Unit Context

The 10th grade students have been studying these essential questions
as they read Catcher In the Rye by J.D. Salinger. Using the essential
questions, we will focus on Monster. This unit will use reader response
to concentrate on the topic of identity and how it connects and shapes
these three texts. This lesson will be the first lesson of the last week of
a six-week unit. Student will have just finished reading Monster.
Common Core ELA Standards for Grades 9-10

CCSS.ELALITERACY.RL.910.3

Analyzehowcomplexcharacters(e.g.,thosewithmultipleorconflicting
motivations)developoverthecourseofatext,interactwithothercharacters,and
advancetheplotordevelopthetheme.

CCSS.ELALITERACY.RL.910.1

Citestrongandthoroughtextualevidencetosupportanalysisofwhatthetextsays
explicitlyaswellasinferencesdrawnfromthetext.
Unit Essential Questions
1) How does society affect a persons personal identity?
2) What impact does a persons view of themselves have on their
identity?
3) How do people act when they feel that they dont belong?
Objectives/Student Learning Outcomes
Students will be able to identify connections between either the
characters in the texts or the characters and themselves while
considering one of the units essential questions.
Outline for 55 Minute Class:
Students will begin the class with a short class discussion of the ending
of Monster with continued concentration on the Common Core
standards and the essential questions of the unit.
(10 Minutes)
Then a chart will be drawn on the whiteboard with the main characters
of each book as the headings to each column. I will ask students to
participate in writing adjectives to describe each character and their
identity.
(10 Minutes)

Students will then split up into small groups of three or four. Each
group will get a different slip of paper. The slips will be: Relationships,
Environment, Upbringing, or Experiences. They will be asked to focus
on the topic on their slip and discuss any connections, similarities, or
differences between the characters and write them down as bullet
points.
(20 Minutes)
Bringing students back together as a large group, student will share
their thoughts from small groups.
(15 Minutes or Remainder of Class)
Homework:
Students will reflect on the class activities and discussions to write a
one to two page reflection that will be due the following class period.
Students will be required to use examples from the texts. This provides
them with an opportunity to reflect on the material with time to think
critically about one of the essential questions of the unit.
Assessment:
These responses will be graded on a 10-8-6-4-2-0 rubric. A 10 would
represent a strong, clear, and accurate connection based on the
student-learning outcome. An 8 would represent a satisfactory, clear
and accurate connection based on the student-learning outcome. A 6
would represent an average connection to the big ideas and studentlearning outcome. An 8 would represent a less than average
connection to the big ideas and student-learning outcomes. A 2 would
represent an unsatisfactory connection to the big ideas. A 0 would
represent non-completion of the assessment.