Something I like to emphasize in my classroom is the way our understanding of literature can inform our understanding of the real world and vice versa. I am currently teaching Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game, a young adult sci-fi novel in which a young boy is trained to be a military genius in order to defend Earth from the threat of alien invasion. Students have really enjoyed the book, but, in getting swept up in the exciting plot and rooting for Ender's success in Battle School, had perhaps not grasped the situation in which Ender is struggling: he was taken from his family at age 6 and forced into the life of a soldier. In order to problematize this reading, I had students read this article concerning the issue of child soldiers in the Islamic State and around the world.
This lesson encouraged students to place fiction and nonfiction texts in concert with one another--applying their skills in literary analysis to improve their understanding of real-world events. Students took right to this application and were excited to engage in such weighty topics. Ultimately this lesson led to our most lively discussion of the year (so far!). Look below for a full annotated lesson plan.
This lesson encouraged students to place fiction and nonfiction texts in concert with one another--applying their skills in literary analysis to improve their understanding of real-world events. Students took right to this application and were excited to engage in such weighty topics. Ultimately this lesson led to our most lively discussion of the year (so far!). Look below for a full annotated lesson plan.