LESSON PLAN
Teacher – Katherine Phillips
Raymond, Mississippi 39154
Subject: English III
Unit on American Literature
– Welty and Walker
OBJECTIVE –To introduce the students
to our unit on Jackson, Mississippi
and the writers Eudora Welty
and Margaret Walker Alexander.
CONTENT – “words from the past” – vocabulary words we will be using during
this unit –adjectives with which to describe Jackson as we know it.
RESOURCES – 25 words deemed to be
unfamiliar to the students will be introduced to the students – these words are
taken from Margaret Walker Alexander’s poem titled “Jackson, Mississippi” and
excerpts from Eudora Welty’s One Writer’s Beginnings.
TEACHING STRATEGIES - Students will be told
that we are going to be focusing on Jackson, Mississippi and two famous
writers---Margaret Walker Alexander and Eudora Welty. It will be explained that we will begin this unit with some word
studies. First, the students will be
asked to list all of the “old timey” words or phrases they have heard older
people say---i.e. “ear bobs” for earrings, “ice box” for refrigerator,
“veranda” for porch.” We will compare
notes on these observations and discuss how language changes along with
society. Then, the students will be given a list of 25 words to look up in the
classroom dictionaries. These are words
that we will encounter in the above-mentioned works.
HOMEWORK - Students are to write a sentence with each of the 25 vocabulary
words.
OBJECTIVE – Students will explore
their particular points of view with regard to the city of Jackson.
CONTENT – The students will be
given a model of a bio-poem and asked to write their own poem about Jackson,
Mississippi.
RESOURCES – A model for the bio-poem
(a skeletal version so that they will not be influenced by the impressions of
others).
TEACHING STRATEGIES – The teacher will collect
the homework. Then, the teacher will
ask students—without consulting one another---to write four adjectives
describing Jackson. We will then spend
some time discussing the student’s choices of adjectives. The students will then be given a skeletal
model of a bio-poem. They will be asked
to write a bio-poem of Jackson, Mississippi.
They may choose to decorate the borders of the poem for display on the
wall.
HOMEWORK – Students are to complete
their bio-poems if they haven’t done so in class.
OBJECTIVE – To compare and contrast
the various poems of the students with regard to their points of view. We will then look at Margaret Walker
Alexander’s poem titled “Jackson, Mississippi” The students will have a clear
understanding of the term “point of
view”.
CONTENT – the students’ original poems and the
aforementioned poem.
RESOURCES – the aforementioned poem by Margaret Walker Alexander
TEACHING STRATEGIES - The homework will be returned. We will then read and discuss our
poems about Jackson, Mississippi. Then
the students will be given a copy of Margaret Walker Alexander’s poem about
Jackson. I will have pre-recorded a
student reading this poem and play it for the class as the students follow
along. Then the students will be
divided into groups of two or three.
They are to try to interpret the poem.
Many will have no idea what the author means by “ketchup splattered”
with regard to Jackson. If time
permits, we will discuss what the students have decided about the poem.
HOMEWORK –n/a
OBJECTIVE – To understand where
Margaret Walker Alexander was “coming from” when she road the poem “Jackson,
Mississippi”.
CONTENT – the poem “Jackson,
Mississippi” and a view of Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960’s
RESOURCES – the segment “Mississippi:
Is This America?” from the film Eyes
on the Prize
TEACHING STRATEGIES - The film will take the full 55 minutes of class.
HOMEWORK - Students are to write two paragraphs explaining what made the
greatest impression on them as they watched today’s film.
OBJECTIVE – To
humanize Margaret Walker Alexander…put a face and personality to the name we
have discussed during the last few days.
CONTENT – a film
in which Margaret Walker Alexander is interviewed
RESOURCES – the
aforementioned film
TEACHING STRATEGIES - Students are to write
down questions they might have as they watch the interview. For instance, they might ask why it took the
author so long to write the book Jubilee (from the
time she was 19 to the time she was fifty)
Also, having seen the interview, we will discuss what factors in the
author’s life might have lead her to have such a view of Jackson, Mississippi. Such questions we will discuss is—for
instance---why did she decided to live here?
HOMEWORK – The students will be given an
interview sheet. They are to find a
person who is 50 years old or older who grew up in or around the Jackson
area. The interview sheet is to be
signed by that person stating that they were indeed interviewed and that the
student was courteous. The interview
sheet is due on Day 8.
Day 6
OBJECTIVE – The
students are introduced to Eudora Welty and her writings. They will understand her voice, her point of
view and be able to compare and contrast it with Margaret Walker Alexander.
CONTENT –
Excerpts are read from One Writer’s Beginnings.
RESOURCES – the
aforementioned book and a wall map of Jackson
TEACHING STRATEGIES – It is
explained to the students that another point of view is going to be
explored. As we read the excerpts from One Writer’s Beginnings, the
students are to take notes of their thoughts and impressions. Toward the end of the class period, we will
discuss and examine Miss Welty’s view of Jackson. The teacher will point out where Miss Welty was born and where
she lived most of her adult life.
HOMEWORK – In a couple of well-formed
paragraphs, the students are to compare and contrast the points of view of
Eudora Welty and Margaret Walker Alexander with regard to Jackson,
Mississippi.
Day 7
OBJECTIVE – To
humanize Eudora Welty….put a face and personality to the name we discussed
yesterday.
CONTENT – a film
in which Eudora Welty is humanized
RESOURCES – the
aforementioned film
TEACHING STRATEGIES – The
teacher will collect the homework and talk briefly about the students’ efforts
in comparing Walker and Welty. The film
of Miss Welty will then be shown. There
will be time for a brief discussion afterwards. The students will be interested to note that Miss Welty often cut
her paragraphs and pasted them in different places from where she originally
intended them to be. They will see the
old Underwood typewriter on which she wrote and the interior of her Belhaven home.
HOMEWORK –
Students are reminded that their interview sheets are due tomorrow.
Day 8
OBJECTIVE - To
explore other points of view concerning Jackson, Mississippi by use of the
interviews that the students worked on in the past week.
CONTENT – the interviews
conducted by the students
RESOURCES – first
hand accounts from various members of the communities in which the students
live
TEACHING STRATEGIES –
Students will spend today writing a mini-biography of the people they
interviewed. With their interview
sheets on their desks, they will construct their mini-biography from the
information they have gleaned. In
addition, the students will be given a copy of the state guidelines for writing
which includes such objectives as correct spelling, correct grammar, good
paragraphing skills and so forth. The
teacher will circulate the room to answer any questions. These state guidelines will be the rubric
that will be used to grade the mini-biographies.
HOMEWORK – Our
field trip is tomorrow. The students
who have not already done so are to bring in their permission slips. In addition, the students are to read
Margaret Walker Alexander’s poems concerning Farrish Street and the short story
by Eudora Welty in which she gets into the mind of the killer of Medgar Evers.
Day 9
OBJECTIVE – To actually experience some of
the places we have talked about---and to humanize Margaret Walker Alexander.
CONTENT – a tour of Farrish Street, a
tour of the home of Medgar Evers---a visit to Greenwood Cemetery, a drive past
the homes of Margaret Walker Alexander and Eudora Welty (both Welty’s childhood
home and her home in Belhaven) and possibly a quick tour of the downtown Eudora
Welty library and the Margaret Walker Alexander library on Robinson Road
RESOURCES – the actual places we will be
visiting
TEACHING STRATEGIES - Students will be given “teacher made”
mini-journals with the various sites depicted.
There will be a space at the bottom of each page for the students to
record their impressions. Students will
be encouraged to bring cameras to record these sites.
HOMEWORK - Students will be given excerpts from Willie Morris’ Homecomings to
read. In this account he describes
Christmas visits to his grandmother’s* house on Jefferson Street (near the old
Jitney Jungle) along with his dog Skip.
Also, the students will be given a quote from William Faulkner in which
he states his feeling about Mississippi in general---“Well, I love it and I
hate it.” They are to write a paragraph
about why would someone make such a statement.
Would they ever have such ambivalent feelings about something---school,
for instance.
*It will be pointed out to the
students that Willie Morris’ grandmother grew up in Raymond, Mississippi and
that her childhood home is just one block south of Raymond Elementary School.
Day 10
OBJECTIVE - Today is a day of reflection in which we will review all that we
have learned these past two weeks and make comments on the field trip. The students will be prepared for the
evaluation on day 12 through today’s lesson.
CONTENT – The writings from last night’s
homework and a list of information necessary for the students to review for the
unit test
RESOURCES – the aforementioned writings
and a “teacher made” study guide for the evaluation
TEACHING STRATEGIES - A discussion concerning the field trip will
be held. Also last night’ assignment
will be discussed. The teacher will
then go over the material that will be on the unit test on Day 12 and answer
any questions. It will consist of the
25 vocabulary words, information about the lives of Eudora Welty and Margaret
Walker Alexander, specific information about some of their literary works and a
discussion question comparing and contrasting their points of view with regard
to Jackson, Mississippi.
HOMEWORK - Prepare for the unit test on Day 12. The students will have the study guide to assist them.
Day 11
OBJECTIVE – Students are to create an
artistic rendition of Jackson, Mississippi on butcher-block paper.
CONTENT – the visions of the students with
regard to Jackson, Mississippi
RESOURCES – Their overall impressions from the field trip—from the
writings---from their own personal experiences
TEACHING STRATEGIES – The teacher is to allow
the students to work in groups of two or three. After explaining the assignment, the teacher will monitor the
students as they create their artistic interpretation of Jackson, Mississippi.
HOMEWORK – Students are to prepare for
the unit test tomorrow
Day 12
OBJECTIVE – To evaluate the students’
understanding of the unit we have just covered over the past eleven days
CONTENT - a “teacher made” examination
RESOURCES – the aforementioned works of
literature and vocabulary words as well as notes from the study guide
TEACHING STRATEGIES – The teacher will monitor
the unit test.
HOMEWORK – n/a