Great Gatsby Intro Lesson Plan

Blogging Teacher Name: Brooke Kistner Lesson Title: Introduction to The Great Gatsby Target Grade/Subject: 11th grade/English (American Literature) Length: 90 minutes VA SOL: 11.3: The student will read and analyze relationships among American literature, poetry, and culture. 11.3c: Discuss American literature as it reflects traditional and contemporary themes, motifs, universal characters and genres. Essential Questions: 1. What connections between poetry and history can be made? 2. How has poetry changed? 3. How does an author’s environment affect his/her writing? Learning Objectives: ⇒ Given a poem from two authors, the student will be able to identify poetry styles of authors and compare and contrast the two. ⇒ Given these poems and recalling the history of the 1920s, the student will be able to identify connections between American literature, history and culture of the 1920s. Tools and Resources - Langston Hughes’s poem “Brass Spittoons” (read for homework) - W.B. Yeats’s poem “Under Saturn” (read for homework) - ibooks - Access to class blog site (xxxxx.com) - PowerPoint on Fitzgerald and symbols - Journals/pencils - The Great Gatsby (to be issued in class) - Fitzgerald Handout (to be filled in while PowerPoint is presented) - Family Feud materials Preparation Technology/Classroom Arrangement and Management Strategies: Each student will use their ibook to post their blog to the class website. If internet access is not available, then students will write in their journals as if it were a blog. The teacher will be moving about the room to ensure students are staying on task. Prerequisite technology skills needed by students:

Students will need to be familiar with the class website and have basic word processing skills. Lesson Development Focus and Review of previous work/knowledge: The students will have read both poems for homework and are prepared to discuss the poetical elements contained in each poem. After the poems, we will discuss as a class the connections between American literature, history and culture of 1920s. Some information about F. Scott Fitzgerald and The Great Gatsbywill be given. An introduction to the symbol group assignment will be given, and groups assigned. Anticipatory set: - Students will be shown a PowerPoint concerning different symbols. In their journals, they will write down what each symbol means; a few words will suffice. The class, as a whole, will discuss each symbol after it has been presented, gather different viewpoints and thoughts. ○ Slide 1: Rainbows was taken from a daycare site. Can represent gay/lesbian pride, nature, happiness… ○ Slide 2: This is a “Climate change” symbol associated with the 2008 Olympics. “Peace but 1.” Can represent the number 3. ○ Slide 3: This is Uncle Sam. He is typically associated with joining the army. Discuss whether it’s a negative/intimidating or positive symbol and how this may have changed over the years. ○ Slide 4: This is a typical Peace sign. In Europe, especially England, this sign is an offensive symbol. It can also merely represent the number 2. ○ Slide 5: This is the Chinese symbol for peace. Students probably will not know what this represents, but it could be discussed how the Chinese language, much like the English language has experience change. Can also discuss how it relates to the peace sign in slide 4. ○ Slide 6: This is a bald eagle, which is typically associated with America. It also can represent, nature, strength, power, etc. After this exercise, the class will discuss: - Why did some symbols draw different interpretations? - How has society influenced your interpretation on these symbols? - How has society effected the way people write? - Can you come up with one or two examples of work (writing or art) that represents its

time period? The class will then be divided into small groups for a small group activity. Instructional Activity: - Students have read the two poems for homework, and they will be assigned small groups when entering class. In these groups the students will discuss the poetry styles and elements of the poems. The students will focus on symbols seen in the poems and connections to the time period they’re written. Then the groups will blog about their findings. Each group then must comment on another group’s posting. ➢ Class will regroup to discuss the connections between American literature, history and culture of 1920s. ○ Some connections to mention to help class  Some authors wrote about what was happening in the 1920s in their works  The World War effected the amount and types of works produced  Three significant groups during this time • The Algonquin Round Table: informal gathering of literary men/women in NYC • Harlem Renaissance: considered the first important movement of black artists and writers in the US. Centered in Harlem, NY black writers published more than ever before • The Lost Generation: the self-exiled expatriates who lived and wrote in Paris between the wars. These writers, looking for freedom of thought and action, changed the face of modern writing  Beginning of the Golden Age of Mysteries - with such writers American hard-boiled writers as Raymond Chandler and Dashielle Hammett and paving the way for the next 80+ years. Students will then be presented information on F. Scott Fitzgerald via PowerPoint. They will be encouraged to take notes on the handout given. ➢ Background information on Fitzgerald will be presented: ○ Born in St. Paul, Minnesota on 24 Sept 1896 ○ Related to Francis Scott Key ○ Dad from Maryland and devoted to the Old South ○ Mom daughter of Irish immigrant who became wealthy in St. Paul ○ Both parents Catholic

○ While at St. Paul Academy, Fitzgerald’s writing of a detective appeared in school newspaper, his first publication ○ At Newman School Father Sigourney Fay encouraged Fitzgerald’s ambition for personal distinction and achievement ○ Neglected school to become literary apprentice ○ 1917 joined army because on academic probation and wrote The Romantic Egotist, but was rejected by publishers ○ Fell in love with Zelda Sayre when stationed near Montgomery, Alabama ○ After war, Fitzgerald went to NYC to get rich so he could marry Zelda; but she was impatient and broke off their engagement ○ 1919 renamed The Romantic Egotist as This Side of Paradise and was accepted by Maxwell Perkins of Scribner’s in September 1919 ○ Began writing in Saturday Evening Post to make fast cash, known as Post writer ○ The Smart Set was a collection of his commercial stories ○ This Side of Paradise instantly famous and Zelda married him a week after its publication ○ Wrote his second novel, The Beautiful and Damned in NYC ○ The Fitzgeralds moved back to St. Paul and in October 1921, had only child Frances Scott Fitzgerald ○ 1922 moved to Long Island to be closer to Broadway, Fitzgerald became distracted from writing and became an alcoholic; he was distracted from writing The Great Gatsby as well ○ In 1925, The Great Gatsby published, yet not high sales despite the sale of stage and movie rights ○ After this, Fitzgerald went downhill, his wife’s mental health went downhill as well ○ 1940 he died of heart attack, 1948 his wife died in a fire at Highland Hospital  After presentation of information, a game of “Family Feud” will be played to help students remember information, questions can be formed from bullets above, and questions are worth 10 points each ➢ Presentation of symbol group project: Groups will be assigned and each group will select a symbol in The Great Gatsby to present to the class- further instruction will be given next class. (10 mins)

Guided practice and checking for understanding (student activities): At the beginning of each class, students will be presented with some sort of symbol and will be given the chance to verbally discuss thesymbol. They will discuss possible interpretations, its evolvement, its impact on society; etc. During the small group activity, the teacher will be available to answer any questions. Independent practice (student activities): The students will express their ability to make historical connections and interpret symbols through small group activity, homework assignments, and the symbol group project (assigned later in the lesson). Closure: Recap on the connections made between the poetry and the 1920s. Assign the books to students. Assign the homework of reading first two chapters of The Great Gatsby. Ask students to pay particular attention to any symbols they may discover in the reading that they may want to present on. Pay attention to point of view, tone and character development in the chapters to be prepared for discussion next class. Evaluation: Assessment will be completed through interaction in small groups and among the class. Students will receive participation credit for giving relevant comments in small groups and class discussions. Students will receive participation credit for blogging and contributing to other group blogs. Students, later in the lesson, will be assessed on their knowledge of symbols through a project and unit assessment. References: Encarta.com Google.com Flickr.com

Francis Scott Fitzgerald Fact Sheet. Fill in the blanks. You are responsible for knowing this information.

○ Born in St. Paul, _________________ on September 24 __________. ○ Related to _____________ ○ Both parents ______________ ○ While at St. Paul Academy, Fitzgerald’s accomplished his _________________ in the school newspaper. ○ Neglected ___________ to become literary apprentice ○ 1917, joined the ____________ because of academic probation and wrote _______________________, but was rejected by publishers ○ Engaged to ________________; but she could not wait for him to get rich so she broke off their engagement ○ The Romantic Egotist as This Side of Paradise and was published in __________ ○ This Side of Paradise instantly famous and Zelda married him a week after its publication ○ Wrote his second novel, ______________________in NYC ○ The Fitzgeralds moved back to St. Paul and in October___________, had only child _________________ ○ 1922 moved to _______________ to be closer to Broadway, Fitzgerald became distracted from writing and became an ______________; he was distracted from writing ______________________ as well ○ In 1925, ______________________ was published, yet not high sales despite the sale of stage and ________________________ ○ After this, Fitzgerald went downhill, his ______________ mental health went ________________ as well ○ _______________ he died of heart attack, 1948 his ___________ died in a fire at Highland Hospital