American Literature: American Dream Unit
Grade 11
Name_______________________________
1
Date______________________
The Great American Commercial
(Group Project Grade: 100 points · Individual Response Grade: 50 points)
FINAL DUE DATE: December 4
“He must have felt that he had lost the old warm world, paid a high price for living too long with a single
dream. He must have looked up at an unfamiliar sky… A new world, material without being real, where
poor ghosts, breathing dreams like air, drifted fortuitously about...like that ashen, fantastic figure gliding
toward him through the amorphous trees.”
--The Great Gatsby, p. 126
Background: One morning, you wake up to find that the year is 1925, three years after the events of The
Great Gatsby took place. America’s economy is booming. It is a great time to be rich—the rich are
getting richer. For the first time, more Americans live in cities than on farms. Ordinary citizens own a
car, a refrigerator, a radio, and many other high-tech appliances and devices available at this time. In
your own time, you work for a lead advertising agency responsible for pitching, writing, and creating
commercials for companies depending on the type of theme they wish to portray.
You have a specific set of skills the people of the 1920s need from you. A few business men approach
you because they have heard about you and would like you to help promote their products. Luckily, you
have made it to 1925 along with the rest of your film, editing, and television equipment! (Note: the
television will not be commercially available until the late 1920s, but the businessmen who approach
you are very forward-thinking.)
Directions: Working with your assigned group, write and perform/record a 45 second commercial
promoting one of the products listed below. Your clients have asked you to include aspects of the
American Dream in your advertisement. This is imperative. They believe consumerism and the
American Dream are closely connected and want to restore the American dream in their society as well
as sell their product. Completing this task is your only hope of returning home again.
Potential Client/Product List:
⋅
⋅
⋅
⋅
⋅
⋅
Ford Model T
Wheaties
Green Giant Canned Peas
Pepsi-Cola
Peter Pan Peanut Butter
Wrigley’s Chewing Gum
⋅
⋅
⋅
⋅
⋅
⋅
⋅
Baby Ruth Candy Bars
Hamilton Beach Carpet Washer
Electrolux Absorption Refrigerator
General Electric Refrigerator
Electrolux Vacuum Cleaner
Lux Soap
American Beauty Electric Iron
American Literature: American Dream Unit
Grade 11
2
⋅
Criteria for the project:
a. You will work in groups of three. All three group members must play a role in the commercial
and must participate in planning it.
b. Your commercial must advertise one of the products listed in the assignment. Note: if you wish,
you may choose another product developed in the 1920s, but it must first be approved by me.
c. Your commercial must be 45 seconds long.
d. You will include at least three aspects of the American Dream.
e. You will use 1920s America as the setting.
f. You will decide who your audience is and use appropriate signals within the commercial to sell
the product to them.
g. You will pitch your idea for your commercial to me two weeks before the assignment is due.
h. You will write a script for the commercial and pass it in one week before the assignment is due.
i. You will record your commercial to present to the class or perform it on the day it is due.
j. Commercials must be school-appropriate.
k. Each group member will write a two to three page, three-part response paper which (1)
describes how the commercial uses aspects of the American Dream and 1920s America to sell
the product, (2) analyzes your specific contributions to the project, and (3) explains what you
have learned about the American Dream and 1920s America from this assignment or from The
Great Gatsby. Each individual will also complete a self-assessment rubric.
l. You must include a Works Cited page for the commercial. All response papers must be
formatted using proper MLA style and should be proofread for spelling or grammar mistakes.
Calendar of Due Dates
November
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
1
4
5
6
7
8
11
12
13
14 Unit Begins
15
18
19
20
Pitch Commercial
21
22
American Literature: American Dream Unit
Grade 11
25
26
3
27
Script Due
28
29
5
6
December
2
3
4
Final Commercial
Due
American Literature: American Dream Unit
Grade 11
4
Rubrics for Grading “The Great American Commercial” Project
Group Commercial Grade (100 pts.)
Is the commercial pitched properly and on time?
Group has chosen product and brainstormed ideas for how to relate product to American Dream
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
Is the script written and submitted on time?
Script is formatted in an organized manner and demonstrates clear direction for the finished
product
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
How well was the final project presented or performed on its due date?
Final project is appropriate for school and time period, demonstrates a commercial for a product
sold in the 1920s
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
Is the commercial properly formatted based on given criteria?
45 seconds long, 1920s America is the setting, three aspects of the American Dream are clear,
intended audience is evident, project expresses creativity and individuality.
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
Was research conducted properly and appropriately?
Students use reliable sources to research product and a Works Cited page is presented with
project
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
Individual Response Paper Grade (50 pts.)
How well does the response paper analyze how the group used aspects of the American Dream to sell
their product?
Explains the aspects of the American Dream used and how they relate to the product
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Did the paper reflect upon the student’s individual and specific contributions to the commercial?
Lists and explains individual contributions and how student worked with group members
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Does the paper examine what the student has learned about the American Dream from this unit?
Specific references to the unit’s examined texts are made
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Is the paper reflective in its analysis?
Does the student foresee any room for improvement? This is not a research paper.
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Is the paper well-written and logically organized?
American Literature: American Dream Unit
Grade 11
Proper grammar and spelling, MLA formatting, concepts clearly organized
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
5
10
[Behind-the-Scenes Instructor Notes]
Common Core Standards Addressed and Assessed
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.4: Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development,
organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.3b: Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, description, reflection,
and multiple plot lines, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.5: Make strategic use of digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual,
and interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings, reasoning, and
evidence and to add interest.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.9: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis,
reflection, and research.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.11-12.9: Demonstrate knowledge of eighteenth-, nineteenth- and early-twentiethcentury foundational works of American literature, including how two or more texts from the same
period treat similar themes or topics.
Objectives, Expectations, Unit Planning, Accommodations, and Clarifications
Mini-lessons scattered throughout the unit will help students learn how to brainstorm ideas, pitch
commercials, and write scripts. Materials for these mini-lessons will include models of what the
students are expected to produce and graphic organizers.
Students will have extensive exposure to the setting of the 1920s and what the American Dream
signifies. They will continue to read The Great Gatsby throughout the course of the unit while they are
working on their commercial projects. Additionally, they will be given class time to work with their
groups and plan their commercial. This gives students not only the resource of time, but the
opportunity to ask their teacher any questions that may arise while working.
Students will practice working together to achieve a goal. This project also gives students the chance to
interact with a creative medium relevant to their own lives—the commercial. Students see commercials
on TV all the time and so they can connect to this creative process on a personal level.
Finally, not only will the teacher assess students based on the given rubrics, but she will ask students to
assess themselves in their response paper in addition to completing the same rubric the teacher will use.