4 3 2 1

I can tell what the most I can usually tell what is Sometimes I get I usually can’t tell the
important parts of most important about important ideas mixed difference between
"Letter from "Letter from up with unimportant what’s important and
Birmingham Jail" are. Birmingham Jail.” details, regarding what isn’t, regarding
"Letter from "Letter from
Birmingham Jail." Birmingham Jail."
I use my own I use what I know to With help, I make I have difficulty making
knowledge to make draw conclusions and inferences about inferences in "Letter
inferences and draw make inferences about "Letter from from Birmingham Jail."
conclusions about "Letter from Birmingham Jail," but
"Letter from Birmingham Jail,” and I sometimes I don’t have
Birmingham Jail" and usually check to see if good reasons for them.
check to see if I’m I’m right.
right.
I do whatever I need to I make an effort to If someone reminds I am happy with what I
do to learn more about learn more about ideas me, I learn more about already know about
ideas and concepts and concepts that are ideas and concepts "Letter from
that are new to me in new to me in "Letter that are new to me, Birmingham Jail" and
"Letter from from Birmingham Jail." regarding "Letter from did not bother to find
Birmingham Jail." Birmingham Jail." out more.
I can thoroughly and I can explain my I can usually explain my I cannot explain my
clearly explain in opinion on "Letter from opinion on "Letter from opinion, regarding
speaking or writing my Birmingham Jail" and Birmingham Jail," but I "Letter from
opinion on "Letter from give good reasons for don’t always have good Birmingham Jail."
Birmingham Jail" and it. reasons for it.
give reasons for it.
BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE ON GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS

I would have students fill out an anticipation guide before reading "Letter from Birmingham Jail." The
guide would consist of a list of true and false statements connected to the reading. This would help me
to gauge where the students are at before reading, and then when I follow up after the reading, I will
know who needs more help in what areas. This would also help the students while doing any assigned
reading. It would help them to be actively engaged in their text to find out which of the statements on
the guide are either true or false. The following day, when the readings and guides were completed, I
would present different questions to the students that would further discussion and debate. I would
most likely do this by asking questions that would encourage students to relate the text to our
contemporary times. For example, if when reading "Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King
Jr., I would ask students to give examples of contemporary civil disobedience. I would likely have
students engage this concept by examining how acts of civil disobedience are perceived in our own time
and how it may impact individuals and groups of people.

I would accomplish this by doing read-alouds of various portions of the text that would be fruitful in
fostering student engagement. When doing the read-alouds, I would give pause for any questions while
taking the time to 'unpack' what we had just read. This particular lesson plan would be especially topical
right now due to the Black Lives Matter protests and Seattle’s Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone. Hopefully,
this would get students to think critically about the text, engage it in a more charitable and nuanced
way, and let them see that just because work may be "old" does not make it irrelevant or mean that it
cannot be connected to their own lives. I would ask students to explore how the way King used language
affected what he wrote.

For this lesson, I would attempt to have students engage in a dialogue or debate, wherein they would
need to have their books present to read passages they highlighted on their own so that they may
ground their contemporary examples in the text. This would be a way of including the Key Ideas and
Details standard as well. I would likely have the room set up as a Socratic-seminar, possibly even a
concentric Socratic-seminar. This would all depend on the students and what worked best with this
particular class. If all went as planned, the Socratic-seminar would be Plan A and would consist of
dialogue.

Beyond just the one lesson, as a practice of habit, I would have students learn some of the basic jargon
used in literary departments: form, meter, soliloquy, irony, metaphor, motif, theme, etc. I would do this
by implementing the use of word walls. I would have students look up any words on the word wall, then
ask them to use and incorporate these terms when discussing texts during class discussions and written
analyses—including reviews and debates, much like the one I previously laid out. I feel it would be
beneficial to have two word walls up at the same time when reading a text. One dedicated to jargon to
help aid the students in developing academic literacy and fluency when discussing a text. The second
word wall would be on the text itself. If it would be a text like "Moby Dick," then the word wall would
include extant, farrago, interminable, leviathan, nonplussed, pedestrian, perdition, portentous,
sovereign, spleen, temperance, tribulation, zephyr, etc. The aim here is that having two word walls
would allow the students to be familiar with the novel and its language, but also helping them to discuss
it in such a way that shows their knowledge of literary forms. 
Upon completion of this lesson I would assign students to create their own graphic organizers of the text
and their connections between it and their lives. I would use Popplets because it is user friendly, free,
and multimedia friendly. The organizers would be relatively simple, this assignment is to get them to
engage the text but not over work them. I would ask for the name of the text/author, a brief summary
of the text—3 – 5 short paragraphs, two or three themes to be identified, any event after the
publication of the reading that can be linked/compared to its major theme of civil disobedience, and
finally I would want students to do at least one ‘popplet’ explaining their opinion about the ethics of civil
disobedience. Students will be free to add images and any related videos for a .5 point extra credit each
—with 2 points of extra credit being the cap.

TOPIC FOR THIS UNIT: Language and Politics 

CONTENT STANDARDS THAT SUPPORT THIS TOPIC: 

RI. 11-12.3- Analyze a complex set of ideas or sequence of events and explain how specific individuals,
ideas, or events interact and develop over the course of the text.

RI. 11-12.5- Analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of the structure an author uses in his or her
exposition or argument, including whether the structure makes points clear, convincing, and engaging.

RI. 11-12.6- Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text in which the rhetoric is particularly
effective, analyzing how style and content contribute to the power, persuasiveness, or beauty of the
text.

W. 11-12.1- Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid
reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.

W. 11-12.7- Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a
self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate;
synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under
investigation.

SL. 11-12.3- Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, assessing
the stance, premises, links among ideas, word choice, points of emphasis, and tone used.

SL. 11-12.4- Present information, findings, and supporting evidence (e.g., reflective, historical
investigation, response to literature presentations), conveying a clear and distinct perspective and a
logical argument, such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning, alternative or opposing
perspectives are addressed, and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to
purpose, audience, and a range of formal and informal tasks. Use appropriate eye contact, adequate
volume, and clear pronunciation. CA

L. 11-12.5- Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word
meanings. a. Interpret figures of speech (e.g., hyperbole, paradox) in context and analyze their role in
the text. b. Analyze nuances in the meaning of words with similar denotations.