Center for College Access and Success/NEIU

Units for Books Mini-Grant

Application & Planning Template

An expandable version of this form is available online at www.chicagogearup.org or www.neiu.edu/~yal.

Title of Unit : Finding Happiness or Always Running? / Date Submitted: 12/14
Date to be Implemented: 12/21
Book with ISBN: Always Running: La Vida Loca: Gang Days in L.A.
0743276914(ISBN13:9780743276917)
Unit Developed by: Karen Mariscal
Grade /Subject: English IV (seniors) / # of students/classes 2 classes/60 students
Email: / School: Curie Metro High School
Dates when Unit will be Implemented: 12/21 -1/25 / Hours of Class Time Needed for Unit: 15
Curriculum Areas and Grade Level(s):
English IV (seniors); inclusion/co-taught classroom
Brief Description of the Unit (50-75 words) :
The students in my senior English classes really need a text that is relatable and accessible to keep them engaged. They also need a text that will push them to apply higher level thinking skills and enter into a dialogue regarding issues that affect them. With reading Always Running, students will apply multiple lenses through which they can analyze the text.
Common Core Standards to be addressed by this unit. List the applicable learning standards.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.1
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters uncertain.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.2
Determine two or more themes or central ideas of a text and analyze their development over the course of the text, including how they interact and build on one another to produce a complex account; provide an objective summary of the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.1
Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.2.D
Use precise language, domain-specific vocabulary, and techniques such as metaphor, simile, and analogy to manage the complexity of the topic.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.2.F
Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the information or explanation presented (e.g., articulating implications or the significance of the topic).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.1 (A-D)
Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 11-12 topics, texts, and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.5
Make strategic use of digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual, and interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings, reasoning, and evidence and to add interest.
Teacher’s Focus Question: As a teacher, what aspect of your own instructional practice will you be examining or testing out in this unit? What is your goal and how will you know if you have succeeded?
I’d like to explore and adapt dialectics to create an environment in which students build from each other’s opinions to formulate new responses to debatable topics. (What constitutes true happiness?). The goal is to enable students to enter into dialogues to create joined interpretations. I will know if I have succeeded by having students conduct a written or oral commentary within their groups.
Documentation Plan: Please list the documentation you will submit to GEAR UP when you implement your unit. Documentation should reflect student work related to your focus question. It should include samples of student work, pictures, video, or other artifacts from your unit.
Video or written examples of dialectic products
Student work reflecting their application of Critical Race Theory and Marxist Criticism
Photos of collaboration and student engagement
Request for photographer or video: Based on availability, GEAR UP staff can photograph or videotape an aspect of the unit (a debate, art project, final presentation, etc.
What I would like to photograph or video:
Student media releases signed by a parent or guardian are mandatory.
The 4 R’s--Rigor, Relationships, Relevance, and Reflection
We believe that effective instruction has four elements in common. The schools set high academic standards and provide rigorous instruction paired with meaningful support so that all students can meet those high standards. Teachers build trusting relationships with students and take steps to build community within their classrooms. They take an interest in students’ lives, drawing on their real-world experiences and current understandings to build new knowledge. Teachers make school relevant to students, showing them the connections between success in school and their plans for the future. Finally, instruction--and learning—get better when teachers and students intentionally reflect on the work they are doing. (What Matters for Staying On-Track and Graduating in Chicago Public Schools, 2007. Consortium on Chicago School Research).
Academic Rigor
Enduring Understandings What do you want your students to understand and be able to use ten years from now?
Every person has a hierarchy of basic needs and will, inevitably, make adaptations (positive or negative) to ensure those needs are being met.
Our socioeconomic status heavily influences our life experience and success.
A society’s cultural perceptions may lead to systemic racism.
Essential Questions What are the open-ended questions that will promote inquiry into the heart of the subject or discipline?
What role does socioeconomic status play in a person’s life experience and success?
How are victims of systemic racism affected?
What happens when a person’s basic needs are not met?
What is compromised when attempting to meet needs that are not being met in the traditional sense?
Knowledge and Skill What will your students know and be able to do at the end of the unit? How will your students use higher order thinking skills?
As an extension of our previous unit, students will read Always Running through a Critical Race Theory lens. Students will examine the root causes of systemic racism and interpret the role that they play within our society. Additionally, students will explore the roles of class and socioeconomic statuses within our society and how they influence a person’s success. Students will also spend time looking at Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs in tracking the main character’s actions throughout the text. At the end of the unit, students will be able to enter into a dialogue about systemic racism and evaluate how much of a person’s happiness and success is influenced by it.
Assessment Evidence/Instruments How will you know how well your students learned? Attach rubrics and checklists, if used.
http://www.schoolimprovement.com/docs/Common%20Core%20Rubrics_Gr11-12.pdf
I will also evaluate student discussions focusing on the Common Core Speaking and Listening standards
Learning Activities List the most important learning activities students will perform during the unit.
-Anticipation Guide
-Race Forward video interpretation, discussions, and analysis
-Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs activity
-Small group discussions
-Whole class discussion
-Quick writes
-Analysis of non-print texts
Differentiating Instruction In what ways does the unit respond to students’ different learning styles or multiple intelligences? What modifications are made for students with special needs? ELL students?
Both of my senior classes are co-taught inclusion classes. Students with IEPs will receive their regular modifications for the class, which include extended time, modified assignments, written and verbal instructions, clarification when needed, etc.
I will embed multiple types of learning experiences to accommodate visual and kinesthetic learners, including an interactive social class activity, visual expression assignments, and audio and visual text supports.
Relevance
How does the unit relate to students’ lives, skills, cultures, language, and background knowledge?
Always Running is written by a Chicano author who grew up in East Los Angeles but then moved to Chicago to escape the gang life. In Chicago, the author’s/narrator’s son has gotten involved in gangs, as well. Many of my students understand this experience because they live in areas where gang activity is extremely prominent. This story is also about resilience and fighting against the systemic disadvantages that the character faces. My students are also experts in dealing with and overcoming adversity within their communities and families. This book will resonate with a lot of what they know but also allow them to enter into a discussion to analyze and reflect on the happenings of their surroundings.
How does the unit show students the relevance of their work in school to their future lives?
Many of my students have fallen into a rut –believing that there is no hope for them because they are who they are and they come from a rough neighborhood. Most have little motivation to be successful in school and continue their education. Some have been taught to believe that they will get nowhere in life because they are incompetent. I want students to understand that it crucial to be motivated and challenge these notions. The skills applied in this class with this unit will, hopefully, prepare students to be critical thinkers and doers down the road.
Relationships
How does the unit help you as a teacher build trusting relationships with your students?
I’m hoping that students understand and learn that I want them to have these conversations because I know the struggle that they face day in and day out. I came from a similar neighborhood, and I attended a school that was worse off than the school they attend. I’ve faced many things and was never able to voice my concerns because I didn’t believe that they were real. I hope that students feel comfortable enough to share their true opinions.
How does the unit build, support, and draw from a trusting classroom community?
Since the beginning of the year, I’ve worked to build an environment in which students feel safe and comfortable talking about controversial topics like race and class but with a critical eye. Though I feel that we still have work to do, I believe that students understand the importance of talking about these issues with sensitivity.
Reflection
In what ways will students be asked to reflect on their learning? How do they monitor their understanding, ask critical questions, and connect what they are learning to their own experience?
Students will continue to complete written reflections about what we are learning in class, especially as it connects to their own personal experiences. They will also complete an online learning log, in which they reflect on their level of confidence regarding each of the skills we’ve targeted.
How will I as a teacher know what the students are learning? What? So What? Now what?
Because this is my first time approaching teaching through the application of dialectics, assessing students will be a challenge. As opposed to focusing on an “end result,” I’ll focus more on the process and collaboration that will guide students to reach an “end result.” I will evaluate the level of input and inquiry each student has contributed to the dialogue.