11th Grade Unit 1
Theme: Love and Marriage
8 Weeks
Marking Period #1
Essential Questions:
• What is acceptable behavior in a healthy relationship?
• How do our families affect our behavior and our relationships?
• What does society expect of men and women in their relationships?
• How do these expectations impact society?
• How do the choices we make affect our lives and our relationships?
MS College
and Career
Readiness
Standards:
RL.11.1
RI.11.1
W.11.1
SL.11.1.a
L.11.2
RL.11.2
RI.11.2
W.11.2
SL.11.1.c
L.11.3
RL.11.3
RI.11.3
W.11.4
SL.11.1.d
L.11.4
RL.11.9
RI.11.4
W.11.5
SL.11.3
L.11.5
RL.11.10
RI.11.5
W.11.6
SL.11.6
L.11.6
RI.11.6
W.11.7 (short)
RI.11.7
W.11.8
RI.11.8
W.11.9
RI.11.9
W.11.10
RI.11.10
Reading: Act (i.e., of a play), Action (Falling, Rising), Allusion, Antagonist, Character (Dynamic,
Flat, Round, Static), Characterization, Climax, Conflict, Denouement, Dialogue, Irony (Dramatic,
Situational), Monologue, Plot, Protagonist, Scene, Setting, Symbolism, Theme
Writing: Causation (Cause-and-Effect Pattern), Citation, Documentation (MLA Style), Internet
Content-Specific (Tier III) Terms:
Search, Paraphrase, Parenthetical Reference, Plagiarism, Research
Language: Alliteration, Context Clue, Diction, Em Dash, Hyperbole, Interrogative Mode, Irony
(Verbal), Metaphor, Nuance (i.e., nuances in word meanings), Portmanteau Word, Rhetorical
Question, Quotation (Direct, Indirect, Partial), Sarcasm, Simile, Understatement
broached, compel, conjectures, consolidated, cosmic, disengaged, disgorged, eulogy, expound,
ferocity, fetid, gaped, hypocrites, insinuations, languid, lustily, oblique, perseverance,
prominence, prostrating, pugnaciously, sauntered, sodden, submission, supplication,
temporized, usurper, wanton
Literary/Academic (Tier II) afflicted, concealing, elusive, exalted, forestall, repression, subtle, suspension, veiled,
Vocabulary: tumultuously
acclaim, anthropologist, escalated, imbued, primitive, sustenance, transcendent, tutelage, vital
commenced, cowed, galvanize, meekness, mirth, mournful, sacrament, scornfully, soiled,
truculently
accusations, aggressors, authoritative, dominance, insecure, isolate, stark, trajectory, verbally
Texts and Respective Tasks
There Eyes Were
Watching God
by Zora Neal Hurston
(audio)
“The Story of an Hour”
by Kate Chopin
(short story)
(activities)
“Dust Tracks on a Road”
by Zora Neal Hurston
“A Proto-feminist
Postcard from Haiti”
by Valerie Boyd
“Sweat”
by Zora Neal Hurston
Teen Dating Abuse
by Kim Painter
Literature- Novel
Literature- Short Story
InformationalBiography/
autobiography
Literature- Short Story
Informational- Article
8 Weeks Reading
2 days reading
3 days writing
.5 Week Reading
.5 Weeks Writing
1 Week Reading
1 Week Writing
1 Day Reading
4 Days Writing
READING TASKS:
Students read the text in
and out of class over
many weeks. The bulk of
this unit’s Tier II
vocabulary and Tier III
terms are approached
through this text. Themes
discussed through this
text concern gender, love,
marriage, freedom, pride,
domestic violence in
relationships, and the
feminist movement.
READING TASKS:
READING TASKS:
Students start to read the
autobiography in class
and the teacher leads a
discussion on its major
events. For homework,
students pre-write for an
essay about how
Hurston’s early life and
family dynamics may
have affected her work.
READING TASKS:
Students begin reading
Students read this short
the story in class and
story in class with an
continue throughout the
emphasis on making
week for homework and
inferences based on
in class. Students
evidence in the text and
determine the author’s
preparing to write an
messages, which are not
argumentative essay in
immediately apparent,
response to the theme.
through whole-group and
For homework, the
small-group discussions.
student should reread the
Instruction focuses
text for an understanding Students read the
students’ attention on
of the plot structure.
biography and compare
setting, characterization,
the author’s experiences and dialogue to provide
Thinking Maps are used
to the events in the novel. content for these
for analyses of character,
These texts serve as
discussions.
plot, setting, symbols, and
provocations for an
themes—translated into
argumentative synthesis
various writing
essay.
assignments. Students
will also trace the causes
and effects of Janie’s
decisions.
READING TASKS:
Students first read the
article in class. They focus
on identifying the causes
and effects of teenage
domestic violence. They
diagram and summarize
types of domestic
violence and important
facts with graphic
organizers, such as
Thinking Maps. This
article offers an
opportunity for students
to discuss a major issue
that has come up
throughout the unit.
Analyze the cyclical
structure of Hurston’s
plot and the novel’s
character development to
identify incidents of
relationship abuse in the
literature.
WRITING TASKS:
In class, students write a
short presentation of
information about the
feminist movement at the
turn of the twentieth
century which includes
bibliographic
information, an
evaluation of the source’s
integrity, an
abstract/summary, etc.
Review the first four
chapters, documenting
moments when Janie
finds meaning in nature.
What other natural
phenomena guide Janie
on her journey?
Students should write
about the way the sun
reflects Janie’s emotional
state.
Write a conclusion to the
novel, based on what you
have read thus far.
Remember that Janie
narrates her story to
Pheoby. Use at least one
WRITING TASKS:
The theme of the story
requires an
understanding of setting
in "The Story of an Hour."
You probably figured out
that the story takes place
in one hour in the Mallard
home but you need to
understand the social
status of women in the
late 19th-century.
WRITING TASKS:
Students write an
analysis of biography that
includes typing the
bibliographic information
for the article, an
evaluation of the source’s
integrity, an
abstract/summary, a
short critique, etc.
WRITING TASKS:
Students write multiple
short summaries of
various sections. Students
write “criticisms” of the
two main characters, and
use text-based evidence
to support their opinions.
Students write a short
narrative that emphasizes
Using the biography and the use of dialogue to
book as a prompt for
establish characters and
The novel presents and
discussion, students write setting. The theme of the
tests at least three
an argumentative
narrative should reflect
different understandings synthesis essay that
one of the themes of
of marriage. Explain these requires them to
Hurston’s story.
different understandings. incorporate at least three
What are the strengths
sources (a) to introduce
For some years now
and weaknesses of each? the overall topic, (b) to
Their Eyes Were
present both sides of the Watching God has been
Traditionally readers
issue, and (c) to clearly
growing in popularity.
think of works by men
argue to defend,
What features of
when they think of
challenge, or qualify the
Hurston’s work, in your
American classics. Might claim that Hurston’s life
opinion, have made her
there also be a distinctly was a major source of
writing enduring classics?
female American classic? inspiration in her writing. What makes her writing
Although Hurston and
The essay should be
appealing to readers
Chopin come from
about three pages typed, today?
different times and very
and should undergo at
different cultures, do they least one full revision
WRITING TASKS:
What happens when Tea
Cake physically abuses
Janie? Why does he use
violence? How would Tea
Cake explain this abuse?
What does Janie think of
his violent actions?
What is the community’s
perception of
Tea Cake and Janie’s
relationship after the
physical abuse? How do
expected roles within
relationships and
definitions of love
contribute to this
perception?
February is national teen
dating violence
awareness month. Using
the themes we’ve
discussed throughout this
book, including power,
control, abuse and
respect, create an ad that
addresses violent
relationships, friendships
or other peer dynamics
image or symbol to reach
a happy, tragic, or
ambiguous ending.
share a female
perspective that sets
them apart from the male
writers you have read so
far? How would you
characterize that female
perspective, if you see
one?
with peer and teacher
input. The essay must
follow the conventions
for MLA documentation
of sources.
within our school. Your
ad can be a TV skit, radio
script, billboard design or
something similar.
LANGUAGE
INSTRUCTION:
LANGUAGE
INSTRUCTION:
L.10.3: For homework
and integrated into the
close reading
assignments, students
study different sentence
types and structures.
They are required in their
writing assignments to
achieve a variety of
sentence structures; the
teacher will provide
several “sentence
starters” to assist
students’
experimentation with
new types and structures.
LANGUAGE
LANGUAGE
INSTRUCTION:
INSTRUCTION:
L.10.2: Students review
N/A
the mechanics and
conventions for quotation
and documentation of
sources while writing the
argumentative synthesis
essay.
LANGUAGE
INSTRUCTION:
N/A
N/A
L.11.4: The teacher uses
a range of tools, including
Thinking Maps and
Quizlet.com, to improve
students’ vocabulary
knowledge. Vocabulary is
pulled from the text, and
students are sometimes
required (or receive
bonus credit) for the use
of new vocabulary in
their written responses.
The teacher draws special
attention to word groups,
such as the connection
between despot,
despotism, and despotic.
SPEAKING AND
LISTENING TASKS:
Janie is judged
throughout the novel. In
the first chapter, who
judges her, and why?
How does Janie respond?
How Janie’s point of view
affects the way this story
is told. Why does she
begin her narrative with
the pear tree? How is
Janie’s growth reflected
in the way the story is
told?
How do Logan and Joe
reveal different sides of
Janie? What are their
motivations? To what
extent does Janie acquire
her own voice and the
ability to shape her own
life? How are the two
attributes related?
What elevates a novel to
greatness? Ask students
to list ten characteristics
of a great novel. Ask
students to identify ten
SPEAKING AND
LISTENING TASKS:
Students participate in
several whole-group and
small-group discussions,
for which they must
prepare with reading and
self-generated questions.
What view of marriage
does the story present?
The story was published
in 1894; does it only
represent attitudes
toward marriage in the
nineteenth century, or
could it equally apply to
attitudes about marriage
today? Explain your
answer.
SPEAKING AND
LISTENING TASKS:
Students discuss opinions
and evidence in small
groups as a means of
planning/pre-writing for
the argumentative
synthesis essay.
Hurston's novel fails to
confront explicitly the
problem of black/white
relations. Yet Hurston
dramatizes the many
ways in which racial
tensions surface within
the black community.
What evidence of this
racial tension do you
find? What were the
reasons for these
tensions? How does
Hurston's treatment of
Irony is one of the
prejudices among blacks
hallmarks of Kate
Chopin’s stories. Analyze contribute to the theme of
the irony in “The Story of the novel? In what ways
do white/black relations
an Hour”.
enter the novel?
SPEAKING AND
LISTENING TASKS:
Students participate in
two small-group
discussions, for which
they must prepare with
reading and selfgenerated questions.
SPEAKING AND
LISTENING TASKS:
Discuss the recent
attention to domestic
violence in the media and
its origin. (several NFL
players involved in
domestic issues)
How does Janie feel when
she first meets Tea Cake?
How is it significant that
he teaches her to play
checkers? Notice the
return of the pear tree
symbol. What does Janie
mean when she says Tea
Cake is “a glance from
God” and has “done
taught me de maiden
language all over”?
Why do some victims of
domestic violence excuse
or refuse to acknowledge
the abuse?
Zora Neal Hurston used
her voice to express,
among other things, the
reality of women during
her time period. If you
were the voice of your
generation, what would
be your most important
Alice Walker has
message? Why might you
observed that one of
choose to convey this in a
Hurston's most attractive fictional novel rather than
features is her "racial
a speech or essay?
health—a sense of Black
people as complete,
complex, undiminished
human beings." From
your reading of Their
reasons why Their Eyes
Were Watching God
might be considered a
great American novel.
Share these qualities with
the class. Write all
contributions on the
blackboard, discuss them,
and allow students to
vote for their top five
characteristics.
Eyes Were Watching God
how do you understand
Hurston's attitude toward
race?
ADDITONAL ACTIVITIES
Create a media product or campaign to address the influence of media on societal views of men and women.
The Jazz Age of the 1920s and the Harlem Renaissance marked the artistic, political, and cultural birth of the “New Negro” in
literature and art.
The novel’s only explicit reference to Jim Crow laws appears in Chapter 19, when Tea Cake is forced at gunpoint to clear the
hurricane wreckage and bury the dead. What role does Jim Crow play in the novel?
Write an essay about a significant event or moment that changed your view of the world. Describe your experience through
images or word pictures.
Imagine that you are a marriage counselor a letter of advice to one of Janie’s husbands discussing his behavior toward Janie
and the results of this behavior. Consider how the behavior affects the husband and Janie while referencing societal
expectations and the historical context of the novel. Does their behavior help each of them achieve what they want for
themselves and their relationship? Use examples from the text and the article about domestic violence.