Academy for Classical Education 2016 Classical Curriculum Map 9 th Grade Literature

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1 Academy for Classical Education 2016 Classical Curriculum Map 9 th Grade Literature Time period Ancient literature (5000 BCE to 300 CE) and Middle Ages literature (1000 CE to 1500 CE) Grade level 9 th grade Classical strategies In the classical curriculum, students at this point in their development are transitioning from logic ( how do the facts of the world work together? ) and into rhetoric ( how do I explain what I know and express myself? ). Therefore, students spend the majority of their high school careers in their literature classes writing, explaining, expressing, and creating based off of what they already know from the past and what they are recently learning/have learned. Students also read great and significant works from the ancient & middle ages time periods in 9 th grade, such as: philosophy from the Greek world (namely Plato/Aristotle); creation mythologies from major world religions; plays from Sophocles and the development thereof; key religious texts; logic & reasoning (logos, pathos, ethos, etc.); speechmaking & satire; Anglo-Saxon texts; and so on. Another aspect of the classical model is that knowledge doesn t exist in a vacuum. What that means is that students don t learn just literature in literature class; instead, they study literature, then the history of the time period, the culture of the people, the art works they produced and how they tie into literature and culture, the philosophies of which they subscribed to and how some of these philosophies branched into major religions or scientific models, how these philosophies can explain human behavior or migration (which of course forms even more new cultures), and et cetera. Finally, throughout high school, students study literature and philosophy in a chronological order throughout important historical epochs, from the ancient creation myths in 9 th grade to the late writers of the 20 th century in the 12 th grade. Note about standards: The GA standards which pertain to writing and language are constantly assessed throughout the year due to the nature of the rhetoric stage of the classical curriculum. To eliminate redundancy, these are not listed in every column. A complete list of the GA standards can be found here.

2 August ELAGSE9-10W2 ELAGSE9-10W3 ELAGSE9-10RI2 ELAGSE9-10RI3 How did ancient humanity attempt to explain or rationalize the world about them? Why do we see so many similarities between creation myths, despite their separation by vast expanses of time and/or distance? Creation mythologies from around the world: Norse (Battle of the Frost-Giants); Chinese (P an-ku); Blackfoot tribe (Old Man); Judeo-Christian (Bible: Adam & Eve); Mesopotamian (Enki); Buddhism (Malunkyaputta s conversation with Buddha); Greek (Zeus, Hera, Heracles & the formation of the Milky Way); Hinduism (Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva); Amazonian (Peribo the moon vs. Suharina the sun) After discussing in depth the creation myths, students are: (1) Tasked with writing an essay to analyze, compare, and/or contrast the creation myths, and (2) Assigned to write a creation myth of their own, which must include similarities from other mythologies which we ve studied. Month September ELAGSE9-10RL6 ELAGSE9-10RI6 ELAGSE9-10RL2 What are the first literary works of humanity? Who is the first credited author of humanity? Why even study literature? How do I analyze, transcribe, and explicate poetry? Ancient poetry: Selected poems from Mesopotamia & ancient Greece History: How our first author, Princess Enheduana, and other early writers wished to accomplish immortality by writing her thoughts down The development of the first city (Mesopotamia) & how it influenced human behavior Philosophy: Plato s Allegory of the Cave SPOTTTS method of poetry analysis (Subject, Paraphrase, Occasion/Organization, Title, Tone, Theme, Speaker/Shift) Students write a poem of their own once they are familiar with the basics of poetry. Debate: modern Allegory of the Cave could the universe be a computer simulation? (What is reality?)

3 October (Given that students are to write their first analytical paper this month, we will cover many standards.) ELAGSE9-10RL4 ELAGSE9-10RL2 ELAGSE9-10RI3 ELAGSE9-10SL4 ELAGSE9-10SL6 ELAGSE6L3a ELAGSE4L1f ELAGSE4L1g ELAGSE9-10W5 ELAGSE9-10W6 +Language standards How did the play develop as an art form, and what were its original purposes? What religious ideas drive characters, and what personal motives drive them? How do themes develop throughout the story of Antigone? How do complex characters like Antigone and Creon develop throughout the course of the play? How Greece invented the play, what a play s original purpose was, and how the play developed into an art form. Theatre: Sophocles Antigone full play Students verbalize and act out key parts of the play with the class. After reading, discussing, and analyzing the play Antigone, students will write their first analytical paper. It will be 3-5 pages in length and satisfy college-level MLA format. It will also contain a thesis statement and the body of the paper will serve to prove that single statement. The students will have many prompts to choose from, which are to be given in class.

4 November ELAGSE9-10RI3 ELAGSE9-10RL7 ELAGSE9-10W2 How do our own cultural biases affect the way we view literary characters, or even the world itself? How do the events in Judith compare to history and art throughout the ages? How does Judith compare to Antigone as both a literary work and a character? Contrast? Siege warfare in the Middle East The "Book of Judith", which can be found in the Catholic Bible, Jewish Septuagint, and Protestant Apocrypha After reading and discussing Judith, students will look at several pieces of art inspired by the story. We discuss how the artist s ethnic or national/cultural background influences his or her depiction of Judith in a way that s separate from her understood Middle Eastern origin. We then finish by seeing how our own ethnic or cultural biases affect the way we view literary characters (and ultimately, the world.) Given that Judith has inspired several works of art throughout the ages, students draw their own portrait or scene from Judith and write/explain why they chose to depict her as they did, and what personal or cultural biases may have affected their work.

5 December ELAGSE9-10RI9 ELAGSE9-10RL4 ELAGSE9-10RI6 ELAGSE9-10W1 ELAGSE9-10W5 ELAGSE9-10RI8 What are the canons of classical writing, and how do we use them to organize our work? How do we use rhetorical appeals to strengthen our writing and arguments? Speechmaking, argumentative modes, logic & rhetoric: Funeral Oration by Pericles The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln (This speech, although not ancient, was inspired by Pericles speech and also satisfies ELAGSE9-10RI9.) In-class debates over both literary topics and current events Students must debate current events, but there is a twist: they must also argue for the opposing side so that students are forced to think objectively. Students analyze the two speeches and compare the motives of both speakers. They also identify rhetorical appeals and explain to the class how these appeals influence the meaning or effectiveness of the speaker. To finish the unit, students pick a topic which they feel strongly about, and write a speech using a myriad of rhetorical modes. The speeches are given either on a stage or in class (students choice).

6 January ELAGSE9-10RL1 ELAGSE9-10RI2 ELAGSE9-10W3 ELAGSE9-10RI8 What is satire, and what are the two types thereof? How can an effective satirical piece change a societal or political problem? Examples of satire Horatian & Juvenalian (ancient examples) Excerpt from Swift s A Modest Proposal (late middle ages example) The Onion newspaper (modern examples) Students verbally discuss and analyze the several examples of satire. At the end of the unit, the class makes their own individual example of satire based off of what they have read and learned. Regardless of the medium they choose to portray their satire in, they must explain in depth their work in an essay. Students also present their works, explaining why they chose what they did and how they chose to satirize their subject. Month February ELAGSE9-10RL6 ELAGSE9-10RL7 ELAGSE9-10RL5 ELAGSE9-10RL9 ELAGSE9-10RL1 ELAGSE9-10RL4 How did the English language come into existence? What are some of the first surviving literary works of the English language? How did the English language originally look? How can we analyze poetry? The history of the English language & Anglo-Saxon/Jute culture Anglo-Saxon and Old English poetry: Caedmon s Hymn and The Seafarer Beowulf Modern connection: Movie: The Lord of the Rings SPOTTTS method of poetry analysis Debate: We put Grendel s mother on trial and argue (using our rhetorical modes) either for or against Grendel s mother s justification for murdering Aeschere the Dane. Drawing from the elementary classical methods of memorization and recitation, students must memorize and recite the Old English translation of Caedmon s Hymn after analyzing the poem. Students must make connections in JRR Tolkien s LOTR, explaining how Anglo-Saxon culture influences the plot, motives, and characters of his

7 works, and where we see the same developments in Anglo-Saxon texts. Month March ELAGSE9-10W4 ELAGSE9-10W5 ELAGSE9-10W6 ELAGSE9-10W7 ELAGSE9-10W8 ELAGSE9-10W9 ELAGSE9-10RL1 ELAGSE9-10RL2 ELAGSE9-10RL5 +Language standards How does literature reflect a society s culture? How does the idea of a hero change, develop, or stay the same throughout cultures and history? How do Chaucer s Tales highlight life in the Middle Ages and its class system? Middle Ages life, stereotypes, class system & culture Chaucer s The Canterbury Tales (selections) After reading, discussing, and analyzing the selections from The Canterbury Tales and the poem Beowulf, students will write their second analytical paper. It will be 3-5 pages in length and satisfy collegelevel MLA format. It will also contain a thesis statement and the body of the paper will serve to prove that single statement. The students will have many prompts to choose from, which are to be given in class. Finally, unlike their first paper, this one must contain at least two credible/scholarly sources used to support their thesis, such as those sources found on GIL or GALILEO. Month April ELAGSE9-10RI4 ELAGSE9-10RL9 What elements of satire do we see in 12th Night? How do social expectations shape the development of our identity/identities? Middle ages & the transition into the Early Modern English language Shakespeare s 12 th Night Students act out the play and key parts in front of the class. Students will write their own letter to the characters in the play (much like the letters are seen being used in the play to drive the plot.)

8 May ELAGSE9-10RL5 ELAGSE9-10RL10 How do the themes in the play Everyman apply to the literature we've read this year - and more importantly, our personal lives? What are the characteristics of a morality play? How does a morality play differ from a Shakespearian play, or any other play we've studied thus far? Everyman (14th century play) Although this play comes before Shakespeare, and therefore is not in chronological order, it still serves as a good end piece to the course as it encapsulates all of the themes and literary dynamics we have studied thus far. Students act out the play and key parts in front of the class. Finally, students will be analyzing the themes found in the play. Discussions will be taking place in class. The themes in the play apply to almost all of the literature we've read this year and do a great job of being the capstone piece in the 9th grade year.