sample lesson on the Youth Lens
single day lesson plan for exploring the figure of the adolescent rebel in The Catcher in the rye
Taking a Youth Lens Approach to Reading The Catcher in the Rye
Lesson Overview
This lesson plan is a possible example for a standard English II high school course using the novel The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. The lesson will focus on examining the role of the adolescent rebel in young adult literature, using a youth lens to analyze the protagonist of the novel, Holden Caulfield. Activities developed to further students’ reading, creative writing, and analytical thinking skills are included in the lesson plan.
Common Core Standards Addressed
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.2
Determine two or more themes or central ideas of a text and analyze their development over the course of the text, including how they interact and build on one another to produce a complex account; provide an objective summary of the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.3
Analyze the impact of the author's choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story or drama (e.g., where a story is set, how the action is ordered, how the characters are introduced and developed).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including words with multiple meanings or language that is particularly fresh, engaging, or beautiful. (Include Shakespeare as well as other authors.)
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.1.E
Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the argument presented.
Measurable Objective Based On Content Standard(s)
Students will be able to identify characteristics in Holden that categorize him as a “rebel” figure and attribute them to his place in society by using a “Youth Lens” critical approach to determine what Salinger is attempting to say about the costs/benefits of conformity/non-conformity.
Essential Question
How do societal views of teenagers as rebels reflect and/or conflict with expectations of the adolescent experience?
Prior Knowledge
-Students must be familiar with the terms “teenager” and “rebel”
-Students must understand what "word associations" are
Link to 21st Century Skills
-Analyzing literature as a social commentary and insight into an author’s history and mindset
-Using online technology to share ideas
Formative Assessment (attach specific instructions and/or examples)
-Each student will have a personal journal in which they will record their thoughts/opinions that will be collected by the teacher every 2 weeks to be checked for completion
-Each student will be prompted with a statement about Salinger's message about adolescence/ts and will be checked on completion
Summative Assessment
Students will create a 5-7 minute movie that draws attention to the detrimental effects of society on a person during adolescence and ways in which they can be countered. Recreate at least one scene from the text where you believe Holden comes face to face with society and a choice to conform or not, and at least one other scene that gives an alternate ending to such a scene, to show what would happen if Holden chose conformity in whichever situation. The movie should be almost like a public service announcement (PSA) directed towards teenagers. Students must also create a movie poster or a book cover for the novel, as well as provide a script for their movie. Each group member must write a 1-2 page paper explaining why they made the decisions they did for each scene and reflecting on the differences between the novel and the alternate ending made up by the group. At least 4 and no more than 5 students per group, each having the role of either Director, Scribe, Historian, Editor, or other role so assigned. A rubric will be provided for the expectations of the students’ participation, creativity, analysis, etc. After the project is completed, each student will fill out a survey grading their own participation as well as their group members.
Accommodations
-Students who struggle with reading will be given the option to read with a partner
-Non-English speaking students will be permitted to film their movie in their spoken language, provided it has subtitles included
-Students will have access to language dictionaries if they require assistance for the word-association activity
LESSON PLAN:
Materials
-The novel The Catcher in the Rye
-Youth lens informational text
-White board & markers
-Colored pen
-Personal journals
-Google docs
LATs
-Activating/generating knowledge
-Directed/guided reading
-Rereading
-Reading discussion
-Note taking
-Personal journal
-Critical analysis/reflection
Bell Ringer/Review Activity (5 minutes)
At the beginning of class, students will be given the opportunity to share their “quotation of the week” and say 1-2 sentences about why that quotation caught their eye or was significant. Must be something they read or heard within the past week.
Activity 1: Word Association (25 minutes)
-Before delving into the reading and discussion on The Catcher in the Rye, students will be asked to do a word association for the words “teenager,” and “rebel,” one at a time.
-Students will be given a few minutes to brainstorm words they associate with each word, and then will be called on one at a time to give at least one word to be recorded up on the white board by the teacher and copied down by the students in their notebooks
-Once each student has given at least one word, students can raise their hands to be called on to provide more associations
-Once both word associations are completed, students will be asked to circle with a different colored pen all the words that appear in both
-Discussion on the similarities/differences of the two words and their implications
Activity 2: Youth Lens (25 minutes)
-Introduction of the use of the youth lens as a tool for critical literary analysis
-Students will be given excerpts from the article “The Youth Lens: Analyzing Adolescence/ts in Literary Texts”
-Students will read aloud paragraph by paragraph when called on, underlining or highlighting phrases that stick out to them as they go
-Teacher will lead discussion on use of youth lens, providing examples and writing notes on the board, which students should copy in addition to their own personal note-taking
Activity 3: Reading Critically & Journaling (35 minutes)
-Read the first paragraph of the novel once through
-Read again silently with directions for marking the paragraph with the following:
-Have students record this information in their personal journals for 5 minutes
-Share a Google Doc where each student will fill in the rest of this prompt: “I like that Salinger gets that teenagers _____ (i.e. act like, enjoy, dislike) when he has Holden….”
-Teacher will select a few statements to discuss and analyze for the remaining time
Closure
Students will take the last 5-10 minutes of class writing in their personal journals, either continuing to answer the original question or beginning a new topic related to something discussed in class
Alternate Strategies for Re-teaching Material
-Students can work individually or in pairs/groups to create their own word associations, then the class could come together to compare/contrast their work and discuss
-Students can be asked to think of a way they could use the youth lens to analyze one of the texts already read/discussed in class
References
-The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
-Youth Lens Article
Lesson Overview
This lesson plan is a possible example for a standard English II high school course using the novel The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. The lesson will focus on examining the role of the adolescent rebel in young adult literature, using a youth lens to analyze the protagonist of the novel, Holden Caulfield. Activities developed to further students’ reading, creative writing, and analytical thinking skills are included in the lesson plan.
Common Core Standards Addressed
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.2
Determine two or more themes or central ideas of a text and analyze their development over the course of the text, including how they interact and build on one another to produce a complex account; provide an objective summary of the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.3
Analyze the impact of the author's choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story or drama (e.g., where a story is set, how the action is ordered, how the characters are introduced and developed).
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.11-12.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including words with multiple meanings or language that is particularly fresh, engaging, or beautiful. (Include Shakespeare as well as other authors.)
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.1.E
Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the argument presented.
Measurable Objective Based On Content Standard(s)
Students will be able to identify characteristics in Holden that categorize him as a “rebel” figure and attribute them to his place in society by using a “Youth Lens” critical approach to determine what Salinger is attempting to say about the costs/benefits of conformity/non-conformity.
Essential Question
How do societal views of teenagers as rebels reflect and/or conflict with expectations of the adolescent experience?
Prior Knowledge
-Students must be familiar with the terms “teenager” and “rebel”
-Students must understand what "word associations" are
Link to 21st Century Skills
-Analyzing literature as a social commentary and insight into an author’s history and mindset
-Using online technology to share ideas
Formative Assessment (attach specific instructions and/or examples)
-Each student will have a personal journal in which they will record their thoughts/opinions that will be collected by the teacher every 2 weeks to be checked for completion
-Each student will be prompted with a statement about Salinger's message about adolescence/ts and will be checked on completion
Summative Assessment
Students will create a 5-7 minute movie that draws attention to the detrimental effects of society on a person during adolescence and ways in which they can be countered. Recreate at least one scene from the text where you believe Holden comes face to face with society and a choice to conform or not, and at least one other scene that gives an alternate ending to such a scene, to show what would happen if Holden chose conformity in whichever situation. The movie should be almost like a public service announcement (PSA) directed towards teenagers. Students must also create a movie poster or a book cover for the novel, as well as provide a script for their movie. Each group member must write a 1-2 page paper explaining why they made the decisions they did for each scene and reflecting on the differences between the novel and the alternate ending made up by the group. At least 4 and no more than 5 students per group, each having the role of either Director, Scribe, Historian, Editor, or other role so assigned. A rubric will be provided for the expectations of the students’ participation, creativity, analysis, etc. After the project is completed, each student will fill out a survey grading their own participation as well as their group members.
Accommodations
-Students who struggle with reading will be given the option to read with a partner
-Non-English speaking students will be permitted to film their movie in their spoken language, provided it has subtitles included
-Students will have access to language dictionaries if they require assistance for the word-association activity
LESSON PLAN:
Materials
-The novel The Catcher in the Rye
-Youth lens informational text
-White board & markers
-Colored pen
-Personal journals
-Google docs
LATs
-Activating/generating knowledge
-Directed/guided reading
-Rereading
-Reading discussion
-Note taking
-Personal journal
-Critical analysis/reflection
Bell Ringer/Review Activity (5 minutes)
At the beginning of class, students will be given the opportunity to share their “quotation of the week” and say 1-2 sentences about why that quotation caught their eye or was significant. Must be something they read or heard within the past week.
Activity 1: Word Association (25 minutes)
-Before delving into the reading and discussion on The Catcher in the Rye, students will be asked to do a word association for the words “teenager,” and “rebel,” one at a time.
-Students will be given a few minutes to brainstorm words they associate with each word, and then will be called on one at a time to give at least one word to be recorded up on the white board by the teacher and copied down by the students in their notebooks
-Once each student has given at least one word, students can raise their hands to be called on to provide more associations
-Once both word associations are completed, students will be asked to circle with a different colored pen all the words that appear in both
-Discussion on the similarities/differences of the two words and their implications
Activity 2: Youth Lens (25 minutes)
-Introduction of the use of the youth lens as a tool for critical literary analysis
-Students will be given excerpts from the article “The Youth Lens: Analyzing Adolescence/ts in Literary Texts”
-Students will read aloud paragraph by paragraph when called on, underlining or highlighting phrases that stick out to them as they go
-Teacher will lead discussion on use of youth lens, providing examples and writing notes on the board, which students should copy in addition to their own personal note-taking
Activity 3: Reading Critically & Journaling (35 minutes)
-Read the first paragraph of the novel once through
-Read again silently with directions for marking the paragraph with the following:
- Mark something you are confused about
- Mark the spot where Salinger gets something right about being a teenager
- Mark something Holden reveals about his character
-Have students record this information in their personal journals for 5 minutes
-Share a Google Doc where each student will fill in the rest of this prompt: “I like that Salinger gets that teenagers _____ (i.e. act like, enjoy, dislike) when he has Holden….”
-Teacher will select a few statements to discuss and analyze for the remaining time
Closure
Students will take the last 5-10 minutes of class writing in their personal journals, either continuing to answer the original question or beginning a new topic related to something discussed in class
Alternate Strategies for Re-teaching Material
-Students can work individually or in pairs/groups to create their own word associations, then the class could come together to compare/contrast their work and discuss
-Students can be asked to think of a way they could use the youth lens to analyze one of the texts already read/discussed in class
References
-The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
-Youth Lens Article