Welcome to G.A.T.E literature! Our current thematic cross curricular novel
study includes reading books that incorporate historical events and people
during the Holocaust of World War II. One of the major objectives of this
unit is to stimulate students to think about the effect of choices. What are
the implications and consequences of a person’s actions or inactions on
individuals and on society as a whole? Who can make a difference? A study of
this topic can help students to analyze the responsibilities of individuals,
organizations, and nations when confronted with problems in society and human
rights violations. Students will develop critical thinking, creativity and
problem solving skills as they analyze, synthesize and evaluate literature,
primary documents, Websites, and other media to gather information from a
variety of perspectives to create projects based on their learning. This
thematic study provides an opportunity for discussions of the value of
diversity and the danger of bias and prejudice through an examination of
literature. Because the goal of teaching any subject is to engage the
intellectual curiosity of students and to inspire critical thinking,
creativity, problem solving and personal growth, this unit is designed to
motivate students to think, question, and ultimately act compassionately and
responsibly.
“I am one, but still I am one;
I cannot do everything, but still I can do something;
And just because I cannot do everything,
I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.”
(Helen Keller)
What something can you do? How will you make a difference in someone else’s
life by your actions or inactions?
Gifted Education Instructional Practices and Techniques Incorporated from
various philosophies and models including; Bloom’s Taxonomy, Wiggins and
McTighe's Backward's Design,Gardner’s MI Theory, Renzulli’s Type 1, Type 2,
Type 3 Tasks. Independent projects with choice of assignments, open-ended
questions, direct and indirect creative thinking skill instruction, CoRT
Thinking Skills, VanTassel Baska Integrated Curriculum Model, and Socratic
questioning.
NJ Core Content Curriculum Objectives:
Language Arts Literacy
STANDARD 3.1 (Reading) All students will understand and apply the knowledge
of sounds, letters, and words in written English to become independent and
fluent readers, and will read a variety of materials and texts with fluency
and comprehension.
A. Concepts About Print/Text
1. Identify and use organizational structures to comprehend information.
(e.g., logical order, comparison/contrast, cause/effect, chronological,
sequential, procedural text).
C. Decoding and Word Recognition
2. Apply spelling and syllabication rules that aid in decoding and word
recognition.
3. Continue to use structural analysis and context analysis to decode
new words.
4. Apply knowledge of word structures and patterns to read with
automaticity.
D. Fluency
2. Read increasingly difficult texts silently with comprehension and
fluency.
3. Apply self-correcting strategies automatically to decode and gain
meaning from print both orally and silently.
4. Adjust reading rate in response to the type of text and level of
difficulty (e.g. recreational reading vs. informational reading).
E. Reading Strategies (before, during, and after reading)
1. Monitor reading for understanding by automatically setting a purpose
for reading, making and adjusting predictions, asking essential questions,
and relating new learning to background experiences.
2. Use increasingly complex text guides to understand different text
structure and organizational patterns (e.g. chronological sequence or
comparison and contrast).
F. Vocabulary and Concept Development
1. Develop and refine an extended vocabulary through listening and
exposure to a variety of texts and independent reading.
2. Clarify word meanings through the use of a word’s definition,
example, restatement, or
contrast.
5. Explain relationships between and among words including
connotation/denotation, antonyms/synonyms, and words with multiple meanings.
G. Comprehension Skills and Response to Text
1. Differentiate between fact/opinion and bias and propaganda in
newspapers, periodicals, and electronic texts.
2. Compare and analyze several authors’ perspectives of a character,
personality, topic, setting, or event.
3. Analyze ideas and recurring themes found in texts, such as good
versus evil, across traditional and contemporary works.
4. Locate and analyze the elements of setting, characterization, and
plot to construct understanding of how characters influence the progression
and resolution of the plot.
5. Read critically by identifying, analyzing, and applying knowledge of
the purpose, structure, and elements of nonfiction and providing support from
the text as evidence of understanding.
6. Read critically by identifying, analyzing, and applying knowledge of
the theme, structure, style, and literary elements of fiction and providing
support from the text as evidence of understanding.
7. Respond critically to text ideas and the author’s craft by using
textual evidence to support interpretations.
8. Identify and analyze literary techniques and elements, such as
figurative language, meter, rhetorical, and stylistic features of text.
9. Identify and analyze recurring themes across literary works.
11. Identify and understand the author’s use of idioms, analogies,
metaphors, and similes in prose and poetry.
13. Interpret text ideas through journal writing, discussion, and
enactment.
14. Demonstrate the use of everyday texts (e.g., train schedules,
directions, brochures) and make judgments about the importance of such
documents.
15. Compare and analyze the various works of writers through an author’s
study.
H. Inquiry and Research
1. Produce written and oral work that demonstrates comprehension of
informational materials.
2. Analyze a work of literature, showing how it reflects the heritage,
traditions, attitudes, and beliefs of its authors.
4. Self-select materials appropriately related to a research project.
5. Read and compare at least two works, including books, related to the same
genre, topic, or subject and produce evidence of reading (e.g., compare
central ideas, characters, themes, plots, settings).
STANDARD 3.2 (Writing) All students will write in clear, concise, organized
language that varies in content and form for different audiences and purposes
A. Writing as a Process (prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, postwriting)
2. Write multi-paragraph compositions that have clear topic development,
logical organization, effective use of detail, and variety in sentence
structure.
4. Revise and edit drafts by rereading for content and organization, usage,
sentence construction, mechanics, and word choice.
5. Utilize the New Jersey Registered Holistic scoring rubric to improve and
evaluate their writing and the writing of peers.
6. Compose, revise, edit, and publish writing using appropriate word
processing software.
7. Reflect on own writing, noting strengths and setting goals for
improvement.
B. Writing as a Product (resulting in a formal product or publication)
3. Write reports and subject-appropriate nonfiction pieces across the
curriculum based on research and including citations, quotations, and a works
cited page.
4. Write a range of essays, including persuasive, speculative (picture
prompt), descriptive, personal, or issue-based.
D. Writing Forms, Audiences, and Purposes (exploring a variety of forms)
1. Gather, select, and organize the most effective information
appropriate to a topic, task, and audience.
2. Apply knowledge and strategies for composing pieces in a variety of
genres (e.g., narrative, expository, persuasive, poetic, and everyday/
workplace or technical writing).
3. Write responses to literature and develop insights into
interpretations by connecting to personal experiences and referring to
textual information.
4. Write personal narratives, short stories, memoirs, poetry, and
persuasive and expository text that relate clear, coherent events, or
situations through the use of specific details.
5. Use narrative and descriptive writing techniques that show
compositional risks (e.g., dialogue, literary devices sensory words and
phrases, background information, thoughts and feelings of characters,
comparison and contrast of characters.)
6. Use a variety of primary and secondary sources to understand the
value of each when writing a research report.
7. Write reports based on research and include citations, quotations,
and works cited page.
8. Explore the central idea or theme of an informational reading and
support analysis with details from the article and personal experiences.
9. Demonstrate writing clarity and supportive evidence when answering
open-ended and essay questions across the curriculum.
10. State a position clearly and convincingly in a persuasive essay by
stating the issue, giving facts, examples, and details to support the
position, and citing sources when appropriate.
11. Present evidence when writing persuasive essays, examples, and
justification to support arguments.
12. Choose an appropriate organizing strategy such as cause/effect, pro
and con, parody, to effectively present a topic, point of view, or argument.
13. Use of a personal style and voice effectively to support the purpose
and engage the audience of a piece of writing.