Literary+Elements+and+the+Short+Story

** This unit, the first of six, uses the short story as the vehicle for reviewing common literary elements, as well as for appreciating the art of great storytelling. This unit enables students to confirm and hone a common understanding of important literary elements, as well as a shared vocabulary for discussing them. Each story may be used to focus especially on a particular element, such as point of view or symbolism. Teachers should choose stories that exemplify great storytelling and that they think are best for their students. The range of suggested works provides exposure to literature from a variety of cultures. ** > = ** __Terminology__: ** = > = ** __Suggested Literature:__ ** =  = ** Formal essay ** = = ** __Technology Integration/Strategies:__ ** = = =
 * Unit 1: Short Stories **
 * __Essential Questions__ **
 * **Why do we tell stories?**
 * **How do literary elements (i.e., flashback, plot, symbol, suspense, characterization, irony, setting, tone/mood, theme, imagery, point-of-view) play a part in the essence and workings of a short story.**
 * __Standards:__ **
 * **RL.9-10.1: Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.**
 * **RL.9-10.5: Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure a text, order events within it (e.g., parallel plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks) create such effects as mystery, tension, or surprise.**
 * **W.9-10.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.**
 * **SL.9-10.1: Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9–10 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.**
 * **L.9-10.5:Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.**
 * __Unit Objectives__: **
 * **Identify and explain plot structure (i.e., exposition, rising action, crisis/climax, falling action, resolution/denouement) in short stories.**
 * **Understand and explain why plots in short stories usually focus on a single event.**
 * **Analyze how authors create the setting in a short story.**
 * **Define the concept of theme and identify the theme(s) in stories read.**
 * **Identify and explain characterization techniques in short stories.**
 * **Identify and explain the use of figurative language in short stories.**
 * **Analyze how authors create tone in short stories.**
 * **Identify the point of view in a short story and analyze how point of view affects the reader’s interpretation of the story.**
 * **Write a coherent essay of literary analysis with a clear thesis statement, at least three pieces of evidence from texts, and a strong introduction and conclusion.**
 * **Character, characterization**
 * **Figurative language**
 * **Irony (e.g., dramatic, situational, verbal)**
 * **Narrator**
 * **Parable**
 * **Plot (i.e., exposition, rising action, crisis/climax, falling action, resolution/denouement)**
 * **Point of view**
 * **Sensory imagery**
 * **Setting**
 * **Style**
 * **Symbol, symbolism**
 * **Theme**
 * **Tone**
 * ** Mood **
 * __Suggested Poetry:__ **
 * **“Casey at the Bat” by Ernest Thayer**
 * **“The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe**
 * **“The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow**
 * ** “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell **
 * **“The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe**
 * **“The Necklace” by Guy De Maupassant**
 * **“The Gift of the Magi” by O.Henry**
 * **“The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst**
 * **“The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” by James Thurber**
 * __Unit Assessment & Evidence of Understanding:__ **
 * **How does a particular literary element play a part in the essence and workings of one of the chosen stories. State your thesis clearly and include at least three pieces of evidence to support.**
 * __Socratic Seminar__: The Seminar Question may also be used as an essay topic. **
 * **Is Montresor (from Poe’s "The Cask of Amontillado”) a reliable narrator? Cite at least three reasons to support your argument.**
 * **Do you believe the author of "The Most Dangerous Game" intended the story partly as an indictment of hunting or cruelty to animals?**
 * **Assessments in Moodle**
 * **Internet research strategies**
 * **Literary Elements Power Point**

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