Overview

Teacher: Nathaniel Roe

Grade/Course: English 4 Honors
Title of the Unit of Study: Existentialism

Big Idea
The big idea is for the kids to gain a greater
understanding of the philosophical ideology of
existentialism. They will also learn more about the
background of each of the authors whose works
we will be studying in class. This will help them
understand where the ideology comes from and
what shaped its main tenants.

Essential/ Messy Question

What are the main ideas of existentialism? What
were the main factors that influenced this ideology,
and how much do you feel it applies to your own
way of thinking?

What 21st Century Themes will

students learn with the
Global Awareness
Financial, Economic, Business, &
Entrepreneurial Literacy
Civic Literacy
Health Literacy
Environmental Literacy

Common Core Standards

Addressed
Conventions of Standard English
Knowledge of Language
Vocabulary Acquisition and Use

Concepts and Skills

The common Core standard for ELA
requires students to read stories and
literature, as well as more complex
texts that provide facts and
background knowledge in areas such
as science and social studies.
Students will be challenged and
asked questions that push them to
refer back to what theyve read. All
of this will be done throughout the
unit through the major texts were
reading, and the historical
backgrounds we will be looking at.
This stresses critical-thinking,
problem-solving, and analytical
skills that are required for success in
college, career, and life.

Learning Outcomes of
the Unit:
Students will learn that
existentialism is a
philosophical theory that
emphasizes the existence of
the individual person as a
free and responsible agent
determining their own
development through acts of
the will.
They will also gain learn the
meaning behind the major
works we will be studying,
The Myth of Sisyphus and
The Stranger, by Albert
Camus, SlaughterhouseFive, by Kurt Vonnegut, and
The Metamorphosis, by
Francis Kafka.
They will learn what lead to
people developing this
ideology, specifically what
shaped the authors of the
four works we will be
focusing on.
They will learn things about
themselves and their own
worldview, by seeing how
much they agree with the
ideas presented in this unit.

End of Unit Assessment: Units

Students will demonstrate what
Instruction
they know by writing an essay
Includes
based on one of the three major
works. They will get to choose
which of the books they want to
write about. It will be a response to
literature where they must select
quotes from the book and explain
how they support the main ideas of
existentialism. By doing this they
will show not only understanding
of what the main ideas of the
philosophy are, but also the ability
to connect the ideas to the works
we read.
The project part of the assessment
will involve splitting the class into
three groups. Each group will be
assigned one of the major works
out of Slaughterhouse-Five, The
Stranger, and The Metamorphosis.
They will have to research the real
life inspiration for each book and
the background of the author who
wrote it. They will condense the
information they find into a fifteen
minute presentation and will
present their findings to the class.
Part of the project will have to be
highlighting how the authors real
life experiences influenced his
existentialist outlook.

Create
assignments for
real audiences and
with real purpose
Focus on the
learning process,
not just content
Lead high-level,
text-based
discussions
Teach argument
writing which
appeals to logic
and reason
Increase text
complexity in both
literature and
informational text

Lesson Plans
Balance Teamwork and Individual Work Throughout the Unit of
Study:

Intro Lesson:

CCSS Habits of Mind

I can exemplify the habits of mind by

We will begin by
mainly explaining interpretations of the
reading Camus The
literary works we read in a way that the
Myth of Sisyphus.
kids cant just find on the internet. By
This short story is a
making my own new arguments and
perfect introduction
supporting them with my own evidence
to the themes we
in the book, I show my argumentative
will be exploring
abilities, independency, knowledge of
throughout this unit.
the content, and ability to value
They will be asked
evidence.
to read it and
I will also listen to the interpretations of
analyze what they
my students to help them form their
believe the main
ideas by understanding them and
pointing out their flaws, if I see them.
idea of the story is.
This will show my ability to critic while
By having a taste of
also encouraging the great ideas theyre
the most basic ideas
having on their own.
of existentialism,
I also must be able to comprehend their
they will be eager
questions and respond in a clear concise
and ready to learn
manor. If I cant answer their questions
more about it. They
Ill let them look up the answer, and I
will also be more
will allow them to use the internet to
aware of what ideas
find any information they need that I
to look for when we
cannot provide.
read the longer
ELA Capacities
works.
Demonstrate independence
Build strong content knowledge
Respond to the varying demands of
audience, task, purpose, and discipline
Comprehend as well as critique
Value evidence
Use technology and digital media
strategically and capably
Come to understand other
perspectives and cultures

DOK Level
Level 1: Recall
& Reproduction
Level 2: Basic
Skills & Concepts
Level 3:
Strategic Thinking
& Reasoning
Level 4:
Extended Thinking

Student Reflection & Goal Setting:

3-5 Reflection
Activities:
Reading and discussing
Kafkas, The
Metamorphosis.
Reading and discussing
Camus, The Stranger.
Reading and discussing
Vonneguts,
Slaughterhouse-Five.
Each of these will involve the
same simple process:
To begin with, Students
will be given a short
presentation on the author
and some basic things to
look out for in the book.
They will also be given a
set of five or six discussion
questions for every three
chapters. These discussion
questions will serve as the
basis for in class
discussions, but students
will be able to ask
whatever extra questions
they wish to. The
discussion questions
provided will only ensure
that students are guided
towards looking for things
pertaining toward
existentialist ideas.
At the end of each book
they will form into small
groups and discuss how
the book impacted them,
and what they think of the
ideas and how they were
presented.

CCSS Habits of Mind

I can exemplify the habits of mind
by mainly explaining interpretations
of the literary works we read in a
way that the kids cant just find on
the internet. By making my own new
arguments and supporting them with
my own evidence in the book, I
show my argumentative abilities,
independency, knowledge of the
content, and ability to value
evidence.
I will also listen to the interpretations
of my students to help them form
their ideas by understanding them
and pointing out their flaws, if I see
them. This will show my ability to
critic while also encouraging the
great ideas theyre having on their
own.
I also must be able to comprehend
their questions and respond in a clear
concise manor. If I cant answer their
questions Ill let them look up the
answer, and I will allow them to use
the internet to find any information
they need that I cannot provide.

ELA Capacities
Demonstrate independence
Build strong content knowledge
Respond to the varying demands of
audience, task, purpose, and discipline
Comprehend as well as critique
Value evidence
Use technology and digital media
strategically and capably
Come to understand other
perspectives and cultures

DOK Level
Level 1: Recall &
Reproduction
Level 2:
Basic Skills &
Concepts
Level 3: Strategic
Thinking &
Reasoning
Level 4: Extended
Thinking

Co-Design Authentic Performance Task(s ):

Students will be broken up into groups of three. Each group will be required to
make a poster that exemplifies what they believe the main ideas of
existentialism are, based on what weve studied in class. Once they are finished,
they will give a short five to ten minute presentation to the class, describing why
they believe their ideas are the main message of existentialism.
They will do this by synthesizing at least three main ideas to focus on, based on
what theyve read. They will find evidence from the books to support why they
believe the ideas theyve created are the main points to existentialism by having
at least two quotes from each book for every one of their main ideas.
By doing this, students will not only be required to create their own themes
based on the reading, but they will also have to sufficiently support their ideas
with a large amount of evidence. They will also be practicing how to properly
connect the evidence they choose to the topic theyre attempting to support.
Without the ability to tie together their claims and supports, their arguments for
their main ideas will fall apart.
This will also encourage collaboration, for the students will be encouraged to
each tackle one book, hence why they are split into groups of three. By having
one student in each group become an expert on a specific book, they will
practice applying this knowledge by having to explain and share their ideas with
their partners. This will also encourage students to work with other group
members during the final assessment of the unit. Since each group will have an
expert in one of the three books, when its time to form groups based on the
book of your choice, all of the experts will go to the book theyve mastered.
Mastering one specific book during this project will also help them in the final
essay, where they must select one of the three works to write about.
Overall, this project encourage collaboration, focuses on synthesizing
knowledge into several main ideas, and gives them practice in providing clear
and well connected support for the claims theyre making; all while also
practicing presentation skills when it comes the time for each group to present
their finished product, and preparing them for the final summative assessment.

Assessment
Formative
Assessment Lesson:
The formative assessment
will largely just be a
review. Its purpose will be
to quiz the students on
simple things such as
major plot points, which
specific themes are
represented in each book,
and important character
quotes.
It will also include
questions based on
anything we discussed in
class.
In general, the assessment
will not be graded, but
will be a measure of how
well the students are
prepared for the
summative assessment. It
will help students review
all the different things
weve studied throughout
the unit, ensure that
theyve been paying
attention during class, and
also keeping up with the
reading.

CCSS Habits of Mind

I can exemplify the habits of mind by
mainly explaining interpretations of the
literary works we read in a way that the
kids cant just find on the internet. By
making my own new arguments and
supporting them with my own evidence in
the book, I show my argumentative
abilities, independency, knowledge of the
content, and ability to value evidence.
I will also listen to the interpretations of
my students to help them form their ideas
by understanding them and pointing out
their flaws, if I see them. This will show
my ability to critic while also encouraging
the great ideas theyre having on their own.
I also must be able to comprehend their
questions and respond in a clear concise
manor. If I cant answer their questions Ill
let them look up the answer, and I will
allow them to use the internet to find any
information they need that I cannot
provide.

ELA Capacities

Demonstrate independence
Build strong content knowledge
Respond to the varying demands of
audience, task, purpose, and
discipline
Comprehend as well as critique
Value evidence
Use technology and digital media
strategically and capably
Come to understand other
perspectives and cultures

DOK Level
Level 1:
Recall &
Reproduction
Level 2:
Basic Skills
& Concepts
Level 3:
Strategic
Thinking &
Reasoning
Level 4:
Extended
Thinking

Summative
Assessment:
Students will demonstrate
what they know by writing
an essay based on one of the
three major works. They will
get to choose which of the
books they want to write
about. It will be a response
to literature where they must
select quotes from the book
and explain how they
support the main ideas of
existentialism. By doing this
they will show not only
understanding of what the
main ideas of the philosophy
are, but also the ability to
connect the ideas to the
works we read.
The project part of the
assessment will involve
splitting the class into three
groups. Each group will be
assigned one of the major
works out of
Slaughterhouse-Five, The
Stranger, and The
Metamorphosis. They will
have to research the real life
inspiration for each book and
the background of the author
who wrote it. They will
condense the information
they find into a fifteen
minute presentation and will
present their findings to the
class. Part of the project will
have to be highlighting how
the authors real life
experiences influenced his
existentialist outlook.

CCSS Habits of Mind

I can exemplify the habits of mind by
mainly explaining interpretations of
the literary works we read in a way
that the kids cant just find on the
internet. By making my own new
arguments and supporting them with
my own evidence in the book, I show
my argumentative abilities,
independency, knowledge of the
content, and ability to value evidence.
I will also listen to the interpretations
of my students to help them form their
ideas by understanding them and
pointing out their flaws, if I see them.
This will show my ability to critic
while also encouraging the great ideas
theyre having on their own.
I also must be able to comprehend
their questions and respond in a clear
concise manor. If I cant answer their
questions Ill let them look up the
answer, and I will allow them to use
the internet to find any information
they need that I cannot provide.

ELA Capacities
Demonstrate independence
Build strong content knowledge
Respond to the varying demands of
audience, task, purpose, and discipline
Comprehend as well as critique
Value evidence
Use technology and digital media
strategically and capably
Come to understand other
perspectives and cultures

DOK Level
Level 1: Recall
& Reproduction
Level 2: Basic
Skills & Concepts
Level 3:
Strategic Thinking
& Reasoning
Level 4:
Extended Thinking

Individual Student Reflection & Peer Reflection:

The final peer reflection will be done in the Fishbowl style. We will spend the final
day having me in the center of the whole classs circle where I will allow them to
have the entire class time to discuss the units effectiveness. Ill give each student a
chance to tell me what they think could be better, and how much they did or didnt
enjoy the whole unit. At the end, after everyone has had a chance to speak and all
the students had a chance to hear each others thoughts, Ill have them all write on
a piece of paper what they believe was the best and worst aspect of the unit. With
all the information I can collect, Ill be able to vastly improve the unit, if need be.

How will you and y

reflect on and eva
performance task
Class discussion F
Student-facilitate
Teacher-led forma
Student-facilitate
Individual evalua
Group evaluation
Other: