use of spells vs. hard work, community respect after delivering a baby), requiring students to explain how ideas and actions influence relationships and events.
Lesson 6
The Inn
Students are asked to explain character motivations and interactions (e.g., "Why does Magister Reese teach the 'cat' to read?" and discussion of Mistress Jane's frustration with Alyce), which requires them to link individuals' actions and responses. Students quote and reflect on Alyce's self-assessment ("I am nothing and have nothing...") and discuss whether her feelings are justified, prompting analysis of how events influence a character's ideas and emotions. The Medieval Dishes activity asks students to compare medieval food practices and social status, prompting them to consider how social ideas (status) influence individuals' access to food.
Lesson 7
An Angel or a Saint
Students are asked discussion questions that require analysis of character relationships and actions (e.g., why Alyce thinks bringing Edward back will make her heart content; how to describe Alyce's relationship with Edward; why she cleans herself after sheering the sheep). Students examine the role of domesticated animals by reading monologues and by completing the "Livestock and Economics" activity, where they draw animals and write how each animal influenced peasants' economic situations and what would happen if an animal or serf died. Students compare historical and contemporary roles of domesticated animals in the Life Application and are prompted to locate and record passages as Literary Luminaries, which can focus attention on significant interactions in the text.
Lesson 8
Newborn Hope
Students complete a Relationships graphic organizer that asks them to describe Alyce's relationships at the beginning and at the end of the book and to provide details from the text. Students take on the role of a "Connector" to find connections between events in the book and their life, community, or history and record those connections. The lesson's Skills/Parent Plan language explicitly states students will "analyze the connections of relationships between and among characters, ideas, concepts, and/or experiences" and "analyze themes and central ideas."
Lesson 9
Cast of Characters
Students read a series of monologues and complete a Cast of Characters chart in which they summarize each character's monologue and "describe one relationship or encounter the character has with another character in the book." The Getting Started text explicitly tells students they will "see how their relationships with others on the manor (often the lord of the manor) affect their lives." The materials also instruct students to "Try to find connections between characters among the different monologues," prompting comparison of interactions across texts.
Lesson 10
Point of View
Students are directed to "look for relationships between characters" and to consider "how relationships shape who we are and how we approach the world around us," which prompts analysis of interactions between individuals and ideas. Guided questions ask students to explain why Otho's tale is cynical by linking his father's cheating and stealing to Otho's outlook, and to compare how Jack and Otho are similarly affected by rejection and bullying. Students complete a chart for each monologue and answer comparative questions about Edgar and Simon using examples from the book, requiring them to analyze how characters influence one another and how events shape attitudes.
Lesson 11
Village Life
Students are asked to compare and contrast perspectives in two-voice monologues and to fill out a "Cast of Characters" chart for the pages they read, which requires attention to individuals and their viewpoints. The "Questions to Discuss" ask students to describe differences between Isobel's and Barbary's perspectives and to "Explain the relationship between Jews and Christians" and what characters like Petronella and Jacob learn, prompting students to consider how social ideas (prejudice) affect individuals. The Wrapping Up section asks students to consider how class differences and loss of parents affected characters' lives, linking events and social conditions to individual experiences.
Lesson 12
Glassblowers, Tanners, and Snigglers
Students read the monologues in Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! and complete a "Cast of Characters" chart, which engages them with the individuals in the text. The Parent Plan discussion questions ask students to explain Pask's motive for giving Lowdy a ribbon and to describe the relationships among Piers, Maud, and Mariot, prompting consideration of character motivations and interpersonal dynamics. Another discussion prompt asks how economic changes (more merchants, multiple mills) might affect townspeople, which connects events/ideas to individuals' lives.
Final Project
Life in the Middle Ages Think-Tac-Toe
Students are asked to "Summarize three important changes that took place during the Middle Ages and their impact" (European Transformations) and to write a book review discussing themes and historical accuracy, which requires connecting ideas to consequences. Essay prompts ask students to "describe how a peasant in the Middle Ages lived and survived, focusing on physical and emotional resources" and to "discuss what a midwife's apprentice learned that was valuable from sailing and the related relationships, with examples from the book," which asks students to link events/relationships to character development. The unit test multiple-choice and short-answer items ask students to explain character actions (e.g., Alyce rescuing Will, Alice saving a lamb), requiring comprehension of interactions between individuals and events.
Unit 3: The Prince and the Bard
Lesson 1
Introduction to The Little Prince
The lesson explicitly asks students to consider "How do characters persuade or change one another?" and tells students they will "look for messages about love and friendship and will consider what techniques are used by different characters to persuade or change one another's opinions." The Media Awareness activity has students identify and categorize four persuasion techniques (promises, dares, flattery, glittering generalities) and collect real-world examples, and it asks students to write their own ads and role-play as the creator. The introductory text notes that most characters try to convince the little prince that their opinion is correct, directing students to notice interpersonal persuasive interactions in the book.
Lesson 2
Meeting the Little Prince
Students answer direct comprehension questions that require analyzing motivations and cause-effect (e.g., Q1 and Q2 ask why the little prince wants his sheep to eat baobabs and why he asks for a drawing to illustrate the danger). Question 4 asks students to explain why the narrator shows his drawing and how he changes his behavior based on others' reactions, prompting analysis of how individuals influence one another. The Venn diagram activity and accompanying discussion prompts ask students to compare child and adult perspectives and to consider how characters persuade or change one another.
Lesson 3
The Flower and Other Planets
Students are asked to "think about what the narrator says about how children and adults approach problems differently," prompting comparison of ideas and perspectives. Question #1 asks whether the King is always obeyed and why, requiring students to analyze how a character's orders relate to events. Question #2 asks how the flower's fears change after the little prince leaves, prompting students to identify how an event influences a character. Activity 2 asks students to choose persuasion techniques the flower might use to convince the little prince to return, asking them to model how one character can influence another.
Lesson 4
Earth and Other Planets
Students are prompted to consider "How do characters persuade or change one another?" and to compare perspectives of children and adults. Students identify character relationships in reading questions (e.g., why the little prince thinks the lamplighter could be his friend and his view of the businessman). In Activity 2 students describe a planet and its inhabitant, identify problems the inhabitant faces, brainstorm solutions, and write persuasive letters (one from a child's viewpoint and one from an adult's) aimed at changing the inhabitant's behavior. The parent notes and discussion questions ask students to name the problems faced by each inhabitant and to reflect on which persuasion techniques would influence which characters.
Lesson 5
Making Friends on Earth
Students read Chapters XXI–XXV and answer direct questions asking what it means to be "tamed" and why the little prince says his rose has tamed him, requiring them to explain how spending time and care changes relationships. The "Ideas to Think About" prompt asks "How do characters persuade or change one another?" and Question #3 asks students to state the fox's secret and evaluate its truth, prompting analysis of how an idea affects a character's perception. The Wrapping Up task asks students to explain why friendship prevents activities from becoming monotonous and to give two examples, which asks students to analyze how a relationship changes events or experiences.
Lesson 6
Saying Goodbye
The lesson asks students to consider "How do characters persuade or change one another?" and to finish reading the end of The Little Prince, linking character actions to outcomes. The Student Activity Page contains direct analytic questions (e.g., "How did the little prince feel about the fox?", "Why did the little prince feel he had to go back?", and "Why didn't the narrator go with the little prince until the snake bit him?") that require students to explain motivations and effects among characters and events. The Persuading the Fox activity asks students to describe the little prince's departure, reassure the fox, and list evidence the narrator uses to conclude the prince made it home, prompting analysis of how events and ideas (beliefs, responsibility, taming) interact.
Lesson 8
Beginning A Midsummer Night's Dream
Students are asked to consider "How do characters persuade or change one another?" in the Ideas to Think About section. Question prompts ask students to identify Theseus's choices for Hermia and which characters love someone who does not love them, directing students to note interpersonal conflicts and consequences. Activity prompts require students to show what their character tries to persuade someone else to do and the Cast the Character page explicitly asks "What does your character want to persuade someone else to do?" and "Is your character good or bad at persuasion?".
Lesson 9
Puck's Pranks
Students read Act 2, Scene 2 to Act 3, Scene 2 in modern translation and answer guided comprehension questions that focus on character actions and motivations (e.g., Question 1 asks what Oberon does to Titania and why). Questions 3 and 4 require students to explain Puck's mistake, its effects on character relationships, and Oberon's plan to change events, which asks students to identify cause-and-effect between individuals and events. The parent/discussion prompts ask students to compare human and fairy viewpoints on love and to judge characters' reactions to Puck's mistakes, prompting consideration of how ideas (viewpoints) relate to behavior.
Lesson 10
Dreams
Students answer direct questions asking what happens after Demetrius falls in love with Helena and how the original love triangle is changed, requiring them to explain how a magical event affects relationships. The "Ideas to Think About" prompt asks how characters persuade or change one another, and Option 2 explicitly requires students to choose a passage that deals with persuasion and write a paragraph summarizing how the passage treats persuasion. Parent discussion questions ask students to evaluate whether Demetrius's love is real or caused by the magic flower, prompting analysis of how an event or idea influences an individual's feelings.
Lesson 11
Watching the Play
Students read Act 4, Scene 2 to the end and answer questions about characters' actions and audience reactions (e.g., what the wedding guests think of the play and Robin's final speech). Students are asked to classify the play as a comedy or tragedy and justify why, and to discuss which couple has the strongest relationship and why. The wrap-up explicitly asks students to consider "How might this play have ended differently if it were a tragedy?" and to review differences between comedy and tragedy.
Lesson 12
Tragic Love
Students answer direct comprehension questions that require analyzing interactions and causes: they explain that Romeo kills Tybalt because Tybalt killed Mercutio and that Friar John's quarantine prevents delivery of a letter and sets the final scene in motion. Students track interpersonal change when they identify Romeo's shift from loving Rosaline to loving Juliet and when they note the families' reconciliation after the tragedy. The "Quotable" activity asks students to write interview questions and locate quotes that explain how Romeo or Juliet fell in love, prompting students to use textual evidence to explain character motivations.
Final Project
Love Letters
Students are prompted to choose a relationship and collect evidence, including ‘‘problem'' and ‘‘solution'' sections and important quotes, to support a thesis (Activity 1; Play Cupid / Strongest of All worksheets). Students must ‘‘explain the problem faced by your couple,'' ‘‘tell what their solution was,'' and ‘‘provide persuasive evidence'' when writing the essay (Activity 3). The unit test asks students to identify who tries to persuade the little prince (influence between characters) and to explain Romeo's moral flaw and how it brings about the tragic ending (how an individual's trait influences events).
Unit 4: Newton at the Center
Lesson 1
Features of Non-Fiction
Students read introductory pages and chapters about Isaac Newton and answer comprehension questions identifying what Newton called himself and what Francis Bacon thought science should be based on. The lesson includes reflective prompts such as "How did the scientific method change our understanding of the universe?" and "Can writing change the world?" that invite consideration of the relationships among ideas, individuals, and events. Students focus on chapters 13–31 that recount Newton's life, providing material that could be used to examine interactions between individuals and ideas.
Lesson 2
Newton and Math
Students answer questions that require explaining how ideas and people affected events: they explain what people believed about vision before Kepler's discovery and why Kepler was excommunicated (ideas and religious authorities influencing an event). Students explain why Newton credited a bully with making him become a serious student and why Newton delayed publishing (individuals and fears influencing Newton's actions). Students analyze how calculus (an idea) applies to a sprinter's changing speed by summarizing page 163 and interpreting the graph.
Lesson 3
Newton and Light
Students read Chapter 15 and answer targeted questions that require explaining cause-and-effect and influence: Question 1 asks students to explain how Newton's experimental approach was revolutionary (how an idea/practice influenced scientific understanding). Question 3 and the parent discussion prompts ask students to explain why Newton hated Hooke and why they did not collaborate, linking individual actions and disagreements in ideas to interpersonal outcomes. Question 2 (Kepler and the camera obscura) and Question 4 (spectroscopy) ask students to explain how individuals' innovations and scientific ideas produced effects in art and in the study of the Sun and planets.
Lesson 4
Newton and Motion
Question #1 asks students to identify who convinced Newton to publish and what actions that person took, prompting analysis of an individual influencing the dissemination of ideas. The Headliners activity requires students to describe a specific event from the book and represent that event from two different people's perspectives, asking students to compare how individuals react to and interpret the same event. The parent discussion prompt explicitly asks students to consider what might have happened to Newton's discoveries if Halley had not encouraged publication, inviting analysis of how one person's actions affected the fate of scientific ideas.
Lesson 5
Newton's Contemporaries
Students are asked why clocks were important for sailors (Question #1), which requires explaining how the availability of clocks influenced sailors' navigation decisions. Question #4 and the sidebar material require students to describe Sir Thomas Young's experiment and how it showed light behaved as waves, linking an event (the experiment) to a change in scientific ideas. The parent discussion prompt explicitly asks students to consider why Newton disliked Huygens, connecting individuals' relationships to conflicting scientific ideas.
Lesson 6
Math and Science Take Flight
The lesson includes "Ideas to Think About" prompts that ask students how the scientific method changed understanding of the universe and how the Scientific Revolution affects life today, which prompts consideration of how ideas influence events and beliefs. Parent-plan discussion questions ask why some people said science was a closed field and whether Daniel Bernoulli believed that, directing students to consider individuals' reactions to prevailing ideas. QUESTION #2 asks students to compare Daniel Bernoulli's story and Isaac Newton's story, requiring students to analyze similarities in individuals' life events and social contexts. The Getting Started note that Bernoulli argued with Newton over calculus provides a specific instance of interaction between individuals and ideas for students to examine.
Lesson 7
Using Newton's Work
Several comprehension questions ask students to identify causal relationships in the text: they explain how Lavoisier's work collecting taxes led to his death and why Karl Scheele did not receive credit for discoveries because of a publisher's delay. Questions about Benjamin Franklin ask whether the lightning rod worked and why people later opposed it, prompting students to connect an idea (the lightning rod) with public reaction (blaming it for an earthquake). The K-W-L research activity and the oral summary require students to gather and report how an artist's life, choices, and works relate to historical events and ideas.
Final Project
Lobby for Newton
Students are asked to brainstorm and answer specific questions that link Newton's ideas (laws of motion, light and color, planetary theory, math, chemistry) to real-world effects in their town (Activity 2). The rubric and outlining pages require students to identify 2–3 areas of Newton's expertise and explain how those areas relate to current industries, and to gather observations, examples, and quotations as supporting details. The final project and essay prompt require students to explain how Newton's discoveries have affected their town and to synthesize highlighted passages and notes. The unit test includes a question about Edmund Halley's role in getting Newton's findings published, prompting students to identify how an individual influenced the dissemination of ideas.
Unit 5: British Poetry
Lesson 1
Rhythm and Meter
Students read the introduction (pages 5-15) and answer questions that ask them to identify societal influences on writing during Queen Victoria's reign (e.g., Industrial Revolution, growth of cities, science) and to explain what happened to art and literature between the World Wars (the rise of modernism). Students are asked to compare poems from different eras and explain how and why poems from the Victorian era might differ from those of the modernist period. The unit prompt "What does the poetry of an era communicate about life in that era?" directs students to connect historical ideas/events to poetic expression.
Lesson 2
Voice and Rhyme
Students are asked why it was unusual for Elizabeth Barrett Browning to write a sonnet, prompting them to connect social conventions (sonnets usually written by men to muses) to an individual poet's choices. Students are asked how "My Last Duchess" might differ if it included both sides of the conversation, which asks them to consider how the presence of another speaker would change events and meaning. Students are prompted to consider the poets' time periods and to explain how their own poem reflects their time rather than the Brownings', encouraging analysis of how historical ideas shape voice and content.
Lesson 3
Graphic Elements
Students answer a comprehension question about Ulysses that asks why he decides not to stay in his kingdom, requiring them to identify his longing to travel and belief that his son will rule better. In Activity 2, students choose a line from Tennyson's "Dedication" and a prose statement from a biography of Prince Albert that express the same idea or emotion, writing them side-by-side and illustrating the event or emotion. Activity 1 asks students to identify graphic elements that call attention to particular words or phrases, prompting them to analyze how presentation emphasizes ideas within the poem.
Lesson 4
Figurative Language
Students answer a question identifying that Arnold uses the tide coming in and out to represent the passage of time in "Dover Beach." Students identify similes from the poem and note examples of personification (e.g., winter speaking) when reading Rossetti. Students compare Arnold's "To Marguerite" and Rossetti's "Sappho," describing thematic similarities and differences (separated love vs. unrequited love).
Lesson 5
Allusions
Students read chapters on W.B. Yeats, Edith Sitwell, and Wilfred Owen and answer questions that link each poet's life to historical events (e.g., Yeats's political role, Sitwell's repetition evoking London bombings, Owen's front-line service shaping antiwar poems). Students respond to discussion prompts asking how where each poet lived affected perceptions of the wars and what poetry reveals about war beyond nonfiction. Students select contemporary events, write repetition poems using phrases drawn from those events, and create staged images that require them to connect events to ideas and imagery.
Lesson 6
Tone
Students read Chapter 9 and answer a question identifying that Smith read an article about a drowning that inspired "Not Waving But Drowning," showing students identify how an event influenced the poet's work. Students answer a question comparing Smith's poem to Browning's "My Last Duchess," noting that both the drowned man and his friends speak in Smith's poem while Browning's is a monologue, so students analyze interactions among characters and how form shapes those interactions. Students write a conversational poem between two people or personified characters and adjust line position to make speaker interactions clear, practicing how individuals' dialogue and positioning reflect interaction.
Lesson 7
Themes
Students answer questions about W.H. Auden that require them to connect his 1935 marriage to the historical context of Nazi Germany and infer his moral beliefs. Students analyze "Musee des Beaux Arts" by explaining how the poem uses past artwork to make a point, linking ideas/art to poetic meaning. Students explain the message of "The Unknown Citizen" as commentary on government, corporations, and media influencing people's lives, and students analyze the speaker's change in "Fern Hill," connecting events (aging) to the speaker's experience.
Final Project
Autobiography of a Poet
Students place poets on a historical timeline and note poetic genres or techniques beside historical events (Activity 1), which links poets' work to specific historical contexts. Students must include three current events in their one-paragraph autobiography and explain why they chose those issues as poetic subjects (Activity 3), requiring them to connect events/ideas to individual poetic choices. Activity 6 asks students to write a two-paragraph analysis that explains the images and events in their poem and what they represent, and to discuss structure and techniques, using model analyses of Sitwell and Tennyson that describe how events and images function in the poems. The unit test asks students to compare expectations of poetry across eras and to explain poetry's impact on personal and global life (Part A questions 8 and 9).