My Thirteenth Winter Unit Plan
Unit Author
First and Last Name
Morgan Martin
School District
Northern Local
School Name
Sheridan HS
School City, State
Thornville, OH
Unit Overview
Unit Title
Understanding Personal Challenges through the Challenges of Others
Unit Summary
Students will read a variety of literature containing main characters who face some sort of disability
or challenge. To connect with the literature, students will perform both individual and group
activities. The culminating project will be a personal narrative in which the student reflects on a
struggle of his or her own.
Subject Area
English Language Arts
Grade Level
9
Approximate Time Needed
3 weeks
Materials
My Thirteenth Winter (selected chapters)
Reach for the Moon (selected poems)
“On Being Seventeen and Unable to Read” (essay)
“My Delicate Heart Condition” (short story)
Newspaper Feature Article about Temple Grandin
Film clips from any of the following:
The Elephant Man
Forrest Gump
Girl, Interrupted
I am Sam
Temple Grandin
What’s Eating Gilbert Grape
Unbreakable
Unit Foundation
Targeted Content Standards and Benchmarks
Acquisition of Vocabulary
Reading Process
Reading Applications: Informational and Literary
Writing Process, Applications and Conventions
Research
Communication: Written and Oral
Student Objectives/Learning Outcomes
Students will employ reading comprehension strategies to monitor and improve understanding of unit
texts. Students will apply their understanding in activities that will require analysis and evaluation.
Finally, students wills synthesize all of the learning gained through those activities in their own
personal narrative essays.
Curriculum-Framing Questions
Essential
Question
How do others, and in turn can we, overcome obstacles and challenges in
order to thrive?
Assessment Plan
Research Hook: In order to build background knowledge, students will work with a partner to
research an assigned disability or challenge. Students will have a list of project options (pamphlet,
Glog, poster, PowerPoint, etc.) from which to choose in order to present their findings.
Dialog Journal—Making Connections: As students read each text, they will keep a journal log of
the connections that they make to the characters and situations in the literature on a provided
graphic organizer.
Comparison/Contrast Chart: Students will create their own comparison/contrast chart in which
they will determine the differences and similarities of the challenges that the characters face.
Body Biography: In groups, students will be assigned a character from one of the texts. They will
complete a character description and create a body biography to represent that character. (I can
provide the lesson and handouts that go with this if anyone wants it.)
Found Poetry: Students will choose a text from the unit. They will also be given a photo and a
song. Using the quotes from the text, lyrics from the song, and imagery from the photo, students
will compose a poem with a similar mood and theme as the text.
Multi-genre Personal Narrative Essay: As a culminating project, students will be assigned the
task of creating a personal narrative essay. Student may simply compose a traditional essay, or for
extra credit, they can create a multi-genre essay, in which they reflect on a disability or challenging
experience of their own. This will be assigned at the beginning of the unit. Students will be given
organizers to brainstorm, plan and draft their essays as the unit progresses.
Other Assessments:
Comprehension Questions
Quizzes
Discussion