Collection 5 Taking Risks

Teacher: Lorber

Grade: 12

Unit: 5

Day: Six Weeks

Unit Rationale
Overarching Rationale

The school is situated in a lower income urban area. By virtue of systemic racism and lack of
resources, many students struggle in the classroom space. Academic environments are a breeding
ground for deficit thinking and learned helplessness a combination of the two may be extremely
detrimental to student motivation. The ideas explored in the Taking Risks collection will inspire
students to risk potential discomfort or embarrassment in the classroom as opposed to passive
protesting. Beowulf and The Deep, the two primary texts in this unit, will introduce students to
admirable characters who take risks are rewarded with material wealth and knowledge. The content
will serve as a callback to the unit on Chasing Success, as the value of a given reward and perception
of success (or failure) after taking a risk varies with the cultural setting of a narrative.
Learner Objectives
Know, Understand, and Do using Bloom's Taxonomy & SWBAT

Students will be able to recognize literary devices in Old English poetry.

Students will be able to (dramatically) reconstruct Grendel into a contemporary frame.
Student will be able to identify the risks that characters take in Beowulf and The Deep.
Students will be able to infer whether or not a character will be successful in his or her
endeavors and earn a reward.
Students will be able to explain the value system and cultural setting of Beowulf.
Students will be able to relate a cinematic interpretation of Beowulf to the text.
Students will be able to question whether or not a character from the text benefited from taking
risks.
Students will be able to model the thought process of risk taker.
Students will be able to decode Kennings and trace familial relationships in Beowulf.
Students will be able to reflect upon their own risks and evaluate how risk has helped them
grow.
Texts

Beowulf by an unknown author (translated by Burton Raffel) epic poem

The Deep by Anthony Doerr short story
Explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger: An Address to the Nation by Ronald Reagon
speech
Supplemental readings from the Taking Risk collection via hmhfyi.com
Weekly Breakdown

Week 1
Monday Beowulf. Focus on elements of Old English poetry.
Tuesday Beowulf. Focus on monsters in mythology and epics.
Wednesday Beowulf. Focus on epic poetry.
Thursday Beowulf. Focus on the cultural setting of the reading.
Friday Beowulf. Focus on inferring future plot points in the reading.
Week 2

Collection 5 Taking Risks

Monday Beowulf. Focus on themes in the reading.
Tuesday Beowulf. Focus on revisiting monsters in the reading, informed by cultural setting
and thematic elements.
Wednesday Beowulf. Focus on kinship and familial ties in the reading.
Thursday Beowulf. Focus on symbolism in the reading.
Friday Beowulf. Focus on elements that helped the author develop suspense and plot review.
Week 3
Monday The Deep. Focus on cultural setting of the reading.
Tuesday The Deep. Focus on themes in the reading.
Wednesday The Deep. Focus on character development in the reading.
Thursday The Deep. Focus on figurative language in the reading.
Friday The Deep. Focus on irony in the reading.
Week 4
Monday The Deep. Focus on kinship and familiar ties in the reading.
Tuesday The Deep. Focus on how themes in the reading have developed.
Wednesday The Deep. Focus on recurring images in the reading.
Thursday The Deep. Focus on the inferences and climax of the plot.
Friday No school.
Week 5
Monday Reagan Speech. Focus on speaker's purpose and emotional appeals in reading.
Tuesday Reagan Speech. Focus on argumentative components in the reading.
Wednesday Final assessment. Focus on introducing assignment and elements of speech.
Thursday Final assessment. Focus on workshopping argument and developing charisma.
Friday Final assessment. Focus on presenting speech.
Week 6
Monday Supplemental Engagement. Focus on contemporary music that addresses risk.
Tuesday Supplemental Engagement. Focus on gambling and social risks.
Wednesday Supplemental Engagement. Focus on daredevils and taking risk as a career.
Thursday Supplemental Engagement. Focus on betting on yourself and entrepreneurship.
Friday Supplemental Engagement. Focus on opportunity costs in terms of risk and reward.

Formal Assessments

Vocabulary test on terms pulled from mentor texts

journal entries
graded discussions
observation
instructor generated short answer prompts
Beowulf quiz
The Deep quiz
Final Assessment
pre-speech writing exercises
speech on importance of taking risks