1 Unit Plan Project Preface Part A: School, Class, & Student Profiles Albemarle High School Statistics Albemarle

High School, located in Charlottesville, Virginia, has a total of 1,868 enrolled students. Of those students, 50.4% are male while 49.6% are female. This is a predominately white school (64.8% students) with about 270 black students and 160 Hispanic students. According to the schools website, 6.7% of students qualify a Limited English Proficiency and 13.8% are considered to be gifted. The school defines 23.3% of students as disadvantaged or those who receive free and reduced price meals under the federal program. Students with disabilities are those identified for special education services, from speech pathology and learning disabilities to severe and profound disabilities. Albemarle HS has about 200 children who are considered as students with disabilities. Here are a few charts about the schools SOL and SAT scores in the past few years. Aggregate SOL Pass Rates (Percent), 2010-2013 Aggregate SAT Scores, 2011-2013

Information retrieved from http://www2.k12albemarle.org/school/AHS/about/Pages/default.aspx

Group Profile The class for which I am defining this unit plan is a group of sixteen dual enrollment English students. These kids are seniors taking their twelfth grade English class, which is tied in with the Piedmont Virginia Community College in Charlottesville. Students will get two grades for this class: one for their Albemarle County Requirement and one for potential college credit. If students receive a C or better in the class, they pass their twelfth grade English requirement (allowing them to graduate) and they will receive three hours of college credit. If students get a D in the class, they will pass their AHS course but receive no college credit. A student who gets an F in the class neither passes for AHS nor for college credit. This class is considered advanced at Albemarle. This class is comprised of mainly white students with a few Asian and Hispanic kids. There is one black student in the class. The students who are Asian and Hispanic have learned English as their secondary language, but they have mastered it. All students are very smart and capable of great things, but they are not motivated whatsoever. Students rarely turn in assignments within a month of the official due date, and they hardly ever complete assigned reading at home. In addition to this, students seem disengaged and bored during the class period. A random note to add is that the majority of these kids participate in a club or sports team in the school. A majority of the students have part-time jobs in grocery stores, etc. Individual Students Derek (12th grade) is a bright, slightly nerdy kid who is approachable and participates in class. He has great ideas for paper topics and assignments, but he often goes for something that is a bit too abstract and broad or doesnt full dive into the complete exploration of the topic. His favorite book is Enders Game by Orson Scott Card (reading level 9th grade, lexile 780L), a novel many adolescent boys cherish. His reading level is that of a ninth grader. When his class was asked to write a research paper over a period of eight weeks that was supposed to include eight sources and at least eight pages, he only turned in three pages of writing. Oftentimes, sporting a broken-in leather jacket, he strides into the classroom. Derek sits in the back of the class, does not take notes, and gets by on relying on his group members during group work. I believe he could excel in this class with a bit more scaffolding, structure, and attention. Phyllis (12th grade), quiet and timely, is from China and has a relatively thick accent; she came to America at the age of 10. At home she speaks Mandarin with her family, but she is fully capable of carrying on a complex English conversation. She turns in her work on time and often hangs out in the classroom alone during lunch. She enjoys reading and often has a book under her desk while Mrs. Payne is teaching. Her reading level is higher than the rest of the class, and she understands abstract constructs quicker than her classmates. She does not, however, speak up in whole-class or group discussions. Drake (12th grade) is an African American student who would be classified as disadvantaged by AHS. Stomach growling, he receives free meals from the school (breakfast and lunch). He is poor and lives with his grandmother and five siblings (all younger than he is). He slings groceries into plastic bags five nights a week to produce extra money for the family. Drake is often very enthusiastic but struggles to turn in homework assignments on time. He is a vocal student, speaking out in discussions and talking to everyone in the classroom. He knows when to be quiet and is liked by the majority of the class. Though he is the only black student in this particular class, it does not seem to affect his actions or his classmates attitudes toward him. His comments are often intriguing and have a potential to be profound, but he does not push deeply enough to reach his potential. Hes close, though!

Part B: The Big Idea, Targeted Skills, and Rationale Primary Focus: Researching YOU! Secondary Focus: Multi-genre Research Project Rationale: This unit centers around creative writing in order to express yourself. This is a wonderful unit to begin the year because it gets students writing in a fun and creative manner. My goal is to almost trick students into writing; I want them to know that not all writing assignments are long, boring papers. I believe this is especially important to incorporate into a 12th grade classroom because these students seem to be jaded on a lot of things, especially writing assignments. Though this class often turns in homework late, I hope that these engaging and unique writing prompts will encourage them to write more and be excited to share it with the rest of the class. Another reason I want to start the year off with this unit is because students are writing and sharing about themselves, so it is a great way to get to know each other right off the bat. Immediately students are formed into groups so that they have a network of classmates to share with and consult in times of struggle or writers block. The majority of these writing activities include a form of discussion or collaboration with other classmates, encouraging students to talk and connect with their peers. There are a lot of different genres included in this unit including poetry, reflective essays, personal advertisements, and storybooks. They are quick and focus on a topic that students know a lot about: themselves. The teacher can easily get involved in these writing a sharing activities because of their short and fun nature, creating a bond with the students. If the teacher creates some of the pieces of writings that students are working on and she shares them with her class, it immediately sets up a relationship where the teacher shows her interest in the activities, too. This will make her more approachable to the students. It is crucial that teachers partake in these creative writing prompts to let her students know that she is a real person, too! Other than my goal to get students talking and writing and sharing, this unit is very useful for students preparing to apply to college. Students explore multiple aspects of themselves and convey that information in an interview or Blackout poem. This information and newfound creativity can easily serve as a starting point for personal essays, which are required on most of todays college applic ations. In a unit shortly following this creative, multi-genre unit, I would love to have students work on more formal writing. This personal statement would be a main piece of that unit to follow.

OVERARCHING (UNIT) UNIVERSAL CONCEPT These are the overarching big ideas targeted for deeper understanding

1. Researching the Self (The BIG Idea at the heart of your unit, i.e., a concept or theme)

2. Multi-genre Research Project (The targeted essential skill; your secondary focus, e.g., persuasive writing, literary analysis, plot structure, etc.)

ENDURING UNIVERSAL UNDERSTANDINGS (Generalizations about the overarching concept/objective) * Consider: Are the targeted understandings enduring, based on transferable, big ideas at the heart of the discipline and in need of un-coverage? * Four is a reasonable number for a 3-week unit, though you may have fewer or more. * Students will understand that... 1. Researching their past can lead to a better understanding of themselves. 2. Writing is a form of reflection. 3. Close friends and family members can lead to a better understanding of your own personality. 4. Research projects can be more than writing long papers. 5. Research projects can be a way to get to know one another. CRITICAL CONCEPTS (This is the conceptual vocabulary necessary for arriving at the enduring understandings) Identify the number of concepts you feel you can reasonably teach in the length of your unit. 1. Multi-genre research project 2. Friendship 3. Reflection 4. Family 5. Loyalty 6. Common interests 7. Power 8. Selfishness

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS (These are the overarching questions that drive teaching and learning within a course/unit; they represent the questions for which you want students to formulate answers over the course of the unit.) * Consider: Are these questions provocative, arguable, and likely to generate inquiry around the central ideas (rather than a pat answer)? Are they kid-friendly? Will students view them as relevant? * The number of questions is negotiable; keep in mind the length of your unit! 1. What does your opinion about yourself have on how others perceive you? 2. How does friendship affect your personality? 3. What types of events play a large role in creating your personality? 4. How can writing serve as a form of reflection? 5. How can an interview affect your understanding of your personality? 6. What form of writing best expresses your personality? 7. What role does reflection have in understanding your personality?

CRITICAL STUDENT LEARNING OBJECTIVES These reflect the big (i.e., general) student learnings (and what you will eventually assess): Cognitive (to know and understand) Affective (to feel/value) Performative (to do)

* With the exception of the affective goals, these correspond to the KUD model for developing objectives you practiced in EDIS 5401. Select up to 3 cognitive, 3 affective, and 4 performative critical learning objectives, i.e., what I want my students to learn. This is the most you would want to tackle in a 3 -week unit. Cognitive (to know and to understand) 1. Students will understand that researching their pasts can lead to a better understanding of themselves. 2. Students will understand that writing is a form of reflection. 3. Students will know the benefits of collaborating in groups. 4. Students will know that research projects can be a way to get to know one another better. Affective (to feel/value) 5. Students will value a friend or family members point of view when reflecting on a meaningful life moment. 6. Students will value multiple creative writing genres that allow them to convey research. 7. Students will value the opportunity to reflect on their progress and experiences throughout the unit. 8. Students will feel supported by having a group of classmates to collaborate with. Performative (to do) 9. Students will be able to conduct research about their pasts. a. Students will be able to conduct an interview with a friend or family member about a difficult situation 10. Student will be able to use multiple creative writing genres to express research. a. Students will be able to create a personal ad that describes them. b. Students will be able to create a black out poem. c. Students will be able to create 2-4 pages of a storybook with their group. d. Students will be able to create text incorporating information from the personal interview in any genre they choose. 11. Students will be able to share their research and writing with their teacher and their peers. a. Students will be able to create a writing portfolio b. Students will be able to give a 10-15 minute presentation to the class. c. Students will be able to create a booth displaying their work and findings about themselves. 12. Students will be able to reflect on their own work and experience as well as that of their peers. a. Students will be able to provide feedback to their classmates about what they thought of everyones display and presentation.

VIRGINIA SOLS: Select at least 2 related SOLs (at your units grade level) that fit into your learning framework. Give them the numbers that they carry in the State Department SOL document. These SOL objectives should be added to the appropriate Objective category above as well. SOL #
12.1

SOL Objective
The student will make a 5 to 10 minute formal oral presentation. a) Choose the purpose of the presentation: to defend a position, to entertain an audience, or to explain information. b) Use a well-structured narrative or logical argument. c) Use details, illustrations, statistics, comparisons, and analogies to support purposes. d) Use visual aids or technology to support presentation. e) Use grammatically correct language, including vocabulary appropriate to the topic, audience, and purpose. The student will evaluate formal presentations. a) Critique relationships among purpose, audience, and content of presentations. b) Critique effectiveness of presentations. The students will read and analyze a variety of informational materials, including electronic resources. a) Identify formats common to new publications and informational resources. b) Recognize and apply specialized informational vocabulary. c) Evaluate a product based on analysis of the accompanying warranty and instruction manual. d) Evaluate the quality of informational and technical materials. The student will develop expository and informational writings. a) Generate, gather, and organize ideas for writing. b) Consider audience and purpose when planning for writing. c) Write analytically about literary, informational, and visual materials. d) Elaborate ideas clearly and accurately. e) Revise writing for depth of information and technique of presentation. f) Apply grammatical conventions to edit writing for correct use of language, spelling, punctuation, and capitalization. g) Proofread final copy and prepare document for publication or submission.

12.2

12.4

12.7

TEXTS/TOOLS/RESOURCES Enter your list of possible tools and resources from which you will eventually select those that best support students deepened exploration of the critical concepts that lead to the more enduring understandings identified earlier in this graphic). Relevant print texts: o Primary: The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein o Secondary (supporting, excerpts, etc.): Relevant media (audio/video/film clips, ads, etc.) o Pictures of Giving Tree tattoos o The Giving Tree by the Plain White Ts o Video of The Giving Tree reading Models (Texts, graphic organizers, etc.) o Personal ad by woman o Personal ad by man o Blackout poem Technology (based on school site evaluation of resources) o N/A Supporting handouts (informational, graphic organizers, etc.) o Storybook Planning Worksheet o Gallery Walk Worksheet o Presentation Worksheet Guest speakers o N/A Community resources o Local personal ads Other o A Teachers Guide to the Multi-Genre Research Project by Melinda Putz

INSTRUCTIONAL ACTIVITIES Brainstorm a list of possible activities (both process and product) that would involve students in the kind of learnings identified by the course/unit critical learning objectives (identified earlier in this graphic); actively consult methods texts for activities and strategies. Identify for each the critical learning objective that the activity or strategy would primarily serve.

ACTIVITIES (Processes & Products) [Cite activities by text/ page no.] Processes
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Brainstorming of descriptions about the self Brainstorming of situations for interview and potential people to interview. Brainstorming of specific questions to ask interviewee. Vocabulary activity Interview recording Drafts of personal letters Planning for presentation

Products 1. Personal advertisement 2. Blackout poem 3. Storybook 4. Interview transcript 5. Letter to self 6. Visual text of choice 7. Reflective essay 8. Oral presentation/booth display

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ASSESSMENTS [Note: Cite all sources for assessment tools.] How will you assess students learning? Brainstorm possible assessment tools and approaches. Each assessment is defined by rubrics, ideally some of which are co-created with students; the rubrics developed form the basis of instructional focus so that students are assessed for what they have been taught. (Assessment and rubrics will be discussed later; this represents your initial thinking only.)

PROCESS ASSESSMENTS: Formative o Students will describe what friendship is o Students will describe the attributes of a storybook o Students will brainstorm a list of questions to ask in their interviews Summative o Students will create a blackout poem o Students will write a reflective essay about the multi-genre research project o Students will create a storybook with their group members

PRODUCT ASSESSMENTS Formative o Students will write a transcript of their interview o Students will write a personal letter to their past selves Summative o Students will present a presentation to the class about their multi-genre research projects and their reflections on their progress o Students will create a visual genre of choice

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