Speak: Teaching Controversial texts to Students
Grades: 9 - 11
My group and I were responsible for creating a cohesive lesson using texts we had been reading individually and a text we read as an entire group (Speak).
1) Introduce the class to the novel by using the trailer of Lifetime's adaptation of the novel.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSCzahFXMrs
2) Talk about the concept of censorship - the pros and cons
3) Split the group up into four different groups. Three of the groups pertaining to each of the three different books read within the group. Each group has ten minutes to partake in the specific lesson
My Mini Lesson
This attached documents is just meant to be a sample as to what Michael Smith and Jeffrey Wilhelm talk about in their joint novel, "Reading Don't fix no Chevys"
making_the_student_the_reading_expert.docx | |
File Size: | 12 kb |
File Type: | docx |
Now, below is an attachment of the lesson I prepared for this particular text.
presentation_-_neck_and_david_drama.docx | |
File Size: | 14 kb |
File Type: | docx |
The fourth group consists of students who are the Board of Education (who are in favor of allowing their students to read this novel in a school setting) and the parents (who are opposed to this idea).
4) Each of the first three groups will take a few moments to summarize what they did and what they learned. Then the Board of Education vs. PTO group will present their group to the entire class.
5) A final group discussion and recap of the whole lesson
6) Closing the lesson with a clip from the author - a poem she created from selected letters written to Laura Halse Anderson commenting on her novel.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic1c_MaAMOI
7) If time willing and the class demonstrates their best efforts in this lesson - of course, if it gets approved by the principal, I will let the class watch the film adaptation of this film. During the film, i would ask my students to follow the movie along with their novels - to pick up on differences. Aftewards, I would ask them to write a one page summary as to how the movie compares to the novel and whether they liked the movie better or the actual text and why. The next day, we would have a brief classroom discussion over the students thoughts
4) Each of the first three groups will take a few moments to summarize what they did and what they learned. Then the Board of Education vs. PTO group will present their group to the entire class.
5) A final group discussion and recap of the whole lesson
6) Closing the lesson with a clip from the author - a poem she created from selected letters written to Laura Halse Anderson commenting on her novel.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic1c_MaAMOI
7) If time willing and the class demonstrates their best efforts in this lesson - of course, if it gets approved by the principal, I will let the class watch the film adaptation of this film. During the film, i would ask my students to follow the movie along with their novels - to pick up on differences. Aftewards, I would ask them to write a one page summary as to how the movie compares to the novel and whether they liked the movie better or the actual text and why. The next day, we would have a brief classroom discussion over the students thoughts
**Common Core Standards
Reading: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 , 6, 7, 8, 10