First, I must apologize for not having this posted before now. I have been having difficulties coming up with an idea of what exactly I want to end up teaching, so even though I have a general idea of what I would like to do, I am more than willing to take into considerations any suggestions.
I am student teaching next semester in a sixth grade classroom. The school is located in a semi-rural area. I have a total of twenty-three students. I have discussed with my teacher books that I would like to teach and that we have available. I have decided, with her guidance, to use the book Esperanza Rising as the main text for my unit. I am thinking that the unit will last about two weeks. Does that sound about right for a text of that length?
There are a few reasons why I have chosen Esperanza Rising for the sixth grade class. The students I have are from just outside St. Cloud, meaning a fairly rural area. I wanted to introduce them to a text that had some diversity within it, but something that is still relatable to them. The group of students I have is fairly homogonous and therefore they do not experience ethnic diversity and issues that come along with it, unless they venture into St. Cloud.
Esperanza Rising has many issues that are relevant to their lives. First, there are a lot of immigrants in St. Cloud that experience some of the issues that Esperanza and her family encounter. I figure that we can explore these within the unit. Second, Esperanza is twelve, which is about the same age as most of my students, making her more relatable.
The overarching questions I am considering using are:
-What are the main themes throughout the book?
-What are the cause and effect relationships throughout the book?
-What connections can be made between yourself and Esperanza?
o More specifically:
§ How does Esperanza Rising relate to today? Is it applicable even though it is set in the 1920s? Why or Why not? Give examples with current events.
§ How does Esperanza’s life connect to your own life?
§ Does the harsh treatment of Esperanza’s family still exist today?
The Standards that will be incorporated are:
o 6.4.2.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct from personal opinions or judgments.
o 6.4.3.3 Describe how a particular story’s or drama’s plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution.
Please let me know what you think and/or if you have any suggestions! Thanks!
Elizabeth, it's great that you've already chosen your objectives and standards! How long is Esperanza Rising? Will your sixth graders be able to finish the text in two weeks and complete assessments? Do you see any challenges arising from teaching the novel? I'm interested to see your unit plan develop. It's fantastic that you and your teacher are able to teach this book!
ReplyDeleteDear Elizabeth,
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you are off to a great start on your unit plan. I absolutely love the book you have chosen and am tickled pink that you are actually going to be using it in your classroom! I am jealous!
Like Amy, I am unsure of the two week unit. I think students would gain more from the book if they had more time to delve into it and really focus on your objectives that you set forth. Quality learning takes time, in my opinion, so you may want to considering extending the unit. But also discuss it with your cooperating teacher since she has worked with these students all year and knows the pace they are capable of.
I would also suggest narrowing your overarching questions down a bit. They are all wonderful questions but it seems like a lot to cover in one unit. Perhaps choosing the last three subquestions to base your unit on will provide your unit with more focus and purpose. But this is solely my opinion and I reccommend discussing it with your cooperating teacher. It is the classic breadth v. depth debate and the decision is ultimately yours.
I look forward to seeing how your unit plan progresses and I am excited to hear about the final product! Well done! You are off to a wonderful start!
Courtney B.
Amy and Courtney,
ReplyDeleteThank you both for your feedback. I was also wondering if a two week unit would be long enough. I am still in the process of talking with my cooperating teacher about it. I thought I would get a little bit of feedback from you before I ended up sending her my proposal. I do agree that it is a lot to cover, but I also think that a lot of it overlaps.
I do think that there may be some slight difficulties with connecting Esperanza to their daily lives, but I feel that it is relevant enough to use and since she is their age, that will make it even more relevant. Another thing I have taken into consideration is that the book is written from a female perspective, but I feel that it is well written and has the potential to be liked by all students.
I am very glad you get to use this book. I agree that with pre-reading, and assessments, you'll probably need more than 2 weeks--but it depends on how much time each day. In a junior high with 45 minutes, you'd definitely need more time. But if this is joint Social Studies and ELA time in a self-contained classroom (more like 90 minutes per day) you might be within 2 weeks.
ReplyDeleteOne really important concept that might help you and your students is the idea of text as both window and mirror. This book may mirror your students in that the protagonist is 12 and dealing with coming of age issues. At the same time, you are clear in your proposal that you want them also to read experience a different world--the life of an immigrant. So, you probably should have your essential questions reflect both of these aspects.
Elizabeth:
ReplyDeleteI can definitely tell you have been working on this! I am impressed. That is so neat you are using this unit plan for you student teaching. I know you mentioned this, but be sure to keep the text relevant to the students lives. I remember reading books in middle school just because I had to. I truly did not have any interest in some of them. By engaging the students with the relevance, hopefully this does not happen. I look forward in hearing how this goes. :)