Learning Goals

Development of Content Understanding (Key Concepts and Ideas)

• Students will know how to read, write, and interpret written and spoken word poetry
• Students will understand and identify recurring themes in the novel
• Students will analyze the following themes in the novel: religion, sexuality, womanhood, poverty, and gender norms
• Students will use evidence from the text to support an argument
• Students will write an analytical essay using a poem as the primary text

Enabling Students to Experience the Power of Their Minds and Their Capacities as Learners and Doers (Powerful Learning)

• Students will write their own poems related to recurring themes in the novel
• Students will make connections between the novel and aspects of their own life (i.e. home, religion, culture, family, identity, gender)
• Students will show their understanding and new knowledge in various ways (i.e. found poems, narrative writing, analytical essay)
• Students will edit and revise their writing

Ways of Knowing and Academic Literacy

• Students will develop an understanding and practice of literary terms including: tone, diction, repetition, haiku, stanza, symbols, simile, metaphor, personification, vernacular language
• Students will identify the figurative language used by Elizabeth Acevedo and incorporate it into their own writing 
• Students will engage in collaborative work including peer support and editing
• Students will write about topics that affect them and their communities

Literacy Development

• Students will engage with the text in many different ways: peer and individual reading sessions, read-aloud and audio books listening, small/large group discussions
• Students will use context clues to decipher the meaning of vernacular language used in the novel

Development of Trust and the Classroom as a Learning Community

• Students will engage in a large anticipation activity
• Students will engage in large group discussions during read-aloud and audio book listening sections, often these conversations will require students to share personal or unique life experiences and ideas
• Students will engage in public speaking and collaborative presentations