Unit Plan: Gothic's and Graveyards

I plan to teach The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman for the 6th grave level. Some things I would like to include in my unit plan are weekly poems, themes of gothic literature, character analysis, creative writing/drawing, research on graveyards, and a compare and contrast essay between the book and the focus poems. Something specific I would like to include is having the students write their own gothic literature and illustrate it (possibly in comic form). 

 

One question I have is how long should each lesson be planned to take? I noticed in some of the examples, the lessons are 50 minutes. Should we aim for that length? Another question is how do we know how much time students will need for things like a research essay or a creative writing essay? Is there a good way to gauge this and estimate the time effectively?

 

Some things I still need to determine is how to split some of the longer chapters and how to assess the students learning. I am thinking weekly quizzes may be best, but I am torn on including a final test after finishing the book. I am leaning towards not including a final exam, and instead doing a final writing activity where students can demonstrate everything they have learned.

 

Reading Standards

 

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

 

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

 

6.4.5.5    Analyze how a particular sentence, chapter, scene, or stanza fits into the overall structure of a text and contributes to the development of the theme, setting, or plot.

 

6.5.7.7 Integrate information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words to develop a coherent understanding of a topic or issue

 

Writing Standards

 

6.7.2.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine atopic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.

 

6.7.3.3 Write narratives and other creative texts to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences

 

6.7.5.5    With some guidance and support from peers and adults, use a   writing process to develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, drafting, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach

 

6.7.8.8 Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources; assess the credibility of each source; and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and providing basic bibliographic information for sources

 

 

Links:

 

http://trinabright.weebly.com/uploads/1/3/2/6/13260984/the_graveyard_book_teacher_guide.pdf

 

http://www.bookrags.com/lessonplan/the-graveyard-book/funactivities.html#gsc.tab=0

 

https://sites.google.com/site/theghoulgate/activities-based-on-the-graveyard-book

 

https://www.storyboardthat.com/lesson-plans/the-graveyard-book-by-neil-gaiman/gothic-elements

 

https://poestories.com/poetry.php

 

https://www.neilgaiman.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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