Unit 1: The Plot Thickens
Grade 8 Humanities
Short stories teach us so many valuable literary lessons. It is vital for you to understand the fundamental
plot components as you begin to analyze literature. In this unit, you will read a variety of short stories to
examine the elements of literature. As we explore stories, we will investigate conflict, setting,
characterization, and theme. You will also personalize and learn how to maintain your online learning
blog. You will learn how to create written and multimedia blog posts and proper blogging etiquette. This
unit will run for about three to four weeks in September.
You will maintain a public blog that shares your class assignments and responses to independent reading
with your classmates throughout the year. The beginning of Grade 8 is structured to build a strong
foundation in English Language Arts.
Essential questions for the unit include:
1. How do we generate meaning from texts?
2. Do all stories have the same essential elements?
3. How do we analyze fiction?
Activities
This unit begins with a look at the elements of fiction. We will read a series of short stories, including:
“The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant,” “The Last Kiss,” and “Button, Button” to name a few. We will
examine a variety of elements, including, but not limited to, conflict, characterization, setting and mood,
and theme.
You will also set up your school blog. Your ISB blog will be a focal point for sharing your learning and
skills as a learner this year. You will create your first multimedia and written blog posts and learn the
proper etiquette of posting online.
In this unit, you will also learn many grammar skills that are the foundation of much of the writing
expected this year. We will go over embedding quotes, MLA parenthetical citations, CER (claim-evidencereasoning), and sentence fluency.
Assessments in this unit include short video presentations (via DX), a found poem, a written blog post, and
collaborative discussions. This unit culminates with a reading of a short story and an in-class piece of
writing on the story's theme. This assessment will be in the form of an in-class essay.