Lesson Plan

Context:
Course name Honors English 9 (6th period)
Grade level 9th
Length of lesson 90 minutes
Description of setting, students, and curriculum and any other important contextual
characteristics
This is my 6th period honors class that meets every other day for approximately 90
minutes. There are 27 students in the class, none of which have been identified as having special
needs. These are generally high achieving, highly motivated students who are taking multiple
honors-level courses. Students enjoy and respond well to in-class discussions and small group
work.
We are currently working on reading through The Odyssey. Students recently read
through Book 14 for homework. In general, students read the assigned chapter on their own and
we review the important people, locations, events, and themes in class. I frequently have students
work on processing and synthesizing what they read through small group discussions and
graphic organizers (i.e. timelines, tables, labeling maps, etc.).
Students have submitted two literary analysis written pieces on books 1-12 of The
Odyssey, where they worked on skills such as finding textual evidence to support a claim,
analyzing (instead of just summarizing) quotes, embedding textual evidence smoothly into their
writing, and proper citation formatting.

Unit Learning Objectives (numbered) [from my Backwards Design Unit Document],

followed by Specific lesson objectives (lettered) being taught in this lesson:

SWBAT:
Cognitive (know/understand):
Students will know the definition of a theme
Students will know the methods that authors use to develop a theme
Students will understand that writers use various methods to develop a theme throughout a text

Affective (feel/value) and/or Non-Cognitive:

-Students will feel that collaborating with others furthers their understanding of a subject

Performance (do):
-Students will be able to identify specific methods a writer uses to develop a theme
-Students will be able explain how specific methods that a writer develops the theme

SOLs:

9.4 The student will read, comprehend, and analyze a variety of literary texts including narratives, narrative
nonfiction, poetry, and drama.
d) Use literary terms in describing and analyzing selections.
e) Explain the relationships between and among elements of literature: characters, plot, setting, tone, point
of view, and theme.

CCSs:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.2
Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze in detail its development over the
course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details;
provide an objective summary of the text.
Methods of Assessment:

Diagnostic Formative Summative

Chunk Writing Analysis
Passages Students have
been writing analysis
paragraphs of The Odyssey.
They followed a structure we
provided (Thesis + context +
quote + explanation) for the
assignment. After a peer-
review session, they submit
their paragraphs. I have
found from this assessment
that students are ready to
begin tracking big ideas
through a text and finding
supporting quotes.
Books 13-14 Questions
Handout These questions
are meant to help jog students
memories about the reading
they did. It will also help me
see what students are
struggling with understanding
the text.
Target Notes Students will
work on tracking a theme
through the text and finding
textual evidence to support it.
This graphic organizer will
provide good practice, as well
as be a valuable source of
information for me to check
their understanding on themes.
Literary Analysis Essay
Students will write a literary
analysis essay on The Odyssey
at the end of the unit. They will
be assessed on their
proficiency with using quotes
as evidence to back up their
thesis statement, grammar and
mechanics, the clarity of their
explanations, and tracking
themes through the novel.

Procedures/Instructional Strategies
[Note: Any words that represent what I would say directly to students appear in italics.]

Beginning Room Arrangement:

Students are arranged in five rows/six columns in the room.

1. [5 mins.] Bridge/Hook/Opening to lesson: Course Hero YouTube Video (Appendix

A)
When students come in, we will watch a short video that reviews what they read in Books 13-14
of The Odyssey. I will pass out the Book 13-14 Questions Handout (Appendix B) As they watch
the video, they will answer the questions.

2. [10 mins.] Review the handout

As a class, we will review the handout together as a class.

3. [25 mins.] Theme mini lesson

I will pass out the Target Notes handout (Appendix C) to the students, project the notes on the
board, and then I will introduce the topic of the lesson.

In our class discussions and chunk writing, weve briefly touched on the important topics and
ideas that you can find in The Odyssey. As we move forward, Im going to challenge you to
identify central ideas, or themes, and track how they develop in the text.
In order to understand themes, we have to start by talking about subjects. A subject is a topic
that acts as a foundation for a literary work.

I will write down this definition on the board, and students will copy it onto the handout.
Please write down this definition in the blank box in the bottom of your handout.

There are often multiple subjects that a writer covers in a work of literature. Subjects can
usually be described in one to two words. For example, hospitality is a topic, a subject, that we
see pop up a lot. Another one might be gender roles.

Under this definition, on your own, take one minute to write down as many subjects that you can
think of that youve seen so far in The Odyssey.

After one minute, I will ask students to turn to a partner to talk about their answers.

Please turn to an elbow partner and take one minute to share your answers.

After they have shared, I will ask students to share with the whole class and I will write down the
answers on the board. Possible answers include:

gods
loyalty
humility
pride/hubris
vengeance
honor

Now that we know that subjects are topics that act as foundations for the text, lets talk about
theme.
A theme is a main idea/underlying meaning of a literary work. Another way to think of this is
that a theme is an opinion that an author has on a subject. Write this down in the center of the
circle on your notes.
For example, if we consider the subject of hubris, what is Homers opinion on hubris?

Students will volunteer ideas. One response might be hubris is a sin punishable by the gods.

See how we took this one word subject and identified this statement as the theme?
Take 2 minutes to talk with a partner and come up with another theme that weve seen in The
Odyssey. Be ready to share your answers.

After a couple of minutes, I will ask students to volunteer their answers. I will write them on the
board. Then, I will talk about methods that authors use to develop themes.

Themes unite a text in a way because writers use different methods throughout their writing to
convey their opinion on a subject.
There are different methods that authors use to develop the theme throughout the text. They can
use events, actions, speech, or motifs (we will discuss this last literary term in-depth in a future
lesson) to convey their opinion on a subject.
Going back to our example of hubris, what is one example where Odysseus pride gets punished?
Find a quote that supports this theme, and write it in the middle circle here.

Students will volunteer answers. I will write it on the board.

The outermost circle is the last part of our target notes here. This is the part where I would like
you to explain how this example helps support/develops the theme. On your own, write down the
explanation, and be ready to share with a partner.

After this, we will discuss their answers. I will then move on to the next part of the lesson.

4. [45 mins.] Read Book 15 and work on Target Notes in small groups

On the back of your handout, there is a fresh Target Notes page. Your objective for the rest
of the class and for homework is to track the development of one theme throughout the next
couple of chapters in The Odyssey. Right now, in the center of that circle, Id like you to
write down the theme you plan to focus on. If youre having trouble coming up with one, you
can use one of the ones we wrote on the board.

I will give students the rest of the class period to read Book 15 and work on the Target Notes
in small groups of 3-4. If the weather permits, I will let them work outside. As students work,
I will walk around to see if students need any assistance.

5. [5 mins] Closure:
I will have students move back into the classroom from outside. Then, I will give them final
instructions.
Your homework is to read Books 15-17 over the long weekend, and to complete the target notes.
Enjoy your time off!

Differentiated Instruction to accommodate one or more of my profiled students:

I have one student Jasmine, who struggles with comprehending the difficult text and especially
with big-picture ideas, and tends to fall behind in her work. Through my conferences with her,
Ive found that she benefits from seeing examples and having discussions about what kind of
strategies she can use to understand a hard topic. By writing down the examples of theme on the
board and giving her the option to use one other students have made, and showing her and the
other students how to use the graphic organizer through the mini-lesson, it will be helpful for her
comprehension.

Materials Needed (list):

27 copies of Books 13-14 Question Handout
27 copies of Target Notes
Projector
Copies of The Odyssey

Materials Appendix: (e.g., supplementary texts, Ppts, overheads, graphic organizers,

handouts, etc.)
Appendix A Course Hero Video link
Appendix B Books 13-14 Questions Handout
Appendix C Target Notes
Appendix B

Name_______________________________ Date ________________

The Odyssey
Books XIII XIV Questions Handout

1. What happens to the Phaiakians after they assist Odysseus on his journey home?

2. Why doesnt Odysseus recognize his homeland at first?

3. What disguise does Athena put on when she goes to meet Odysseus? What disguise does she put on
him?

4. What does Odysseus ask Athena, and what is her response?

5. Who is Eumaios? How does he treat Odysseus?

6. Name 3 major ideas found in Books 13-14.