“Heros Big and Small”

For 9th Grade

A Unit Plan by Nathan Stunkard

Note: The following unit plan has been adapted in large pieces from Jenny
Cockrill, Stephanie Hall and Rebecca Long in their unit plan: “Heroes and the
Human Condition” located at
http://www.coe.uga.edu/~smago/VirtualLibrary/index.html with consent given at
that website, and Jason Whitney in his unit plan: “Science Fiction and Social
Commentary” with his consent.

RATIONALE
The basis of this unit, exploring the literary hero, is that all societies have heroes, and these

individual characters embody the social and ethical principles of the society, which created them. A unit

on heroes will allow students to examine the basic traits that all heroes posses and explore the idea that,

while different societies reveal their own individual ideologies through the characteristics of their

heroes, there are certain characteristics that all heroes have. As the students examine the cultural and

historical aspects of the hero, they will also examine their own constructed ideas of what a hero is and

should be. With this in mind, they should become aware that the heroes’ experiences apply to all people

when faced with difficult situations. Therefore, while we will examine some differences between

societies as they are revealed by the various characteristics of the hero, the class will focus on the

things that all heroes have in common, thus exploring ideologies that all societies seem to share, as well

as applying these ideologies to students’ own lives and actions.

A strong argument can be mounted for the literary significance of the hero. The archetypal hero

can be found within religions, mythology, folklore, and the cultures of all societies throughout the

world. The hero and the hero’s journey are two of the unifying features of literature that can be found

across all cultures. For example, Campbell in his study The Hero With a Thousand Faces, that all hero

myths, no matter what culture produced them, have three distinct aspects. The aspects are Departure,

Initiation, and Return. We will be studying Campbell's Hero Cycle in the class, and showing students

how works written in two places on opposite sides of the globe, can both contain these essential aspects
will have a powerful effect. Through making these connections, this unit will strengthen students’

ability to unify and interpret literature they encounter later in their lives.

To show students this unity, students will explore multiple heroes in literature from the past as

well as the present. We will use the older texts to lay the groundwork of what makes a hero. The class

will define these characteristics as the archetypes of the hero. The teacher will already have a

preconception of what these archetypes are through informed reading of Jung, Campbell, and Frazer.

Students will be then encouraged to find and define these archetypes themselves. Therefore, the

groundwork will be constantly changing as new works are explored, and the students reevaluate their

definition of a hero. The students will progress to use this groundwork to examine other texts and

explore what traits of the hero change from society to society, and what traits remain unchanged. This

study will lend itself to a primarily chronological exploration of the text; however, this pattern can be

occasionally disrupted when the connections between new and old can be better seen when these works

are studied in tandem.

Ultimately, students will see that even though distance, time, and language separated these

story’s authors, the deep psychological concerns and issues are universal. Furthermore, they will see

that these issues are relevant to this day. Once this modern day relevance is shown to the students they

will be able to apply these lessons to their everyday lives. Student will participate in the quest within

themselves to find which positive traits they find important, and more importantly, which ones they

already posses. It is important to note that this unit will be taught in a way that explores the hero’s

strengths as well as his weaknesses as interpreted by today’s society. Adolescents are eager to find role

models, and by studying what it means to be a hero and what strengths and weaknesses heroes embody,

adolescents should be come wiser about their choices of role models. Students of this age usually look

only to the positive aspects in their role models, and this unit will provide insight, which will reveal

that everyone has weak points and heroes are no exception.

Studying the literary hero will also demonstrate students that everyone has individual strengths.
This unit will encourage students to find the heroic traits within themselves and provide a realization

that each individual, by the virtue of his or her distinct human abilities, is always able to cope with and

move beyond personal adversity. Students will be able to translate the insights they gain throughout this

unit to their everyday lives and vice versa. This insight will especially pertain to the adults they choose

to look up to, and the peers they strive to emulate. A hope of this unit is to instill new confidence in

adolescents during a time in their development where it is needed badly. The quest of the archetypal

hero is more of an inward quest than the seemingly outward quest literally described in the story. This

symbolic inward quest will be important to adolescent readers in that it will provide the opportunity for

such introspection in these students. Educators have used many tools such as assigned journals to

encourage such reflection, and this introspection in students could be further encouraged by the study

of protagonists who embark on a personal introspective journey.

This unit will enable students to recognize the element that make up the hero and the heroic

journey. Once students have learned these elements, they should be able to recognize how these

elements are present within classical and other literature, popular culture and ultimately, their own

lives. By applying the elements of the hero and his journey to their own lives, students can be better

prepared to deal with the many difficult decisions that adolescents must face. By using non-traditional

as well as traditional heroes over the course of this unit, the students should come to understand the

universal condition that is being human, and how to better negotiate the personal and interpersonal

trails involved in the human condition.

GOALS

Goal #1: Students will take responsibility for reading at home for homework.
Five reading quizzes will be administered to students to test reading on five separate days of the
unit. These quizzes will be randomly scattered throughout. Students should be sufficiently motivated to
read as there will be a quiz on 1/3 of the 15 unit classes. Reading quizzes will be summary quizzes in
which students will be asked to write a brief summary of the reading. Besides proving to me that they
did the reading, these quizzes will freshen the story in their minds and work secondarily as a warm up
activity. Quizzes will be graded on a pass/fail basis and at the unit will make up 50 points (25% of the
final 200 points). The next page provides a generic template for the reading quizzes, including the
rubric students will receive on the first day of the unit.

Reading Quiz on The Golden Compass (Chapters X-X)

For the reading I assigned you as homework, I want you to write a brief summary of the
story that proves to me that you read it. The following tips may help you generate a
summary that provides ample evidence of your reading:
• Who were the characters / people in the reading?
• What did they do?
• What was/were the setting(s)? Describe some key characteristics of the setting.
• What else happened in the reading that may not have involved the characters?
• What are some key details in the beginning, middle, and end of the reading?

Rubric for Reading Quizzes 50 points (or 25% of your final grade)
You will receive a grade of pass for your reading quiz if it proves to me that you did the reading
by providing evidence of relevant details (characters, setting, plot) throughout the entire reading
(beginning, middle, end). Some details may be sketchy or confused, but there is evidence that they
were discovered through reading.

You will receive a grade of fail for your reading quiz if it is returned to me blank, it has
material that is clearly made up (i.e. inventing a character that doesn’t exist), or it
provides insufficient evidence that you did the entire reading.

Goal #2: Students will participate in class discussion, reading and activities.
Due to the explorative nature of unit across numerous texts, a great deal of reading will be done
in class. Throughout the unit, students will be reading alone and out loud as a class. First, students will
be expected to participate in this reading, and make an effort to actively engage the material. Second,
students are expected to participate in group discussion when appropriate, and be a thoughtful addition
to the class. Third, students will take in class activities seriously, and will complete them in the
allocated time. All in class activities will be averaged with the before mentioned factors to make up 50
points (25% of the final 200 points). Following is a handout and rubric that will be passed out
explaining how students will be assessed in their participation grade.

Class Participation Grade 50 points (or 25% of your final grade)

Throughout the next unit you will be assessed on your in class participation. I am interested in your
ideas and questions about The Golden Compass! They are so important that I will be grading you on
how activity you will be participating in class. There are three ways in which you are expected to
participate to earn full points. First, you must take all in class activities seriously, and complete them
in the allocated time with sufficient effort. Second, you must participate in out loud group reading
when presented. Third, you must actively participate in group discussion when presented, posing
interesting thoughts and questions on the test. Essentially, you need to show me that you are thinking
about The Golden Compass and the texts we read in class. There are plenty of opportunities to show
your participation effort, and there is no excuse why everyone shouldn't get the full 50 points! If
you are curious as to the status of your participation, or are wondering of ways to earn points
feel free to ask before or after class.

Rubric for Class Participation Grade:

The following is how I will be grading you for class participation, AND YES I WILL BE KEEPING
RECORDS!

A participation grade of “A” will be awarded for:

Participating consistently, and demonstrating an exceptional interest, understanding, and engagement
in the material.
Participating in class discussion every class.
Volunteering to read as much as possible.
Completing complete, creative, and interesting class activities
Never being caught goofing off or disrupting other students.

A participation grade of “B” will be awarded for:

Demonstrating a clear interest in the class and engagement in material, but not participating to full
amount possible.
Participating in class discussion consistently.
Volunteering to read frequently.
Completing class activities on time, but with some mistakes or lack of interest.
Being caught goofing off or disrupting other students a couple times or never.

A participation grade of “C” will be awarded for:

Demonstrating a small amount of interest in the class and engagement in the material.
Participating in class discussion, but infrequently.
Volunteering to read very infrequently in class.
Completing class activities, but only to the bare minimum required.
Being caught goofing off or disrupting other students a few times.

A participation grade of “D” will be awarded for:

Demonstrating a general lack of interest or engagement in the material.
Participating in class discussion a few times during the unit.
Volunteering to read only once when given the opportunity in class.
Completing sloppy, incomplete or otherwise generally lacking class activities
Sleeping in class, disrupting other students learning more than a few times.

A participation grade of “F” will be awarded for:

Demonstrating a total lack of interest or engagement in the material.
Never participating in class discussion.
Never volunteering to read when given the opportunity in class.
Turning in consistently incomplete or unacceptable class activities.
Consistently goofing off in class activities, or disrupting other student's learning.

Goal #3 Students will complete a final creative writing story in groups of two.
At the beginning of the unit the class will be split into groups of two. Throughout the rest of the
unit students will be given time in class to create their own hero in these small groups. They will then
craft a short heroic story, demonstrating what they have learned in class. The assignment will be largely
open ended, but it must take place in the world of The Golden Compass and demonstrate student's
knowledge of Campbell's hero cycle. By having a way to actively engage the fictional world of the
novel and explore it on their own, students will be more interested in what they are reading, as well as
bringing the unit topic of heros alive. Additionally, writing and grammar workshops on their story
drafts will aid in student's writing ability. The final product will make up 100 points of the final 200, or
50%. The following is a rubric which details how students will be graded and will be available as a
handout.

Final Creative Writing Project Expectations and Grading Rubric: 100 points (50% of final grade)
In addition to the requirements that the story be centered in the world of The Golden Compass, and the
plot following Campbell's hero cycle, the following rubric details how you will be graded on your
final creative writing project.

A Grade of “A” will be awarded to projects that:

• Have no or minimal mistakes in usage, that do not distract from the reading of the text.
• Show a great deal of creative and original thought.
• Show a show a maximum amount of effort for the time available.
• Fix as many problems as possible in daft workshop.

A Grade of “B” will be awarded to projects that:

• Have some minor mistakes in usage that distract slightly from the reading of the text.
• Show a considerable amount of creativity.
• Show a definite amount of effort, and thinking about the assignment.
• Fix all but a few notable problems in draft workshop.

A Grade of “C” will be awarded to projects that:

• Have mistakes in usage which distract from the reading of the text.
• Show the minimal amount of creativity to pass the assignment.
• Show the minimum amount of effort to pass the assignment.
• Show a definite improvement from draft workshop, but ignoring major spots for further
growth.

A Grade of “D” will be awarded to projects that:

• Have mistakes in usage which significantly hinder the reading of the text.
• Need a great deal more creative thinking.
• Show little effort.
• Show a few improvements from draft workshop, but nothing worth noting.

A Grade of “F” will be awarded to projects that:

• Have major problems with usage that greatly hinder the reading of the text.
• Lack any sort of creative thinking at all.
• Show no effort in any kind.
• Are not improved upon at all in draft workshop.
• Are not turned in.
• Directly plagiarize in some way from another story.

NOTE: If one student is shown to have not contributed sufficiently to the project (freeloading
off his/her partner) then that student will receive an automatic “F” for the project.
MATERIALS
• Beowulf (Prologue and Parts 1,2,3), Modern Translation
• Hero with a Thousand Faces (excerpt), Joseph Campbell
• The Odyssey, Homer
• The Golden Compass, Phillip Pullman

DAILY LESSON PLANS

Homework:
Students will be expected to have the following chapters read ON the following days:
Class 2: chapters 1-2
Class 3: chapter 3
Class 4: chapter 4-5
Class 5: chapter 6-7
Class 6: chapter 8-9
Class 7: chapter 10
Class 8: chapter 11-12
Class 9: chapter 13-14
Class 10: chapter 15-16
Class 11: chapter 17
Class 12: chapter 18-19
Class 13 chapter 20-21
Class 14: chapter 22-END

It is important to note that I have planned this unit according to block scheduling
time
constraints. Under the system for which I’m planning, our class will meet every
other day for about 40 minutes, with 30 minutes of homework each night.
Students are encouraged to read ahead if they would like. Each period counts as
one day of class, and there will fifteen days of class. I have planned this
conceptual unit to last for about five weeks.

DAY ONE:
Title: Heros Big and Small Unit, Lesson 1 of 15

Objective: To introduce the unit; to introduce the concept of the hero; to introduce The Golden
Compass; to clearly state expectations; to inform students of how they will be assessed and where they
can find rubrics that guide that assessment; to introduce the concept of freewriting; to allow students
an opportunity to practice creative writing; to access prior knowledge; to challenge that prior
knowledge; to get students thinking about heros; to learn to “publish’ one’s writing by reading it aloud
to a partner; to practice listening skills; to practice group working skills; to practice compromising
with a partner; to practice collecting data with a partner to answer a question; to practice higher order
thinking; to engage learning through multiple mediums; to illuminate student's sense of self.

Rationale: This lesson is part of a larger unit on heros that is designed to examine how the qualities of
a hero relate to the society of which they are formed, and ultimately in the student him/herself. This
lesson is essentially meant to function as an introduction. It will engage students in their preconceived
notions as to what they believe a hero is, and challenge them. In part this lesson is designed to give
them practice in important learning skills such as reading novels, writing responses to topics, listening
to others, collaborating with others, analyzing texts, and writing original works. It is meant to aid
students in thinking outside of the box, and challenge them with their personal traits. With the creation
of a hero that is partially them, they are personally investing themselves in the story.

Materials:
Reading Quiz Grading Rubric Handout
Participation Expectations and Grading Rubric Handout
One (Different) Freewriting Prompt Handout for each small group

Activities and Procedures:

Step 1.
Hand out the Reading Quiz and Participation Rubric Handouts to students. Clearly explain how they
will be assessed in these categories, including that their freewrite today will be the first addition to
their class activity participation grade. Mention the topic of the unit, and some of the texts we will be
addressing throughout the class.
Step 2.
Place students in small groups of 4 or 5
Step 3.
Hand out a different Freewriting Prompt to each small group. On each of these handouts will be a
different prompt for each group to free write on. All of them will be similar in that they will ask
students to write on their favorite hero, but secretly each will be a different KIND of hero. In this way,
you will have each group writing on a very different aspect of the word hero. Once you have them
come together as a class later to discuss what a hero is, each group will be on a surprisingly different
page providing for a rich discussion.

Example Prompt 1
Take 15 minutes to freewrite about your favorite historical hero. (Abe Lincoln, President Obama, etc.)
Who is this person?
What makes this person a hero?
Why is this person your hero?
Be as descriptive as possible in your writing as to traits, actions, and accomplishments of this hero!

Example prompt 2
Take 15 minutes to freewrite about your favorite cinematic hero. (Simba from Lion King, Bruce Willis in Die
Hard, Etc.)
Who is this person?
What makes this person a hero?
Why is this person your favorite hero?
Be as descriptive as possible in your writing as to traits, actions, and feats of this hero!

Example prompt 3
Take 15 minutes to freewrite about a personal hero in your life.
Who is this person?
What makes this person a hero?
Why is this person your hero?
Be as descriptive as possible in your writing as to traits, actions, and feats of this hero!

Step 4.
Explain the expectations of freewriting and how it works.
“ I’d like for you to write about the above question for about ten minutes. Then, we’ll talk about what
everyone wrote about in small groups. Please write this on a fresh, clean sheet of notebook paper.
Don’t worry about mechanics, spelling, grammar, or usage for this activity. Don’t worry about how
logical it is or how it flows, either. I just want you to write freely and get down some ideas for now.
The most important thing is just to keep writing and don't stop!”
Step 5.
Have students freewrite individually for fifteen minutes on their prompt.
(Make sure no students stop writing. If so remind them that they should be writing non-stop stream of
consciousness, and they will not be graded on grammar.)
Step 6.
Have students read their free writes word for word to their small group and discuss heros.
“Ok everyone I want you to read what you have written WORD FOR WORD to the group so you don't
skim over anything.
Step 7.
Once everyone has read, then discuss in your group what traits BEST describe a hero, making a list on
the back of your prompt.
Step 8.
Come together for group discussion, and ask for each group to share the traits they have listed. As they
share, write the traits up on the board under the heading “Hero”. At this point the groups will be aware
FOR THE FIRST TIME that they have been writing on different types of heros. It is important that
you keep this a secret up until this point so students are surprised by how different their answers are.
Questions to Probe Discussion:
What traits make a hero?
Did you think about personal heros in your writing?
Was a dictator like Hitler a hero at one point?
Is a hero always a hero?
Does time change how things look?
What traits make a hero? (now that you've discussed)
Step 9.
Transition into the introduction of The Golden Compass and assign the first set of reading.
“The next five weeks we will be addressing the topic of the hero, and the questions we have brought
up today in discussion. It is important to understand that a hero can come in many forms, because the
main hero of our reading will be a tiny 11 year old girl. She is the main character of The Golden
Compass, the novel you will be reading each night for homework as we progress.”
DAY 2:
Title: Heros Big and Small, Lesson 2 of 15

Objective: To introduce the unit; to introduce the concept of the hero; to introduce The Golden
Compass; to clearly state expectations; to inform students of how they will be assessed and where they
can find rubrics that guide that assessment; to introduce the concept of freewriting; to allow students
an opportunity to practice creative writing; to access prior knowledge; to challenge that prior
knowledge; to get students thinking about heros; to learn to “publish’ one’s writing by reading it aloud
to a partner; to practice listening skills; to practice group working skills; to practice compromising
with a partner; to practice collecting data with a partner to answer a question; to practice higher order
thinking; to engage learning through multiple mediums; to illuminate student's sense of self.

Rationale: This lesson is part of a larger unit on heros that is designed to examine how the qualities of
a hero relate to the society of which they are formed, and ultimately in the student him/herself. This
lesson is essentially meant to function as an introduction. It will engage students in their preconceived
notions as to what they believe a hero is, and challenge them. In part this lesson is designed to give
them practice in important learning skills such as reading novels, writing responses to topics, listening
to others, collaborating with others, analyzing texts, and writing original works. It is meant to aid
students in thinking outside of the box, and challenge them with their personal traits. With the creation
of a hero that is partially them, they are personally investing themselves in the story.

Materials:
Create Your Own Hero! Handout
This handout will explain the day's lesson. Essentially students will be “fusing” their personality with
their partner's to create a fictional character.
Final Creative Writing Project Expectations and Grading Rubric Handout

Activities and Procedures:

Step 1.
Organize groups into random 2 person small groups. These partners are who the students will be
working with the rest of the unit to write their creative writing project with.
Step 2.
In these groups have the students make a list of each of the traits that make up them as a person,
positive and negative.
Step 3.
Hand out the Create Your Own Hero! Handout to the class and explain the activity to the students.
“Hey everyone today we will be doing an activity to get you started on your creative writing final
project. As you know from last night's reading In the world of The Golden Compass every person has
something called a Daemon which is a physical representation of that person's soul or spirit. That
Daemon takes the form of an animal that is representative of that person's personality. The animal is
linked telepathically and spiritually to the person and feels what that person feels. To get an idea of
what this is like you will be figuratively fusing yourself with your partner today.”
As a group you will first: Create a name for their hero that is a combination of both partner's. Ex.
Nathan Stunkard + Megan Hepler = Methan Stumpler
Second: Decide on an animal for your hero's Daemon (the spirit animals that reside in the world of
The Golden Compass) that best portrays BOTH your personalities.
Third: Draw a picture of your fictional hero and your respective Daemon
Fourth: If you have time, begin to create a written history of your character, that includes events from
both you and your partner's life as well as ones you have made up.
Step 4.
Allow students to work in their partners throughout the rest of the class leaving 5 minutes for a
conclusion.
Step 5.
“Ok class finish up what you are working on, but don't feel pressed to finish. This partner is going to
be your Daemon partner for the rest of the unit and together you will be crafting a short story for your
hero.” In conclusion hand out the Final Creative Writing Project Expectations and Grading Rubric
Handout. Introduce the project, and explain clearly how they will be graded. Assign the reading for
the night.

DAY 3:
Title: Heros Big and Small, Lesson 3 of 15

Objective: To introduce the unit; to introduce the concept of the hero; to introduce The Golden
Compass; to clearly state expectations; to inform students of how they will be assessed and where they
can find rubrics that guide that assessment; to introduce the concept of freewriting; to allow students
an opportunity to practice creative writing; to access prior knowledge; to challenge that prior
knowledge; to get students thinking about heros; to learn to “publish’ one’s writing by reading it aloud
to a partner; to practice listening skills; to practice group working skills; to practice compromising
with a partner; to practice collecting data with a partner to answer a question; to practice higher order
thinking; to engage learning through multiple mediums; to illuminate student's sense of self.

Rationale: This lesson is part of a larger unit on heros that is designed to examine how the qualities of
a hero relate to the society of which they are formed, and ultimately in the student him/herself. This
lesson is essentially meant to function as an introduction. It will engage students in their preconceived
notions as to what they believe a hero is, and challenge them. In part this lesson is designed to give
them practice in important learning skills such as reading novels, writing responses to topics, listening
to others, collaborating with others, analyzing texts, and writing original works. It is meant to aid
students in thinking outside of the box, and challenge them with their personal traits. With the creation
of a hero that is partially them, they are personally investing themselves in the story.

Materials:
Reading Quiz Template on Chapter 3 of The Golden Compass
Any modern translation of Beowulf

Activities and Procedures:

Step 1.
Administer the first pop reading quiz. Student should have about 15 minutes to finish the assigned
writing questions.
Step 2.
As a class, choose volunteers to read out loud the prologue and part 1 of Beowulf. (These will be noted
for participation points remember! If some are raise their hands but are not given the chance to read
note participation points anyway.) Each volunteer should read a paragraph as Beowulf is well split up
equally.
Step 3.
When finished discuss as a class the differences between the hero of Lyra in The Golden Compass and
Beowulf in his tale. Try to call on as many different students as possible, as they know they will be
grade on class participation.
Questions to Probe Discussion:
How do the introductions to the two characters differ?
How does the prologue to Beowulf shape how you see the hero?
How are the two introductions appropriate to their respective time periods? What does this say?
Is Lyra a hero yet at this point?
What defines a hero? (continue to ask this question throughout the unit as perceptions will change)
Step 4.
Assign reading for the night.

DAY 4: (from this point forward, I sketch the main points of lessons 4-15, just enough to act as a
useful and practical guideline to proceed.)
• Introduce Campbell's hero cycle. Include the "Key's" chart from page 245 of Campbell's The
Hero With a Thousand Faces. Pass out chart for each student.
• Choose volunteers to read Beowulf part 1,2, and 3 in class out loud.
• Large group discussion:"connecting prior ideas to Campbell’s hero cycle" Discussion should
attempt to draw everything together, making sure to connect student’s prior ideas of hero to
Campbell’s hero cycle.

DAY 5:
• Pair up students with their Daemon partners from the previous class.
• Allow them time to finish up the previous assignment if they haven't already.
• Generate other possible characters in the story.
• Who else do you want interacting with your hero? Villians, dragons, armored polar bears like in
the Golden Compass? Feel free to use characters from the novel in different settings.

DAY 6:
• Second pop reading quiz
• Based on our discussion of Joseph Campbell's Hero Cycle on Day 4, Chart Lyra's journey
through this cycle on the board as a class.
• Chart Beowulf's journey up until this point beside it.
• Class Discussion: How are these two character's journeys similar? Different?

DAY 7:
• In Daemon groups begin brainstorming for the creative writing story:
• Setting: Where is this story set? What scenes are you going to focus in on?
• Outline: What is the rising action? What is the climax? What does the character learn or
overcome? Remember to focus the general story of your hero around Campbell's Hero Cycle.
• Narration: Who will narrate?
• Tense: What tense are you going to use?
DAY 8:
• Choose volunteers to read aloud the first section of The Odyssey, “The Lotus Eaters”, and “The
Cyclops”.
• Chart Odysseus's Journey on Campbell's Hero Cycle on the board alongside the previous
Beowulf and Lyra charts.
• Chart the further progress of Lyra on the board.
• Class Discussion: How is Odysseus like Beowulf and Lyra? What makes him a hero?

DAY 9:
Writing Day:
• With your Daemon groups begin writing your heroic tale. Write for 20 minutes.
• Remember to base the general outline of the story around Campbell's Hero Cycle.
• Share what you have with another group.
• Say at least one thing you liked about the other story and what you think is going to happen
next, vice-versa.
• Finish writing for the remainder of the period.

DAY 10:
• Third reading quiz.
• Postcards from Odysseus activity: Students will write one page postcard letter from the
perspective of Odysseus detailing a specific aspect of his journey.
• Students should go beyond the text and write about feelings that they think Odysseys would
express.
• Allow a few students to read their postcard to the class for participation credit.

DAY 11:
• Begin by telling your partner what you will do in order to finish the piece by the end of today.
Write for twenty minutes. Read what you have written since the last time you read.
• Have your partner tell you at least one thing they liked, and have them tell you what they want to
know more about, etc.
• Finish the first draft by the end of the period.

DAY 12:
• Fourth Reading Quiz
• Get together with your Daemon group
• Freeze frame activity: With another Daemon group act out a scene from any of the stories we've
read (Odyssey, Beowulf, The Golden Compass)
• Arrange yourself so that you are acting out a part of that scene, but you freeze and stay silent and
still, and then the audience will try to figure out what scene you are doing.

Day Thirteen (computer lab or similar):

• Type out the second draft of the piece, print it and save it.

Day Fourteen (computer lab or similar)

• Get into Daemon groups and workshop with another Daemon group.
• Make one person the spellchecker and punctuation/ dialogue checker.
• Make another person check for sentence fluency and tense errors and to make sure that any
 unclear sentences make sense.
• One person writes down one thing they didn’t understand about the story and they’d like to see
improved.
• The last writes down something they can’t picture about the main character, or some aspect of a
character they’d like to see developed.
• Final Drafts: Make changes/additions to the piece for twenty minutes. Final drafts are due by
tomorrow.

DAY 15:
• Fifth and final reading quiz.
• Final culminating discussion:
• Is Lyra a hero? Why? How does her story fit into Campbell's Hero Cycle? How do you think
Lyra's universe relates to ours? Did the ending surprise you? Did it leave you satisfied? Is Lord
Asrial a villian? Out of everyone that we have seen, who is the best description of a hero? Is
Lyra more or less a hero compared to Odysseus and Beowulf?