CCSS ELA Units
Syllabus: Grade 10 ELA Unit 1
Theme: Narrative Writing: Inquiring Minds Want to Know
Big Idea
Storytelling is more than listing a sequence of events.
Essential Questions
(Incorporate Real World Connections)
What are the traits and characteristics of good
storytelling?
Essential Standards: Reading Literature
RL-3: Analyze how complete characters (e.g. those with multiple or conflicting motivations)
develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or
develop the theme.
RL-4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including
figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on
meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a
formal or information tone).
RL-5: Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure a text, order events within
it (e.g., parallel plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks) create such effects as
mystery, tension, or surprise.
Essential Standards: Reading Language
L-1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when
writing or speaking.
L-2 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation,
and spelling when writing.
L-6 Acquire and use accurately general academic and domain-specific words and phrases,
sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level;
demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or
phrase important to comprehension or expression.
Essential Standards: Writing
1
7/30/2014
CCSS ELA Units
W-3a Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective
technique, well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences.
a. Engage and orient the reader by setting out a problem, situation, or observation,
establishing one or multiple point(s) of view, and introducing a narrator and/or
characters; create a smooth progression of experiences or events.
W-3b Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, description, reflection, and multiple
plot lines, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.
W-3d Use precise words and phrases, telling details, and sensory language to convey a vivid
picture of the experiences, events, setting, and/or characters.
W-3e Provide a conclusion that follows from and reflects on what is experienced, observed, or
resolved over the course of the narrative.
W-6 Use technology, including the Internet, to produce, publish, and update individual or
shared writing products, taking advantage of technology’s capacity to link to other information
and to display information flexibly and dynamically.
Student Assignments
Assignment 1: The Necklace - Green Literature Book
Read: Learn About Character p. 30
Read: The Necklace pp. 31-38
Answer Questions 1-2 p. 30
Answer “Think About Character” Questions p. 41
Complete “Predict Outcomes” worksheet. P. 10
Complete “Develop Your Vocabulary” section of Review the Selection. p. 41
Complete “Word List” work from Comprehension and Vocabulary Workbook. P. 9
Complete Writing Connection p. 30 REQUIRED: use 5-7 vocabulary words from the story
vocabulary list.
Assignment 2:
Memoirs: Edge Orange Level The Right Words at The Right Time by John Leguizamo,
Assign activities from EDGE Resources
Assign lessons and modules from Plato “RCOE Grade 10 Unit 1” Resource located under local
content. (teacher assignments based on individual student needs)
Assignment 3:
Biographies: Up From Slavery: An Autobiography by Booker T. Washington (teacher selected
passages) Optional Study Questions Up From Slavery
Write an autobiography about an event in your life. Plan your writing using the graphic
organizer provided in Student Resources. Edit your writing using the Narrative Essay Revising &
Editing Guide in student resources. Submit your autobiography at http://www.paperrater.com/
for a final check before submitting it to your teacher.
2
7/30/2014
CCSS ELA Units
Assignment 4: Use Dictionary.com to find or create a word list. Play a game with the vocabulary
words in Unit 1 Student Resources. Print your score from a game if you earned at least 80%.
Assignment 5:
Search You Tube for information on writing narrative essays. Compile a list of a minimum of
three videos which helped you understand the narrative essay writing process. Compose an
annotated list of your resources and submit your annotated resource list to Haiku.
Watch Video “Writing Process Animation”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1pnpL8295E&feature=player_detailpage
Write a blog post about one of the following:
A time you made a difference in the life of another person.
A time you solved a challenging predicament.
A personality trait that will help you succeed.
A time you felt grateful
Propose your own idea to your teacher
Submit your blog to your teacher for posting on the student blog page of our Class Haiku page.
Assessment
Oars Inspect Grade 10 Unit I ELA Assessment (required)
3
7/30/2014
CCSS ELA Units
Student Resources
Academic Vocabulary
Tier 2 Words
earnest
philanthropy
zeal
notwithstanding
stagnate
prudent
resolve
superficial
cease
forbearance
comedian
career
react
obstacle
obnoxious
paraphrase
commerce
appraise
dabble
bemuse
derogatory
recumbent
fascinate
maul
subside
meager
cower
4
Tier 3 Words
analyze
conflicting
complex
theme
acquire
theme
academic
domain-specific
comprehension
expression
structured
engage
narrator
progression
reflection
vivid
manipulate
evokes
7/30/2014
CCSS ELA Units
5
7/30/2014
CCSS ELA Units
Narrative Essay Revising & Editing Guide
1. Check for complete sentences.
Do you have a subject?
Do you have a verb?
Do you have a complete thought?
Do you have a run-on or a fragment?
2. Eliminate run-ons and fragments.
Read each sentence one at a time starting at the end of your paper. You are not
looking for continuity of thought here – just checking for run-ons and fragments.
Run-ons go on & on and usually have two or more thoughts that are not joined
properly.
Fragments are usually either
• missing a subject or a verb OR
• begin with a conjunction like because, when, since.
3. Check sentence variety in each paragraph.
Are the sentences in the paragraph all short or all long?
Are there any sentences you can combine?
4. Circle conjunctions.
And, or, but, for, nor, so, yet
What are you joining with the conjunction? Words, phrases, or sentences?
5. Check commonly confused words.
Its/it’s
Your/you’re
There/their/they’re
Affect/Effect
For more, check out the resources in your classroom – ask your teacher.
6. Check for subject-verb agreement.
Subject and verb “match.” Ex: I run everyday. She runs everyday.
7. Check for pronoun-antecedent.
Can you tell who is “he,” “she” or “they”?
Can you tell what is “it,” “that” or “this”?
The pronoun should refer to the last noun (antecedent) you used before the
pronoun.
8. Check for dead words.
6
7/30/2014
CCSS ELA Units
Avoid simple or overused words like got, is, was, things, stuff...
Use your thesaurus to find a better word.
9. Check for misspelled words.
Circle them.
Look them up in dictionary & correct.
10. Check for punctuation.
Use a comma (,)
• Between two sentences before “and” or “but” or other conjunctions (see
item 15 on this list)
• Between words in a series of 3 or more items.
• After an introductory phrase.
Use a period (.), question mark (?), or exclamation point (!) at the end of a
sentence.
11. Check for capitalization.
First letter of a sentence
Proper names
Titles (book, magazine, newspaper, movie)
7
7/30/2014
CCSS ELA Units
Extension Activities or Final Course Essay/Project
Dream of a Nation
http://dreamofanation.org/educators/the-book/
1. Read
Students should begin by reading several narrative essays found in Dream of a
Nation. Students can self-select two or three articles from the articles below
Painting Hope in the World by Lily Yeh (chapter 12)
Realizing Our Roots and the Power of Interconnectedness by Mona Polacca (chapter
12)
War and Ending It by Michael T. McPhearson (chapter 11)
Transforming Urban Injustice into Beauty and Empowerment by Majora Carter
(chapter 10)
As Long as It’s Been by Irene Mabry Moses (p.262, chapter 8)
Building a Conservation Nation by Jeff Barrie (chapter 6)
Seeing Education in a New Light by Geoffrey Canada (chapter 5)
Helping Others: Finding the Will and the Way by Sejal Hathi (chapter 2)
As students read they should take notes on how the authors structure the narrative
essays. Students should notice:
-What personal experience the author references
-How this personal experience connects with the larger social issue the author
addresses
-What facts the author gives about the social issue
-What details the author gives about their personal experience
-How the connection between personal experience and facts makes the reader
connect and care about the social issue discussed
2. Picking a Social Issue
Students should pick an issue which has directly affected their lives. Brainstorm
the various societal issues people could confront. Students pick two or three
issues and make a list of life events which have been affected by these issues.
Encourage them to be specific in terms of a moment. For example, instead of
writing “poverty” have students write “last Christmas”. After they have made
these lists then have them selected the situation about which they can recall the
most details. This will be the social issue and the personal event which provide
the content for their narrative essay.
8
7/30/2014
CCSS ELA Units
3. Gather Facts
Once students have a social topic selected they should do some research on this
topic in order to provide facts for their narrative essay. Facts can be found on the
Dream of a Nation website. Students can look at the Solutions and Actions page.
Have students first select the chapter and then the article which pertains most
directly to their issue. These pages feature videos, partner organization websites
and answers to pertinent questions from which students can draw relevant
information. Students should take notes on facts using the Issue Fact Notes
Handout. They should write down facts they find interesting but remind them
that not all facts may find their way into their essays. They should only include
the facts which are the most relevant and persuasive in their final essays.
4. Write down the Details
Have them model their essay on one of the narrative essays they read. Using the
notes they took on those essays have them include examples for their own essay,
using their experiences which contain all of the applicable methods: sensory
details, examples of sarcasm, irony, bits of dialogue, point of view
5. Writing, Editing and Revising
The first sentence of any story is oftentimes the most difficult for students to
write. To help them get started give them the Ernest Hemingway six word story:
“For sale: Baby shoes. Never worn.” Have them develop their own six word
stories using the topic and the style they chose for their narrative essay. They
should share these with the class. Then, have the students use these sentences
for the first sentences of their story.
Students should be encouraged to find a writing partner in their class who they
can share their writing with on an ongoing basis. Once they have several pages—
and before they are finished—they should meet in writer’s workshop to listen to
and discuss each other’s stories. They read their story aloud. The listener can
take notes. After the reader is done the first round of comments are positive.
Listeners detail the specific elements in the writing they enjoyed and explain
why. The second round of comments are constructive criticism and should be
focused on a specific point in the text the listener details to the writer. The writer
should take notes on what the listeners say—both positive and constructive
9
7/30/2014
CCSS ELA Units
comments.
Students can participate in writer’s workshop however many times they want
throughout the writing process. Some writer’s find it immensely helpful to
workshop when they get stuck.
Peer proofreading should occur when the students think they are finished. Use
the Narrative Editing Guide to help the peer reader check the story.
6. Evaluation
Use the RCOE Essay Rubric for evaluation of student work. Partial points can be
awarded for each category. Studentscan submit their narrative essays as op-ed
articles for a local newspaper or online teen magazine or news source. Here are
some possible magazines for teens to submit their work: Student Essays can be
posted on Haiku.
Cicada
Teen Ink
YARN
Polyphony H.S.
10
7/30/2014
CCSS ELA Units
Grade Sheet ELA 10 Unit 1
Name_________________
Assignment
Activity 1
Activity 2
Activity 3
Final
The Necklace
(req)
Right Words at the
Right Time (req)
Plato Assignments
Up from Slavery
Study Questions
Personal Narrative
Graphic Organizer
(req)
Student
Autobiography
(req)
Dictionary com
Annotated
Resource List (req)
Blog (req)
CCSS ELA Grade
10 Unit 1
Assessment (req)
Extension or
Supplemental
11
7/30/2014