Unit 2: "Remember, Remember always, that all of us, and you and I especially, are descended from immigrants and revolutionists" -Franklin D. Roosevelt
Length: 4 weeks
September 8th-october 10th
Rationale:
Unit 2 will be focused on working with Sonia Nazario’s Enrique’s Journey, a story based off of the quest of one Honduran boy struggling to find his mother in the United States. Students will create a working definition of “journey” while becoming familiarized with immigration issues. Enrique’s Journey will be paired with articles and the documentary Which Way Home that will allow insight of the reasons young migrants leave their home countries for another life. Along with this, students will use specific evidence on Enrique’s Journey to create an argumentative and research-based essay based on their working definition of “journey” in regards to immigration. These essays will be fairly open in regards to what students would like to focus on; however, they must include textual and historical evidence in order to make their arguments valid.
I chose a novel on Central American immigrants in order to expand the characters, themes, cultures, and issues that students are often accustomed to in literature. “Most of our literature reflects the predominantly white background of the community” (Poole, 67). However, with an ever-expanding community of Central American immigrants (especially in Colorado) it is important, if not necessary, to include a wide range of literature that all students can connect to. By incorporating a journey that holds a main protagonist whose cultural identity is often unrecognized in literature, it is possible to “open students minds to all the ways of being that exist in a welcoming world” (Poole, 68). Representative of ethnic groups in our community provide a wealth of useful information, this unit will recognize this (Poole, 69).
Unit Goals:
-To explore the novel Enrique’s Journey while thinking critically about immigration, self-identity, and cultural environments.
-To use specific textual evidence from the novel to create an essay on the journey of immigration.
-To compare and contrast student experiences with journey to that of the protagonist, Enrique.
Texts:
-Novel: Enrique’s Journey by Sonia Nazario
-Film: “Which Way Home” Documentary
-Article: “The Surge of Unaccompanied Children from Central America” by Dan Restrepo
-Article: “10 Facts You Need to Know About Latinos and Immigration in Colorado” by Jonathan Valdez
Activities:
-Jigsaw Reading: For the articles on immigration, our class will be performing a jigsaw read. In groups, they will be assigned a specific essay. Students will read individually for homework and then meet during class time with their group to discuss. Once they have met, they will summarize their assigned articles to the rest of the class. They will also be required to keep notes on the articles they were not assigned.
-Workshop on Essays: This workshop will be for the final essay. Students will bring in a rough draft and work in groups of four to receive peer edits. Each student in the group will have a specific role so that the essays are viewed by every member in the group. These roles will include: 1. Organization 2. Introduction/Thesis 3. Information and Evidence 4. Ways to improve
-Trivia!: This trivia session will be on questions and facts from the novel Enrique’s Journey as well as the documentary “Which Way Home.” Students will work in groups to correctly answer the questions. The winning team will receive 2 extra credit points on their final essays for the unit.
-Pneumonic Activity: This activity will be used to help students study for the vocabulary tests. They will have to draw, map, or write a way that will help them remember each of the vocabulary words. This can be done with a partner or individually.
Assignments:
-Journals on Discussions: A 1-2 page journal for each Thursday discussion on Enrique’s Journey. These journals should include: 1. Questions the students had before the discussion 2. Questions the students have after the discussion 3. One thought about the novel that intrigued them. -Documentary Reflection: A 2-3 page reflection on student thoughts and opinions regarding the documentary and how it is similar/dissimilar to the novel.
-Vocabulary Quizzes: These vocabulary quizzes will be on 20 words pulled from the vocabulary box (box includes words that students are unfamiliar with and have noticed in the reading or the discussions). They will include fill in the blank, matching, and use of them in a sentence. A word bank will be provided.
-Reading Quizzes: As a formative assessment, students will be quizzed weekly on the reading assigned for Enrique’s Journey. These quizzes will be brief (3-5 questions) and simple. In other words, they will not attempt to “trick” students but will serve as a checkmark that students are keeping up with the reading.
Culminating Texts:
-Final Argumentative and Research-Based Essays: A 3 page essay that addresses student’s opinion on journey in regards to immigration. Students will be required to use specific textual evidence and two scholarly sources on Central American immigration to validate their arguments. (included in yearlong portfolio)
Assessment Tools:
-Conferences: Student conferences will be held during the unit in order to discuss students grades and progress in the course individually.
-Ticket out the Door: When exiting the classroom after discussion days, students will turn in: 1. Something they learned in class 2. A question they still have after discussion. These tickets will formatively assess student learning on a weekly basis.
Unit Calendar: September: Unit 2
Unit 2 will be focused on working with Sonia Nazario’s Enrique’s Journey, a story based off of the quest of one Honduran boy struggling to find his mother in the United States. Students will create a working definition of “journey” while becoming familiarized with immigration issues. Enrique’s Journey will be paired with articles and the documentary Which Way Home that will allow insight of the reasons young migrants leave their home countries for another life. Along with this, students will use specific evidence on Enrique’s Journey to create an argumentative and research-based essay based on their working definition of “journey” in regards to immigration. These essays will be fairly open in regards to what students would like to focus on; however, they must include textual and historical evidence in order to make their arguments valid.
I chose a novel on Central American immigrants in order to expand the characters, themes, cultures, and issues that students are often accustomed to in literature. “Most of our literature reflects the predominantly white background of the community” (Poole, 67). However, with an ever-expanding community of Central American immigrants (especially in Colorado) it is important, if not necessary, to include a wide range of literature that all students can connect to. By incorporating a journey that holds a main protagonist whose cultural identity is often unrecognized in literature, it is possible to “open students minds to all the ways of being that exist in a welcoming world” (Poole, 68). Representative of ethnic groups in our community provide a wealth of useful information, this unit will recognize this (Poole, 69).
Unit Goals:
-To explore the novel Enrique’s Journey while thinking critically about immigration, self-identity, and cultural environments.
-To use specific textual evidence from the novel to create an essay on the journey of immigration.
-To compare and contrast student experiences with journey to that of the protagonist, Enrique.
Texts:
-Novel: Enrique’s Journey by Sonia Nazario
-Film: “Which Way Home” Documentary
-Article: “The Surge of Unaccompanied Children from Central America” by Dan Restrepo
-Article: “10 Facts You Need to Know About Latinos and Immigration in Colorado” by Jonathan Valdez
Activities:
-Jigsaw Reading: For the articles on immigration, our class will be performing a jigsaw read. In groups, they will be assigned a specific essay. Students will read individually for homework and then meet during class time with their group to discuss. Once they have met, they will summarize their assigned articles to the rest of the class. They will also be required to keep notes on the articles they were not assigned.
-Workshop on Essays: This workshop will be for the final essay. Students will bring in a rough draft and work in groups of four to receive peer edits. Each student in the group will have a specific role so that the essays are viewed by every member in the group. These roles will include: 1. Organization 2. Introduction/Thesis 3. Information and Evidence 4. Ways to improve
-Trivia!: This trivia session will be on questions and facts from the novel Enrique’s Journey as well as the documentary “Which Way Home.” Students will work in groups to correctly answer the questions. The winning team will receive 2 extra credit points on their final essays for the unit.
-Pneumonic Activity: This activity will be used to help students study for the vocabulary tests. They will have to draw, map, or write a way that will help them remember each of the vocabulary words. This can be done with a partner or individually.
Assignments:
-Journals on Discussions: A 1-2 page journal for each Thursday discussion on Enrique’s Journey. These journals should include: 1. Questions the students had before the discussion 2. Questions the students have after the discussion 3. One thought about the novel that intrigued them. -Documentary Reflection: A 2-3 page reflection on student thoughts and opinions regarding the documentary and how it is similar/dissimilar to the novel.
-Vocabulary Quizzes: These vocabulary quizzes will be on 20 words pulled from the vocabulary box (box includes words that students are unfamiliar with and have noticed in the reading or the discussions). They will include fill in the blank, matching, and use of them in a sentence. A word bank will be provided.
-Reading Quizzes: As a formative assessment, students will be quizzed weekly on the reading assigned for Enrique’s Journey. These quizzes will be brief (3-5 questions) and simple. In other words, they will not attempt to “trick” students but will serve as a checkmark that students are keeping up with the reading.
Culminating Texts:
-Final Argumentative and Research-Based Essays: A 3 page essay that addresses student’s opinion on journey in regards to immigration. Students will be required to use specific textual evidence and two scholarly sources on Central American immigration to validate their arguments. (included in yearlong portfolio)
Assessment Tools:
-Conferences: Student conferences will be held during the unit in order to discuss students grades and progress in the course individually.
-Ticket out the Door: When exiting the classroom after discussion days, students will turn in: 1. Something they learned in class 2. A question they still have after discussion. These tickets will formatively assess student learning on a weekly basis.
Unit Calendar: September: Unit 2
Standards: