Grade 8 Integrated English and Humanities
Note on the integration of English and Humanities
In grades 6 through 8, the English and Humanities courses are fully integrated.
Literature has been chosen to deepen understanding of, and provide insights into, the
Humanities curriculum. At the same time, Humanities work serves to underpin and
enhance the understanding of the material covered in English. Integration is sometimes
achieved by theme or by choosing literature related to the Humanities topics. Writing in
English is often on a theme related to a Humanities topic. To better see the integration
of the grade 8 English/Humanities curriculum it is helpful to place the two curriculums
alongside the curriculum maps.
School Web Site – Literary Archive
Students will be able to access two “archives” designed to accompany the grade 8
English and Humanities class. The archives can be found on the school web site at
www.senri.ed.jp
Areas of Interaction
Areas of Interaction for the Integrated English and Humanities curriculum are listed on
the Humanities section. As the curriculum is fully integrated the AOI are relevant to
both subjects.
Grade 8 English
Short Stories:
Short Stories: Characters in Conflict (selections)
Richard Connell: "The Most Dangerous Game"; Isaac Bashevis Singer: "The Fatalist";
Kurt Vonnegut: "Harrison Bergeron"; Frank R. Stockton: "The Lady or the Tiger?";
Edgar Allan Poe: "Tell Tale Heart"; "The Black Cat"
Arthur Conan Doyle Collection:
"The Blue Carbuncle";" Silver Blaze";" The Adventure of the Speckled Band;" "The
Red Headed League"; "The Boscombe Valley Mystery"
Poetry Anthologies
Reflections on a Gift of Watermelon Pickle, Scott Foresman
Talking to the Sun, Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art
Novels
Fahrenheit 451, (Theme: Systems of government; totalitarianism; censorship)
The Scarlet Pimpernel, (Theme: French Revolution)
A Tale of Two Cities, (Theme: French Revolution –extracts only and optional)
The Man Who Was Poe, (Theme: Self - discovery)
Animal Farm, (Theme: Socialism)
To Kill a Mockingbird, (Theme: Prejudice, Rites of Passage)
Plays
Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare
Sherlock Holmes: "The Dying Detective ", "The Adventure of the Copper Beeches"
Edgar Allan Poe: The Purloined Letter
Anthologies
Writings from Japan, (Theme: Meiji Japan)
Language Arts / Grammar Reference
World of Language, Silver Burdett Ginn
Vocabulary Series
Vocabulary Workshop Level C Sadlier Oxford
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------First Trimester
Short Stories
Richard Connell: "The Most Dangerous Game"
Novels -- Fahrenheit 451



Understand how science fiction uses imaginary beings, worlds, or events to
comment on society
Make connections between literature studied and Humanities topic: The
Enlightenment
Review of author's craft and story elements appropriate to selected readings
Expository articles from National Geographic / Time on cartography and projections
Literary terms: setting, plot, theme, moral, conflict (internal/external, major/minor),
climax, resolution, characterisation, irony
Drama:
Julius Caesar - carry over into third trimester


Introduction to Shakespeare, his theatre, and his works
Literary terms: iambic pentameter, blank verse, tragedy, cosmic tragedy,
foreshadowing, soliloquy, aside, rising and falling action, irony

Apply reading selections to social studies topic:
Revolution; the republic
Enlightenment ; French
Writing


Expository writing - Cartography: A Clue to Man's Development
Respond to and interpret literature
Book Reports
Open fiction: Interview a main character
Historical fiction: Writer and perform a monologue (internal/external)
Language Awareness / Grammar




Review the writing process
Thesis; topic sentence
Parts of speech
Activities and exercises as determined by student need


Expository paragraphs
Daily oral language sentences
Vocabulary
Vocabulary Workshop Level C: Units 1 - 5
Speech and Communication


Oral book reports
Reading aloud scripts
Second Trimester
Short Stories and Mystery Writing
Detective Fiction of Arthur Conan Doyle:
(Selection)
“Silver Blaze"
"The Red Headed League"
"The Blue Carbuncle"
"The Adventure of the Red -Headed League"
"The Boscombe Valley Mystery"

Review literary terminology and concepts appropriate to these short stories

Understand Holmes as a character spawned by the values and intellectual ideals of
his time
Make connections between literature selections and social studies focus (reason vs.
faith; Industrial Revolution; Doyle’s use of the scientific method in constructing his
stories)
Understand deductive/inductive reasoning and practice making deductions


Edgar Allan Poe: "Tell Tale Heart"; "The Black Cat"
Isaac Bashevis Singer: "The Fatalist" (read in connection with Julius Caesar – theme is
fatalism)
Novels
The Scarlet Pimpernel


Relate reading to Humanities topic: French Revolution
Apply understanding of appropriate literary terms to the novel
The Man Who Was Poe


Relate reading to the English unit on mystery
Compare the biography of Poe with Avi's novel
Animal Farm (carry into third trimester)



Understand allegory and satire
Relate reading selection to Humanities topics: Industrial Revolution, communism
and socialism
Apply understanding of appropriate literary terms to the novel
Drama: Julius Caesar carried over from first trimester (see above).
Poetry
Edgar Allen Poe: "The Raven"


Teach in connection with The Man Who Was Poe
Literary Terms: rhythm, rhyme, internal rhyme, meter, alliteration, assonance,
refrain, allusion, mood, stanza
Rudyard Kipling: "The Secret of the Machines"
 Teach in connection with the Humanities topic, Industrial Revolution (along with
other poems on industrial themes)
 Literary terms: personification; stanza, refrain, rhyming scheme, internal rhyme,
end rhyme, simile, metaphor, personification, alliteration, theme
Writing:
Practice writing using the first and third persons
 Historical monologue written from the point of view of a contemporary of the
French Revolution





Short essay explaining the origins and evolution of the Roman Republic
Paraphrase passages from Julius Caesar
Write in response to Julius Caesar
Compose lines/verses conforming to meter as used in Poe's "The Raven"
Write a mini - mystery
Book Reports
Autobiography: Timeline and presentation
Agatha Christie: PowerPoint presentation
Grammar/Punctuation
 Using the first and third persons
 Use of dialogue: quotation marks, interjections, paragraphing
 Activities and exercises as determined by student need
 Daily oral language sentences
Vocabulary Workshop Level C: Units 6 - 10
Speech and Communication




Oral presentation of book reports
Read aloud selections of Julius Caesar
Commit to memory and recite excerpts from Julius Caesar
Read aloud "The Raven" and "Secret of the Machines"
Third Trimester
Novel
Animal Farm - carried over from second trimester (see above)
To Kill a Mockingbird (no tie in with the Humanities)



Consider the term "prejudice" in the wider sense
Consider rites of passage in a young person's life
Review of author's craft and story elements
Short Stories
Writings from Japan: Lafcadio Hearn



Relate to Humanities topic: Meiji Japan
Cultural insights into Japanese culture by way of reminiscences
Study Hearn's ghost stories as preparation for the writing of a Japanese ghost story
Kurt Vonnegut: "Harrison Bergeron". Relate to Humanities topic of Communism
Writing

Write a letter of diplomacy: related to study of Meiji Japan

Write a ghost story from the Edo or Meiji period of Japanese history employing a
variety of figurative language
Write a courtroom reminiscence based on chapters 17 - 21 of To Kill a Mockingbird

Language Awareness / Grammar



Colons and semi - colons
Activities and exercises as determined by student need
Daily oral language sentences
Vocabulary Workshop Level C: Units 11 - 15
Speech and Communication




Reading aloud of poetry and ghost story
Group presentations using PowerPoint and visual aids of Meiji Japanese history :
The Black Ships; Sino -Japanese War; Russo - Japanese War
Acting out plays
Book report presentations
Grade Eight: Humanities Curriculum
Texts:
The Modern World
Greenhaven World History Program
Nystrom World Atlases
First Trimester
Unit 1 - Cartography and Map Projections / Geography
Areas of Interaction
Homo Faber
Environment


Key vocabulary terms for cartography
Study of ancient and historical maps: Eratosthenes; Ptolemy's Geographia; “T in O”



tradition; Mappa Mundi; Behaim's Globe
Projections: Mercator; Van der Grinten; Equal Space; Polar; Robinson
Measuring the earth’s circumference: Eratosthenes
Recapitulation of essential geography skills: latitude/longitude; coordinates;
direction; legend; scale in miles and kilometers; time zones; greater circle routes
Reading:
National Geographic and Time articles
Unit 2 - The Enlightenment: Ideas and Documents
Areas of Interaction
Homo Faber
ATL




Key vocabulary terms
Ideas and writings of the philosophers: Voltaire; Rousseau; Montesquieu; Locke;
Diderot
Enlightenment documents: Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen
Concept of the Republic. Origins of the Roman Republic / Julius Caesar
Reading:
Fahrenheit 451
Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar
“The Fatalist” by Isaac Bashevis Singer
Second Trimester
Unit 3 - The French Revolution
Areas of Interaction
ATL





Key vocabulary terms
In - depth study of the period from 1788 until 1800
Long and short – term causes of the Revolution
Background to Revolution: Louis XIV; Versailles; Seven Years’ War
Chronology of the period

Role of the individual in history: Louis XVI, Marie; Antoinette; Robespierre;
Danton; Bonaparte
Primary and secondary source documentation: source provenance; bias; emotive
language; point of view; evaluation of sources
Art of the period: Jacque Louis David


Reading:
The Scarlet Pimpernel
A Tale of Two Cities (excerpts only)
Unit 4 - The Industrial Revolution (carries over into the third trimester)
Areas of Interaction
Environment
Health and Social Education






Key vocabulary terms
Demographics and population (Interdisciplinary Unit with Mathematics.)
Thomas Malthus
Causes and effects of the Industrial Revolution
Statistical data related to the Industrial Revolution
Presentation of data: pie charts; histograms; scatter plots




Capitalism
Utopian Socialism
Rise of labor unions
Poetry on the Industrial Revolution
Reading:
A Christmas Carol (excerpts only)
Animal Farm
“Secret of the Machines,” Rudyard Kipling
Third Trimester
Unit 5 - Communism and Socialism
Areas of Interaction
Community and Service

Key vocabulary terms






Karl Marx: Life and Theories
Surplus v. Labour Theory of Value
Marxist perspective of history
Revolutionary and Evolutionary Socialism
Source document: The Communist Manifesto (excerpts)
Study of Animal Farm
Reading:
Animal Farm
“Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut
Unit 6 - Japanese History: Meiji Period
Areas of Interaction
ATL



Japanese geography: physical and political
Transition from feudal society to modern industrial power
Letters of diplomacy


Coming of the Blackships
Primary source documents: liberal and conservative attitudes to Meiji policy of
modernization
Group projects: Sino - Japanese War; Russo - Japanese Wars; Personalities of the
Meiji Period
Field trip options: Christian Relics Depository Center, Ibaraki; Ijinkan area of Kobe


Reading:
Writings from Japan by Lafcadio Hearn
BOOK REQUIREMENTS:






Folder section or exercise book for English
Folder section or exercise book for Humanities
Bring Vocabulary books to every English class
School Diary
Electronic/translation dictionaries optional
You are responsible for your own learning Make sure you pack your bag every night, ensuring that you have all
materials for class and your homework is complete.
Time Required: 5 weeks
Broad Goal Statement
Students understand the steps taken by Nazi Germany to dominate Europe from 1920 1939 and appreciate the position of the USA, Britain and France at this time
Knowledge and Content
Grade 9 Humanities Comparative Government / US History of the 20th
Century
The grade 9 Social Studies curriculum focuses on the role of the United States in the
20th century and entails a study of the domestic USA as well as its role in the
international arena. The republican system of government in the USA is studied in
detail and the effects of government on domestic and world affairs. The British
parliamentary system and Japanese Meiji and modern constitutions are also studied
Textbooks
American Adventures: Coming of Age, Scholastic
American Adventures, Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow, Scholastic
A Map History of the United States, Heinemann
The World Since 1900, Heinemann
Unit Title- The World in 1900
Grade 9: Date: September - Teacher: Michael J. McGill
Time Required: 1 week
Broad Goal Statement
Provide a bridge from the grade 8 Social Studies curriculum in grade 8 to grade 9 and
provide the students with a sense of the world, politically, economically, culturally and
demographically in the year 1900. Students will develop an awareness of the shifting
nature of world politics, demographics, and power structures
Knowledge and Content


Interpret an historical map of the world in 1900
Appreciate the extent of empires in the world at this time and the consequences of
imperialism

Understand the essential differences between the world map in 1900 and the current
day

Appreciate the dynamics of change in the world of 1900
Suggested Activities

Draw a map of the world in 1900

Design a chart showing the differences between the world in 1900 and the current
day


Define a list of key terms using the dictionary
Note - taking based on the video, People of the Twentieth Century
Evaluation

Map test over the map of 1900 (as part of the unit test: Events 1870 - 1920)
Student Materials
Rand McNally, Historical Atlas
The World Since 1914 (Introduction)
Coming of Age, Unit 3
Teacher Resources Available
People of the Twentieth Century, video series
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Unit Title- Events 1870 - 1920
Grade 9: Date: September / October - Teacher: Michael J. McGill
Time Required: 5 weeks
Broad Goal Statement
Provide an understanding of the period 1870 - 1920, how this led to the outbreak of
World War I and the subsequent impact upon the USA. Appreciate the impact of the
Great War on geo - politics in Europe and the Middle East, the "isolation" of the USA,
the lives of the individual. Encourage empathy with differing viewpoints.
Knowledge and Content








Geo - political geography in 1900 / 1914 / 1920
Sequence of events from 1870 - 1920
The uses and purpose of propaganda
Systems of alliances
Cause and effect relationships throughout the period
Poetry from the Great War
The background to the Treaty of Versailles
Role of Woodrow Wilson

American domestic politics and its effect on the peace settlement
Suggested Activities






Complete a timeline 1870 - 1920 and provide historical labeling
Complete a series of worksheets on propaganda and its uses
Design a work of propaganda targeting either the Triple Alliance or the Entente
Key terms
Group reading of a selection of poetry by Sassoon, Owen, Brooke and Yeats
Write draft recommendations to interested parties at Versailles - point of view
Evaluation


Unit test over the material covered
Continuous assessment of students throughout the unit based on successful
completion of homework assignments, participation, etc.

Writing assignments on the Treaty of Versailles
Student Materials
Relevant sections from The World Since 1914, Coming of Age
Video Series: History of the Twentieth Century
Teacher Resources Available
History of the Twentieth Century
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unit Title- American Government
Grade 9: Teacher: Michael J. McGill
Time Required: 7 weeks
Broad Goal Statement
Provide students with a general grounding of the US governmental system; a working
vocabulary on government; an understanding of the historical origins and precedents of
the US Republic; an appreciation of the American Constitution as a living document
Knowledge and Content

Key terms









Settlement of the 13 Atlantic seaboard colonies
Map work - Thirteen Colonies, USA physical / political
Reasons for separation from England / Declaration of Independence
Problems facing the new USA after the War of Independence
Historical context for the writing of the Constitution
Study of the Constitution
Processes - Bill becomes law, amending the Constitution, Impeachment
Federal v State responsibility
Notable cases brought before the Supreme Court
Suggested Activities





Key terms
Map work
Reading excerpts from the Declaration of Independence
Completion of work booklet on the article, "Founding the Republic"
Play - "Making the Constitution" (from Scholastic Magazine)




Group study of the Constitution with accompanying work booklet
Watching relevant excerpts from news broadcasts which touch on US government
Act out cases brought before the Supreme Court
Research landmark Supreme Court Decisions - using Supreme Court websites,
internet

Write up rulings on landmark cases from the point of view of a Supreme Court
justice
Evaluation


Unit test over the material covered
Continuous assessment of students throughout the unit based on successful
completion of homework assignments, participation, etc.

Writing: Supreme Court decisions
Student Materials
Personal annotated copy of the US Constitution
A Map history of the United States
Handouts
Teacher Resources Available
News broadcast collection
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Unit Title- How American Women Got the Vote
Grade 9: Teacher: Michael J. McGill
Time Required: 2 weeks
Broad Goal Statement
Provide students with an understanding of how women won the vote in the USA and
appreciate the impact this had on American political and social life. Understand the
process needed to amend the US Constitution
Knowledge and Content


Development of the women's movement from the mid - 1840s until 1920
Understand the process of how an amendment is made to the Constitution
Suggested Activities


Research different countries to determine when and where women achieved suffrage
Work on primary and secondary source materials


Map work - spread of female suffrage through the USA
Watching documentary video
Evaluation

Continuous assessment of students throughout the unit based on successful
completion of homework assignments, participation, etc.
Student Materials
Personal annotated copy of the US Constitution
A Map history of the United States
American Adventures
Handouts
Teacher Resources Available
News broadcast collection
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Unit Title- America in the 1920s / The Great Depression
Grade 9: Teacher: Michael J. McGill
Time Required: 4 weeks
Broad Goal Statement
Provide students with an understanding of the impact of the boom / bust scenario in the
1920s and the internal and global repercussions of the Wall Street Crash
Knowledge and Content


Key Terms
The chronology of the period 1919 - 1937 in the USA. The cycles of boom and bust
and how they worked





The relationship between WWI and the US boom and bust
The workings of a stock market
The figure of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his impact on the USA
The New Deal
Global significance of the New Deal
Suggested Activities







Key terms
Draw diagrams explaining the boom and bust cycles
Study a selection of primary / secondary source documents and satirical cartoons
Complete exercises in American Adventures
Study excerpts of Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath
Write a "Fireside Chat" - students become FDR
Watch documentary on the "Roaring 20s" and the Depression
Evaluation

Continuous assessment of students throughout the unit based on successful
completion of homework assignments, participation, etc.


Writing piece - FDR's Fireside Chats
Unit test
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Student Materials
A Map history of the United States
American Adventures
Handouts
Teacher Resources Available
The Roaring 20s / Depression - Video
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Unit Title- The League of Nations
Grade 9: Teacher: Michael J. McGill
Time Required: 3 weeks
Broad Goal Statement
Students understand the circumstances of the birth of the League, US relation to it, the
League's organization, and the challenges it faced in the 1930s
Knowledge and Content


Key Terms
Review of Wilson's Fourteen Points / US reaction to the League



Covenant of the League
Organization of the League
Manchurian and Abyssinian crises
Suggested Activities

Key terms


1.
2.
3.
Primary / secondary source documents
Group project. Three areas of focus:
Organization of the League
Manchurian crisis
Abyssinian Crisis



Research - Internet, library resources for information on the project
Watch documentaries on the League
Digitizing video clips for presentation

Using Power Point to assist in presentation
Evaluation


Group presentation on chosen topic - Rubric
Continuous assessment of students throughout the unit based on successful
completion of homework assignments, participation, etc.
Student Materials
The World Since 1900
American Adventures
Handouts
Teacher Resources Available
BBC Video - The League
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unit Title- Europe in the 1930s: Road to War
Grade 9: Teacher: Michael J. McGill


Key Terms
Rise of the Nazi party in the 1920s



Hitler's rise to power in Germany
Hitler's plan to "undo" the Treaty of Versailles
What constitutes a satirical cartoon?
Suggested Activities



Key terms
Primary / secondary source documents
Exercises from The World Since 1900




Collect and organize a selection of satirical cartoons pertaining to the period
Create and draw a satirical cartoon
Watch selections from The World at War series
Examine the cause and effect relations between WWI and WWII


Write a paper assessing Hitler's role in bringing war to Europe
Read and discuss The Wave
Evaluation

Unit test over the material covered



Writing piece
Drawing a satirical cartoon
Continuous assessment of students throughout the unit based on successful
completion of homework assignments, participation, etc.
Student Materials
American Adventures
World Since 1900
The Wave
Handouts
Teacher Resources Available
World at War video series
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unit Title- The Pacific War: Pearl Harbor and the Use of Atomic Weapons
Grade 9: Teacher: Michael J. McGill
Time Required: 5 weeks
Broad Goal Statement
By the end of the unit the students will understand how the USA became involved in
WWII and the role the atomic bombs played in bringing the Pacific War to a close.
Students will examine in detail the motives for the dropping of the atomic bombs and
consider, in the light of their research, whether the use of the bombs was in any way
justified.
Knowledge and Content






Events leading to the attack on Pearl Harbor
Rise of militarism in Japan in the 1920s
Cause and effect relationship of events leading up to Pearl Harbor
Reasons for the use of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
US foreign policy of the period
Situation of American - Japanese in the USA during WWII

Using the Internet for research
Suggested Activities


Primary / secondary source documents
Exercises from The World Since 1900

Write a research paper entitled: Where the allies justified in using atomic bombs on
Hiroshima and Nagasaki?






Conduct research in the library using library resources and the Internet
Compile a bibliography of sources used
The World at War video, The Bomb
Debate - debating topic same as research essay
Use PowerPoint to enhance debate: scanning, making slides, digitizing video
Read Farewell to Manzanar
Evaluation


Unit test over the material covered
Individual research paper


Participating in debate
Continuous assessment of students throughout the unit based on successful
completion of homework assignments, participation, etc.
Student Materials
American Adventures
World Since 1900
Farewell to Manzanar
Handouts
Teacher Resources Available
World at War video series
Unit Title- The Japanese Constitution
Grade 9: Teacher: Michael J. McGill
Time Required: 4 weeks
Broad Goal Statement
Students will study key articles of the modern Japanese Constitution. They will come to
appreciate the influence of the US Constitution on the modern US Japanese Constitution.
A comparison and contrast of the modern and Meiji Constitution (1889) will be made to
demonstrate the constitution's evolution. The influence of the British parliamentary
system on the structure of Japanese government will also be examined.
Knowledge and Content

Role of the USA and General Douglas MacArthur in the drafting of the modern
constitution



Life of Douglas MacArthur
Interpreting diagrams - comparison / contrast of the modern and Meiji constitutions
Study of specific articles of the modern Japanese Constitution

Outline of the British parliamentary system and its influence on the Japanese
government
Suggested Activities

Primary / secondary source documents





Group study of the modern and Meiji constitutions
Interpreting diagrams - explain the workings of the Japanese constitutions
Compare and contrast the Meiji and modern constitution
Read National Geographic article on the life of Douglas MacArthur
Read selection of newspaper articles relating to the Japanese government and
constitution
Evaluation

Written exercise comparing and contrasting the Meiji and modern constitutions

Continuous assessment of students throughout the unit based on successful
completion of homework assignments, participation, etc.
Student Materials
American Adventures
World Since 1900
Copies of the Meiji and modern constitutions
Handouts
Teacher Resources Available
National Geographic magazine
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Unit Title- Looking Forward
Grade 9: Teacher: Michael J. McGill
Time Required: 1 week
Broad Goal Statement
Students will develop an overview of events related to the USA since 1945
Knowledge and Content





Origins of the Cold War
USA - Soviet friction: Korea, Vietnam, Cuba
The space race
Death of John F. Kennedy
Civil Rights movement
Suggested Activities



Primary / secondary source documents
Exercises from The World Since 1900
Video- People's Century
Evaluation

Continuous assessment of students throughout the unit based on successful
completion of homework assignments, participation, etc.
Student Materials
American Adventures
World Since 1900
Handouts
Teacher Resources Available
The People's Century