LEARNERS:
Having this unit at the end of the semester, the fundamental lessons and principles of literature and writing have been taught. In past units we have looked at what goes into an essay, how to write a strong opening paragraph to an essay and pushing students past the typical five paragraph hamburger essay format. The students have been working on their critical thinking skills throughout the entire semester up until this point which is beneficial to the types of activities they will be given in this unit. In the curriculum document it says that this course is a “consolidation of the literacy, communication and critical and creating think skills”. It assumes that those taking this course have already a concrete understanding of reading for meaning, applying knowledge on the conventions of writing and effectively communicating their thoughts with an audience.
The first big Pre-Assessment we will be doing as a class before diving into the book is examining mental health. Understanding the big picture circumstances of someone living with mental health issues and how it is portrayed through literature then comparing it one step further to the movie. Understanding and having a critical eye towards mental health will be beneficial to the students’ learning as they go through this unit. The biggest prior skill needed for success during this unit is (as mentioned) Critical Thinking. Many of the activities and assignments will be asking students to think on a more abstract level and see elements of literature with a critical eye.
As for ELL, ESL and LPS students – there are not any students recently coming out of an ELL program, the content discussed in this unit is at the higher level for critical thinking as well as reading and writing. Being a university preparation level course, a significant percentage of students in this course are most likely working towards going to University. The will have already acquired the fundamental skills necessary and this unit will only push those skills to new heights.