Strategies
Text to Self/Text to World Connections
Every lesson taught in this unit asks students to compare some elements of the autobiography or graphic novel, character, setting or events to their own lives. By creating these moments in the curriculum, students are more willing to participate and share because it involves their own lives and experiences. They also are then able to produce a closer, more personal reading of the text being used. These connections create a classroom environment in which students feel they are autonomous and have a validated opinion and viewpoint.
Lesson Plan Format
The lessons provided in this curriculum unit follow the seven–step lesson plan mandated by the agreement between the School District of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. The seven steps are: Do Now (Warm–up or Anticipation Set); Direction Instruction; Guided Practice; Independent Practice; Closing (including Exit Ticket); Homework and Assessment. This format provides a cyclical feedback between student and teacher that ensures understanding and proper comprehension of given material. Lessons can build on one another using the Do Now as a recall of the previous lesson or Independent Practice as a synthesis activity, combining concepts from a previous lesson with the current day's topic.
Before, During and After Reading Strategies
Before, During and After Reading Strategies (BDA) are extremely useful for constant feedback while students are studying the various presidential biographies. "Before" strategies include KWL (know/wonder/learned) charts, historical context introductory lessons, identifying and defining terms and vocabulary, and anticipation guides; "During" strategies include comprehension questions, double–column journals, making predictions while reading and character trait/action tracking. "After" strategies range from a simple multiple–choice post–reading assessments to a research paper or debate speech. It is important to note through each of these stages of the reading process students are constantly reading, writing and thinking about reading and writing. BDA strategies check–in and monitor students' progress throughout the entirety of the text and provide pause in order for the teacher to interject, suggest and discuss elements of previously introduced historical and cultural contexts.
Notes and Information Organization
The nature of this topic lends to a rather lengthy accumulation of information. In order to prevent classroom fatigue, students will record, connect and organize what they have learned in a variety of ways. Graphic organizers are an exceedingly popular method for students to visually layout and align what they learn. These organizers can be provided by the teacher as a photocopy, drawn on a board for a class creation or students can copy a template into their notebooks. Additionally, the two–column note format, sometimes called Cornell Notes, is an easy way for the teacher to lecture while students take notes in a guided and systematic manner. Throughout the course of this unit students will take this style of notes on specific topics as an initial introduction to a subject. Then students will use the notes to assist their learning and reactivate their knowledge as they explore each topic more in depth through participation in the extension activities. All sets of Cornell Notes will be kept in their notebooks creating a reference library for their personal perusal.
Collaborative Student Learning
At several points throughout the unit, students will be invited to work with one another during classroom activities. A prominent idea behind collaborative student learning is that it allows for students to interact on a peer–to–peer level and potentially communicate ideas about the subject of study in a manner different from that of the teacher. For low–level learners the benefit lies in direct and specific feedback that is sustainably longer and more intense than a teacher could give any single student in a normal period. For higher–level learners, understanding and synthesis is encouraged when they are "teaching" another student information that they have comprehended. Teaching someone else is the number one activity that encourages thought synthesis and idea analysis.
Jigsaws take information, spilt it up in three to ten groups and require the students in each group to become experts on their bit of knowledge and teach it back to the class. Students who are watching each presentation take notes or fill out a worksheet to retain and record all of the "pieces" with the idea that when students have all information the puzzle will become clear. Jigsaws are useful in a variety of settings.
Another variation of a grouping or "information chunking" activity that requires collaboration amongst students is the more traditional station rotation. In this exercise, student groups travel between multiple stations, each with a piece or specific topic of information related to the whole. The exercise is the summarized by individually answering a writing prompt which ties together the elements of the different stations to gauge student understanding and mastery of the material.
Some Principles of Autobiography
The plan for analysis that William Howarth provides in his article "Some Principles of Autobiography" provides an excellent tool within the classroom, when dissected and implemented by the teacher. In other words, don't have high school students read this article; they won't understand it. Reliance on this piece of writing in terms of creating lessons, however, is invaluable. He discusses autobiographical narrative as self–portrait, as narrative drama, and as poetic verse. These categories are a great place for students to begin thinking about the autobiographical mode. Questions in which students explore different excerpts in a graphic organizer with any of the modes will create a space for a deep analysis to occur. Similarly, the elements of character, theme and style, which Howarth, also discusses in his article, can be given to studies to identify elements of each as they read throughout the unit.
Socratic Style Seminars
In Socratic Style Seminars students turn desks into a large circle in which, with the teacher also seated within the circle, discussions, readings and activities are completed. This strategy helps to encourage participation by all students. When discussing a topic or a text, students must respect each other's opinions and wait to speak. These norms as well as other should be discussed, established and posted in the classroom prior to beginning any conversation. Once the precedent is set, management in this more open style becomes very easy. Students can pose questions to one another or to the teacher and may work as a group on related assignments as necessary. Students feel that their voice is valued and wanted in these types of activities, as they are given the opportunity to say what they think about something.
Journaling
As part of a school wide initiative, a small amount of homework is to be assigned each night to reinforce concepts or explore further what was taught in class. Journaling is an excellent way to have students reflect on a character, theme or event. Journals have neither set length nor much a formal style. Some title and the student name are usually sufficient. Students write in a free–associative style about a particular topic as direct by the teacher. These topics can be broad and large or specific as the purpose serves. For instance, within this unit some sample journal prompts are as follows: 1) WHO becomes President? HOW do they do it? 2) What part of Bill Clinton's young life do you feel resembles yours? If no part resembles your life, explain how at least two elements of his childhood were different from yours. 3) Why do you think Abraham Lincoln was so motivated to learn that he read in his spared time and was mostly self–taught? Are you motivated in this manner? Could you teach yourself something? Why or why not?
Non–Linguistic Representation/Visual Modalities
It is common knowledge that each pupil comes into the classroom with different learning styles. More and more, as the age we live in progresses toward a culture saturated with masses of images, students we teach learn and respond to images. The use of graphic novels and comic books within this unit works to appeal to the learning styles and sensibilities of students today. Regardless if students engage with the material because it catches their eye or because they think they're taking the easy way out, when it comes to reading, students learn and absorb information readily and willingly when exposed to knowledge and concepts in these forms.
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