Jane Eyre Lesson Plan
Grade Level: 9 – 12
Use Adapted Version of the original book published by Charlotte Bronte. (Lexile 540)
Objectives: Students will be able to examine themes relating to morality, god and
religion, social class, gender, love, independence, and family.
Background – Discuss standards set by Victorian society regarding social class.
Point out, that Jane Eyre was an unusually assertive, independent female for her
time.
Charlotte Bronte is regarded as one of the most influential writers of her time.
Selected Discovery Education Resources that support this lesson plan:
http://tools.discoveryeducation.com/quiz/viewQuiz.cfm?guidAssetID=1f2fd58b8478-4d70-8297-66371bf0726a&blnMyContent=1
http://player.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm?guidAssetId=f5b7d687-f478-45dd9632-80ff4483b923
http://player.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm?guidAssetId=897695c5-cecf-4b9ca184-77f186efc5b5
http://player.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm?guidAssetId=64c595bd-bfbd-4a559488-4511de731966
http://player.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm?guidAssetId=e252aee1-6001-48c493aeefe4c5b93fd6http://player.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm?guidAssetId=e252aee1
-6001-48c4-93ae-efe4c5b93fd6
Procedures:
-Students begin with the Getting Started page of the Journal and respond to the
Exchange Question: Can you love someone who lies to you?
-Assign sections of the book to read, after which students are to respond to the
corresponding Student Journal pages.
As students read, use the Before You Move On questions in the book to guide
comprehension. Use the Look Ahead to set a focus for reading the next set of pages.
Introduction
Respond to Chapters 1-4
Respond to Chapters 5-8
Respond to Chapters 9-12
Respond to Chapters 13-14
Assessment:
-Students will write a character analysis of Jane Eyre and Edward Fairfax
Rochester.
-Essay Questions
Jane Eyre
(Answer 4 of the following)
1. Does Edward Rochester actually intend to marry Blanche Ingram? If so,
when does he change his mind? If not, why does he try to make Jane believe
that he does love Blanche?
2. When Jane hears Rochester's voice calling while he is miles away, Jane says
the phenomenon "is the work of nature". What does she mean by this? What
are we intended to conclude about the meaning of this experience?
3. In Jane Eyre, nothing can better show a man's moral worth than the way in
which he treats the women in his life. How is Edward Rochester's character
reflected in the way he treats Bertha Mason, Adele, and Jane?
4. Throughout the novel, questions of identity are raised. From her identity as
an orphan and stranger in the hostile environment of Gateshead to that of a
ward of the church at Lowood; from her being a possible wife of Rochester,
then of St. John, to being the cousin of Diana and Mary, Jane is constantly in
transition. How do these changes affect Jane's view of herself and the world
around her?
5. Scenes of madness and insanity are among the most important plot devices
in Jane Eyre. Give examples from the story.
6. There is probably no single line in the whole of Jane Eyre that has, in itself,
attracted as much critical attention as the first line of the last chapter:
"Reader, I married him." Why is the phrasing of this line so important?
How would the sense be different (for the sentence and for the novel as a
whole) if the line read, "Reader, we were married"?