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Mar 9, 2023 · Why the Great Gatsby Needs to be Read in Schools. CCHS junior, Sarah Brown read “The Great Gatsby” in her AP Language class. Her and many other students loved learning about the 20’s through a unique perspective. Everyone knows the mysterious and theatrical tale of The Great Gatsby, the epitome of “Americana”.
- My Past: from Hate to Great
- Teaching Gatsby: A Boat Against The Current
- My Approach
- Planning My Unit: Standards to Teach
- Essential Questions to Consider
- How to Assess
- How to Scaffold Gatsby
- Assigning Reading Homework
- Thanks For Reading, Old Sport!
I love teaching The Great Gatsby now, but in high school, I didn’t enjoy reading it. In fact, I despised it: the eggs, the parties, the wealth, and the carelessness…all of it. I remember thinking, “Why should I care? How is this relevant?”At some point, I think I just tuned out and went through the motions, collecting my As on papers without ever b...
That current is a mix of adolescent apathy and kids who don’t read, unlikeable characters, and the difficulty of making Fitzgerald’s language accessible to teens. When I’m working against the current, I remember my past hatred of the book, and I’m inspired to dream a little more about how I can engage my students. Over the past 5 years, I’ve reflec...
I’ve heard (well, mainly seen in ELA Facebook group comments) some fiery debates over teaching the novel vs. teaching the standards/skills. There is merit in both approaches, and certainly, the extremes of both sides should be avoided. So that’s why my approach is a happy medium. I believe that you can have your cake and eat it, too! You can teach ...
A classic like Gatsby can be overwhelming, because there’s so much you can do with it. I remember having no idea what to focus on as a brand new teacher. Over the years, I’ve been able to determine the primary standards I want to teach, and then plan backwards from there. When I am teaching The Great Gatsby,I focus on the following Common Core stan...
When unit planning, I always make sure I have a collection of essential questions that will drive teaching and learning. Without standards and these “big picture” questions, it’s easy to lose focus of your objectives. Here are my top 10 questions that drive my Gatsbyunit: 1. What is Nick’s complex attitude toward Gatsby? 2. What is Nick’s attitude ...
I utilize a variety of formal and informal assessments and checkpoints throughout my unit, including bell-ringers, quizzes, group work, an escape room, a blame chart, writing tasks, and more. My definition of “assessment” is open-ended, and I like to mix up my approach to support a variety of needs and learning preferences. The primary formal asses...
As you can see, all of the aforementioned standards describe analytical skills, not mere comprehension. But of course, students must be able to comprehend before they can analyze. I teach such a wide range of learners that I’ve realized I have to scaffold comprehension of Gatsbyin different ways.
When mapping out my Gatsbyunit, I typically assign reading homework every other night, with a few exceptions for extension activities or assessments. This gives us 2 days per chapter, which works out well. I do try to read (or listen to the audio) the first chapter aloud and find other pockets of time where students can get some reading done in cla...
I hope this post helped you to jump-start or tweak your Gatsby plans! With a beautiful, challenging classic like Gatsby, I think it’s incredibly important to re-read the text, annotate it, and spend some time really thinking about it before you start planning lessons. So while you’re waiting on my following blog posts about how I teach the novel, m...
Sep 26, 2024 · The Power of Close Reading. Close reading is a student-centered, teacher-directed approach that hones analytical skills and cultivates a deeper understanding of complex texts. When implemented consistently, close reading fosters substantial growth in students' reading and writing abilities. It's a cornerstone of equitable teaching practice that ...
Mar 1, 2022 · F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is on one hand, a tantalizing glimpse into the coveted lives of one percenters. On the other hand, it is a remorseful exposure to the lonely emptiness of this lifestyle. Students will simultaneously love and hate the characters they meet on this wild ride, “wanting to look squarely at every one, and ...
Jul 24, 2018 · TIP: use bell ringers with graphics that represent the themes of the time period. You can find mine here. This is so important! Often times, my students found themselves lost in Fitzgerald’s complex language. Compare the intense drama that occurs in The Great Gatsby to reality television shows, music, ideas, or actual events that are ...
Sep 2, 2022 · Why Unit 1 Is Perfect for 11th Grade. The first unit in 11th grade is a novel study featuring canonical text The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Unit 1 allows students to immerse themselves into the world of the 1920s as they read a classic American novel and ponder its messages about wealth, dreams, and American society. This unit is ...
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Oct 26, 2017 · For example, when we are reading “The Great Gatsby,” my students read the original 1925 Times review. Beyond reading the review to understand how the novel was received by critics, I ask my ...
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