Sunday, February 16, 2014

CCSS Middle Grades ELA Lesson: What's Your Brave?



Over the last several weeks, my students and I have compared and contrasted the Civil Rights Movement with the Holocaust using the novels, Claudette Colvin: Twice Towards Justice by Phillip Hoose and The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank.

Recently, the students wrote about personal power. Is one individual powerful or powerless to change society? Most students believed that one person could change society and make a difference.

However, my question now to my students is, "What does that really mean, and what amount of courage, bravery, or inner fortitude does it take to be the lone visionary fighting for a cause?"

Tomorrow, my students and I will examine this topic further through the essential question:
 
What is your brave?

                                                              Sara Bareilles' "Brave"
                                                       http://youtu.be/QUQsqBqxoR4


The students will read the following article by Stephen Covey. It talks about stepping out of your personal comfort zone, and offers guiding questions for students to discuss. The students will brainstorm, and write about their own struggles and what actions they can take to overcome them.
http://www.angelfire.com/bug/brownjay/courage.htm

Next, the students will compare their stories with another young teen who turned her own bullying experience into a positive message for other teens.
http://usat.ly/1bkkMhA

The students will complete a formal essay by Wednesday on the topic.

The students will exit the class by answering the question.
What is the one action you will focus on to be braver today?

I'm excited about the discoveries we will make tomorrow!

RL.6.9: Compare and contrast texts in terms of their approaches to similar themes.
RI.6.3: Analyze in detail how a key individual, event, or idea is introduced, illustrated, or elaborated in a text.
RI.6.7: Integrate information presented in different media formats as well as in words to get a coherent understanding of the topic or issue.

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