UNIT PLAN
Unit 4 for Grade 8 Theme: Authors and Artists
Unit Focus
Students examine the aesthetic pleasures of literature and art, reading about artists and authors while viewing fine and commercial art. Students compare reading
with viewing, and contrast artists and authors. Evidence based writing focuses on the motivation and creative process for both artists and authors.
SEL Component
* Social awareness—showing empathy and understanding for others; recognizing and appreciating individual and group similarities and differences.
* Relationship skills—establishing and maintaining positive relationships based on cooperation; preventing and constructively resolving interpersonal
conflict.
Essential Questions
What inspires authors/artist?
How can authors create pictures?
Do artist capture reality or fantasy?
Possible Pre Assessment
Use the Assessment Practice on page 432 -found in McDougal textbook
Possible Unit Summative
Assessment
Written: Essay –Based on in-class readings, students will examine the author’s motivation and artistic inspiration for creating specific works.
Project:
(integrates multiple standards
and skills)
a.
b.
Students will create a picture book; thus, telling a story through visual aids….Pictures are worth a thousand words.
Students will select a work of art, research the signs of the times and provide a report behind the story of the piece.
Use the same Assessment Practice on page 432 and review before and after answers (review with students and have the students explain the changes they made, if any)
(this can be used to review misunderstanding of a particular standard)
Focus Standards for This Unit
Reading Standards for Literature
*Note that RL.8.1, RI.8.1,
RL.8.10, RI.8.10, W.8.9 and
W.8.10 are overarching
standards that should be
addressed in every unit
throughout the year.
RL.8.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and
plot; provide an objective summary of the text.
RL.8.5 Compare and contrast the structure of two or more texts and analyze how the differing structure of each text contributes to its meaning or style.
Reading Standards for Informational Text
RI.8.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the impact of
specific word choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts.
RI.8.5 Analyze in detail the structure of a specific paragraph in a text, including the role of particular sentences in developing and refining a key concept.
Standards that are in the DC
Standards and Core Standards
that need to be covered in a
lesson
Writing Standards
W.8.1 Critique and write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.
(a) Introduce claim(s), acknowledge and distinguish the claim(s) from alternate or opposing claims, and organize the reasons and evidence logically.
(b) Support claim(s) with logical reasoning and relevant evidence, using accurate, credible sources and demonstrating an understanding of the topic or text.
(c) Use words, phrases, and clauses to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and evidence.
(d) Establish and maintain a formal style.
(e) Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the argument presented.
Speaking and Listening Standards
SL.8.3 Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, evaluating the soundness of the reasoning and relevance and sufficiency of the evidence and identifying
when irrelevant evidence is introduced.
Language Standards
L.8.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
(a) Interpret figures of speech (e.g. verbal irony, puns) in context.
(b) Use the relationship between particular words to better understand each of the words.
(c) Distinguish among the connotations (associations) of words with similar denotations (definitions) (e.g., bullheaded, willful, firm, persistent, resolute).
Suggested Works
LITERARY TEXTS
Stories:
Each unit includes:
□
□
□
□
□
Close analysis of 3-5
short complex texts
In-depth study of one
complex extended
text (anchor text for
unit)
Practice of oral
reading fluency
through partner
reading, small group
reading, or teacher
small group reading
Ongoing in-depth
comparisons of
complex texts
Write to complex
texts studied,
including 3-5
informative,
narrative and/or
opinion pieces
In McDougal Text Book
The Tell-Tale Heart
Paul Revere’s Ride(p.1320
The Treasure of Lemon Brown(p.170)
Audio books:
Poetry:
Lord Byron’s A Poison Tree
INFORMATIONAL TEXTS
Biographies
Autobiographies
Articles:
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
Key Terminology and
Academic Language
In addition to these terms:
*5-10 terms per reading
should be selected from each
short complex text
*5-10 words per week should
be selected from extended
complex text
Additional Interdisciplinary
Connections

Reality

Fantasy

Theme

Credible source

Aesthetic

“beauty”

Abstract

symbolism
imagery
Social Studies:
Art:
-Moments in history that inspired art pieces
Various mediums of art(statues, portraits,
cartoon,etc)
-Timelines
Parts of this document were adapted from CommonCore.org.
PLANNING WORKSHEET: Use the additional space in this tool to further develop the plan for instruction.
ELA
Standard
Knowledge or Skill student should acquire
Possible Learning Tasks
*Tasks may be accomplished over multiple literacy block periods or repeated for emphasis over several periods.
*Some tasks address multiple standards and more than one knowledge or skill item.
*Tasks that may apply to more than one ELA standard are cited in multiple rows.
RL.8.2




•
Define theme
•
Identify theme
•
Analyze theme
•
Determine how details support the
theme
•
Summarize text
•
Give students the definition of theme and have theme
•
Give students worksheets containing themes, morals, main ideas, and have the students identify themes
•
theme
Give students a short reading and have them identify the theme and discuss why they chose that as the
•
Have students analyze the differences in different themes that can be found in stories
•
Create a web graphic organizer that connects details to support a theme of a given text
•
Show students how to summarize a text
•
Give the students a graphic organizer that aids in summarizing a text.
Differentiation: Vary the length and difficulty of passages that students are asked to read, Use Somebody,
Wanted, But, So chart (When Kids Can’t Read, K. Beers) to help students summarize


RL.8.5

•
Identify text structures
•
Analyze how structures
lend to the development of the
theme
•
Analyze how text
structures lend to the development
of the plot, setting, ect
•
Give students guided notes defining and identifying text structures
•
Create a graphic organizer showing how a structure can lead to the discovery of a theme (or how it eliminates
other thematic choices)
•
Create a graphic organizer showing how a structure can lead to the discovery of a plot, setting, ect .
Differentiation: Vary the length and difficulty of passages that students are asked to read, Use Somebody, Wanted, But, So
chart (When Kids Can’t Read, K. Beers) to help students summarize
RI.8.4




•
Define and identify various forms
of language (simile, metaphor,
hyperbole, personification, alliteration,
etc.)
•
Indentify the difference between
literal and figurative language
•
Identify connotative meanings of
words
•
Analyze why authors choose
•
Give students definitions of the forms of language and have them identify the forms on worksheets
•
Have the students use the forms of language in sentences and/or paragraphs
•
Have students read a passage and identify the forms of language and why the author might have used that
particular form of language
•
Have the read a passage (or use a worksheet) and identify the difference between a literal meaning of a passage
specific words to evoke a tone or
meaning
and the figurative meaning of a passage
•
Have students define, identify why an author would use literal and figurative language
•
Define connotative language for students and have them identify the reasons for using connotative language
Differentiation: Vary the length and difficulty of passages that students are asked to read, Use a graphic organizer and realworld examples, i.e. music to help students classify the forms of language and why they are used in text, Have students
create/use foldables with definitions, examples, and pictures to demonstrate/recall what they have learned about the forms
of language
RI.8.5

W.8.1
•Write a statement that defend a position
•
Analyze how a part of a text helps
the story develop
•Provide valid reasons for the position
•Provide credible sources in defense of the
position
•Refute counterclaims
•Present the statement in a formal, logical
manner
•
Be able to differentiate between
fact and opinion
SL.8.3
L.8.5



Identify different forms of figurative
language
Differentiate literal language and
figurative language
Distinguish the difference between
words that have a dictionary meaning
and the connotations of words
•
Give the students a story map, along with a plot graphic organizer. Have the students read the story and find the
essential parts of the plot, have the students also identify the significant events in the story on the story
map.....compare both aids and analyze how events move the story along
Differentiation: Vary the length and difficulty of passages that students are asked to read
•
Give the students the writing process for a persuasion or debate format
•
Give the students the mean of a valid argument, and several examples
•
Show the students a movie that uses persuasion or debating
•
Generate a list of credible sources and analyze why they are credible
•
Develop reasons why counterclaims must be addressed
•
Give students a graphic organizer for a persuasion or debate format
Differentiation: Vary the length of written work required, Have students use a dictionary/thesaurus when writing, provide
sentence starters, vary the prompt to which students are asked to respond
Differentiation: Use 3-step graphic organizer (need work, like it, love it) to help students peer revise written work
Differentiation: Have students come up with their own debate and collect evidence for it then present it to class and allow
for opposing arguments from other students, provide sentence starters
•
Create a fact or opinion worksheet showing how to prove if something is a fact or opinion
•
Discuss why it is important to know the difference between a fact and an opinion
Differentiation: Vary the length of written work required, Discuss audience-appropriate vocabulary, provide sentence
starters
•
•
•
List, define and discuss the forms of figurative language
Define and discuss the literal mean of a word and the connotation of a word
Discuss the difference between the figurative use of a word and the literal use of a word