2015 -2016 Curriculum Thematic Unit Grade: 6 Course: English/Language Arts
Unit Name: Coming of Age Poetry
Essential Question(s): Who are you now? What does community mean to you? How do you fit into your community? How do you maintain your individuality while being an integral part of your community?
Essential Vocabulary:
Approximate Time Frame:
3 Week Plan - (15 days)
Unit Overview: The theme for our Integrated Thematic Unit (ITU) is defining who you are by. examining your present, your past, and your future. We sum this up with the title “Growing Up,
Putting Down Roots, and Branching Out.” We set the scene for our ITU during the engaging activity, in which fictional alien visitors visit our school and present the students with their assignments. community, individual, locally, globally
Unit Skills:
Listener focuses attention on speaker. Listener responds appropriately to comedic and/or dramatic moments of the reading demonstrated by body language, laughter, and/or silence.
Standards:
Day 1-2
.
L.6.6
Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases; gather vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.
Suggested Activities:
Day 1: Who Are You Now? (The Present)
Ask the students to bring in baby pictures of themselves, and enlarged them on a copy machine to 11x17 size so that they resemble posters. Some students may not have access to a copier or may forget to bring them in; this will be fine as long as a majority of the students comply. Once students’ posters are in, they will be hung around the classroom.
Introduction and Frame-setting
* Read “The Giving Tree” by Shel Silverstein aloud to students. Ask them what they noticed. Encourage students to refine responses and consider the implications of the relationship between the boy and the tree. Discuss how the boy grows up, how he changes, and who he is at the end of the poem. Ask for responses about differences between who students are now and who they were when they were younger as well as whom they want to be.
* Hand out poem and ask students to respond in their writing journal (may be completed for homework)
Resources:
“The Giving Tree” by Shel
Silverstein

2015 -2016 Curriculum Thematic Unit Grade: 6 Course: English/Language Arts
Unit Name: Coming of Age Poetry
Day 2
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.1
Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
Day 3
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2
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
Day 3-4
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of a specific word choice on meaning and tone
Day 2
Poetry about Growing Up
* Read poetry from “ A Maze Me” by Naomi Shihab Nye and
You Hear Me edited by Betsy Franco. Discuss themes, structure, etc. Students will be guided to look particularly at where in this poetry they hear their own voices. Students will complete a T-chart containing words from poems and their personal connections. **ELA Appendix A:
Assessment of Class Discussion/Participation**
*
After reading Shel Silverstein's "When I Was Your Age" and
“Smart” aloud, students summarize the poem and count the words in their summary. They then summarize the poem again, using only one word. Students explain their choices and discuss the various words offered as a summary. The class then chooses the one word that best represents what is happening in the poem. Finally, students read a second poem, individually or in small groups, and summarize it using only one word.
In groups, students will read and analyze “The Sin of
Omission” by Margaret Sangster and “All the World’s a Stage” by William Shakespeare. Then they will select one of the poems and illustrate it. This can be done on paper, digitally, on a large sheet of butcher paper on the ground, or on the sidewalk by the classroom. Students can use crayons, markers, paint or chalk. Get the kids talking about their poems while illustrating, or just let them draw. After this activity invite the class to do a "poetry walk" around the room or drawing space to share their impressions of the illustrated poems.
Invite others to see the poetry-art. Consider pairing up with a colleague who might want to do this activity with you. Take photos of the poetry art to archive for later discussion. This is a great, easy way to start exploring poems and poets while mixing the medium of art in the process.
Approximate Time Frame:
3 Week Plan - (15 days)
Resources
“A Maze Me” by Naomi
Shihab Nye
“You Hear Me” edited by
Betsy Franco
“When I Was Your Age” and
“Smart” by Shel Silverstein
Resources
“The Sin of Omission” by
Margaret Sangster and “All the World’s a Stage” by
William Shakespeare

2015 -2016 Curriculum Thematic Unit Grade: 6 th Course: English/Language Arts
Unit Name: Coming of Age Poetry
Approximate Time Frame:
3 Week Plan - (15 days)
Day 5
RL.6.5
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.
Day 6
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.2
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
Day 7
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.9
Compare and contrast texts in different forms or genres
(e.g., stories and poems; historical novels and fantasy stories) in terms of their approaches to similar themes and topics.
Day 5
Read and discuss “Seedfolks” by Paul Fleischman.
Preview the poem by reading the title and paying attention to the poem’s form: shape on the page, stanzas, number of lines and ending punctuation (2) Read poem aloud several times to hear rhyme, rhythm, and the overall sound of the poem.
This makes it easier to understand the poem. (3) Visualize the images by paying close attention to strong verbs, and comparisons in poem. Do the images remind you of anything?
Let the comparisons paint a picture in your head. (4) Clarify words and phrases by allowing yourself to find the meaning of words or phrases that stand out, are repeated, or you do not understand the meaning. Use dictionary, context clues, teacher or peer** ELA Appendix A:
Assessment of Class Discussion/Participation **
Day 6 : Where Did You Come From? (The Past)
The teacher will give the students a copy of the poem
“ Where I’m From” By George Ella Lyon. Students and teacher will read and discuss the poem and relate it to the theme of the unit. The teacher will give the students a template to follow to create their own poem.
Homework: Students will finish their poems on a sheet of typing paper and include an illustration to capture the image of the ideas in the poem
Day 7
Writing about baby pictures
* Students will be writing about their baby pictures (brought in on day 1), in particular creating a piece of their own history through this exercise. Final product can be script, poetry, prose, song and can be illustrated or graphically enhanced.
More writing about baby pictures
* Students will conference with peer editors and/or teacher.
“Seedfolks” by Paul Fleischman
“ Where I’m From” By George
Ella Lyon
Content Connections:
Art, Music

2015 -2016 Curriculum Thematic Unit Grade: 6 Course: English/Language Arts
Unit Name: Coming of Age Poetry
Day 8
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.7
Compare and contrast the experience of reading a story, drama, or poem to listening to or viewing an audio, video, or live version of the text, including contrasting what they "see" and "hear" when reading the text to what they perceive when they listen or watch.
Day 9
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.7
Compare and contrast the experience of reading a story, drama, or poem to listening to or viewing an audio, video, or live version of the text, including contrasting what they "see" and "hear" when reading the text to what they perceive when they listen or watch.
Day 10
W.6.5
With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.
(Editing for conventions should demonstrate command of Language standards 1-3 up to and including grade 6 here.)
On-going
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.10
By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 6-8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
Day 8
Students will read, analyze, and annotate the short story
“Eleven” by Sandra Cisneros. Students will discuss and connect with the main characters’ mood, actions and motivations by answering comprehension questions about the story. The teacher will use a rubric to assess the whole class discussion
Day 9
Revisit the short story “Eleven” by Sandra Cisneros.
Prompt:
In the short story, “Eleven”, by Sandra Cisneros, in what ways do Rachel’s reactions demonstrate her multiple “years” of her eleven year-old self? Write a three-five paragraph essay summarizing the ways that Rachel responds. Include textual evidence to support your interpretation of the age that her actions demonstrate.
Coming of Age Project
The sixth grade Identity Project is designed to elicit deep thinking about students’ personal histories, and asks them to express some of their most important memories and experiences through art, storytelling, poetry and music.
Components of this assignment are explained below and exemplified by examples of students’ writings.
There are 5 separate components for this unit project.
Approximate Time Frame:
3 Week Plan - (15 days)
Content Connections:
Art, Music

2015 -2016 Curriculum Thematic Unit Grade: 6 Course: English/Language Arts
Unit Name: Coming of Age Poetry
Day 8
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.7
Compare and contrast the experience of reading a story, drama, or poem to listening to or viewing an audio, video, or live version of the text, including contrasting what they "see" and "hear" when reading the text to what they perceive when they listen or watch.
Day 9
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.7
Compare and contrast the experience of reading a story, drama, or poem to listening to or viewing an audio, video, or live version of the text, including contrasting what they "see" and "hear" when reading the text to what they perceive when they listen or watch.
Day 10
W.6.5
With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.
(Editing for conventions should demonstrate command of Language standards 1-3 up to and including grade 6 here.)
On-going
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.10
By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 6-8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
Coming of Age Project
The sixth grade Identity Project is designed to elicit deep thinking about students’ personal histories, and asks them to express some of their most important memories and experiences through art, storytelling, poetry and music.
Components of this assignment are explained below and exemplified by examples of students’ writings.
There are 5 separate components for this unit project.
Object Poem
Choose an object that has had particular meaning to you in your life. Write a poem about it.
Lethal, silent, fast
Hunting prey.
Perfect hunters
Tan fur with black spots
Light fur contrasted
By night dark amorphous spots
Hidden by the veldt
Object Story
Tell a story about the same object. It could be an explanation of where it came from, how you acquired it, when you lost it, why specifically it is important or meaningful to you.
When I was a young child, my Abuelito would bring me donut holes. Not a donut, donut holes —the extra, the non-needed part, the missing link[…]
After my Abuelito had passed away, I figured the tradition of donut holes would pass away with him. But no, my aunt Nina wanted to keep the tradition alive. So now, every Sunday, my
Approximate Time Frame:
3 Week Plan - (15 days)
Content Connections:
Art, Music

2015 -2016 Curriculum Thematic Unit Grade: 6 Course: English/Language Arts
Unit Name: Coming of Age Poetry
Day 10-15
W.6.5
With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.
(Editing for conventions should demonstrate command of Language standards 1-3 up to and including grade 6 here.)
On-going
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.10
By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 6-8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
Nina brings to my house a small, white bag filled with a dozen donut holes for my brother and me. Now my Abuelito lives on through donut holes. Not pictures or videos, donut holes —the extra, the non-needed part, the missing link.
Object Art
This art component must also utilize the same object. It can be a drawing, painting, sculpture, collage, etc, etc. It should express in some way, how you feel about your object. Note: It does not have to be an accurate reproduction of your original object. Strive to do something different!
“Day In Your Life” Comic
Choose one of the following:
A.
You may choose to depict an important event from your past —your birth (as you’ve heard it told), a time when you experienced death, a moment of great pride in yourself, etc, etc.
B.
Or, you may choose to depict what a day in your life looks like now —your daily routines, interactions with friends and family, etc.
—and what you think about all of it.
Life Soundtrack
A famous film director has chosen to make a movie about your life. Pick 3 songs for the soundtrack and describe why those songs are meaningful to you.
Song: “Independence Day”
Artist: David Byrne
In about 4 th grade, I went through a phase where I couldn’t get to sleep until about 1am. I spent many days drifting in and out of lessons. My dad finally found a way to get me to sleep; he burned a CD with songs that would put me right to sleep. I listened to it so many times that I knew the order by heart. “Independence Day”, was one of the last on the album, so if I wasn’t asleep by the time it started playing, I felt like a failure at sleep. Luckily that phase wore off.
Approximate Time Frame:
3 Week Plan - (15 days)
Content Connections:
Art, Music

2015 -2016 Curriculum Thematic Unit Grade: 6 Course: English/Language Arts Approximate Time Frame:
3 Week Plan - (15 days)
Unit Name: Coming of Age Poetry
Day 10-15
W.6.5
With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.
(Editing for conventions should demonstrate command of Language standards 1-3 up to and including grade 6 here.)
On-going
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.10
By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 6-8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
“Day In Your Life” Comic
Choose one of the following:
A.
You may choose to depict an important event from your past —your birth (as you’ve heard it told), a time when you experienced death, a moment of great pride in yourself, etc, etc.
B.
Or, you may choose to depict what a day in your life looks like now —your daily routines, interactions with friends and family, etc.
—and what you think about all of it.
Life Soundtrack
A famous film director has chosen to make a movie about your life. Pick 3 songs for the soundtrack and describe why those songs are meaningful to you.
Content Connections:
Art, Music