9.1
9th Grade Introduction to High School Reading (Textbooks and Short Stories)
Grade 9 Disposition
Inter-Relationships and
Self-Reliance
Big Ideas
· discovery
· perseverance
· self-determination
· reflection
· introspection
· exponential personal growth
Themes
· Critical thinking makes what we read our own.
· Building meaning from text requires new strategies.
· Story is the basic principle of mind. One story helps us make sense of another.
· People are motivated by seven emotions (flattery, fear, greed, anger, guilt, exclusivity, and salvation).
Focus Questions
· How do I read to gain skills, knowledge and wisdom?
· How do my emotions and wants/needs make me vulnerable?
· How do I learn best?
· How can reading help me come to a deeper understanding of myself and the world around me?
· How can learning the characteristics of different genre facilitate my analysis of texts for deeper meaning and appreciation?
· What questions should I be asking as I approach unfamiliar text?
· What does it mean to read with a critical stance?
· What are the common strategies and techniques used by good readers across genre?
· What strategies, techniques, and terms are unique to specific genre?
· How will having conversations with my peers, teachers, and society enhance my learning and encourage me to read more thoughtfully?
Focus Questions (continued)
· What generalizations or principles have I discovered about my own reading?
· What purposes does reading serve in the real world?
Essential Questions
· Who am I?
· How do my skills and talents help define me?
· What do I need to learn in high school to prepare me for college or the work place?
· What evidence do I have that I am committed to learning?
· How do I demonstrate that I am open-minded enough to learn from my experiences?
· Which decisions I make today will affect me for my entire life?
Below is an example of what to include in a Readers Notebook.
Before reading the three short stories, go to the on line site below and print out pages 6 through 10. As you read the three stories, you will be adding to your Readers Notebook where you predict what the stories will be about, what conflict the characters face, how the authors conclude the stories and what makes these stories unique.