Mindy Wara
March 2011
Of Mice and Men Lesson Plan: Day One
Grade Level: 11th grade
Time Allotment: 50 minute/class period
Benchmarks:
· Reading Standards: Integration of Knowledge and Ideas – 11th and 12th grade
o 9. Analyze seventeenth-, eighteenth-, and nineteenth-century foundational U.S. documents of historical and literary significance (including The Declaration of Independence, the Preamble to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address) for their themes, purposes, and rhetorical features.
· Writing Standards: Range of Writing – 11th – 12th grade
o 9. Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
§ a. Apply grades 11–12 Reading standards to literature (e.g., “Demonstrate knowledge of eighteenth-, nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century foundational works of American literature, including how two or more texts from the same period treat similar themes or topics”).
o 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.
Lesson Sequence:
1. Introduction to John Steinbeck
o The teacher will give a mini-lecture on John Steinbeck and the Great Depression. The teacher will hand out the John Steinbeck Timeline sheet. (5 minutes)
2. Discussion of the Great Depression
o The teacher hands out What Do You Already Know about the Great Depression? anticipatory true/false sheets.
o In pairs, students will answer the true/false questions to the best of their ability. (5 minutes)
o The class will regroup and discuss the answers and look at the following sites to better understand the Great Discussion. (10 minutes)
§ Great Depressions cause and Effect (some pictures): http://explorepahistory.com/cms/pbfiles/Project1/Scheme40/ExplorePAHistory-a0k8b3-a_512.pdf
§ Causes of the Depression: http://www.museum.siu.edu/museum_classroom_grant/Museum_Explorers/school_pages/bourbonnais/page1.htm
§ CNNMoney Statistics: http://money.cnn.com/news/storysupplement/economy/recession_depression/
§ Top 5 Causes of the Depression: http://americanhistory.about.com/od/greatdepression/tp/greatdepression.htm
3. Sign out Of Mice and Men books to students
4. Of Mice and Men Pre-Reading: What Is Your American Dream?
o Students will be given the Of Mice and Men Pre-Reading: What Is Your American Dream? writing activity sheet. The teacher will read the instructions aloud.
o If there is time, the students will complete their writing activities, the teacher will ask for volunteers to read their writing or share their ideas on the American Dream. The teacher should share his/her responses to the sheet as well if there is time. If there is not time, this activity will take place the following day. (15 minutes)
o After sharing, the teacher will collect the Of Mice and Men Pre-Reading: What Is Your American Dream? sheets which will be given back to the students further on in their reading of Of Mice and Men as they further understand the American Dream.
5. Assign Chapter One
Mindy Wara
March 2011
Of Mice and Men Lesson Plan: Day Two
Grade Level: 11th grade
Time Allotment: 50 minute/class period
Benchmarks:
· Reading Standards: Rannge of Reading – 11th grade
o 10. By the end of grade 11, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 11–CCR text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
· Writing Standards: Text Types and Purposes – 11th – 12th grade
o 1. Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.
· Writing Standards: Range of Writing – 11th and 12th grade
o 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.
Lesson Sequence:
1. Discussion of Chapter One
o Students will give their first impressions of Of Mice and Men.
o After discussion first impressions, the teacher will guide a discussion of Chapter One.
o After the discussion, the teacher will hand out the Characterization Charts and will read the instructions aloud.
o The students will chose either George or Lennie to track throughout their reading. (10 minutes)
2. Of Mice and Men: Before/After Reading Activity
o Students will be given Of Mice and Men: Before/After Reading Activity sheet. The teacher will read the instructions aloud.
o Students will individually fill out the “Before Reading” section of the first chart. (5 minutes)
o Students will be put into groups of three and tally the responses in the second chart. After tallying their responses, the students will discuss and defend their responses. (15 minutes)
o The teacher will read the directions for the Of Mice and Men: Before/After Individual Reflection Activity aloud – This activity is printed on the back of the sheet mentioned above.
o The students will answer the 5 questions under the Before Reading heading on a separate piece of paper. (15 minutes)
o The teacher will collect and keep the Of Mice and Men: Before/After Reading Activity sheets and the Individual Reflection Activity responses to use after reading Of Mice and Men at the end of the unit.
3. Assign Chapter Two
4. Reading Time – Of Mice and Men ONLY (if there is time)
o The students will take a blind vote whether they want to read silently or have the teacher read aloud from Chapter Two for the remainder of the class period.
Mindy Wara
March 2011
Of Mice and Men Lesson Plan: Day Four
Grade Level: 11th grade
Time Allotment: 50 minute/class period
Benchmarks:
· Reading Standards: Key Ideas and Details – 11th and 12th grade
o 1. Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters uncertain.
· Reading Standards: Craft and Structure – 11th and 12th grade
o Analyze a case in which grasping point of view requires distinguishing what is directly stated in a text from what is really meant (e.g., satire, sarcasm, irony, or understatement).
Lesson Sequence:
1. Discussion of Chapter Two
o The students should each have two questions for discussion of Chapters One and Two ready for class. The teacher will collect the questions and pose them to the class. The students will (hopefully) respond to the questions. The teacher will also ask the questions he/she has come up with while reading Chapter Two. (10 – 15 minutes)
2. Getting to Know Characters through Improvisation
o The students were introduced to several new characters in Chapter Two. The students will be split up into groups of 5. Each group will be assigned a character and be given a brief description of their character. The students will discuss how this description says about the character and how they could appropriately portray the character. (5 minutes)
o After discussing their assigned characters, the students will form new groups of 6 – one person from every group, therefore one of each character. In their new groups of 6 the students will use improvisation as their character and how he/she might act in relation to the other characters. (20 minutes)
o If there is time, groups can volunteer to improvise on stage.
o After any group performances the class will reconvene as a whole to reflect and discuss any reactions to the activity. (10 minutes)
3. Assign Chapter Three and two discussion questions for Monday.