Topic/Theme: Heroes/Morality Time frame: 4-5 weeks Class/Grade Level:9th Grade English

UbD Template Adapted from Wiggins and McTighe

State Content Standards: (What state standards will you be addressing in this unit?) RL.9-10.1. Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. RL.9-10.3. Analyze how complex characters (e.g., those with multiple or conflicting motivations) develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the theme. W.9-10.2.Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
W.9-10.10. Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences. RI.9-10.8. Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false statements and fallacious reasoning.

What facts and basic concepts should students know by the end of this unit? Heroes and morality are contradictory depending on point of view. There is no strict definition of either term. Morals are relevant. Every story has many sides to it and many interpretations.

Sta ge 1 De sir What skills and/or abilities should students acquire ed by the end of the unit? Re Effectively make an argument and defend it using specific sul examples and textual support. ts Use new thinking abilities in daily life to understand other people and other cultures. (M Analyze characters and situations with a broadened understanding ea of heroes and morals. nin How to compare, contrast and analyze situations and g) characters to come to conclusions. How to consider many sides to every situation. How to compare and contrast characters/events/etc.

What Enduring Understandings/Big Ideas do you want students to take away from this unit?
Situations define morality, morality is not something that can be defined in a black and white set of terms Heroes/Heroines can be defined in many terms: by their actions, beliefs, portrayed images, etc. Understanding every situation from multiple points of view will help people to look at situations more objectively and handle them in a more rational manner. Writing can be used as a way to think through things and help people come to conclusions that are more logical than emotional.

What are the Essential Questions will you use to guide the learning in this unit?
How do we define a true hero/heroine? How does morality play into our definitions of a hero, a villain, or a victim? Are morals a constant? How do we define truth? Can we define truth? Is it possible to ever know every side to any story in order to fully understand and interpret it correctly?

Sta ge 1 De sir ed Re sul ts (Co nti nu ed) (M ea nin g)

Summative Assessment (Performance-based): (How will you SUMMATIVELY assess whether or not students have acquired the knowledge and skills that you plan to teach in this unit? There will be periodic writing prompts (short essays, group quizzes, etc.) assigned as well as a final project that will be fairly open to their own interests. Students will be able to write a paper, present to the class, write a story, create something that depicts their learning, etc. Students will be required to use their chosen method for the final project to show me their knowledge and express the amount which they have learned in the course.

Other Summative Assessments (selected-response, extended written response, personal communication, performance-based): Throughout the learning I will be having students discuss in groups and I will be listening as I walk around to see if students seem to be grasping the concepts that are being presented to them. The writing prompts I give them will be someone open to interpretation but will mostly be questions that are very broad so they can share whatever knowledge they have with me. Through this I think I will be able to see how much the students are getting from the Unit. As readings are assigned there may be short answer quizzes to make sure students are keeping up to date with the readings. I plan to avoid selected-response assessments as much as possible because in an English class especially I think its important to have the students writing as much as possible.

Sta ge 2 Evi de nc e of De sir ed Re sul ts

Pre-assessments (What pre-assessments will you use to check students prior knowledge, skills levels and potential misconceptions? What will you do if a student(s) has already acquired the knowledge or skills you plan to teach? The unit will begin with a short reading from the teacher on the definition of a hero as it is written in the dictionary, and some synonyms for heroes and morality. I will then ask students to identify some heroes in their lives and explain why they are heroes to them. Along with this I will ask them to define morality in their own terms and list some concrete morals that they believe exist Introductory Lessons & Assessments I will hook students by using the quick write written above, from that I will have students get into groups and share their hero. If they chose that person it will hopefully hook them because they are able to take something they are interested in/someone they look up to and apply it in the classroom. From there I will ask students to help compose a list of morals that are constant in our culture and others (hopefully they will say things like no murder, no stealing, etc.) I will then give them a set of readings challenging some of those things (honor killings, infanticide, etc.) to get some discussion on morality going. I will have students also come up with a list of characteristics of heroes/heroines and then ask them to apply those to characters from stories as well as the hero they chose to write about in their quick write. I will collect all of these lists and writings as well as watch for participation and group work throughout the beginning of this unit Intermediate Lessons & Assessments I will teach students to view traditions, our day to day actions, and events through many perspectives by showing them that there are no constants when it comes to morals/ethics. I will teach them about different events that have happened in our history (9/11, wars, etc.) and ask them to apply their new knowledge. Heroes will be examined through this new lens and students will be asked to analyze common heroes such as Hercules, super heroes, etc. as well as the ones they wrote down in their quick writes. I will provide them with information regarding other definitions of heroes and texts for them to analyze as they consider their own interpretations. Students will also participate in a debate on a moral issue in the present day. I will do exit slips at random points throughout the unit to collect so I can tell where the students are with their learning. Ending Lessons & Assessments Towards the end of this unit my class will shift towards work on their final projects. Students will be put into groups where they can discuss their progress on their projects and get ideas from their peers. I will circulate to the groups and be available for individual meetings with the students at this point which will help me evaluate their progress. Along with this I will allow some class time for students to present if they chose to do something of that sort. Students who chose to create something to represent their learning will also be asked to write a short explanation of their creation for me. Their final projects must have something to do with morality or the idea of the hero.

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