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Language Arts - Secondary Curriculum English Language Arts Grade 11-12
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Reading: Literature Standard 3

Analyze the impact of the author’s choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story or drama (e.g., where a story is set, how the action is ordered, how the characters are introduced and developed).
  • American Literary Humor - Mark Twain, George Harris and Nathaniel Hawthorne
    In this three-part curriculum unit, students examine structure and characterization in several short stories and consider the significance of humor through a study of several American writers. One or all lessons can be taught individually or linked together as a unit on 19th century American humor.
  • Chaucer's Wife of Bath
    This lesson from EDSITEment introduces students to one of the most admired characterizations in Chaucer's "The Canterbury Tales" the Wife of Bath. Learning Objectives include (1) To analyze Chaucer's portrayal of the Wife of Bath in The Canterbury Tales; (2) To consider how the story told by the Wife of Bath reflects on both her character and on Chaucer's view of marriage and women; (3) To examine literary sources that contributed to this characterization; (4) To explore the historical context that informs this depiction of the rights of women in marriage.
  • Exploring A Streetcar Named Desire
    Students study setting, plot, and character development in Tennessee Williams' play, A Streetcar Named Desire, and discuss its impact on American theatre. Students will participate in a group reading and analysis of the play and share their collective findings with the class.
  • Faulkner's As I Lay Dying: Form of a Funeral
    In the lessons of this curriculum unit, students: Explore the use of multiple voices in narration; learn about the social and economic conditions of the rural South in the 1920s and about William Faulkner's life; and read, annotate, and discuss the text in class, individually and in groups.
  • Tales of the Supernatural
    Monsters have haunted the literary imagination from earliest times (e.g., the Cyclops, Grendel, etc.), but a particular interest in horror and the Gothic form dates back to the 18th and early 19th century. The goals of this plan are to explore the origins and development of a literary genre; to investigate how shared imaginative concerns link the members of a literary period; to examine the evolution of a literary tradition; to compare works of literature from different eras.
  • You Kiss by the Book: Romeo & Juliet
    The goals of this lesson plan are: (1) To learn about Shakespeare's use of poetic conventions as a principle of dramatic structure in Romeo and Juliet; (2) To examine the first meeting between Romeo and Juliet as an enactment of figurative language in a context of competing poetic styles; (3) To explore the use of poetic forms to impart perspective in later episodes of the play; (4) To gain experience in close reading and the interpretation of verse structure and imagery.


UEN logo http://www.uen.org - in partnership with Utah State Board of Education (USBE) and Utah System of Higher Education (USHE).  Send questions or comments to USBE Specialist - Naomi  Watkins and see the Language Arts - Secondary website. For general questions about Utah's Core Standards contact the Director - Jennifer  Throndsen.

These materials have been produced by and for the teachers of the State of Utah. Copies of these materials may be freely reproduced for teacher and classroom use. When distributing these materials, credit should be given to Utah State Board of Education. These materials may not be published, in whole or part, or in any other format, without the written permission of the Utah State Board of Education, 250 East 500 South, PO Box 144200, Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-4200.