Unpacking The Standards

1
Caleb Ricks
Unpacking the Standards
ITL 526
National University
2
Part 1: Deconstruction of Standards and Defining Goals
Curricular Aim/Standard:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.2
Determine two or more themes or central ideas of a text and analyze their development over
the course of the text, including how they interact and build on one another to produce a
complex account; provide an objective summary of the text.
Step 1: Unpack standard by circling skills and underlining concepts:
What Students are to be able to do (verbs) What Students Need to Know (nouns)
● Determine two or more themes or ● Theme

central ideas of a text ● Central idea
● Analyze the development of these ● Development
themes/ideas over the course of the ● Text
text ● Complex account
● Analyze how these themes/ideas ● Summary
interact and build on one another ● Objective
● Analyze and interpret how these ● Concepts
themes/ideas produce a complex ● Interact
account within the text
● Know how to write a summary of a
text
● Provide an objective summary of the
text
3
Step 2: Deep Understanding of Intended Learning
Knowledge - Facts and concepts we want students to know

● How to identify and define theme
● How a theme develops throughout a text
● Understand how there can be multiple themes within one text
● Complex and academic language
● Be able to identify details in a text
● How to formulate and write a summary
● Understand how the setting of the novel (To Kill a Mockingbird) influences theme and
characterization (Jim Crow south, Great Depression, unwritten social rules, and
Southern culture)
● Understanding ideas/themes of identity, society, justice, individual growth, democracy,
and morality
● Understand the relationship between characters and theme
● Understand points of view
Reasoning – The ability to use knowledge and understanding to figure things out
● Differentiate important/key plot points from other parts of the text
● Make connections among characters and thematic elements throughout text
● Reread to clarify information
● Use critical thinking to apply previous knowledge to draw conclusions from the text
● Question the text
● Use connection questions
● Close reading
Skills – Development of proficiency in doing something where the process is most

important
● Characterization and character analysis
● Be able to explain how literary support theme and central ideas, both verbally and
through writing
● Use close reading skills to identify clues to the theme
● Examine words and actions of characters and their significance in the story
● Understand story by summarizing key plot points
● Identify and classify important details and thematic elements
● Read fluently and define academic vocabulary
● Analyze text’s setting and its thematic significance
4
Products – Tangible evidence that demonstrates student evidence of learning

● Write and reflect in journals
● Create identity charts
● Use storyboards to improve reading comprehension
● Answer connection questions
● “Universe of Obligation” charts
● Moral growth and memory maps
Habits of mind – development of affective behaviors to sustain and support students

during the learning process; attitudes about school and learning
● Close reading
● Rereading for understanding
● Annotating
● Questioning texts
● Drawing connections between characters and themes
● Analyzing character action and dialogue
● Responding to the text
● Draw conclusions from the text and make inferences
● See the relationships between individuals and their society
● Understand the implications of identity
● Understand how individuals morally grow
● Understand America’s growth as a nation alongside racial tension
● Understand how many of the text’s themes are relevant today
Step 3: Define the Learning Trajectory
A. Introduction: The Individual and Society

a. Introduce essential question for unit
b. Introduce identity, identity charts, and memory maps
c. Define stereotype(s) and moral growth
d. Explore consequences of stereotype
e. Model close reading
f. Explore the relationship between identity and need to belong (handout)
B. To Kill a Mockingbird Chapters 1-7
a. Topical essential question for chapters
b. Plot summary
c. Academic vocabulary
5
d. close reading in groups and presentation answering connecting questions

e. Write in reflexive journals (connection questions) and create identity charts
f. Build historical context through handouts (The Great Depression) to establish
setting
g. Connect chapters’ thematic elements to overarching essential question for text
C. To Kill a Mockingbird Chapters 8-11
b. Plot summary
e. Write in reflexive journals (connection questions) and add to identity charts
f. Build historical context through handouts (Eugenics, Jim Crow, gender
expectations in South) to establish setting
D. To Kill a Mockingbird Chapters 12-15
b. Plot summary
f. Build historical context through handouts (code switching, lynching, segragated
South) to establish setting
E. To Kill a Mockingbird Chapters 16-21
b. Plot summary
f. Build historical context through handouts (Redneck Stereotype, Role of Poor
Southern Whites) to establish setting
F. To Kill a Mockingbird Chapters 22-31
b. Plot summary
6
f. Build historical context through handouts (Justice in the Segregated South,

Memorials) to establish setting
G. Post-Reading: Choice of projects to answer essential questions
a. Respond to the novel
b. Connect the novel to the film
c. Analyze character growth and moral development
d. Respond to the central/essential question
e. Reflect on the relationship between identity and action
Step 4: Unpack and Define the Essential Content for One Learning Chunk
To Kill a Mockingbird Chapters 1-7

A. Identity charts will act as graphic organizers to help students think about the identities
of the characters. This will be expanded upon throughout the course of the text. This
will also allow students to get a head start in answering the Unit’s EQ
a. Skills: close reading, characterization and character analysis, examine words
and actions of characters and their significance in the story
b. Knowledge: Understand the relationship between characters and theme,
understand points of view, understanding ideas/themes of identity, society,
justice, individual growth, democracy, and morality
c. Reasoning: Make connections among characters and thematic elements
throughout text, use critical thinking to apply previous knowledge to draw
conclusions from the text
d. Habits of mind: Close reading, Drawing connections between characters and
themes, analyzing character action and dialogue, responding to the text, draw
conclusions from the text and make inferences, see the relationships between
individuals and their society, understand the implications of identity,
understand how individuals morally grow
e. Products: identity chart, journal
7
Step 5: Design Strong Performance of Understanding
A. Write and Reflect in Journals

a. Connection questions or chapter chunk EQs can be used as prompts to help
students have practice responding to aspects of the Unit EQ
b. Provides a space for students to practice objectively summarizing a text
c. Provides a space for students to discuss aspects of character and theme to
ultimately answer the Unit EQ
B. Create Identity Charts
a. Students will create a graphic organizer to help them consider the many factors
and influences that shape the identities of characters in the novel
b. Graphic organizer will help students gather and analyze information about
character identity
c. Analysis through creating the graphic organizer will students better understand
the problems and choices characters face in the text
C. Create Storyboard
a. Helps students comprehend how young character (Scout) comprehends setting
b. Helps students physically represent their inferences
c. Helps students keep track of important events (helps summarizing)
d. Creates resource students can refer to as plot and pacing of text progress
e. Students, in groups, will illustrate important scenes from each chapter chunk
accompanied with a passage describing scene (and page number)
f. This will require close reading, character analysis, and synthesis of student
understanding of text
Step 6: State Learning Target
Learning Target for Ch. 1:
Through close reading, students will be able to explain how Scout’s description of the setting
and the characters in chapter 1 paints a picture of Maycomb and of the attitudes and beliefs of
its inhabitants.
A. Beginning practice of character analysis

B. Beginning practice of setting analysis
C. Beginning practice of close reading
D. Beginning practice of identifying thematic elements
E. Beginning practice of analyzing the relationship between characters and setting
F. Analysis helps creation of identity charts
8
Step 7: Measurability
Proficient response: Scout’s description of Maycomb helps paint a picture of the townspeople
and their ways. Not only does Scout’s description of the town reveal what she sees physically,
but also what she sees implicitly-- the unwritten rules that the members of Maycomb follow. In
her description of the town, Scout states, “Maycomb was an old town, but it was a tired old
town when I knew it” (page #). Given this description, the reader can infer that the people of
Maycomb are as “tired and old” as the town itself,not literally but figuratively. Given that the
town is set in the Southern state of Alabama, the reader can infer that this tired old town is
steeped in Southern tradition, a tradition that thrived in American slave culture. Because the
town is tired, it is neither progressive nor proactive, and therefore the townspeople are unlikely
to change their traditional ways.
Action: Students will respond to prompts that address the learning target in their journals and
will begin their character identity charts.
Context: Students will first respond to the prompts as groups and will present their findings to
the class. Students will work on their character identity charts independently, but will work
together on their storyboards as a group.
Terms: Adequately answering the prompts through the use of textual evidence will denote
success, especially if thematic elements are referenced. Identity charts and storyboards will be
used as products of learning to display success.

Unpacking The Standards

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Unpacking The Standards

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

1