Focus Plan
Texarkana Independent School District
GRADING
PERIOD:
writer:
3rd six weeks
PLAN CODE:
E10.3.4
Deanna Henderson
Course/subject:
English II
Grade(s):
10
Time allotted
for instruction:
One block class period
Title:
Lesson TOPIC:
TAKS Objective:
FoCUS TEKS and
Student Expectations:
Supporting TEKS and
Student Expectations:
Concepts
memoir
Writing Memoirs Based on a Shared Event
Students write a short memoir about a recent, significant shared event
that affected their school or community. They then compare their
recollections and present evidence that supports their version of the
events.
Objective 4
The student will, within a given context, produce an effective
composition for a specific purpose.
1 (C) organize ideas in writing to ensure coherence, logical
progression, and support for ideas
1 (B) write in voice and style appropriate to audience and purpose
2 (B) develop drafts by organizing and reorganizing content and by
refining style to suit occasion, audience, and purpose
2 (C) proofread writing for appropriateness of organization, content,
style, and conventions
5(A) evaluate writing for both mechanics and content
Enduring Understandings/Generalizations/Principles
The student will understand that
synonyms for memoir are journal, record, log, chronicle, and account. Many
famous people write memoirs, such as: Elie Wiesel, Harry S. Truman,
Richard Nixon, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Joseph Grimaldi.
scenario
a scenario is a possible situation or an imagined sequence of possible
events. It might also be an outline of the plot of a play, opera, or screenplay.
dialogue
the words spoken by characters in a book, film, play, or a section of a work
that contains spoken words are called dialogue. Dialogue is conversation or
talk of any kind between two or more people.
analysis
an analysis is the close examination of something in detail in order to
understand it better or to draw conclusions from it.
autobiography
autobiography is an account of somebody’s life written by that person, or a
life story written by self.
I.
Sequence of Activities (Instructional Strategies)
A.
Focus/connections/anticipatory set
 Before class, identify a recent shared event that all of the students should be
able to remember (such as a talent show, a football victory, a school election,
September 11, the first day of school).
 Write the following prompt on the board for students to respond to in their
journals,
“What do you remember about [event you chose]?”
 Instruct students to provide as many details as possible. You may prompt them
with ideas such as the weather that day, their attire, smells or sounds, etc. After
2-3 minutes, have students compare their responses.
 How do they compare in compare in terms of complementary details?
 Are there any contradictory memories?
 Why might some of the recollections differ?
 You might ask, “Were you all in the same place when it happened? How might
where you were, who you were with, how you were feeling, or what you were
doing before and after the event affect your experience and/or memory of it? Are
any of the recollections false, or just different?”
 As an introduction to reading the article, ask students if they know what a memoir
is. What, if any, memoirs have they read? Did they ever question any of the facts
or details? Do they ever question their own memory? Has anyone ever
contradicted a memory they had about a shared event?
B.
Instructional activities
(demonstrations, lectures, examples, hands-on experiences, role play, active
learning experience, art, music, modeling, discussion, reading, listening, viewing,
etc.)
 As a class, read and discuss the article Handout # 1 - “The Translation of
Wiesel’s ‘Night’ is New, but Old Questions Are Raised”
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/featured_articles/20060120friday.html
 Focus on the following questions: (Handout # 2 – Questions to accompany
“The Translation of Wiesel’s ‘Night’ is New, but Old Questions Are Raised”)
A teacher’s copy with questions answered is provided.
C.
Guided activity or strategy
 Explain to students that they will write a short memoir about their role in or
perspective on a significant, shared event.
 To begin, have students brainstorm some significant events that affected their
school, community or nation from which they believe other people might learn
something.
 Write the list on the board and have students choose one event to write about. (I
recommend choosing a single event so that students can later compare their
recollections and interpretations).
 After brainstorming their list of topics, have students work individually to prepare
an outline for their story that addresses the six essential questions related to the
event: who, what, where, when, why, and how.
 Students should also keep the following questions in mind when writing their
stories: (Write on the board for easier student access.)
Why is this event significant to my peers and/or community?
Why is it important that I participated in, witnessed or learned from the
event?
What can others learn from my account or interpretation?
 Instruct students that when writing their stories they should balance the facts as
they recall them including language and details that relate the drama and
suspense of the event.
 Three elements to consider in writing their version of the events include scenario,
dialogue, and analysis. (Handout # 3 – Three Elements to Consider in Writing
Your Memoir)
 HOMEWORK: Complete your story at home. Be sure to include as much
evidence as possible to support the facts you present. Use the following
questions as a guide: (included in Handout # 3)
1. Is there a photograph or video that shows your role in this event?
2. Do you have letters, email or other written proof from the time of the
event?
3. Is there a third-person account of the event, in writing, that puts you at
the scene and/or confirms your participation, such as a newspaper
article, email or blog in which you were mentioned?
4. Can the other speaker in your dialogue (or a third party) confirm that
the conversation took place as you conveyed it? Can you get
someone(s) to verify the conversation?
If desired: Prepare all your evidence and your completed story for
submission. In class, compile the stories into an anthology book and
submit the finished product to the school library as a history resource. If
appropriate, invite students to submit stories to the school literary
magazine for publication.
II.
D.
Accommodations/modifications
E.
Enrichment
STUDENT PERFORMANCE
A.
Description
Before the class period, the teacher should have the following supplies prepared:
On board: What do you remember about [event you chose]?
Student journals
Pens/pencils
Paper
Whiteboard/markers
Copies of the following handouts
Handout #1 – “The Translation of Wiesel’s ‘Night’ Is New, but Old
Questions Are Raised”
Handout # 2 – Questions to Accompany “The Translation of Wiesel’s
‘Night’ Is New, but Old Questions Are Raised”
Handout # 3 – Three Questions to Consider In Writing Your Memoir
Handout # 4 – Rubric for Evaluating a Memoir
Handout # 5 – Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, Elie Wiesel, December 10,
1986
During the class session, the teacher should put the following on the board:
Who, What, When, Where, Why, How
Why is this event significant to my peers and/or my community?
Why is it important that I witnessed, participated in, or learned from the
event?
What can others learn from my account or interpretation?
B.
Accommodations/modifications
Students needing accommodations/modifications may use the Learning Lab and have
extended time.
C.
Enrichment
 The article references Mr. Wiesel’s statement about “people who have denied the
Holocaust in France and the United States.” Read the author’s memoir, Night;
write a letter to Holocaust deniers from the perspective of the author. Present
letters in class.
 Write a poem about a traumatic event in your life. How can you use literary,
poetic license to express your thoughts and feelings about the event? When
writing an autobiographical poem, what details might be more effective than
others at expressing your perspective? Be creative, expressive and succinct.
Submit poems to your school’s literary magazine for publication.
 Read a memoir or autobiography, such as “The House on Mango Street” by
Sandra Cisneros, “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, or “The Diary of Anne
Frank.” How do the authors use creative literary devices to bring drama and
interest to their stories? Are their stories inherently dramatic? To what degree
does their creativity accentuate the inherent drama in their stories? After reading
the book, choose a personal event in your own life on which to base a memoir.
What creative devices will you employ to accentuate the real-life drama of your
story? What moral or lesson will readers learn after reading your story? Submit
your finished story to your school’s literary journal for publication.
III.
IV.
Assessment of Activities
A.
Description
Students will be evaluated with a class participation grade for the opening exercise.
Students’ memoirs will be evaluated using Handout # 4 – Rubric for Evaluating a
Memoir.
B.
Rubrics/grading criteria
See Handout # 4 – Rubric for Evaluating a Memoir
C.
Accommodations/modifications
The rubric may be modified for students requiring accommodations.
D.
Enrichment
Student requiring enrichment may receive extra credit for a finished product.
E.
Sample discussion questions
 To what degree, if at all, does questioning the facts in a memoir affect your
willingness or ability to learn from the overall lesson or moral the author is trying
to relate?
 What responsibility, if any, do you think publishers should have in verifying the
facts of an author’s recollections in a memoir?
 If two people publish conflicting versions of a single event, how do you decide if
one version is more “true?” Is it possible to have two conflicting versions of a
single event that are both factually-based?
TAKS Preparation
A.
Transition to TAKS context
Writing the TAKS ELA essay is an integral part of the TAKS 10th grade test. A student
must score at least a “2” on the essay portion of the test in order to pass the TAKS ELA
test.
B.
Sample TAKS questions
You have previously read Elie Wiesel’s Night. Today we are going to read Mr. Wiesel’s
acceptance speech which he gave when he received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986. He
was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work advocating human rights and peace
worldwide. Imagine what it would have been like to be in the audience as he delivered
this speech. Handout # 5 – Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, Elie Wiesel, December
10, 1986
After reading the Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, students will write the following essay:
Wiesel says, “Our lives no longer belong to us alone; they belong to all those who need
us desperately.” Write an essay describing a time in your life when a family member or
friend might have said this to you.
V.
VI.
Key Vocabulary
Harrowing, revived, autobiographical, furor, contradicted, arguably, seized, discrepancy,
commissioned, expunged, variant, furtive, copulate, reinstated, subtleties, nuances,
transparency
Resources
A.
B.
Textbook
Supplementary materials
“Night” by Elie Wiesel
Handout #1 – “The Translation of Wiesel’s ‘Night’ Is New, but Old Questions Are
Raised”
Handout # 2 – Questions to Accompany “The Translation of Wiesel’s ‘Night’ Is
New, but Old Questions Are Raised”
Handout # 3 – Three Questions to Consider In Writing Your Memoir
Handout # 4 – Rubric for Evaluating a Memoir
Handout # 5 – Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, Elie Wiesel, December 10, 1986
C.
VII.
Technology
FOLLOW UP ACTIVITIES
(reteaching, cross-curricular support, technology activities, next lesson in sequence, etc.)
A.
Review of skills
A review of the novel Night by Elie Wiesel might be necessary if this lesson plan is not
used within a short period of time after completing the book.
B.
Next lesson in sequence
 The writing of the TAKS ELA essay may be the next lesson in sequence.

VIII.
Over the course of 2 or 3 class sessions, watch two films about the Holocaust – a
documentary and a fictionalized account. How do the two films compare in terms
of their main characters, content, tone, imagery and narrative line? Is one
account more “real” than the other? Is one more objective? Does your reaction to
the information provided in the film differ based on the format? Organize a class
discussion about these questions and the issues raised in the two films.
Teacher Notes

It is suggested that this lesson plan be used in connection with the reading of Elie
Wiesel’s “Night.”

The TAKS ELA essay should be evaluated following the TAKS ELA scoring of 1, 2, 3, 4.
 This lesson plan is based on the following website:
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/20060120friday_print.html