Zuckerberg in Canterbury 50 minute period

Overview: Topic: Analyzing Character in The General Prologue

The General Prologue introduces readers to the
characters that share the stories that make up The
Canterbury Tales. However, the prologue also provides the
reader with a preview into what life was like in the Middle
Ages as it explains what types of people lived in
Canterbury and the relationship between those characters
and the historical/cultural context they lived in. This lesson
should follow a reading of The General Prologue and
engages students to analyze a character and how they are
portrayed through creating a Facebook page.

Essential Question: How do we tell others about our journeys? What do these stories tell us about a society?

Standards: (Missouri Learning Standards)

D. R1A, R1D Read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, independently and proficiently
A.RIA, R2A, B, C Draw conclusions, infer, and analyze by citing relevant and thorough textual evidence to support
analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text leaves matters uncertain
A. K5 Follow a writing process to produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, style,
and voice are appropriate to the task, purpose, and audience;

Objectives (Students will be able to):

- use reading comprehension strategies to read The General Prologue
- create a Facebook page for a character represented in The General Prologue based on their understanding of the
character supported with in-text citations
- emulate the voice of a character

Literature: Materials Needed:

1. Middle English/ Modern English translation of The Print/ Digital copies of the text
General Prologue https://tigerweb.towson.edu/duncan/ Audio recordings of the text
chaucer/duallang1.htm Facebook Handout
2. Audio recording of The General Prologue read in
Middle English https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=vkAfDsjYaWM

Procedures:
-Warm up: This will build on the previous days lesson of translation. Students will be given a list of words in Middle
English, along with their definition, and will come up with 3 burns to contribute to a quick, bawdy roast. A timer
should be set for 5 minutes. At the end of the 5 minutes, students will have a chance to roast the teacher with their
Middle English phrases.
-The teacher will introduce students to the objectives for the day and give students access to the text
-Before reading the prologue as a class, students will listen to the opening prologue in Middle English from the
Youtube video. What did they notice? What is different between the Middle English being read aloud and the
translation?
-After this brief discussion, the class will read the prologue aloud. The teacher should often stop to ask students
guiding questions, while also modeling reading comprehension strategies.
-After the reading, students will choose a character from the prologue and create a Facebook page based on their
character. They will be expected to use in-text citations, as well as adapting the voice/style they think their character
would write in to create their page.
-While students are working in class, the teacher should move among them and ask students to explain their thinking,
ask questions, and guide students who may be confused. This assignment will be due the following day in class.

Assessments
Warm up- informal assessment of students ability to use new vocabulary in a sentence
Whole class discussion- informal assessment of student understanding while reading the text
Facebook page- assesses student understanding of character and transferring that understanding to a modern-day
platform

Expansion
Following the Facebook activity, students could role play using their profiles that they have created and comment on
each others pages to further reiterate the connection between characters and the world they live in.

Differentiation
Incorporating small/ large group discussion allows a place for students to listen, lead, and overall, different ways to
participate in discussing the text.
Providing multiple comprehension strategies while reading will appeal to a variety of levels of readers.
Allowing students to choose the character that they wish to focus on engages students through interest. Creating a
Facebook page connects with students prior knowledge and allows opportunities for students to show understanding
through a creative medium.