The Outsiders Full Unit: Reading, Writing, Cultural Connections, Assessment

This is a growing unit. To be listed shortly: Summative Assessment, Reading Quizzes, One Pager

Before just jumping into a novel, I like to give a few introduction, or into, activities to help provide kids with the schema to draw from once they start the chapters and are introduced to the more complex themes of social classes and prejudging someone without knowing them.

Introduction Actities

Included are the following:

✅Clipboard survey (Google Slides and PDF)

✅8 Introduction Questions (Google Slides and PDF)

✅Quickwrite (Google Slides and PDF)

Reading Activities- The Outsiders- Idioms, Vocabulary Journal, Character Chart

✅Idiom list-Students identify the meaning of each (Google Slides digital assignment or PDF)

✅Idiom poster- Students draw a poster of a chosen (or assigned) idiom (Google Slides digital assignment or PDF)

✅Character Chart- Students take notes on the different characters as well as the greasers & Socs (Google Slides digital assignment or PDF)

✅ Vocabulary Journal- Example provided- Students either identify a word they don't know OR choose one from the list provided. Students record the word, the sentence, write their guess as to its meaning, record the definition and write their own sentence. Students record 1 word for each chapter (Google Slides digital assignment or PDF)

✅Graph Your Anticipation- Rather than a standard plot map, students create a line graph. For each chapter, they rate their anticipation or excitement on a scale of 1-10 and write a 1 sentence summary of that chapter.

Cloze Notes for The Outsiders --- 3 OPTIONS for your classroom

✅Individual copy of cloze notes for each chapter of The Outsiders (PDF) - students fill in the blanks on a pre-printed packet

✅Class copy of cloze notes for each chapter of The Outsiders (PDF) - students write on a separate piece of paper to save copies ✅Digital copy of cloze notes for each chapter of The Outsiders (Google Slides) - students type the answer onto the digital assignment

News Article- Retelling of the Fire at Jay Mountain from The Outsiders

✅News article terminology research and sample news article dissection (Digital in Google Slides and PDF)

✅Sample News Article (Digital in Google Slides and PDF)

✅Assignment directions with a review of transition (signal) words and the active voice (Digital in Google Slides and PDF)

✅Outline for the assignment (Digital in Google Slides and PDF)

✅1st draft (Digital in Google Slides and PDF) ✅Step-by-step directions for students to use Canva for their article or they can handwrite or use another program (Digital in Google Slides) ✅Peer evaluation (Digital in Google Slides and PDF)

✅Teacher evaluation (PDF)

✅Example article (PDF)

Essay Writing Planner, Graphic Organizer and Prompt-The Outsiders

✅ 3 DIFFERENT theme analysis essay prompts for students to choose from (focusing on themes as shown through the novel The Outsiders).

✅Theme journal directions & an organizer for nine theme journal entries- PDF and Digital

✅A guide to help them choose and organize the six they want for the essay.

✅Directions to use these as manipulatives to pair for their thesis's subpoints- PDF and Digital

✅A guide to help with the the creation of their thesis- PDF and Digital

✅Organizers to place these and begin the analysis of their evidence -PDF and Digital

✅A 40 slide essay terminology review (Digital) & sample informative / explanatory essay dissection (focused on heroism in The Outsiders-PDF)

✅Essay guide which provides step-by-step directions for writing either a 3, 4 or 5 paragraph informative/explanatory theme essay - PDF and Digital

✅Detailed peer review (editing/evaluation) PDF and Digital

✅Detailed rubric

Exam Review- The Outsiders- Literary Devices and Elements of Plot

✅Presentation (as a PDF or Google Slides) on Literary Devices & Elements of Plot-Words are underlined 20 terms are covered (see below) Students fill in the blanks on their worksheet (PDF to print or digital in Google Slides)

✅Elements of Plot Worksheet: Students fill in the definition during the presentation, then find the example from the novel in the list provided. Terms covered: Exposition (setting-time, place, basic situation), rising action, climax, falling action, resolution, protagonist, antagonist, theme, point of view, external conflict, symbolism and foreshadowing. (PDF to print or digital in Google Slides)

✅Literary Devices Worksheet : Students fill in the definition during the presentation, then find the example from the novel in the list provided. Terms covered: Internal conflict, external conflict, protagonist, antagonist, direct characterization, indirect characterization, simile, metaphor, foreshadow, flashback, symbol, situational irony, tone, mood, allusion. (PDF to print or digital in Google Slides)

✅Digital and Print included

Cultural Investigation & A Walk in Our Shoes Cultural Reflection: The Outsiders

✅ Cultural Investigations and Connections: Film, Style, Food, Literature, and Music (Google Slides to assign to students- this can be assigned as one big project or broken up into multiple)

✅ Cultural Reflection- A Walk in My Shoes: Shoe templates- 7 shoe styles (option for full page and full page of writing OR partial page of writing and smaller template)

✅Google Form for the Shoe Template: You could use this to see which template students want- it would save on copying

✅Bulletin Board Letters Easy to Cut: Take a Walk in Our Shoes #A Cultural Reflection (letters or symbol can be omitted from the print)

Final Exam to be posted within the week

One pager to be posted next week

FINAL EXAM

This final exam assesses not only reading comprehension of the novel, but also figurative language, elements of plot, and literary devices. There is also a short non-fiction reading and question section along with spelling, capitalization, sentence structure and a short response. In total, there are 55 multiple choice question and one short response. You could have students skip any section or numbers.

Included files

✅Individual copy to print (PDF 14 pages)

✅Class copy to print (PDF 14 pages)

✅Digital copy (Google Form)

✅Answer key