UNIT PLAN: A Raisin in the Sun (Differentiated)
I developed this unit plan as part of Ryan's Differentiation class in the summer. Having been given the assignment of juniors next year with an emphasis on American Lit, I thought I would like to teach this piece. Any thoughts or comments are encouraged and appreciated.
Developed for 11th Grade
I. Know:
a. Plot and characters of Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun
b. Names and genres of various African-American artists
c. Dramatic plot structure
II. Understand:
a. The expression of the African-American experience through various mediums of art.
b. The elements of African-American art that have changed and remained the same over the years
c. The American Dream, and it’s availability to all members of our society
III. Do:
a. Read all of Raisin in the Sun
b. Three Differentiated Reading Reflection, One for each Act, Scene
c. Three Cooperative Learning & Media Circle Pages, One for each Act
d. Create a visual/graphic Character Analysis
e. Create a project comparing and contrasting artists’ works from different generations
f. Two Audience notes, One for each of the culminating projects
Essential questions:
What is the American Dream? Is this dream available to everyone? What does the play reveal of the experience of African-Americans in reaching for that goal? How is the experience of African-Americans revealed through other artistic media by other African-American artists?
Notes: 1,2,3 groups will be decided by counting off in rows, students will them be allowed to create A,B,C groups by self-selecting groups with the rule that they cannot be in the same group with any person from their 1,2,3, group. This allows me to shuffle the small groups throughout the unit and keep thing “fresh” without too much class time wasted on the grouping process.
Essential questions:
What is the American Dream? Is this dream available to everyone? What does the play reveal of the experience of African-Americans in reaching for that goal? How is the experience of African-Americans revealed through other artistic media by other African-American artists?
Notes: 1,2,3 groups will be decided by counting off in rows, students will them be allowed to create A,B,C groups by self-selecting groups with the rule that they cannot be in the same group with any person from their 1,2,3, group. This allows me to shuffle the small groups throughout the unit and keep thing “fresh” without too much class time wasted on the grouping process.
Day One: Introduction to Unit:
I. Quadrant Partners: Students will find and fill out their quadrant partners sheet
II. Picture this: Album Cover Game : I would like to use this early in the lesson to get the students thinking about their interactions with literature and art at a deeper level
III. Then display the cover of the DVD for A Raisin in the Sun with the words American Dream on the board and ask the class to individually write out five thoughts and five questions
THE AMERICAN DREAM
IV. In Quadrant Partners, Students will share and discuss their respective thoughts and questions
V. Round ‘em Up: We will go around and each students will share out a thought or idea that they found particularly interesting, or question they didn’t get answered
VI. We will draft a class definition of The American Dream
VI. We will draft a class definition of The American Dream
Day Two:
I. I will briefly discuss the Dramatic Plot Structure
a. Students will meet in quadrant partners and draft a Dramatic Plot Structure using a Film/Book common to all of the group members
b. These will be shared out
II. We will do an in-class reading of Act I, Scene 1 from the play
a. Students will volunteer to read roles of the scene and “act” out the parts
III. At the conclusion of the reading, I will introduce the various Differentiated Reading Reflections (DDR) and give any remaining class time to work on them, so that I can answer any questions regarding the process.
IV. HOMEWORK: Finish the Act 1, Scene 1 DRR’s at home
Day Three:
I. Students will meet in 1,2,3 groups and share their DRRs.
II. With students still in 1,2,3 groups, I will share a GoogleEarth tour of the locations in the play. Students will respond to the tour with thoughts on the reality of the events of the play, and draw parallels to their own world experience regarding the themes of the play.
a. Each group will create a map of their own community, highlighting the segregated areas, and share out their groups results
b. Written response: each student will individually answer the following questions in regards to today’s experience;
i.How segregated is our community?
ii.Why is this so?
iii.What are the repercussions of this, especially in regards to The American Dream?
4. Should it be this way? Is this fair?
III. Student’s will meet in A,B,C groups to share/discuss their ideas.
IV. HOMEWORK: Final question-5. Can or should anything be done about the segregation of our community? All five questions will be collected the following day
Day Four:
I. In quadrant Partners, students will review the previous Act, Scene from the play, and hypothesize the upcoming events. Results will be shared out.
II. We will read the Act I, Scene 2 as a class, students will decide the format of that reading: SSR, Students Playing roles, or popcorn reading
III. At the conclusion of the reading, we will watch the Sydney Poitier movie of the first Act of the play.
a. Students will meet in 1,2,3 Groups and we will use Media Circles to give focus during the movie.
i. Students should focus on their roles, as well as compare/contrast the movie from their expectations while reading.
ii. Students will meet in the Media Circle grouping and further discuss their findings and previous groups discussions
iii. There will be a share out from each group
IV. HOMEWORK: Read and do a DRR for Act II, Scene 1
Day Five:
I. Students will meet in their 1,2,3 groups and share out their DRR for Act II, Scene 1
II. Selected students will share out their DRR to the entire class
III. In the same groups, students will discuss the Dramatic Plot Structure (DPS) of the play so far and determine where we are up to now in the reading
IV. The group DPS’s will be shared out and we will draft a class DPS for the play thus far.
V. Students will self group by Characters (Mama, Beneatha, Walter, Ruth, Travis) and work as a group to fill out their individual Character Analysis Worksheets.
VI. Groups will re-shuffle so that each group has at least one character represented and share their character sheets again.
a. Each student should end up with their own filled-out form for each of the Younger family members
Day Six:
I. We will do an in-class reading of Act II, Scene 2, with students deciding on the method: SSR, Students Playing roles, or popcorn reading
II. Students will be given the following prompts for a Think, Pair, Share: How is Lorraine Hansberry’s play a political statement? What is her message to the world? What other artists can you think of that also use their media to promote a political voice or share a message?
III. After the Think, Pair, Share, there will be an open class discussion on the topic as we will list some of the responses the students have generated.
IV. Students will then get back into their A,B,C groups, and I will share some work from the genres of Music, visual Art, and poetry for the students to discuss and engage as to the messages and meanings evoked. After each piece has been shared and discussed in the groups, we will meet in the 1,2,3 groups to share the previous groups thoughts out.
V. We will then discuss each piece individually as a class, listing students thought for each on the board
a. We will try to draw comparisons that they share as we do this
VI. I will then handout the artist list for the Multiple Artist/Genre Project and discuss/explain it to the class.
VII. HOMEWORK: Read Act II, Scene 3 and Act III, Scene 1, do one DRR to cover it all. Begin exploring the different artists and looking for pieces that you want to use in your final project
Day Seven:
I. Students will meet in A,B,C groups and share out their DRRs
II. Selected students will share out their DRR to the entire class
III. We will have a class discussion concerning any changes/additions that could/should be made to the Character Analysis sheets
IV. We will have a class discussion regarding the DPS of the play and finish our class generated DPS for A Raisin in the Sun
V. Students will gather in 1,2,3 groups for a Media Circle presentation of Act II/III from the Sydney Poitier movie
a. Students will meet in 1,2,3 Groups and we will use Media Circles to give focus during the movie.
i. Students should focus on their roles, as well as compare/contrast the movie from their expectations while reading.
ii. Students will meet in the Media Circle grouping and further discuss their findings and previous groups discussions
iii. There will be a share out from each group
VI. HOMEWORK: Continue exploring the different artists and looking for pieces that you want to use in your final project.
Day Eight:
I. Students will gather in 1,2,3 groups for a Media Circle presentation of Act II/III from the Sydney Poitier movie
II. Students will meet in 1,2,3 Groups and we will use Media Circles to give focus during the movie.
a. Students should focus on their roles, as well as compare/contrast the movie from their expectations while reading.
b. Students will meet in the Media Circle grouping and further discuss their findings and previous groups discussions
c. There will be a share out from each group
III. I will introduce the Character Analysis Project to the students, Doing a quick walk through of glogster and tagxedo
IV. HOMEWORK: Character Analysis Project. Continue exploring the different artists and looking for pieces that you want to use in your final project. Fill out the Multiple Artist/Genre Project Proposal form
Day Nine+ (length of time depends of time it takes to present all pieces):
I. Students will present their Character Analysis Projects to the class as a whole (two minutes each)
II. Students in the audience will take notes on each presenter by noting their name, the character they presented, and any positive comments they can come up with.
a. Students will turn these in for a confirmation grade and then they will be returned.
b. Upon their return, the students will cut the comments into strips and give each presenter their respective slips
III. HOMEWORK: Work on the Multiple Artist/Genre Project
Day Ten:
I. Students will be given time to work on the Multiple Artist/Genre Project
a. On this day, I will go around and confirm the progress and readiness of each student
Day Eleven+ (length of time depends of time it takes to present all pieces):
I. We will do Museum Rotations to present projects to the class.
a. 5-ish students will have their projects displayed as the remainder of the class is divided up into groups and then rotates through each of the presentations projects
b. The presenters must explain their projects to each group
c. Each student must take Audience Notes on the presentations they see
i. Notes should include: presenters name, two facts about each of the artists they chose, and positive comments
ii. Students will turn these in for a confirmation grade and then they will be returned.
iii. Upon their return, the students will cut the comments into strips and give each presenter their respective slips
I. I will briefly discuss the Dramatic Plot Structure
a. Students will meet in quadrant partners and draft a Dramatic Plot Structure using a Film/Book common to all of the group members
b. These will be shared out
II. We will do an in-class reading of Act I, Scene 1 from the play
a. Students will volunteer to read roles of the scene and “act” out the parts
III. At the conclusion of the reading, I will introduce the various Differentiated Reading Reflections (DDR) and give any remaining class time to work on them, so that I can answer any questions regarding the process.
IV. HOMEWORK: Finish the Act 1, Scene 1 DRR’s at home
Day Three:
I. Students will meet in 1,2,3 groups and share their DRRs.
II. With students still in 1,2,3 groups, I will share a GoogleEarth tour of the locations in the play. Students will respond to the tour with thoughts on the reality of the events of the play, and draw parallels to their own world experience regarding the themes of the play.
a. Each group will create a map of their own community, highlighting the segregated areas, and share out their groups results
b. Written response: each student will individually answer the following questions in regards to today’s experience;
i.How segregated is our community?
ii.Why is this so?
iii.What are the repercussions of this, especially in regards to The American Dream?
4. Should it be this way? Is this fair?
III. Student’s will meet in A,B,C groups to share/discuss their ideas.
IV. HOMEWORK: Final question-5. Can or should anything be done about the segregation of our community? All five questions will be collected the following day
Day Four:
I. In quadrant Partners, students will review the previous Act, Scene from the play, and hypothesize the upcoming events. Results will be shared out.
II. We will read the Act I, Scene 2 as a class, students will decide the format of that reading: SSR, Students Playing roles, or popcorn reading
III. At the conclusion of the reading, we will watch the Sydney Poitier movie of the first Act of the play.
a. Students will meet in 1,2,3 Groups and we will use Media Circles to give focus during the movie.
i. Students should focus on their roles, as well as compare/contrast the movie from their expectations while reading.
ii. Students will meet in the Media Circle grouping and further discuss their findings and previous groups discussions
iii. There will be a share out from each group
IV. HOMEWORK: Read and do a DRR for Act II, Scene 1
Day Five:
I. Students will meet in their 1,2,3 groups and share out their DRR for Act II, Scene 1
II. Selected students will share out their DRR to the entire class
III. In the same groups, students will discuss the Dramatic Plot Structure (DPS) of the play so far and determine where we are up to now in the reading
IV. The group DPS’s will be shared out and we will draft a class DPS for the play thus far.
V. Students will self group by Characters (Mama, Beneatha, Walter, Ruth, Travis) and work as a group to fill out their individual Character Analysis Worksheets.
VI. Groups will re-shuffle so that each group has at least one character represented and share their character sheets again.
a. Each student should end up with their own filled-out form for each of the Younger family members
Day Six:
I. We will do an in-class reading of Act II, Scene 2, with students deciding on the method: SSR, Students Playing roles, or popcorn reading
II. Students will be given the following prompts for a Think, Pair, Share: How is Lorraine Hansberry’s play a political statement? What is her message to the world? What other artists can you think of that also use their media to promote a political voice or share a message?
III. After the Think, Pair, Share, there will be an open class discussion on the topic as we will list some of the responses the students have generated.
IV. Students will then get back into their A,B,C groups, and I will share some work from the genres of Music, visual Art, and poetry for the students to discuss and engage as to the messages and meanings evoked. After each piece has been shared and discussed in the groups, we will meet in the 1,2,3 groups to share the previous groups thoughts out.
V. We will then discuss each piece individually as a class, listing students thought for each on the board
a. We will try to draw comparisons that they share as we do this
VI. I will then handout the artist list for the Multiple Artist/Genre Project and discuss/explain it to the class.
VII. HOMEWORK: Read Act II, Scene 3 and Act III, Scene 1, do one DRR to cover it all. Begin exploring the different artists and looking for pieces that you want to use in your final project
Day Seven:
I. Students will meet in A,B,C groups and share out their DRRs
II. Selected students will share out their DRR to the entire class
III. We will have a class discussion concerning any changes/additions that could/should be made to the Character Analysis sheets
IV. We will have a class discussion regarding the DPS of the play and finish our class generated DPS for A Raisin in the Sun
V. Students will gather in 1,2,3 groups for a Media Circle presentation of Act II/III from the Sydney Poitier movie
a. Students will meet in 1,2,3 Groups and we will use Media Circles to give focus during the movie.
i. Students should focus on their roles, as well as compare/contrast the movie from their expectations while reading.
ii. Students will meet in the Media Circle grouping and further discuss their findings and previous groups discussions
iii. There will be a share out from each group
VI. HOMEWORK: Continue exploring the different artists and looking for pieces that you want to use in your final project.
Day Eight:
I. Students will gather in 1,2,3 groups for a Media Circle presentation of Act II/III from the Sydney Poitier movie
II. Students will meet in 1,2,3 Groups and we will use Media Circles to give focus during the movie.
a. Students should focus on their roles, as well as compare/contrast the movie from their expectations while reading.
b. Students will meet in the Media Circle grouping and further discuss their findings and previous groups discussions
c. There will be a share out from each group
III. I will introduce the Character Analysis Project to the students, Doing a quick walk through of glogster and tagxedo
IV. HOMEWORK: Character Analysis Project. Continue exploring the different artists and looking for pieces that you want to use in your final project. Fill out the Multiple Artist/Genre Project Proposal form
Day Nine+ (length of time depends of time it takes to present all pieces):
I. Students will present their Character Analysis Projects to the class as a whole (two minutes each)
II. Students in the audience will take notes on each presenter by noting their name, the character they presented, and any positive comments they can come up with.
a. Students will turn these in for a confirmation grade and then they will be returned.
b. Upon their return, the students will cut the comments into strips and give each presenter their respective slips
III. HOMEWORK: Work on the Multiple Artist/Genre Project
Day Ten:
I. Students will be given time to work on the Multiple Artist/Genre Project
a. On this day, I will go around and confirm the progress and readiness of each student
Day Eleven+ (length of time depends of time it takes to present all pieces):
I. We will do Museum Rotations to present projects to the class.
a. 5-ish students will have their projects displayed as the remainder of the class is divided up into groups and then rotates through each of the presentations projects
b. The presenters must explain their projects to each group
c. Each student must take Audience Notes on the presentations they see
i. Notes should include: presenters name, two facts about each of the artists they chose, and positive comments
ii. Students will turn these in for a confirmation grade and then they will be returned.
iii. Upon their return, the students will cut the comments into strips and give each presenter their respective slips
Attached are the handouts for the Character Analysis Project and the Multiple Artists/Genre Project
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Raisin in the Sun handouts.pdf, 116 KB
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Johanna Denis on
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Thanks for posting this. I will be teaching full time and taking a "Special Populations" class that includes differentiated instruction and this helps.
Johanna -
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