Literature Unit Plan Assignment

English 493                                                                                        

3 Week Literature Unit Plan

Using texts other than those being covered in our class, each student will prepare a three week unit plan. Preparing this unit will help you in a variety of ways. You will get feedback on the feasibility of your lessons working in the classroom and on your methods of evaluation. You may be developing materials for a text/texts already used in the curriculum that you may/will encounter again in your own teaching. You may be developing materials for a text/texts that you can make the case for why it should be included in the curriculum. Or you may be developing materials that include English Language Arts instruction in a different content area. Whichever option you choose, you will gain experience in planning a meaningful unit for your future students. This will be a very detailed project. The literature unit plan is worth 40% of the final grade for the course. It is the culminating project for all of the work we will do this quarter.

Project Objective: To construct a well-researched and applicable instructional 3 week unit that incorporates a novel, a play, poetry, a group of short stories, an author, or a specific period. This unit should integrate literature, language, composition, listening, speaking, social justice, informational texts, and technology/media. You must incorporate the theoretical work that we’ve discussed in class during the quarter. Feel free to incorporate other theoretical lenses as well. Many of you are in practicum situations. This unit plan is a great opportunity to develop materials for content currently underway in your placements. Although it is not required, the work you develop for this assignment could be used by you or your master teacher so that you can see how what you have designed works in the classroom. Feedback from your master teacher will also be incredibly useful for you.

* This project can be completed individually or in pairs. If working in pairs, it is essential that the each aspect of the project is worked on collaboratively. Please don’t split the project up and complete it separately. Thinking through each aspect of this project is necessary to prepare yourself for teaching secondary ELA skills.

Requirements:

Unit Overview/Introduction (100 pts): Write an introductory overview that captures the essence of your unit and what you plan for it to accomplish (three to five pages double-space typed). Introduce each section of your unit plan. In your introductory paragraph, tell the title of your text(s), the grade level for which you intend the unit, and what you plan for your project focus. Then, write a narrative describing the unit so that any reader will understand what the focus is and what the unit is generally trying to accomplish. Throughout your overview, the focus of the unit should always be clearly identifiable as you describe the intent of your individual lessons, as you show how you will integrate any extra resources (such as cultural items, texts, technology, or photocopied material), and as you explain your unit assessment procedures. This introductory overview must be clear enough that anyone picking up your unit will know what you focused on and how you approached it from the beginning of the project to the end. Include your rationale for using your selected text(s) in the classroom.

Calendar/Timeline (20 pts): Describe the objective/focus, the classroom activities, and the assignment for each day in the calendar or timeline. Include a brief timeline of the unit that shows the progression of instruction during 3 weeks. This timeline may be in calendar form or as a one to two page description of daily activities. Each day should include the main activities and events that will be covered as well as daily assignments.

Unit Objectives (20 pts): Develop an overall question or statement that will act as an “umbrella” for your goals and objectives for the unit. When you list your goals and objectives, prioritize them, starting with the most important. Keep your list short--a maximum of four or five. Remember that these are the main objectives for the unit as a whole. The objectives for your individual lessons will be much more varied. Explain clearly what it is you want the students to learn and/or accomplish by the end of the unit. Refer to CCSS in this section.

Assessment Plan (40 pts): Consider how you will assess student learning this unit, what assignments will work best for evaluating your selected objectives, and describe in detail your plan (point system, percentages, standards based grading, etc., including the rationale for using them).  

Daily Lesson Plans (120 pts): Follow the TPA lesson template to plan each day of your 3 week unit. In each lesson plan, provide details of activities and the timing of these activities as a narrative so that anyone could understand where your lesson is moving and how you will accomplish it (this includes outlines, handouts, and lecture notes, if used). In bibliographic form, be sure to list all materials used. Attach all supplementary material used in the lesson, including quizzes, worksheet, handouts, poems, stories, pictures, overheads, etc.

Annotated Bibliography (50 pts): Make an annotated bibliography for all the sources you used as well as those you might use later (10 minimum). The idea here is to show the theoretical, philosophical, methodological, and pedagogical underpinnings of your unit plan. Some of these should be from course material, but please use a minimum of 3 outside sources as well. Your annotation should be descriptive and evaluative and should run from three to four sentences.

Self-Evaluation of Final Project (30 pts): When you have completed your project and are ready to turn it in, write a self-evaluation of your entire final project, looking at the strengths and weaknesses of your unit. Include what you have learned from doing this unit. Looking ahead, consider what you might change based on what you’ve already learned from preparing this unit.

Organization of Teaching Materials (20 pts): 

Organize your information. Make it as easy as possible for you—and others that you are sharing your project with—to find items.

A few suggestions:

1. Use Section Dividers. Use subject dividers or tabs to identify each section. Consider breaking up large sections into smaller, more easily accessible sections. For example, lesson plans could be divided up week by week, or even day by day.

2. Add a Table of Contents and Paginate. List each individual section in the order presented.

3. Edit.  Also, have a friend/colleague edit. Edit for your friend/colleague.

4. Proofread.  Also, have a friend proofread. Proofread for your friend/colleague.

This assignment is worth 40% of your final grade in this course. Please feel free to consult with me throughout your process of putting this project together. I’m happy to look at drafts of pieces of the project to give you feedback. I’m available for discussions of ideas, texts, assignments, etc. For those working in pairs, both students will earn the same grade.