Stories as History: An Examination of Civil Rights in Roll Of Thunder, Hear my Cry By Kelsey Baker, Shelby Friesz, Brianne Keller & Brittany Russell

“Stories help us make sense of our lives and the lives around us, whether in history, literature, or art. A story is not a diversion; the best stories make our lives more understandable and focused.” ­ Wiggins and McTighe

I. Unit Rationale Our country has a rich history regarding civil rights. Although covered in social study classrooms, there is fantastic literature available to teach that touches on the same topics and provides a window for our students to see what it was like amidst the civil rights struggle. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor provides insight into the life of the Taylor family during the 1930s. Set in rural Mississippi in the 1930’s, the story focuses on the tight­knit Logan family’s trials and triumphs as told by nine­year­old Cassie. The family confronts poverty exacerbated by the Great Depression, as well as challenges of separation, illness, and brutal racism. Taylor has said that these novels record "not only the joy of growing up in a large and supportive family, but my own feelings of being faced with segregation and bigotry.” It shows the culture of the oppressed African American community and the rights that were withheld from them. Focusing on civil rights issues and how it affects real people teaches our students the importance of equality and why we must fight against discrimination. It also provides perspective for students who have never experienced what it is like to be in the minority. By reading a book from the perspective of a young person amidst oppression, our students can see a part of life that they may have been lucky enough to avoid. Our discussions about the African American culture during this time will help our students better understand the characters and the struggles they encountered. With the study of civil rights, students begin to learn the power of questioning and the inherent need to develop a sense of “civic awareness.” The push for civil rights stemmed from their desire to be one with society, and they did so through understanding their society and questioning the validity of that same society. Matthew Lipman says, “To ask the question is to compel people to think differently about the world” (87). To be civically aware, students will begin to realize their role in their society and question whether they fulfill that role or if they should fulfill that role. They begin to enter into what Lipman refers to as the “community of inquiry.” He says, “Not all school is inquiry ­ far from it. For there to be inquiry, there must be some doubt that all is well, some recognition that one’s situation contains troubling difficulties and is somehow problematic. There must be self­correcting investigation” (94). Our unit fosters this community of inquiry and civic awareness by asking students to evaluate civil rights, both in the past and present. Through their reading of Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, they begin to see the inconsistencies of society in the past and transfer that to their own society. They learn how civil rights began with minority groups questioning their place in society and using those questions as a tool to gain more equality. Students will see how that questioning sparked a movement that reached all facets of the society and began a change in thinking. Their work with this novel and the supplemental texts steeped in the civil rights movement will give them the launching pad for applying that same questioning to their current society, making them more civically aware. As students become more civically aware and enter into that community of inquiry, they begin to engage in critical literacy. Ira Shor says, “When we are critically literate, we examine our ongoing development, to reveal the subjective positions from which we make sense of the world and act in it” (1). This critical literacy goes hand in hand with civic awareness.When students read Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, they encounter a protagonist around their age with similar experiences, but also vastly different experiences. This character invites them to engage in critical questioning that leads to reading into themselves, their community, and their world. Students can see themselves in this character and transfer her observations to their current society. They begin to question their role in society and how that relates to the civil rights they are still facing today. Freire says, “Students, as they are increasingly posed with problems relating to themselves in the world and with the world, will feel increasingly challenged and obliged to respond to that challenge” (81). With these past problems that are discussed in the study of civil rights through literature, students will see the current civil rights issues existing. As Freire says, our students will be able to rise to the challenge of eliminating the discrimination and inequality found in society because of the critical literacy skills they are developing through our unit. Once learners begin to recognize the connections to the text on a personal level, they open the doors to learning. According to Cushman and Rogers, authors of Fires in the Middle School Bathroom, students are continually searching for connectivity, though they may not realize it: “In every interaction kids have with [teachers] and the school, they are looking for information about themselves” (104). This unit will also connect with students on another level ­ the innate desire to create a just and fair world. Eighth graders are beginning to realize that not everyone is treated fairly. Whether they see this in their classrooms from peer to peer interactions, at home in the relationships with their families, or in everyday life ­ these students are just starting to form their morals. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, is a text relevant to students’ personal lives as it is rooted in the theme of social justice. Linda Christensen, a powerful advocate of social justice based curriculum writes, “Curriculum should be rooted in the students’ needs and in their experiences. It should be multicultural, antiracist, pro­justice…A social justice classroom is participatory and experiential. It’s academically rigorous.” Its absence could render serious consequences for, not only the student, but society. A social justice classroom privileges equality and sheds light on factions of society that have been deemed “non­normative” and “othered”. These injustices and silences will be uncovered and exposed through critical literacy. It is a teacher’s duty to create a community of acceptance and tolerance in our classrooms.The themes explored in this novel will require a safe place for students to encounter the brutality, racism, discrimination, and violence the characters endure. In her book, Critical Encounters in High School English, Deborah Appleman references the words of Henry Lois Gates Jr. when he said, “The teaching of literature is the teaching of values: not inherently, no but contingently...yes…” (56) If we see that prejudice exists, then it is our duty to reduce and eliminate these prejudices, specifically through literature. Our unit addresses the elements of nonfiction by focusing on issues that were highly publicized and controversial during the time period of the novel. We will also utilize the topic of civil rights to help our students recognize the importance of nonfiction texts as well as issues involving civil rights. By tying these two issues together, our students will be practicing and applying knowledge in a natural classroom setting. Our hopes are that our students will utilize their classroom experiences to broaden their worldview and how they interact with information as well as others around them. In addition, by introducing nonfiction elements to our students through real­life examples instead of a graphic organizer, they are much more likely to develop and master the skills targeted by district standards and our lesson plans. They will also be less likely to resist the practice of reading and analyzing nonfiction if they see it as relevant and compelling work that applies to their world. Ultimately, the goal of this unit is to broaden students’ appreciation and understanding of a particular historical period, as well as the varied and mutually­reinforcing ways to approach historical inquiry and writing. By delving into fiction and non­fiction civil rights text, students will come away understanding the importance using both mediums to studying or writing about a time period while gaining a deeper understanding of civil rights. The unit is designed to be taught to students in grade 8, as an intensive 4­week course

II. Unit Outline A.) Pedagogical Orientation/Framework When designing our unit, we considered the ideas of Peter Smagorinsky and decided to develop our unit based on the theme of civil rights. Smagorinksy says that the unit “topic needs to help students develop frameworks for thinking about issues so that they can think about new situations (including new texts) through that framework” (118). While students may have been introduced to the idea of civil rights in previous classes, they will have the opportunity to do so through the new framework of literature. With this new framework, students will be given characters that relate to themselves and have universal experiences, such as the regular trials of growing up. Smagorinsky says that “a theme often refers to a set of experiences, ideas, concepts, or emotions shared by people within and often across cultures” (118). Through this connection with these universal experiences, students will connect to the literature and the unit theme and then push beyond the known into the new concepts of civil rights, both past and present, that they may have yet to experience in their daily lives. Smagorinsky says that should be a goal of a conceptual unit. He says that it should “introduce (students) to issues that they may not yet have considered” (119). As the students begin to understand these civil rights issues, they will naturally start to see connections to their current lives and what they can to do change any civil rights issues that still exist. We will ask students to pull from their current experiences to discover new issues that will help them become more informed and active members of their society. Throughout this unit, we aim to orient our instructional leadership around scaffolding. The content of this particular unit may present itself difficult for students to connect to, understand, and apply to their everyday lives as it is focused around a society that existed eighty­some years before theirs. The disconnect that may be caused by this difference in eras could greatly hinder the way that the students perceive the relevance between these lessons and their lives. To aid in the prevention of this potential detachment, we plan to approach every lesson and activity with a scaffolding mindset. Smagorinsky explained the importance of structuring and scaffolding the tougher ideas, saying “In learning complex new knowledge, a person benefits from an extended process of using concepts and tools across a variety of contexts” (19). Using an assortment of texts and tools, such as newspaper articles, videos, and activities, all with an emphasis on bridging background information with new concepts, students will be able to see the significance of this part of our history and how certain themes still impact their own lives. While brainstorming ideas on how to approach this unit, we received a number of great ideas from the practicum teachers visiting our classroom. According to the practicum teachers that visited our classroom, one of the most successful teaching strategies that they have come across while teaching middle school students has been reciprocal teaching. Reciprocal teaching consists of a series of different thinking strategies that are brought up between the teacher and students via dialogue. The dialogue focuses on predicting, questioning, summarizing, clarifying, and visualizing the text, and allows the students to play a part in structuring the dialogue instead of the teachers. Reciprocal teaching is an excellent way to apply scaffolding. Implementing reciprocal teaching into our lessons will aid in our aim to orient our instructional leadership through scaffolding along with orienting the participation of our students. With reciprocal teaching in mind during design, we plan on stopping frequently while reading to scaffold, check for understanding, and examine comprehension. Frequently focusing the dialogue around hypotheses, summarizations, and clarifications will help keep the students participating and actively learning. We plan on implementing other strategies to help students’ participation such as integrating activities that have movement, making sure they frequently have something in front of them while reading such as a hand out or worksheet, and designing different ways to read aloud such as popcorn reading, cloze reading, and choral reading. Designed lessons to keep students participating will ensure that they are grasping the new concepts and making connections. Students will be able to better to apply the things they learn in this unit to their own lives if they are fully engaged and participating during every part. By interlacing the important skills of our unit together for projects in the final week, we are setting our students up for a challenging unit that calls for their constant engagement and investment. Through character studies as well as absorbing the elements of nonfiction, our students will be preparing themselves for the mock trial as well as the magazine article. We have also chosen to design the unit so that students are not required to take the books home to complete the reading. Although we decided mostly for budgetary concerns, it also helps foster a healthy in­class work environment. There is a better chance for reading being completed if it is not done strictly out of class. This unit intends to introduce middle­school­level students to a different time and place, through the lens of a characters with whom they have much in common. Cassie and her brothers are similar in age, and some of their daily experiences could mirror those of our students today. Most of their lives, however, are sculpted by circumstances far different from those our students live with. Thus a good bridge is offered to our students, across which they can travel building empathy and understanding where it did not previously exist. This unit is designed to motivate our students to take notice of human rights and apply what they learn about our past as a country to our present­day world. Through the joint study of civil rights and nonfiction, our students will note the injustices imposed upon people in the past as well as present. By gaining a full understanding of the characters within the text, our students will experience a world they may not be familiar with. ` B.) Materials Bridging and Supplemental Texts 1. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor 2. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry Audiobook: http://www.randomhouse.com/book/176959/roll­of­thunder­hear­my­cry­by­mi ldred­d­taylor 3. Jim Crow Laws background and discussion: www.nps.gov/malu/documents/jim_crow_laws.htm 4.Great site for teaching governmental issues: www.civnet.org 5. Emmett Till article in Look Magazine, 1955: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/till/sfeature/sf_look_confession.html 6. “Justice Department Investigation is Sought in Florida Teenager’s Shooting Death” (Trayvon Martin), New York Times, March 16, 2012: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/17/us/justice­department­investigation­is­so ught­in­florida­teenagers­shooting­death.html?ref=trayvonmartin&_r=1& 7. “Death of Florida Teen Spurs Outcry and Action” (Trayvon Martin), New York Times, March 21, 2012 http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/21/death­of­florida­teen­spurs­nati onal­outrage­and­action/?ref=trayvonmartin 8. Trial clip from “Fried Green Tomatoes”. Netflix. 9. Langston Hughes poem “Mother to Son”: http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/mother­to­son/ 10. Langston Hughes poem “Ballad to Roosevelt” read by Danny Glover video http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HADGKw_w a5E Worksheets and Handouts Day 1 1. Copy of Taylor’s Author’s Note from beginning of novel 2. Article Activity handout Day 2 1. Case Research Worksheet Day 3 1. Bell Work, Emmett Till article (shortened version) 2. Emmett Till full article 3. “What are Rights” Scenario Activity Day 4 1. Venn Diagram Handout 2. Homework Exit Slip Day 5 1. Literary Tea Party Handout 2. Literary Tea Party Character Descriptions 3. Exit Slip Day 6 1. Circle of Evidence Worksheet Day 7 1. Chapter 4 Reading Check­In Day 8­ No handouts Day 9 1. Cultural Norms Packet Day 10 1. Character True/False Activity 2. Exit Slip Day 11 1. Justice v. Revenge ­ Pre Reading opinionnaire 2. Trayvon Martin Article, March 16, 2012 3. Trayvon Martin Article 2, March 21, 2012 Day 12 1. Bell work, Trayvon Martin and Emmett Till 2. Emmett Till Newspaper Clip 3. Justice vs. Injustice Scenario Activity Day 13 1. Sacrifice Handout Day 14­ No handouts Day 15 1. “Theme” Bell Work 2. Magazine Assignment Handout Day 16 1. Mock Trial Handout Day 17 1. Bell Work, Practice Effective Questioning 2. Elements of Nonfiction Handout 3. Exit Slip, Elements of Nonfiction in Magazine Assignment Day 18 1. To Do List Day 19 1. Elements of Nonfiction Graphic Organizer (state assessment worksheet) Day 20 1. Mock Trial Script

C.) Unit Goals

Essential Questions: 1. What does it mean to have “rights”? 2. Who is affected by civil rights, in the past and present? 3. What is worth fighting for? Do we have an obligation to fight on the behalf of the vulnerable and oppressed? 4. How can reading nonfiction help us to explore and understand our world?

Objectives: At the end of this unit, students will be able to demonstrate knowledge about the causes, events, and effects of the American Civil Rights Movement from the Civil War (1860’s) through current Civil Rights Issues. The ongoing timeline activity will help them reconstruct the chronological order of significant events related to historical developments. The timeline will be a great resource for students as they gather their own research and find their own articles pertaining to important events related to the movement. Students will understand the role of key individuals, concepts, ideas, and movements within Civil Rights in the twentieth century. They will gain an appreciation for the feelings, emotions, and personal gain or loss felt by African Americans through their interaction with the novel. This unit intends to teach students the importance of civil rights and the trials and tribulations that certain groups of people had to go through in order to attain equality. Through an interactive and multi­faceted reading experience, students will demonstrate their knowledge of the characters, themes, and plot through several reflective writing activities. Students will understand that authors write for many reasons. Whether it be to inform, persuade, or entertain, understanding authorial purpose will help readers identify the main ideas and most important details in a text. By the end of this unit, students will be able to determine an author’s purpose in a variety of genres. Through an examination of Mildred B. Taylor, author of Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry, students will come to understand her intent with the novel. Taylor’s compelling autobiographical book was written with the purpose of exposing the detestable conditions that African Americans were subjected to during the 1930’s in Mississippi. Throughout the unit, students will be asked to bring in news articles that they feel connect to the theme of civil rights. These articles can be from the past or present. Students will present to the class what they believe is the purpose of the article and the intended audience. What can students learn from the past? Why was the article written? In the final assessment, students will be able to demonstrate their grasp of this skill by composing a magazine article. This assignment will allow students to write their own articles, encouraging them to decide on their own authorial intent. Their new understanding of purpose, perspective and contextual resources will aid in the creative process of the assignment. This culminating project will require them to draw on their knowledge of literary devices, symbolism, voice, and characterization. As students utilize their knowledge of authorial intent through this unit, they will apply their prior knowledge of the elements of fiction and gain new knowledge of the elements of nonfiction. Through the use of the news articles that we integrate within the unit, they will begin to practice these elements of nonfiction while connecting it to the bigger theme of civil rights. They will then apply this knowledge as they bring in their own articles. To understand that their personal articles relate to civil rights and a work of fiction, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, the students must be able to understand the elements of nonfiction such as the main idea that is developed by asking who, what when , where , why , and how. They will then need to find the supporting details and determine whether those details are fact or opinion to justify their articles to the class. Students will learn to find these elements naturally through our unit because of the practice we emphasize with the articles we supply, and they will learn to apply it seamlessly as they research their own articles. Because they will know their elements of nonfiction, students will be able to use those to critically think about the articles. They will understand to ask questions as they read the nonfiction texts that will make them think differently about their surrounding world as they realize the importance of civil rights in their past, present, and future. Rather than simply reading for the main idea, they will be challenged to think about why the supporting details do in fact support the main idea and what implications those ideas have on society. Once students can naturally apply their knowledge of the elements of nonfiction while reading, we aim to challenge them to transfer that knowledge to their writing. In LPS Language Arts Standard 8.2.2.b, the objective is to “write considering typical characteristics of the selected genre (e.g., business letter, report, email, class notes, research paper, play, web page/blog). They achieve this through the culminating magazine article assessment in which they must create an article detailing the events of Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. This assessment will ask them to utilize their knowledge of both elements of fiction and nonfiction. They must understand the literary devices, character development, plot, etc. of the novel to capture its themes and voice in their newspaper article. It must feel as though the article would appear in that novel which is judged by the rubric in the textual accuracy section. They will also apply the characteristics of nonfiction as they ensure they create an article that would be comparable to the actual articles they read in class. They will need to ask who, what, when, where, why, and how to fully develop their main statement and gather supporting details. They must extend that knowledge to ask “who cares?” When they ask this, they will be engaging in the critical literacy we aim to develop because they will be considering how this applies to their world and their place in that world. They will learn to present the issues of civil rights in an unbiased, nonfiction text while understanding the call to action these issues create. This unit will also shed light on use of words, especially in how we relate to others. In LPS Language Arts Standard 8.3.3.a, the objective is “to demonstrate sensitivity to the use of words (e.g. stereotypes, connotations, subtleties of language).” Through the post­it activity on Day Five, students will apply their knowledge of the power of words from their own personal experiences. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry addresses hurtful language and how it can affect others, specifically regarding race and racial slurs.

D.) Assessment & Evaluation Summative 1. Our unit strives for students exploring the civil rights issues that make their history and their present. For the final assessment of this unit, we will have students create a magazine page, complete with the elements of nonfiction, that reflects their understanding of a specific scene steeped in a social issue discussed in Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. This assessment allows students to apply the elements of nonfiction and character development they have been practicing throughout the unit in one culminating activity.

● Chapter 1: Students at Great Faith Elementary & Secondary have books this semester for the first time. However, they’re leftovers from the white school and Cassie & Little Man protest receiving the books, for which they are beaten by Miss. Crocker. ● Chapter 2: While safe on their own land, the Logan children learn about the death of John Henry Berry by white community members because he was said to make a pass at a white woman. They also learn that Papa’s friend, Mr. Morrison will be staying with them because of an incident in which he fought a group of white men, which cost him his job at the railroad. ● Chapter 3: The Logan children dig a ditch in the middle of the road to get revenge on the white bus driver and school children who drive by splashing them everyday on the way to school. The ditch ends up breaking the bus, causing the white children to have to walk home. ● Chapter 4: The boycott of the Wallace store ● Chapter 5: After bumping into Lillian Jean on the street, Cassie is verbally and physically assaulted by the Simms family. Big Ma comes to help Cassie, ultimately making Cassie apologize for something she didn’t do to keep her family safe. ● Chapter 6: After Cassie gets home from Strawberry, she is clearly upset. Mama comes to her room after she goes to bed and they have a conversation about why white people don’t see black people as equal. Mama and Cassie discuss the issues of respect between cultures and how it should be given freely to everyone. ● Chapter 7: As the smells of Christmas morning waft through the house, the Logans celebrate with their family. Even though Stacey gave up his Christmas present from Uncle Hammer of a brand new coat to TJ, the family enjoys their day until it is interrupted by Jeremy Simms at the door. Jeremy gives the Logans a bag of nuts and gives Stacey a flute he made himself. When Papa warns Stacey of the dangers of befriending a white person during this time, Stacey questions the meaning of friendship. Even though Papa worried about Stacey befriending Jeremy, the Logans have developed a relationship with Mr. Jamison, who decided he will back the credit for people wishing to shop in Vicksburg. This relationship and the fact that Big Ma signs the land completely over to Papa and Uncle Hammer upsets Mr. Granger, propelling him to want to take action. ● Chapter 8: Cassie apologizes to Lillian Jean and starts carrying her books and calling her “Miz Lillan Jean” so she can get her revenge for the Strawberry incident. Lillian Jean starts confiding in Cassie all of her secrets. Then, one day, Cassie shows Lillan Jean a “surprise” in the forest. Cassie exacts her revenge by fighting Lillian Jean and forcing her to apologize. After she does, Lillian Jean says she’ll tell her dad but Cassie tells her she’ll expose all her secrets. ● Chapter 9: When the Wallaces begin to realize the effect of the Logan’s push to shop in Vicksburg rather than at the Wallace’s store, they attack Papa, Stacey, and Mr. Morrison on their way home from Vicksburg one night. Papa suffered a gunshot injury and a broken leg from the Wallace attack, and Mr. Morrison fought back against the Wallaces, breaking one of their backs and seriously injuring the others. ● Chapter 10: After Papa gets hurt, the Logans begin to make sacrifices to save money. The Logans get a note from Harlan Granger telling them that the bank is collecting their debt on the land. Papa calls Uncle Hammer, who says he will get the money. A few days later, Hammer returns to the farm without his car, having sold it to get the money for the farm. ● Chapter 11: T.J., R.W. and Melvin break into Mr. Barnett’s store. T.J. goes in first through the window to unlock the door for the other two. He notices they both have dark stockings over their faces and gloves on to hide their skin. They take the pearl­handled pistol, give it to T.J., then proceed to break into a safe. Mr. Barnett wakes up, sees T.J. and two other boys whose faces are dark (he assumes they are African American too) and starts to yell. A fight breaks out and Mr. Barnett and Mr.s Barnett are both knocked out. The three flee the scene, but when T.J. threatens to tell, R.W. and Melvin beat him to a pulp. ● Chapter 12: A fire is started in the Logan’s cotton field, distracting the lynch mob from attacking the suspect in the Barnett murder.

2. Mock Trial: The Mock Trial will allow students to understand the characters in the novel on a deeper level. In her article Exploring Prejudice in Young Adult Literature through Drama and Role Play, Barbara Bontempo touts the importance acting out literature, saying, “Dramatization or "living through" the thoughts, feelings, and experiences of the characters can provide students with a deeper, more immediate experience. Through dramatics, teachers can help their students connect with sensitive, complicated human issues with a sense of empathy.”

Formative 1. Bell work/free writes that are done daily will give us a glimpse into how the students are comprehending both the novel and the bigger themes we are exploring throughout the unit. These five minutes at the beginning of class not only focus the students on the objective of the lesson, but they also allow students quality time to reflect and review. We can use this as a self­evaluation tool in our instruction to see if our students are mastering the objectives we have determined or if we need to change our lessons to foster a deeper understanding. Bell work/free writes are graded on a completion basis and are used solely as a daily check for understanding. Many bell works are completed within a notebook which will be turned in at the end of the unit along with all worksheets completed.

2. Discussion is a key aspect of the English language arts classroom, and our unit is no exception. As students delve into the complex issues raised by civil rights, we will have classroom discussions (both large and small group) that will give evidence that students are engaging in the critical thinking for which we are aiming. Discussion is not a graded aspect of the unit, but it becomes an essential informal form of assessing whether students are engaging with text and topic and allows them to articulate that understanding for an audience.

3. The anticipatory “Literary Tea Party” modeled after Linda Christensen’s activity gives our students the opportunity to engage in role play to better understand the characters in Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. Because the novel has a multitude of characters to follow and understand, this activity allows them to learn more about the main characters that will be key players as the text unfolds. This activity not only sets the stage for the novel, but it also allows students to engage in empathetic representation of these characters, which Wiggins and McTighe say is an important facet of understanding. They will need to adopt the persona of the character based on a short description they are given and they must move around the room to “meet” the other characters. They will have met many of these characters in the first few chapters, but this activity will make these characters more concrete in their mind. The better they understand the characters, the better they will be able to portray them in their final magazine article assignment and evaluate how those character relate to them personally. This activity sets the groundwork for their critical engagement with the novel throughout the course of the unit.

4. The timeline activity will require students bring and present an article focused on civil rights. This can be either from the past or the present. Through this activity, both teacher and student will able to contextualize the novel for the class by providing facts, data, articles, and other information via the timeline. The timeline article activity enables students to interpret the timeline for themselves as they bring in their own articles and add personal dimension to the activity.

Assessment Tools In this unit, students will be assessed on a number of different activities and assignments to measure their learning. Students will have two summative assessment grades, one for the final magazine project and the other a student evaluation/reflection for the mock trial. Along with the two summative grades, students will have a number of smaller, formative assignments sprinkled throughout the unit. The smaller, formative assignments such as bell work, freewrites, discussions, activities, and handouts will not be given an individual grade, but assessed throughout the unit to ensure that the students are engaging with the topic and texts. Students will receive participation points for these formative assessments. For the magazine summative assessments, we have provided a rubric. The magazine assignment was designed to interlink the elements of nonfiction the students have been working on with the novel and textual evidence they have been collecting. With the numerous different themes the students will be looking at, they will have an ample amount of compelling scenes and articles to pull from. Students will be graded on the incorporation of the 5 Ws, thesis statement, fact and opinion, supporting details, aesthetic choices, featured pictures, organization, transitions, and conventions. For the mock trial, students will evaluate themselves, their participation, their own understanding, and reflect upon what they have learned about the character and what they have taken from the play. These assessment tools will help us in evaluating the progress of students’ knowledge in this complex unit.

1 2 3 4 Minimal Gaining Proficient Exemplary Evidence Proficiency

Basic info (5Ws) Basic info (5Ws) Basic info (5Ws) Basic info (5Ws) does not identifies some of identifies most key identifies only accurately identify the basic key information from specific, significant Elements of information, Main information, Main the selection, Main information from Nonfiction Idea Statement, Idea Statement Idea Statement selection, Main 35 points if given, focuses does not focus on includes most key Idea Statement on a single, specific key information in a only specific, irrelevant, or information – too proficient significant inaccurate detail, broad or too statement, Fact or information Fact or Opinion, vague, Fact or Opinion, reflected in confuses Opinion, accurately selection and examples of fact accurately gives identifies BOTH authors’ intended or opinion one example of fact and opinion meaning in a fluent fact or opinion statement, Fact or Opinion, accurately identifies both

Supporting Supporting Supporting Supporting Details Details Details Details support is minimal support is limited support is support is ­examples for ­examples are adequate cohesive and support are absent irrelevant, repeat ­examples are compelling Textual or inaccurate information in main distinct but ­examples explain Accuracy idea or are not reinforce key in a compelling, 35 points distinct from each points, may require cohesive manner other effort to make the key points of connections main idea AND reflect intended meaning of the selection

Aesthetic Aesthetic Aesthetic Aesthetic choices are choices are choices are choices are Presentation nonexistent, uses minimal, one adequate and cohesive and (& features) no features, feature/ picture, cohesive, two compelling, more 20 points presentation presentation features/pictures, than two does not does not accurately features, accurately accurately represented in accurately represent final represent final presentation represented in product product presentation

Not logically and Confusing Adequately Clear and logically clearly organized, organization organized, organized, identifies NO pattern, identifies accurately accurately Mechanics transitions, ONE transition, identifies two identifies more 10 points serious and frequent transitions, than two numerous convention occasional transitions, convention errors that cause convention convention errors confusion errors that do not errors are so few interfere with and minor they are understanding easily overlooked

Student Evaluation Self­evaluation can benefit students by imbuing in them a sense of agency and an opportunity for empowerment. Self­evaluation is a potentially powerful technique because of its impact on student performance through enhanced self­efficacy and increased intrinsic motivation. In this unit, students will complete a self evaluation of their participation in the mock trial. This evaluation will allow students to critique their overall experience with the novel as their understanding of characters and themes will greatly affect their participation and satisfactory performance in the mock trial. The self­evaluation will contain the following questions: 1. How much time and effort did you put into this? 2. What do you think your strengths and weaknesses were? 3. How could you improve your representation of your character? 4. What are the most valuable things you learned from this novel? 5. What part of this novel was most difficult for you? Why? Throughout the course of the unit, students will complete written reflections (bell work/journals/exit slips) that will aid in their understanding and metacognitive thinking. Metacognition, or “thinking about thinking”, is important for students to develop so they are better equipped to employ the necessary cognitive skills to complete a task or achieve a goal. Students will turn in reflective writing as instructed and it will be returned with feedback. In the final assessment, students will work together in groups to create a magazine article which focuses on a character in the novel. The summative assessment will require students to come together creatively and cognitively to produce an article that follows the rubric. III. Daily Plans

MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

Civil Rights “Separate but “What are Chapter 1 & Chapter 2 & Intro: Author’s Equal” Rights” Education Literary Tea Note & Scenarios & Party Timeline Emmett Till article

Chapter 3 & Chapter 4 & Chapter 5 & Chapter 6 & Chapter 7 & Fairness and Honor v. Discrimination Cultural norms Civil Rights Textual Punishment and Evidence Relationships

Chapter 8 & Chapter 9 & Chapter 10 Chapter 11 & Chapter 12 & Justice and Justice v. Sacrifice consequences Nonfiction revenge Injustice for acting for Is revenge ever what is right Magazine just? Article Assigned

Day 16 Day 17 Day 18 Day 19 Day 20: Mock Trial Lab Day ­ Lab Day ­ Projects Due ­ Mock Trial Prep. Asking good Textual Presentations Fried Green research evidence Tomatoes Questions

Day 1: Introducing the Story Essential Questions 1. What is authorial purpose? 2. How can we use contextual knowledge to understand a text? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● Give class a copy of the author’s note. Instruct them to read through it have them note places that reveal emotion, time and place, and personal connections. [5 minutes] Anticipatory Set/Introduction ● In her 1976 “Author’s Note,” Mildred D. Taylor has given us a wonderful tool for beginning our journey. Ask the students to imagine themselves sitting in the shelter of a large, old tree, listening to an older relative who loves to tell stories, and read the “Author’s Note” to them out loud. Drama is important here. Let the students get a feeling for the passion and joy that Taylor feels for her father’s stories. Lesson Progression: [10 minutes] Activity One (whole class) ● After reading the whole “Note,” take the students back through it to discuss particularly image­full or provocative sentences. For example, the second sentence foreshadows so well what we are about to read: He could tell a fine old story that made me hold my sides with rolling laughter and sent happy tears down my cheeks, or a story of stark reality that made me shiver and be grateful for my own warm, secure surroundings. ● Discussion: what can we anticipate from this book? Sadness, joy . . . what? He could tell stories of beauty and grace, stories of gentle dreams, and paint them as vividly as any picture with splashes of character and dialogue. ● Start a discussion of author’s craft: The next sentence should begin a discussion of setting – both time and place – and can be used to introduce the research aspect of this unit: His memory detailed every event of ten or forty years or more before, just as if it had happened yesterday. [20 minutes] Begin Time Line on the Board ● Write 1976 on the line, go back ten, than forty years, and write those dates on the timeline as well. As 1936 is written, move back a couple of notches, write 1933 in large characters, and let the students know that our novel takes place during that year, during the Great Depression. ● Move up and down the timeline with the rest of the “Author’s Note” and with students’ comments and questions. Use as a starting point Taylor’s sentence: From the fireside in our northern home or in the South where I was born, [from my father’s stories] I learned a history not then written in books but one passed from generation to generation on the steps of moonlit porches and beside dying fires in one­room houses, a history of great­grandparents and of slavery and of the days following slavery; of those who lived still not free, yet who would not let their spirits be enslaved. ● Add/discuss appropriate dates to the timeline (for example, 1600s for start of slavery; 1840s­1060s for Harriet Tubman,1863 for Emancipation Proclamation, 1865 for Juneteenth [June 19, 1865 when the last slaves – in Texas ­­ learned that they had been Emancipated],1870s for Reconstruction, 1954 for Brown v. Board of Education [banning school segregation]). Add the years the students were born in, the current year, and 1955 for Rosa Parks and Montgomery Bus Boycott, and other dates the students may propose that are relevant. (Trayvon Martin) Students may well be shocked at the spans of time between people and events they have considered contemporary. Hopefully they’ll be intrigued by the prospect of perspective. [5 minutes] Introduce article activity (Handout) ● This handout will contain information regarding the weekly article activity. Students will be asked to bring in an article they researched that relates to civil rights. Students will be placed four different groups and asked to present their articles on their assigned Friday. ● The handout will include a rubric of what a good article entails. [5 minutes] Homework ● Have students interview their parents or grandparents about what they remember about civil rights. This will show students that issues in this book are not old. In fact, they are relatively recent. The journals will be turned in every Friday. They get participation points for journaling.

Day 2: “Separate but Equal” Essential Questions 1. What is credibility in terms of research? 2. Whose opinions matter? 3. Does liberty and equality mean the same thing? [5 minutes] Bellwork ● Hand students worksheets that list different websites and sources. Some of the websites will offer credible research (i.e. Government websites, State websites, Company websites, Scholarly articles, etc.) and some will offer research that is not credible (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, Wikipedia, etc.). ● Students will answer questions for each website such as; Can you get credible information from this site? Why or why not? What research is available? Whose opinions, research, and facts can you cite? [10 minutes] Anticipatory Set/Introduction ● Present students with two different articles that you (the teacher) have written. ○ One uses information gathered from non­credible sources and websites ○ One uses information gathered from credible sources and websites ● Ask students which article they would believe? Which one is credible? Lesson Progression: [30 minutes] Court Case Research ● Students will use their new understanding of credible sources and websites to conduct research in the computer lab about Plessy v. Ferguson and Brown v. Board of Education. They will fill out a worksheet (appendix) about the two cases. This activity will teach the students how to research on the internet and look up court cases. [5 minutes] Closure/Introduce Mock Trial ● Tell students that at the end of this unit they will be participating in a mock trial based on what happens during the novel. Lead a discussion with the goal of having students understand that as we read we will be looking for information about the novel’s setting and characters to help prepare us. ● Hand out project guidelines and expectations.

Day 3: What are “Rights”? and Emmett Till Essential questions: 1. What are rights? 2. Does everyone have the same rights? 3. Does everyone have the authority to exercise their rights? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● Students will begin reading a portion of the William Bradford Huie article about the Emmett Till lynching in 1955 that appeared in Look Magazine. While reading, they will highlight sections that they think reflect people’s beliefs of certain rights and what rights they believe the people in the story would have. [10 minutes] Who has the Rights in the Emmett Till Article? ● Finish reading portions of the Till article (see materials for the full article and the selected sections that will be read in class). In a puppy toss discussion, ask the students what they thought of how people’s rights were portrayed in the article. Were those perceived “rights” correct? What rights did you assume the people in the story had?(the article has some graphic details, so be prepared to help them through this sensitive subject) ● Enforce the elements of nonfiction during the discussion. For example, when they mention the main idea, stop them and explain how every nonfiction text has a main idea that drives the story and that evidence supports, etc. ● Praise their maturity while reading the article. ● Hang the article on the Timeline for 1955 [25 minutes] “What Are Rights?” Scenarios ● Students will divide into five or six groups and determine their own definition of “rights” and what it means to have “rights” after exploring a few different scenarios that will invite students to question their idea of rights. ● [8 minutes]Divide the students into five or six groups and give each group the first scenario. Allow them to discuss the questions and form their own definition of rights. ● [8 minutes] Pass out the second scenario to students and allow them to discuss ● [9 minutes] Pass out the final scenario to students and have them develop a final group definition for “rights”. ● *note: It may be useful to have the scenarios in a PowerPoint as well as on the slips of paper. Students will be able to write their answers on the paper, but having it large on the projector screen will help ensure every student can see the scenario. This activity will help students use all three types of thinking (Critical, Creative, and Caring) as they consider what “rights” are in their lives. [10 minutes] Closure ● Write “Rights” on a large piece of poster board/butcher paper and have a student from each scenario group write their definition of “rights” around the word. As these students are writing the definition on the board, have the other students write a list in their journals of the words they see that are similar between the definitions. Have them call these out as the teacher highlights them on the poster. Students will have differing opinions of what rights are based on their own experiences with using their rights. Some may think rights need to be earned, others may think that they are simply given and are inalienable, and others may think that they are a privilege that can be taken away. We want to explore what rights mean in our personal lives and in society through forming our own definition of what “rights” are in our lives. When students have differing opinions, discuss why those are different and describe what the mainstream society define as rights. Students can then compare that to their own experiences with using their own rights and have a better understanding of what society thinks about their rights. Homework: Journal at home (at least three sentences) about what rights they feel they exercise every day and what their lives would be like if they could not do so.

Day 4: Chapter 1 & The Education System Essential Questions: 1. How did “separate but equal” laws affect the education system? 2. What do we take for granted in our education system? 3. How has the education system improved? How has it stayed the same? [5 minutes] Bell Work: ● Have students journal in their notebook: Reflect on what we learned about “separate but equal” on Tuesday. How would Plessy v. Ferguson have affected restaurants? Drinking fountains/restrooms? Public transportation? Schools? Think of one example of an aspect of your daily life that would be affected by a “separate but equal” law. [5 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● Once students are done with bell work, teacher will distribute copies of Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry and Venn Diagram Handouts. Students will share their example from bell work. Teacher will then introduce the novel and encourage students to think about “separate but equal” laws as we dig into the first chapter. Lesson Progression: [30 minutes] Read Chapter 1 as a class ● Find a volunteer to start us off and “popcorn” read through the first chapter. This will encourage students to pay attention so that if they’re called on by a classmate they will know exactly where to pick up reading. While reading, students should also be filling out a Venn Diagram worksheet comparing our education system to a “separate but equal” school. [8 minutes] Compile a collective Venn Diagram on the board ● Have students come forward and write one difference or similarity from their Venn Diagrams. Fill in any gaps as a class if the Diagram doesn’t illustrate either side well enough. Students should add whatever they didn’t think of to their personal diagram as we go over it in class. [2 minutes] Closure ● Thank the students for their hard work to get through the chapter in one day (as it is rather long). Explain homework verbally and in the form of an exit slip, hand students their prompt: Using the examples of similarities and differences from our education venn diagram, write a journal entry in your notebook describing the example you chose during bell work (an aspect of your life that would be affected by “separate but equal” laws) and how it would be similar/different to present day circumstances.

Day 5: Chapter 2, Tea Party Essential Questions: 1. What impact do the characters have in Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry? 2. How do characters react to civil rights issues? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● The first five or six students will present their civil rights article they brought to class, giving a one or two sentence summary of the article and how it relates to civil rights. These will be hung on the Timeline to coincide with the year the articles reflect. [5 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● The teacher will take on the role of a character and welcome the students to the class with a quick recap of the Chapter 1 as if that character were telling the story. The teacher should pick the character of a smaller character because the students will be adopting the personality of different characters later. For example, the teacher could pick the character of Jeremy Simms and briefly summarize the events of Chapter 1, setting the stage for Chapter 2. Lesson Progression: [10 minutes] Teacher will read Chapter 2 of RTHMC with the Cloze Reading method ● While reading, pause when a character’s name is said for the first time in the chapter and have students say the character’s name to help them practice who the characters are in the story. This will also help review the characters the students met the previous day in Chapter 1. The order of characters the students will say is: ○ Cassie ○ Big Ma ○ Papa ○ Christopher­John ○ Little Man ○ Stacey ○ Mama/Mary ○ Mr. Morrison ○ Uncle Hammer [25 minutes] RTHMC Literary Tea Party ● Now that students have had an opportunity to meet many of the characters in the story, they will have a chance to empathize with the characters more and discover how certain characters react to civil rights issues. In this activity, students will take on the role of characters in Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, and attend a “Tea Party” with the other characters. ● Students will receive their assigned character and a short biography of that character, which they will adopt during the literary Tea Party. They will divide in groups of four or five and will “meet” each other as their specific character. Based on these biographies, students will engage in conversation about the lynching that occurred with the Berry’s. They will need to react to the incident how they believe their character would react. ● Students will have about 20 minutes to chat with their group as they fill out the handout asking students to describe the characters their classmates are portraying and how that character would react to that situation. They will have the remaining 5 minutes to share their ideas with their group. [5 minutes] Closure ● Exit Slip: Students will answer the question: Based on how you know some characters would react to different issues of civil rights, what impact do you see your character having on the book? Homework: Journal: How did the lynching of the Berry’s connect to the Emmett Till article we read Wednesday? How would you react in this situation versus how your character would react?

Day 6: Chapter 3 & Fairness & Textual Evidence Essential Questions 1. What is fairness? 2. How does the concept of fairness drive our actions? 3. How does textual evidence create a deeper understanding of the text? [5 minutes] Bell Work: ● Students will begin class by journaling in their notebook. On the board will be the following questions for students to answer ○ Has there ever been a time when you felt you were being treated unfair? ○ How did you feel and what did you do? [10 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● Once students have finished their bell work, hand out the Circle of Evidence worksheet. This will be the first time students have seen this worksheet and will need an introduction and scaffolding. The teacher will explain to students that the purpose of textual evidence is to aid in the support of their ideas. The teacher will then introduce the Circle of Evidence worksheet and explain how it is a tool in helping them collect textual evidence while reading the book. The handouts will be reference later in the unit when students are brainstorming and creating their final project. They will also be collected by the teacher for participation points at the end of each day they are working on them. At the beginning of the lesson, the teacher will write the theme of the day on the board, students will keep this idea in mind while reading the chapter. Students are free to work on this handout while doing the class reading. Having a worksheet in front of them will help to keep them engaged in the lesson. To complete the handout, students will pick a compelling scene in the chapter of that day that relates to the theme of that day. They will take note of what is leading up to the scene, the characters involved, literary devices used by the author, the meaning of the scene or why the author included it, and their personal connection to the scene. Students will record quotes and page numbers in the designated area of their worksheet for easy reference later. After introducing the handout and scaffolding, the teacher will then fill out a worksheet on the ELMO with the help of the class using a memorable scene from the previous day that has do with the theme of fairness. Once the handout is completed and all questions are answered, Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry will be passed out and reading will commence. Lesson Progression: [25 minutes] Read Chapter 3 as a class ● As a class, teacher and students will read Chapter 3 in a popcorn style read through. One student will volunteer and begin reading Chapter 3, passing it off to a classmate when they feel ready. Reading in a popcorn style will encourage students to pay attention and keep students engaged during this particularly longer reading. The teacher will stop the reading from time to time to implement the reciprocal teaching strategies, asking students to predict, questions, summarize, clarify, and visualize. While reading, students will also be filling out a Circle of Evidence worksheet. By the end of the chapter, everyone should have their handout filled out and ready to turn in. Closure [10 minutes] ● Class will close with a whole group discussion. Students and teacher will discuss the fairness in the lives of the characters. Students will be asked how their own reflection of fairness in their journal compares to the fairness in the lives of the characters. Some students will be called on to share the scene and textual evidence that they found.

Day 7: Chapter 4 Honor/Punishment Essential Questions 1. What does it mean to be honorable? 2. What’s more important: maintaining one’s honor or avoiding punishment? [5 minutes] Bell Work: ● In their notebooks, have students think of someone who they think as honorable (can be a family member, a celebrity, etc.) and write a paragraph explaining why they view them as honorable. Would you consider them a personal hero? Why or why not? [5 minutes] Introductory/Anticipatory Set: ● Once students are done with their bellwork, have them grab a copy of Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. Hand out the Chapter 4 Reading Check­In and explain the tension between maintaining honor and avoiding punishment. Have students answer the questions on the worksheet as we move along through the chapter Lesson Progression [35 minutes] Read Chapter 4 aloud ● Read Chapter 4 as a class aloud. Pause every once in a while to check for understanding and help students complete their check­in worksheet. Be sure not to stop right after a specific event happens, so that students have to actually pay attention, but make sure to stop at some point for every question. [5 minutes] Closure ● Give students a chance to ask any questions about the check­in worksheet, and explain the journal homework assignment (which is listed on the check­in worksheet): If put in a similar situation as Stacey, would you maintain your honor by coming forward or would you do whatever you could to avoid punishment? Why? Day 8: Chapter 5 & Discrimination Essential Questions: 1. What is discrimination? 2. How much power do our words have? 3.What does discrimination look like in our society? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● Students will journal about what a time when they felt put down, treated unfairly, or bullied. The teacher will write this prompt on the board. [5 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● Write the word discrimination on the board and ask students to define it. Once a student has given a definition, synonym, or example, have them go up to the board to write it someone around the word discrimination. Lead the discussion towards how discrimination would have affected them if they were African­Americans in the 1940s. Have students copy what is being written on the board in their journals. Lesson Progression: [15 minutes] Read Chapter 5 of RTHMC out loud as a class ● Read Chapter 5 together as a class. Students will read as a group, out loud, all together, in a CHORAL reading fashion. Reading in this manner will ensure that all students are engaged and participating. The teacher will stop reading to incorporate the reciprocal teaching strategies asking students to predict, question, summarize, clarify, and visualize. [20 minutes] Post­it Discrimination Activity ● The teacher will hand out post­its to the students (about 4 or 5 per student). To help students understand the effects of discrimination, the power of words, and how Cassie was feeling when she was called names by Mr. Barnett, Lillian Jean, and Mr. Simms, students will write names that some of the characters have been called on the post­its (1 name per post­it) and post it to themselves. Students will choose one character to personify, and focus on names that person has been called or might have been called. Once all students have done this, the teacher will ask students to silently walk around the room and look at the different names their peers have been called. Students will be asked to tear off one of the post­its that is on their peers, symbolizing to them that their characters are not what is on the post­it. Students will sit down in silence once all of their post­its have been removed. [5 minutes] Closure ● Class will end with a silent, individual reflection on the post­it discrimination. Students will write two to three sentences on how this activity made them feel, what they learned from it, and if they think that the discrimination that Cassie felt is still present in our society. Students will record these answers in their journals, turning them in before leaving class.

Day 9: Chapter 6 & Cultural Norms & Respect Note: Have first 16 pages of Chapter 7 photocopied to give as homework. Essential Questions: 1. How does the norm of the culture affect the interaction of its citizens? 2. What can be done on an individual basis to help change a hurtful cultural norm? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● As students enter the classroom, they will be handed back their journals and reflections from the day before on the post­it discrimination activity. Students will be asked to re­read their responses and reflect on their words, adding anything else that they may have thought about overnight. Class will begin with a Quaker Reading of one or two sentences from their reflection. [5 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● The teacher will pass out the Circle of Evidence handout along with RTHMC after students have finished sharing their reflections. Since the students have already worked with this handout, they will not need an introduction or scaffolding, just a brief reminder of the purpose of the handout and a summary of the reading from the day before. Lesson Progression: [20 minutes] Read Chapter 6 of RTHMC while filling out Circle of Evidence handout ● Students will read Chapter 6 of RTHMC together in a hybrid form of popcorn and CLOZE reading. While reading, students may stop to have their classmates say a word with them, incorporating the reading strategies of both popcorn and CLOZE. Students will also be choosing a scene to write about in the Circle of Evidence handout. [10 minutes] Small Group Work ● After finishing Chapter 6, students will be broken up into groups and asked to compare the conversation on pages 128­129 between Mama and Cassie and Langston Hughes poem “Mother to Son”. This will be the first time students have worked with a Hughes text and will need a quick background on the author. Hughes was a poet and social activist in the time that this novel is set. To help the students recall what is going on in this time, the class will direct its attention towards the timeline that has been forming and quickly review everything that is going on. Students will then be given discussion questions to guide their comparison between Mama and Cassie and the Mother and Son in Hughes poem. Students will be asked to answer accordingly, knowing that they will be sharing their answers with the whole group. [5 minutes] Closure ● Going back over the chapter, students will reflect on the cultural norms of their society and asked to give advice to someone younger than them, mirroring the techniques of Mama and the mother in Langston Hughes poem. Students will turn in one sentence as they leave the room, picking up their photocopies of Chapter 7 RTHMC ● Homework: Read the first 16 pages of Chapter 7 of RTHMC (*NOTE: this first part of the chapter will be photocopied for students)

Day 10: Chapter 7 & Civil Rights and Relationships Note: Photocopy Chapter 8 to give for homework. Essential Questions: 1. What role do rights play when forming/maintaining relationships? 2. How are civil rights affected by different relationships? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● The second five or six students will present their civil rights article they brought to class, giving a one or two sentence summary of the article and how it relates to civil rights. These will be hung on the Timeline to coincide with the year the articles reflect. [5 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● The teacher will pass out set of True/False questions that reflects racial tensions and relationships. Students will adopt the personality of a character and respond to these questions, answering how they believe the character would react. Lesson Progression: [15 minutes] Finish reading Chapter 7 of RTHMC while filling out a New Circle of Evidence worksheet ● Each time students use the Circle of Evidence worksheet, they will be considering a different theme. Today, students are considering how relationships are affected by rights. While reading chapter 7 of RTHMC, students will find textual evidence of where the characters’ rights have affected their relationships with other characters. They will be able to easily fill in the boxes for characters, personal experiences, and the meaning of rights in relationships. Students may struggle with finding literary devices, but encourage them to look for foreshadowing, etc. Because of their scaffolding with this worksheet on prior days, they should be able to do it independently for the remainder of the chapter. [20 minutes] Think/Pair/Share ● [10 minutes] Students will have turn to their partner and share their worksheets with each other. Students will star the top three entries on the worksheets. ● [10 minutes] Students will share a point of their own that they found particularly insightful and a point their partner made that they found particularly insightful. This will give students an opportunity to publish their work in a nonthreatening way and help build a community in the classroom as they praise their partner’s contributions. [5 minutes] Closure ● Going back to the class definitions (rights, discrimination, etc.) that students have formed over the last few weeks, the teacher will pose the question, “How are relationships affected by these terms?” ● Students will turn in one sentence answering the question as they leave the classroom. Homework: Journal (at least 5 sentences) about a time you befriended someone you should not have or people did not think you should have. Why didn’t people want to you befriend them? Why did you? What happened? What rights did you exert when you decided to become their friend? Read Chapter 8 at home over the weekend

Day 11: Chapter 8 & Justice and Revenge (Students have read chapter 8 over the weekend) Essential Questions 1. Whose justice is right? 2. What is revenge? Can it ever be just? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● Pre­Reading Opinionnaire ­ Students will respond to three different scenarios where they must decide whether or not the action taken was just or if the action taken was a form of revenge. They will answer J for Just or R for revenge. [5 minutes] Anticipatory Set ● Students help define Justice and Injustice on white board. Short discussion will be held on the answer to the worksheet. ● Explain to students that the motif of continuing injustice is prevalent throughout this novel and in several cases, it helps move the story along. While the characters experience prejudice in almost every aspect of their lives, perhaps the cruelest is that which the children experience, because it robs them of their carefree, youthful innocence. In this chapter, one prominent example of injustice occurs when Mama loses her job. Lesson Progression: [35 minutes] Character Interview (Provides practice for final assessment) ● In small groups, students will conduct an imaginary interview with a character from the novel about the injustices they face. They will use their pre­reading opinionnaire to help launch their discussion about justice/injustice. Consider the unfairness the character encounter in their education, in their jobs, and in their social and economic life. ● Students must decide which characters they will interview and what questions to ask? Brainstorm as a class and write suggestions on the board. We have provided three suggestions. ○ Describe an incident in which you were treated unfairly. ○ How did that make you feel? ○ What did you do after that happened? Why did you take that particular course of action? ● Students will compose realistic answers based on what they have read thus far. To introduce characters properly, they must explain the full details of their experiences, including who, what, when, why, and where. The character’s feelings should also be emphasized in the interview. ● Students will present interview to the class in the format of a newspaper article (150­250 words) [5 minutes] Homework: Read the articles about the Trayvon Martin case.

Day 12: Chapter 9 & Justice and Injustice Essential Questions: 1. What is justice? 2. When are actions just or unjust? 3. Does justice play a role in civil rights? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● As students come into the classroom, hand them the pdf of the headline for the Emmett Till lynching and the Bell Work handout. ● Using the handout, students will compare the Emmett Till case with the Trayvon Martin case and then share some answers with the class. ● Hang the Trayvon Martin articles and picture on the Timeline. [5 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● Ask students: After considering Emmett Till and Trayvon Martin, how would you define justice? ● Students may answer in a large group discussion with teacher writing their ideas on the board. ● Have them keep this definition in mind while reading Chapter 9 of RTHMC. Lesson Progression: [20 minutes] Read Chapter 9 of RTHMC by the Popcorn Reading method ● The teacher will ask for one volunteer to begin reading Chapter 9 of RTHMC. That student will read until s/he is tired and then will pass the reading onto a different student in the classroom. This will continue until the chapter is read, ensuring that students are following along in their books. ● As students popcorn read, they will sticky note at least one passage that they believe is just and one they believe is unjust. They will transfer those passages into their journal in the form of a double entry diary, noting their personal reaction to those passages. [15 minutes] Justice Scenarios ● [5 minutes] Give students a list of scenarios (4­5) that reflect events similar to the Emmett Till lynching, the Trayvon Martin case, and the Wallace’s reaction to Mr. Morrison and Papa. Have them determine whether the action was just or unjust and explain why. ● [10 minutes] When students have answered these questions, go through the scenarios, keeping a tally vote on the board of whether the scenario was an act of justice or injustice. Have students share their reasons for why they gave a specific answer, backing it up with solid evidence from their reading. [5 minutes] Closure ● Go back to the definition of justice that students discussed at the beginning of class. ● “What do you think the definition of justice is after reading Chapter 9? What does that mean for civil rights?” ● Add their new ideas to the board in a different color to show their differences in defining justice that could evolve even more as they consider it in their journal. Homework: Journal: Create a definition for “Justice” and describe a time that you may have witnessed injustice. What did you do about it?

Day 13: Chapter 10 & Sacrifice http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HADGKw_wa5E Essential Questions: 1. What is sacrifice? 2. How can looking at fiction help the understanding of a certain time period? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● Students will be given a handout to explore the notion of sacrifice. The teacher will ask students to answer the questions on the bell work, leaving the similarities and differences chart alone. Students will silently reflect and answer questions. [5 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● Students will need their RTHMC book, Chapter 10 handout. Students will be asked to keep in mind their answers to the bell work. If while listening to Chapter 10 the students definition or examples of sacrifice changes, they are free to modify their answers. Lesson Progression: [25 minutes] Audio Version of Chapter 10 and Circle of Evidence handout ● Students will listen to Chapter 10 and follow along in their books. While listening to the Chapter, students will fill out the Circle of Evidence handout. The teacher will stop the audio from time to time to incorporate the reciprocal teaching strategies, asking from time to time for students to predict, question, summarize, clarify, and visualize to ensure students are engaged and comprehending the text. [10 minutes] Video of Langston Hughes “Ballad of Roosevelt” Poem ● Students will watch the 2 minute video of Danny Glover reading Langston Hughes “Ballad of Roosevelt” poem. Students will take notes on the sacrifices Hughes speaks of in his poem. Students will then examine the similarities and differences they find between Hughes poem and the Logan family. As a topic of discussion, students share the similarities and differences between the two texts. [5 minutes] Closure ● On the board, the teacher will write the definition, synonyms, and examples of sacrifice that the students come up with during the discussion. Students will be asked to finish their worksheet as homework if they did not finish it in class.

Day 14: Chapter 11, Climax Essential Questions 1. What is a story’s climax? 2. Who do you feel “responsible” for? Why? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● As students enter the room, they will hear a recording from the audiobook of the song that Mr. Morrison sings at the beginning of the chapter. Directions on the board will ask them to record their reactions to the song in their journal. ○ How does it make them feel? ○ How do they think it ties into the title of the novel? ○ What predictions can they make about this chapter? [10 minutes] Anticipatory Set ● Unlike any other chapter in the novel, this one opens with the lyrics to a spiritual. This song, sung by Mr. Morrison, is reminiscent African­American slave spirituals, originally sung by slaves as they toiled in the fields. In small groups, answer the following: ○ Why do you think this song opens the chapter? ○ What might the song represent? Consider the events leading up from the previous chapter. ○ What meaning does the song give to the novel’s title? ○ What does the motif of thunder represent in this novel? Lesson Progression: [20 minutes] Read Chapter 11 aloud to students ● This chapter will be read aloud to students. [10 minutes] Debrief ● The teacher will pause at points in the novel to think and wonder aloud about foreshadowing, symbolism, and themes such as unity, responsibility, and sacrifice. [5 minutes] Closure and exit slip ● Students will write in their journals a prediction about how they believe T.J’s situation will play out. This exit slip will prepare students for tomorrow’s discussion.

Day 15: Chapter 12 & Nonfiction Assignment This is the day the Magazine Assignment is introduced. Be sure that you have set up groups prior to class if you have specific students with each other. Essential Questions: 1. How does nonfiction tie in with Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry? 2. How does the Logan family show their character in the last chapter? [3 minutes] Bell Work: ● Have students complete Theme Bell Work, which looks at three general statements made by the book. The worksheet asks students to agree/disagree with three statements made within the book and then elaborate on their reasoning for the statement they feel strongest about. [5 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● Explain to students that we are tackling the last chapter of the book on this day and we’ll introduce our final projects for this unit. As a class, predict how the story will end using these potential endings (majority wins): ○ TJ is lynched. ○ TJ, LT & Papa are lynched. ○ The Logans decide to flee with TJ. ○ TJ is arrested. ○ Something distracts the lynch mob and the Logan family (& TJ) survive another day. Lesson Progression: [15 minutes] Read Chapter 12 as a class ● As Chapter 12 is a very important chapter, read the chapter aloud to the class, and have students follow along using the CLOZE reading technique. Be sure to pause on important words that have significance. [5 minutes] Introduce Magazine Assignment Sheet ● Read through handout on Magazine Assignment. Field any questions. Split students into groups (pre­split or in the moment; use your discretion). [15 minutes] Magazine & Nonfiction Text Browsing ● Give students magazines (like Time & Newsweek, etc.) to browse through and look at the way layouts are set­up. Explain to students that the writing will be similar to the articles they’ve been bringing into class every week. Give them time to look over the articles they brought in as well. Have them pick out elements of nonfiction and think of ways they could incorporate these in their final project [5 minutes] Small Group Meeting ● Give students an opportunity to talk as a group and pick their events. Have students draw straws to find out which group gets first pick. Students should also use this time to brainstorm about their magazine project if they decide their event quickly. [2 minutes] Closure ● Encourage students to use the statements from the bellwork to focus their nonfiction Magazine piece. Suggest students spend the weekend brainstorming different parts of their nonfiction assignment individually so they have something to work on when they meet as a group in the lab the next week.

Day 16: Start preparing for Mock Trial Essential Questions 1. How can a trial be “fair”? 2. What is guilt? How do we determine guilt? 3. What is bias? Why does bias exist? [10 minutes] Bell Work ● As students walk in the door, hand each one a different colored sticky note. Each color represents a different character in the book. Some students may have the same character. ● Two questions will be written on the board: What should happen to T.J. Avery? Is he guilty or innocent? ● Students will answer questions from perspective of character they were given. ● List of characters: 1. Cassie 2. Stacey 3. Christopher­John 4. Little Man 5. T.J. 6. Papa 7. R.W. Simms 8. Melvin Simms 9. Mr. Jamison 10. Kaleb Wallace 11. Mr. Granger 12. Mr. Morrison 13. Mrs. Lee [5 minutes] Anticipatory Set Students read their answers aloud. Discuss the differences in character’s opinions. Are the answers fair? What biases are present? Will T.J. get a fair trial? Lesson Progression: [4 minutes] Fried Green Tomatoes clip: ● Explain to the class that they are about to watch the “arrest and trial” portion from the movie “Fried Green Tomatoes.” In this clip, a young white woman and her African American handyman are on trial for the murder of an abusive white man in the late 1920s. [6 minutes] Discussion of clip: ● When the clip is complete, ask the students if they notice any differences between that trial and one that would occur today. (Students should notice the discrimination against the African­American hired hand, the all­white, male jury, smoking in the courtroom, the importance of the church, exclusion of the handyman from testifying in the courtroom, etc.) [10 minutes] Pass out trial scripts and Assignment ● Read through trial with students [5 minutes] Ask for volunteers/assign students to characters [10 minutes] Closure/Practice run­through of trial

Day 17: Lab Work/Research & Effective Questioning Essential Questions 1. How does research affect nonfiction texts? 2. What effect does effective questioning have on research? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● Students will brainstorm questions to ask the teacher to “research” about the teacher’s background, opinions, and life experiences that would make for an interesting main idea for a magazine article. The students will need to consider the elements of nonfiction discussed throughout the last 4 weeks. They will be given a handout that suggests they should ask questions that would answer the Who, What, When, Where, Why about the teacher. This will help them practice and review the interview activity they did the previous week. [5 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● To introduce the day’s lesson on incorporating elements of nonfiction into quality research, the teacher will allow the students to ask their questions in a press conference manner. They can ask follow­up or clarifying questions if their classmates’ questions spark an interesting comment from the teacher. After about five minutes of questioning, the students will need to write a main idea on their handout that would work for a nonfiction text about their teacher. Lesson Progression: [10 minutes] Overview of Effective Questioning ● Ask the students which questions they thought created the most interesting and meaningful responses from the teacher. What was similar about those questions? What make them incite better answers? ● Half of the battle of research is asking the right questions that you hope to find an answer to that will either develop a main idea or support the main idea of a text. Students should write some questions they think will lead to the main idea of their magazine assignment. ● What is the best way to find these answers if there is not an expert to interview? What makes a quality online source? ● Have them activate their prior knowledge from the second day of the unit. Ask them to pull out their worksheet about quality sources from the “Separate but Equal” activity with the Supreme Court Cases from the second day of the unit. [25 minutes] Work Time ● Students will begin work with their group on their magazine assignment. Hand out the elements of nonfiction guide for them to use to know the components they will need to have in their finished product. They will be able to work through this as they move through the project. They will have the opportunity to use the computer to begin their work for this final assignment. They will already have a rubric for their assignment, but they should also be given the guide that will outline what is required for the assignment, including the elements of fiction they must have present and what characters they need to portray. It will have an outline that students can fill in as they work [5 minutes] Closure ● Have students fill out an exit slip of what elements of nonfiction they feel they are missing from their research. They will circle the elements they think they have not found and explain in one sentence or so how they plan to achieve those tomorrow. Day 18: Lab Work/Textual Evidence Essential Questions 1. What is the role of textual evidence? 2. How is textual evidence used in a paper? [5 minutes] Bell Work ● Students will go over all of their worksheets that had to do with collecting textual evidence. Reflecting on the research they did the day before, they will mark in the corner of 5 of their handouts, which ones would best support their magazine article. [5 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● Students will be handed back their exit slip from the day before that had the elements of nonfiction that they were missing. Having looked over the exit slips the night before, the teacher will address the most common elements that were missing and the students will brainstorming how to include those. The teacher will also discuss how to connect the textual evidence they have found into their magazine, giving an example of one that they made up on the ELMO. [35 minutes] Work Time ● Students will continue their group work, quickly going over what they have found already and what they need to find to finish their project. This will be the last day that they have in class time to work on their project. [5 minutes] Closure ● Students will make a to do list of what is left for their project, assigning group members specific jobs along with creating a plan for finishing their project. Students will also be handed a worksheet that they will have to fill out regarding their participation in the group project along with their group members to be turned in with their final project.

Day 19: Presentation Day Essential Question 1. How do the elements of nonfiction help make a piece compelling? [5 minutes] Introduction/Anticipatory Set ● Give students time to meet in their groups and decide how they will present their magazine article to class. While students are chatting, pass out copies of the Elements of Nonfiction Graphic Organizer for students to use while listening to each other’s presentations. [42 minutes] Presentations ● Give each group 6­7 minutes (approximately, depending on how many groups there are) to tell us about their article, touching on the elements of nonfiction specifically. Have students who are listening do their best to fill in the elements of nonfiction assessment as their peers present to scaffold understanding as well as help with evaluation of completion. [3 minutes] Closure ● Thank students for their hard work and collect the final copies of their magazine articles. Explain that you will compile them into a class magazine by next week.

Day 20: Mock Trial Essential Questions: 1. What is justice? 2. How does perspective color a person’s definition of justice and fairness? [5 minutes] Bell Work: ● Taking on the perspective of your character for the mock trial, journal their opinion of how the trial should turn out, and why that would be “fair.” [5 minutes] Introductory/Anticipatory Set ● Ask students to use their journal entry to get into character for the mock trial. Arrange desks to model a courtroom. Lesson Progression [25 minutes] The Mock Trial ● Have students perform the Mock Trial. [10 minutes] Justice & TJ’s fate ● Thank students for their hard work and their dedication to portraying the characters. Poll the students: what do they think will be TJ’s fate: guilty, innocent, not guilty. Why? Discuss as a class. Pose the question: Was this case and the proceedings of the court fair? Does TJ have a chance? [5 minutes] Closure ● Have students turn in journals with all handouts & freewrites. Encourage students to read Let the Circle Be Unbroken by Mildred D. Taylor to find out TJ’s fate and what happens with the Logan family.