Free American Literature Thematic Pacing Guide - Teaching American Literature

Are you new to American Literature? Use this free pacing guide! Organized by themes, this pacing guide provides an American Literature course overview, essential questions, Common Core ELA Anchor Standards, links to TED Talks and blog posts, and teaching strategy suggestions.

There are also links to blog posts and freebies that you can use to supplement the units. Themes covered include the following:

• "American Ideals and Voices"
• "The Search for Equality and Justice"
• "The American Dream"
• "Facing Darkness"
• "The Trials of War"
• "The Pursuit of Happiness (Family, Friends & Love)"
• "The Quest for Identity and Individuality"

Some featured texts include the following:

• “Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost
• "Dream Deferred" by Langston Hughes
• “Ain’t I a Woman?” By Sojourner Truth
• “Phenomenal Woman” by Maya Angelou
• “Naming Myself” by Barbara Kingsolver
• “My Name” by Sandra Cisneros
• “We Wear the Mask” by Paul Laurence Dunbar
• “I’m Nobody!” By Emily Dickinson
• “First Lesson” by Philip Booth
• “Those Winter Sundays” by Robert Hayden
• “Speech to the Second Virginia Convention” by Patrick Henry
• “The War Prayer” Mark Twain
• “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell
• “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson
• “Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin
• “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner
• “Civil Disobedience” by Henry David Thoreau
• “We Shall Overcome” by Lyndon B. Johnson
• “Second Inaugural Address” by Abraham Lincoln
• "We Are Many" by Pablo Neruda
• "The Speech on the Voting Rights Act of 1965"
• John McCain "Farewell Letter"
• Ruth Bader Ginsburg "Remarks at the New York Historical Society"
• "On Women's Rights" by Elizabeth Cady Stanton
• A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hainsberry
• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• The Crucbile by Arthur Miller

If you like the free pacing guide, you may be interested in purchasing the American Literature Curriculum Bundle:

American Literature Curriculum - Beyond the Worksheet

Would you prefer individual lessons? You may be interested in these:

Paired Texts: Preamble, Bill of Rights, and Speech by RBG

Paired Texts: Theme for English B & We Are Many

Nonfiction Connections: from Walden & Newspaper Article

Nonfiction Connections: Native American Myths & Book Excerpt

Trashketball Review: The Great Gatsby

Trashketball Review: The Crucible

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