WILLIAM FAULKNER AND “BARN BURNING” LESSON PLAN
Teacher: _________Angel Jackson_________________
Grade Level: _____9________
Subject: ___Literature______________ Amount of time needed: Four 60 min. class periods
Lesson Topic: ____William Faulkner and “Barn Burning”
_______________________
Objectives:
1. The students will understand the basic biographical and thematic elements of
William Faulkner. (COGNITIVE)
1.1 Read and discuss facts about Faulkner’s life, themes of writing, and awards.
(Knowledge)
1.2 Answer questions aloud demonstrating comprehension of Faulkner’s life applications.
(Comprehension)
2. The students will understand how different thematic elements, particularly in
Faulkner, become important to an individual. (COGNITIVE)
2.1 Share aloud about different themes in the story and what lesson each theme presents.
(Knowledge)
2.2 Write a paragraph individually about how/why a certain theme stands out as
important. (Comprehension)
3. The students will learn to empathize and sympathize with characters based on the
theme of inequality among social classes. (COGNITIVE)
3.3 Act as though they are Rich and Poor and experience the conflict between classes.
(Application)
3.2 Decide what is fair while cooperating with those from other social classes.
(Evaluation)
Materials needed:
-
Handouts: 1-page William Faulkner biography
- PowerPoint: biography, themes, awards of Faulkner
- Handouts: Map of Faulkner’s imaginary county
- Word Search: Faulkner-related terms
- Handouts: Themes in “Barn Burning”
- Short Written Quiz: 3-8 objective questions, 1 short answer question
- Handouts: Directions for group activity
- Poster-making supplies: Posters, markers, colored paper, scissors, glue, etc.
Standards Addressed:
. 9.3.3 Analyze interactions between characters in a literary text and explain the way those
interactions affect the plot.
. 9.3.12 Analyze the way in which a work of literature is related to the themes and issues of its
historical period.
. 9.5.2 Write responses to literature that: • demonstrate a comprehensive grasp of the significant
ideas of literary works. • support statements with evidence from the text. • demonstrate an
awareness of the author’s style and an appreciation of the effects created. • identify and
assess the impact of ambiguities, nuances, and complexities within the text.
Sequential Activities (with time estimates):
0. At the end of class the day before beginning this lesson, the teacher should tell students that
they will be doing a unit on William Faulkner for the next three days. The teacher should
explain that a couple fun activities will be included, so the students should get excited about the
week. The teacher should provide each student with a one-page biography of Faulkner and
assign the students to read it for the next day’s class, and tell students to come to class the next
day ready to get engaged. (5 min.)
Lesson Part 1: Information-Processing Approach
Day 1
1. At the beginning of class, the teacher should provide students with a short overview of the
activities for the next few days, and communicate the expectation for students to attend and
participate in class, and to complete assignments. Show all of the assignments for the whole unit
on the board so that the students can write them down. Also, the teacher must explain that there
will be one written quiz and one group poster project which will count for grades so that the
students understand they will receive grades based on this unit. (5 min.)
2. Begin by asking students to take out their short biography assigned for reading the night
before. Go over it, discussing things the students found interesting about it. Guide a discussion
of William Faulkner’s biographical information with a PowerPoint listing main biographical
points, major themes in his works, his awards, etc. Discuss how the different locations in which
he lived and traveled influenced and affected his writing. Hand out to each student a map of the
imaginary county created by Faulkner as well as showing it on the PowerPoint and have students
provide their thoughts on how that county could have related to Faulkner’s life. (20 min.)
3. Follow up with a more in-depth discussion about Faulkner’s major themes and applications to
life. Allow students to give answers as to how the life applications might apply to them or parts
of their lives. Talk about how Faulkner’s pieces have made an impact on society and why they
are important to read. (20 min.)
4. Finish the day by giving the students the attached word search with terms relating to Faulkner
to find. Allow the students to choose a partner, move to sit near their partner, and work together
on the puzzle. As class ends, remind students about the assignment for the evening, to read
Faulkner’s “Barn Burning” in their textbooks. (15 min.)
Lesson Part 2: Cognitive Constructivist Approach
Day 2
5. At the beginning of class, the teacher should provide each student with a handout listing some
main themes present in William Faulkner’s “Barn Burning” along with a short paragraph under
each theme explaining how/where that theme is present in the story. The teacher should allow
the students to read over the handouts silently for a few minutes and think about what they’ve
read. (8 min.)
6. After the students have read and thought over the handout, the teacher should go over the
themes aloud, encouraging comments and/or questions from the class. When one student asks a
question, the teacher should encourage other students who think they know the answer to share
their knowledge with the class. (20 min.)
7. Next, the students should be given a short written quiz containing 3-8 objective questions and
one short answer question, in which the students are required to write a 3-5 sentence paragraph
describing which theme stood out the most to them and why. The teacher should make sure the
students understand that they will not be graded on what they choose, as long as they support
their answer. (15 min.)
8. After the students have turned in their quizzes, the teacher should ask for volunteers to share
their answers to the short answer question with the class. The teacher should then lead a short
class discussion based on the students’ answers, allowing everyone to have input about why
certain themes stick out to some people more than others, and how the different themes apply to
their lives. (15 min.)
9. As class ends, the teacher should assign the students to skim the story again and write a
paragraph about the theme of inequality of social classes that is present in the story, as well as
their response to it or with whom they sympathize more in the story. (2 min.)
Lesson Part 3: Cooperative Learning Approach
10. Prior to class on day 3, the teacher should choose groups of three students apiece,
incorporating boys/girls, low-achieving/high-achieving, different ethnicities, and students from
different groups of friends in each group. The teacher should take great care in this process, in
order to promote success for all groups. (30-60 min.)
Day 3
11. At the beginning of class, the teacher should have the students get into their assigned groups
of three. Then, by a coin flip, roll of dice, rock-paper-scissors or some other objective selection
method, two of the students should be assigned as Poor and one as Rich. The Rich person will
have the responsibility of doing all of the writing for the group, as well as being the group leader.
The two Poor people must decide amongst themselves who will be the spokesperson and who
will be the poster-maker. (15 min.)
12. After all roles have been assigned, each group should be given a set of directions for the
day’s activity. (SEE ATTACHED). The teacher must explain that each group member must
participate in the activity equally as Writer/Group Leader, Spokesperson, and Poster-maker, each
role which will have equal weight on their group’s grade for the day. (5 min.)
13. The students should be given the remainder of the class period to complete the activity as
described in the directions. (40 min.)
Day 4
14. The students should be given the next day’s class period to finish their posters. If time
permits, a debriefing discussion could be beneficial to the students’ understanding of the activity.
(60 min.)
Source(s) used:
Lesson Part 1: All elements of Part 1 were a product of my own creativity. I created the
word search using terms I thought of myself on http://puzzlemaker.discoveryeducation.com
Lesson Part 2: The majority of Part 2 was a product of my own creativity. However, for
part of Lesson Part 2, I adapted some ideas for discussion from a lesson on Fiction I found
online.
Fenichel, M. and Green, L. (2008). The Power of Fiction. Retrieved December 1, 2009, from
http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans/programs/poweroffiction/
Lesson Part 3: All elements of Part 3 were a product of my own creativity.