8th Grade Civics Course: Unit 1 Close Reading Resource
Boston Public Schools
History/Social Studies Department
KEY CLOSE READING RESOURCE
TITLE:
GRADE:
American Dream or Nightmare: Perspectives of Two American Writers
8th Grade Civics Course
Unit 1: We The People
MA/COMMON CORE FRAMEWORKS:
TIME:
RI 2. Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over
the course of the text, including its relationship to supporting ideas;
provide an objective summary of the text.
Early in the Unit, after looking at the demographics and diversity of the US,
and before getting into the citizenship process.
MATERIALS:
Excerpt of "The American Dream" by James Truslow Adams
Excerpt of "The Ballot or the Bullet" by Malcolm X
TEACHER INSTRUCTIONS:
[The Current Instructional Text]
1.) Ask students to read the entire text independently.
2.) Re-read the entire text aloud while the students follow along.
3.) Set up the close reading work. We are reading detectives and are goal is to read this text really closely to
uncover its meaning. The only way to do that is to read it closely.
4.) Let’s look at the first paragraph one more time…
BIG IDEAS AND KEY UNDERSTANDINGS: (Identify the key insights that you want students to understand from
the text)
DO NOT READ TO STUDENTS!

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People have different perspectives on the American Dream based on their own experiences, and the
experiences of people they know in the United States.
According to James Truslow Adams, access to the American Dream only requires that someone work
TEACHER NOTES:
o Teacher may want to give
some background on Truslow
Adams and Malcolm X so
students have a better grasp of
the authors' perspectives.
Truslow Adams was an
American historian who coined
the term "American Dream" in
his 1931 book, The Epic of
America. The Epic of America
was a bestseller at the time.
Malcolm X was an American
writer, scholar, and activist
who advocated for the rights of
African-Americans in the US
from 1952-1965. Over time,
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8th Grade Civics Course: Unit 1 Close Reading Resource

hard.
According to Malcolm X, access to the American Dream can be limited, or even restricted, based on
racial and class barriers.
Malcolm X grew frustrated
with the limited gains of the
non-violent Civil Rights
movement, and began to
espouse the idea that if
African-Americans were being
treated violently, they needed
to respond with self-defense.
SYNOPSIS : (2-4 sentence summary of the text)
DO NOT READ TO STUDENTS!
Truslow Adams argues that America is a place where anyone can achieve upward social mobility, and be
whatever/whoever they want to be as long as they are willing to work hard. Malcolm X argues that race is a
tremendous barrier to accessing the American Dream, and that African-Americans in the US are denied access
based on the color of their skin, while Europeans who immigrate to the US are able to gain immediate access to
the Dream.
TEXT FOR CLOSE READING EXERCISE:
TEXT UNDER DISCUSSION
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TEXT DEPENDENT
QUESTIONS
Begin with a “winnable”
question that will help
orient students to the
text.
The sequence of
questions should build a
gradual understanding
of the key meanings.
Questions should focus
on a word/phrase,
sentence or paragraph.



RESPONSES
Answers that reference the
text.
Multiple responses may be
provided using different pieces
of evidence
Inferences must be grounded
logically in the text
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8th Grade Civics Course: Unit 1 Close Reading Resource
Text 1: James Truslow Adams, The Epic of America, 1931;
Text 2: Malcolm X, "The Ballot or the Bullet", 1964
Text #1:
Historian and writer James Truslow Adams coined the phrase "American Dream"
in his 1931 book The Epic of America:
"The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and
richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or
achievement.... It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a
dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain
to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by
others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or
position."
When was this selection
written?
1931, 1964
Who wrote this selected
reading?
James Truslow Adams, Malcolm X
According to James Truslow
Adams, who can achieve the
American Dream?
Anyone can achieve the American
Dream, provided they are willing to
work hard. "Each man and each
woman shall be able to attain to the
fullest stature of which they are
innately capable, and be recognized by
others for what they are, regardless of
the fortuitous circumstances of birth or
position."
According to this text, what
are the two key elements
that compose the American
Dream?
“attaining the fullest stature of which
they are innately capable” and
“recognized by others…”
Text #2:
“The American Nightmare”—Malcolm X
“I don't even consider myself an American. If you and I were Americans, there'd
be no problem. Those Honkies that just got off the boat, they're already
Americans; Polacks are already Americans; the Italian refugees are already
According to Malcolm X,
who is accepted as an
American?
"Those Honkies that just got off the
boat, they're already Americans;
Polacks are already Americans; the
Italian refugees are already Americans.
Everything that came out of Europe,
every blue-eyed thing, is already an
American."
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8th Grade Civics Course: Unit 1 Close Reading Resource
Americans. Everything that came out of Europe, every blue-eyed thing, is already
an American. And as long as you and I have been over here, we aren't Americans
yet.
“Well, I am one who doesn't believe in deluding myself. I'm not going to sit at
your table and watch you eat, with nothing on my plate, and call myself a diner.
Sitting at the table doesn't make you a diner, unless you eat some of what's on
that plate. Being here in America doesn't make you an American. Being born
here in America doesn't make you an American. Why, if birth made you
American, you wouldn't need any [laws]; you wouldn't need any amendments to
the Constitution; you wouldn't be faced with civil-rights filibustering in
Washington, D.C., right now. They don't have to pass civil-rights legislation to
make a Polack an American.
No, I'm not an American. I'm one of the 22 million black people who are the
victims of Americanism... So, I'm not standing here speaking to you as an
American, or a patriot, or a flag-saluter, or a flag-waver—no, not I. I'm speaking
as a victim of this American system. And I see America through the eyes of the
victim. I don't see any American dream; I see an American nightmare.”
What reasons does Malcolm
X give to argue that being
born in America doesn't
make you American?
“What is the relationship of
the word ‘victim’ in relation
to the word ‘American’?
What word is associated
with American? What word
is associated with victim?
"If birth made you American, you
wouldn't need any [laws]; you wouldn't
need any amendments to the
Constitution; you wouldn't be faced
with civil-rights filibustering in
Washington, D.C., right now. They
don't have to pass civil-rights
legislation to make a Polack an
American."
The words are polar opposites of each
other.. different lives and different
experiences.
American is associated with ‘dream’
Victim is associated with ‘nightmare’ or
22 milllion black people who are the
victims of Americanism’
VOCABULARY
EMBEDDED INSTRUCTION (TIER 2 and 3)
Words that may require some attention in order for students to
understand the selection. Define words quickly using student friendly
definition.
TIER 3
TIER 2
"social order"
"fullest stature"
discriminated
deluding
EXTENDED INSTRUCTION (Tier 2)
Words that build academic language and are essential to understanding the
text. These words may be defined quickly, but will be revisited for students to
integrate into their vocabulary.
ability
achievement
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8th Grade Civics Course: Unit 1 Close Reading Resource
"filibustering"
"Americanism"
fortuitous
legislation
patriot
epic
opportunity
legislation
Innately capable
CULMINATING WRITING TASK (The culminating text dependent question focuses on the key understanding or big idea in the text. The question should
require the writer to find evidence in multiple places throughout the text.)
Using specific evidence from the text that you just read,
Option 1: According to James Truslow Adams, why does the American Dream exist for everyone? According to Malcolm X, why do some people live the
American Nightmare? What evidence from the text supports their opinions, and your own?
Option 2: Why do James Truslow Adams and Malcolm X view life in America so differently? Use specific evidence from the text to explain their
perspectives.
Option 3: Agree or disagree: " The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with
opportunity for each according to ability or achievement...."
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