Allyson Trostle
Teaching Women Writers
Final Lesson Plans
7.15.05

Course Description:

I see these lessons fitting into a 9th grade survey English class that explores American literature and focuses equally on reading and writing. In this class, students will:

• communicate effectively and appropriately with a variety of audiences and for diverse purposes through oral and written language
• successfully understand and use all steps of the writing process
• demonstrate effective reading comprehension skills
• analyze, interpret, and evaluate literature
• draw on evidence from the texts to speculate, validate, or reflect upon known ideas
• determine and apply/connect the lessons derived from the in-depth study of meaningful literature to his/her own life
  These lessons could work at both the regular and advanced levels. The themes of this class will be self-discovery and identity, which the students will delve into through a consistent application of literature to their own lives. Students will learn that literature offers insight into the human condition and serves as an opportunity for self-reflection.

Unit Rationale:

These two lessons give students various outlooks on childhood experiences that will allow them to begin evaluating their own growth and maturity. A successful completion of these lessons requires students not only to comprehend and analyze the literature but also to apply it to their own experiences. This exploration of the connection between literature and self-discovery will prepare students for skillful reading and writing at the higher level. By asking students to forge a personal relationship to the text, I am calling for advanced thinking skills like synthesis and judgment.

As mentioned below under "Extensions," these lessons provide many opportunities for expansion, including the addition of other authors and outside media.

Lesson One: Eugenia Collier and Lynda Barry >>

Lesson Two: Gwendolyn Brooks and Amy Tan >>