9th Grade Curriculum and Sequence: College Prep
*All work for each marking period is an estimate, and teachers are asked to stick to
this schedule as closely as possible. Before the beginning of each school year, this
sequencing will be reviewed and any needed changes will be made.
*Common LFS maps must be utilized; they can be found on the I drive.
*Content Vocabulary for each unit must be utilized throughout the year.
*Optional: Include a third independent reading project.
Marking Period 1:
1. Set up binder system
2. PSSA Summer Reading Packet
3. LFS PSSA Unit (taught in segments throughout first marking period –
practice test periodically)
a. Content vocabulary
b. Expected writing format (PSSA Rubric)
c. Test-taking strategies
d. 12 Powerful Words (utilized throughout the year)
4. Library Orientation
a. Schedule 3 days with the librarian
b. Librarian provides unit map & acquisition lessons
5. First independent book project
a. Focus on theme
b. See I drive for materials
6. Greek and Latin roots and affixes (taught in mini-lessons throughout the
marking period)
7. Grammar Review Unit
a. Review Parts of Speech
b. Phrases & Clauses (Elements of Language: Third Course textbookCh. 14 & 15)
c. Revising Fragments and Run-Ons (Elements of Language:- Third
Course textbook- Ch. 9)
8. Horror Unit (packet of stories)
a. “The Most Dangerous Game” (Elements of Literature: Third Course
textbook- page 17-34)
i. Foreshadow
ii. Plot Diagram
iii. Conflict
b. “The Lottery”
i. setting
ii. mood
iii. theme
iv. universal theme
c. “Sniper” (Elements of Literature: Third Course textbook page 261)
i. characterization
ii. motivation
iii. protagonist
iv. antagonist
v. irony (situation, dramatic, verbal)
d. “The Cask of Amontillado” (page 211 in Elements of Literature:
Third Course textbook) or “Sound of Thunder” (page 581 in
Elements of Literature: Third Course textbook)
i. narrator
ii. reliable narrator vs. unreliable narrator
iii. imagery
iv. figurative language
v. point of view
e. Alfred Hitchcock movie (Rear Window or Vertigo)
i. Review concepts covered in short stories
9. Horror Unit compare/contrast essay
Marking Period 2:
1. Horror Unit Compare/Contrast Essay
2. Non-fiction articles relating to: To Kill a Mockingbird (Scottsboro Trials, Great
Depression, etc.)
3. Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird (novels in book room)
a. Theme
b. Mood
c. Tone
d. Denotation, Connotation
e. Characterization
i. Dynamic, static, round, flat
4. To Kill a Mockingbird creative project
5. Phrases and Clauses continued(teach in mini-lessons throughout To Kill a
Mockingbird unit)
6. Short Story Unit: Review Concepts using short story. narrator, POV, theme,
characterization, figurative language.
a.
b.
c.
d.
“Interlopers” ( Elements of Literature Third Course page 188)
“Full Circle” (Elements of Literature Third Course pg 172)
“Lady or the Tiger?” (Elements of Literature Third Course pg 359)
“Poison” (Elements of Literature Third Course pg 336)
7. Midterm Review
Marking Period 3:
1. Second independent book project
a. Focus on plot & conflict
b. See I drive for materials
2. Persuasive Essay in MLA format on a pro/con topic
a. Topic choice – see I drive for a list
b. (PSSA Rubric, personal handouts & Library MLA Handbook on
website)
c. Works Cited Vocab.
d. Parenthetical Documentation Vocab.
e. Research Report Vocab.
f. Evaluation of Source Material Vocab.
g. Thesis/Focus Statement
h. Organizational Strategies
i. Relevant Support
j. Tone and Purpose
k. Revision Checklist
3. Reginald Rose’s 12 Angry Men
a. Introduction to drama
b. Dialogue
c. Characterization
4. Punctuation (Chapter 22 in Elements of Language: Third Course textbook)
5. Harrison Bergeron (Elements of Literature: Third Course pg 98-107)
a. Theme
b. Characterization
c.
6. Ayn Rand – Anthem
a. Content Vocabulary
b. Symbolism
c. Metaphor
d. Allegory
Marking Period 4:
1. Capitalization (Chapter 21 in Elements of Language: Third Course textbook)
2. Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet (page 959 in Elements of Literature: Third
Course textbook)
a. Shakespeare’s Life and Times
b. Tragedy, tragic hero, tragic flaw, and comedy
c. Puns
d. Soliloquy
e. Iambic Pentameter
f. Elements of Tragedy terms
g. History of Theater vocabulary
h. Shakespeare’s Writing Style & Vocabulary
3. Informative Essay (Elements of Language: Third Course textbook- Ch. 1,
Revisit MLA Handbook)
4. Mini lesson on satire & hyperbole (to be determined)
5. Review for Final Exam