Remember to add APA title page! 1
A1
Title: Primary Sources and Poetry: Focus on Civil War Literature and Enslaved Voices
Source: Allen, J., & McDougal, H. (2012). Holt McDougal Literature: Grade 11. Holt
McDougal, a division of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Content Area: American Literature
Grade: 11th Grade
Goal: This unit prepares students to access and navigate primary sources, ultimately enhancing
their media literacy skills. Students will address the perspectives represented in these texts as
well as each author's literary craft through reflection, classroom discussions, and student-driven
inquiry. They will relate poetry to primary sources to understand that history not only records
facts but also the feelings, reactions, and arguments of the time through literature.
A2. Context
A small, religiously affiliated, private school offers this 11th Grade American Literature
class, which is a mandatory course for graduation. When students begin this course, they
have already had several years of preparation, including writing, reading, and grammar. The
course begins with American indigenous myths and legends and progresses through literary
history to the present day. In addition to reading, this course includes mini-writing units
within the larger units, such as expository and research essays, as well as creative writing.
With so much content to cover, this course keeps a fast pace. The pace of this course often
hinders learning, as students must quickly move from one unit to the next, even when they
struggle. Students tend to struggle the most with writing and research.
a. Problem to Address: I intend to address pacing in this course, and this unit will
demonstrate how I will do so. Rather than squeezing so many different reading
, Remember to add APA title page! 2
assignments and novels into a single year, it would benefit the students to select fewer
texts and study them in greater depth. This includes spending more time on writing. This
will not only address the academic needs of the students but also lead to growth in each
student's ability to confront moral and ethical dilemmas and practice emotional regulation
in the face of discomfort.
Input
By the time students take 11th Grade American Literature, they have already had one year of
American History to orient themselves to the historical content. They are given a copy of the
Holt McDougal textbook in addition to novels for 20th-century units. In the classroom,
students have access to dictionaries, thesauruses, and reference books for MLA and APA
formatting. Every student has access to a laptop and the internet. Students with disabilities
receive reasonable accommodations to ensure their success, such as assistive devices or a
teacher's aide.
b. Two components of the curriculum that address the problem
The English department believes that students must know nearly every text in this large
anthology; however, the anthology also provides a roadmap with essential focus
questions that could narrow the curriculum to improve the quality of what students learn
rather than the quantity. While this textbook does provide valuable content for the course,
teachers should move away from their dependence on this text to design instruction and
instead focus on "the specific learnings sought, and the evidence of such learnings"
(Wiggins & McTighe, 2005, p. 14). Also, removing dependence on textbooks would
improve student writing. While the textbook provides short writing assignments, there are
no units that strictly focus on student writing. When teachers fully implement writing
A1
Title: Primary Sources and Poetry: Focus on Civil War Literature and Enslaved Voices
Source: Allen, J., & McDougal, H. (2012). Holt McDougal Literature: Grade 11. Holt
McDougal, a division of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Content Area: American Literature
Grade: 11th Grade
Goal: This unit prepares students to access and navigate primary sources, ultimately enhancing
their media literacy skills. Students will address the perspectives represented in these texts as
well as each author's literary craft through reflection, classroom discussions, and student-driven
inquiry. They will relate poetry to primary sources to understand that history not only records
facts but also the feelings, reactions, and arguments of the time through literature.
A2. Context
A small, religiously affiliated, private school offers this 11th Grade American Literature
class, which is a mandatory course for graduation. When students begin this course, they
have already had several years of preparation, including writing, reading, and grammar. The
course begins with American indigenous myths and legends and progresses through literary
history to the present day. In addition to reading, this course includes mini-writing units
within the larger units, such as expository and research essays, as well as creative writing.
With so much content to cover, this course keeps a fast pace. The pace of this course often
hinders learning, as students must quickly move from one unit to the next, even when they
struggle. Students tend to struggle the most with writing and research.
a. Problem to Address: I intend to address pacing in this course, and this unit will
demonstrate how I will do so. Rather than squeezing so many different reading
, Remember to add APA title page! 2
assignments and novels into a single year, it would benefit the students to select fewer
texts and study them in greater depth. This includes spending more time on writing. This
will not only address the academic needs of the students but also lead to growth in each
student's ability to confront moral and ethical dilemmas and practice emotional regulation
in the face of discomfort.
Input
By the time students take 11th Grade American Literature, they have already had one year of
American History to orient themselves to the historical content. They are given a copy of the
Holt McDougal textbook in addition to novels for 20th-century units. In the classroom,
students have access to dictionaries, thesauruses, and reference books for MLA and APA
formatting. Every student has access to a laptop and the internet. Students with disabilities
receive reasonable accommodations to ensure their success, such as assistive devices or a
teacher's aide.
b. Two components of the curriculum that address the problem
The English department believes that students must know nearly every text in this large
anthology; however, the anthology also provides a roadmap with essential focus
questions that could narrow the curriculum to improve the quality of what students learn
rather than the quantity. While this textbook does provide valuable content for the course,
teachers should move away from their dependence on this text to design instruction and
instead focus on "the specific learnings sought, and the evidence of such learnings"
(Wiggins & McTighe, 2005, p. 14). Also, removing dependence on textbooks would
improve student writing. While the textbook provides short writing assignments, there are
no units that strictly focus on student writing. When teachers fully implement writing
