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Lesson 1

We will preview the Culminating Task and explore the Central Question: How do storytellers use primary sources?

Lesson Goals

  • Can I describe the key questions I will examine and discuss throughout the unit?

  • Can I summarize and communicate the big idea of “Alexander Hamilton"?

  • Can I use semicolons correctly to separate closely related independent clauses?

Texts

Core

  • Tradebook
    • Hamilton: The Revolution, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter, Grand Central, 2016
  • Digital Access
    • “Grammys 2016: Watch Lin-Manuel Miranda and the Cast of Hamilton Perform,” Lin-Manuel Miranda, The Verge, February 15, 2016
    • “Lin-Manuel Miranda Performs ‘Alexander Hamilton’ at the White House,” Lin-Manuel Miranda, YouTube, October 1, 2015
  • Multimedia
    • Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast Recording), Lin-Manuel Miranda, Atlantic, October 16, 2015

Optional

  • Multimedia
    • Hamilton, Thomas Kail, Walt Disney Studios, 2020

Materials

Tools

Reference Guides

Question Sets

Editable Google Docs

Activity 1: Discuss – Write

We will discuss the unit’s Central Question and framing questions. We will reflect on the Central Question’s significance by completing a quick-write in our Learning Logs.

Step 1

Review the Central Question of the unit:

How do storytellers use primary sources?

Use the following questions to guide a discussion with a partner or small group:

  1. What is the Central Question asking?

  2. What might you already know in relation to the Central Question?

  3. What about the question piques your curiosity?

  4. How do you think this question relates to the texts or topic of the unit?

  5. If you were to provide an answer to the Central Question today, what would it be?

Step 2

In your Learning Log, write a response to Question 5. You will return to this initial response in later lessons to examine how your understanding of the Central Question has evolved.

Step 3

Listen and read along as your teacher or one of your peers reads aloud the Framing Questions, which we will visit throughout the unit:

  1. How did Lin-Manuel Miranda interpret primary and secondary sources to create Hamilton: An American Musical?

  2. Who is Alexander Hamilton?

  3. How did Lin-Manuel Miranda interpret primary and secondary sources to create the character of Alexander Hamilton?

  4. How did Lin-Manuel Miranda interpret primary and secondary sources to portray Hamilton’s relationships?

  5. How does Lin-Manuel Miranda’s interpretation of Alexander Hamilton compare with the Hamilton revealed in the primary and secondary sources?

  6. Is Lin-Manuel Miranda’s interpretation of Hamilton’s character accurate?

  7. How important is it to be historically accurate when creating art that is based on a real person or event?

  8. How will I use primary and secondary sources to create an original work?

  9. How does the use of primary sources affect modern storytelling?

As you review these questions, especially Question 1, which is the guiding question for this first section of the unit, think about the following:

  1. Notice: What seems interesting or important?

  2. Think: What does it make me think about? What connections can I make?

  3. Wonder: What am I curious about?

Write down any initial observations or questions in your Learning Log.

Step 4

Discuss your observations and questionswith a partner, as well as your ideas about what this unit entails.

Share your responses with the whole class.

Activity 2: Read

We will read and analyze the Culminating Task. We will also identify the specific knowledge that we are expected to learn throughout the unit, as well as the specific skills we will need to be successful on the Culminating Task.

Individually, review the Culminating Task Checklist. Write down some initial notes in response to the following questions:

  1. What connections do you notice among the Central Question, the Framing Questions, and the Culminating Task?

  2. What is the focus of the Culminating Task? What does the task ask you to do?

  3. What questions do you have about the Culminating Task?

In a small group, determine what skills and knowledge you need to succeed on the Culminating Task. Respond to the following questions:

  1. What do I need to know to be successful on the Culminating Task?

  2. What do I need to do to be successful on the Culminating Task?

As a group, create a checklist in your Learning Log or use the Culminating Task Progress Tracker to note what you need to know and be able to do to succeed on the Culminating Task. For each type of knowledge and skill identified, assess how prepared you are.

You will revisit the Culminating Task and continue to build your understanding of it as we move through the unit.

Activity 3: Read

We will review the Unit Text List to familiarize ourselves with the texts we will analyze and discuss throughout the unit.

Step 1

Access and review the Unit Text List. Note the information that is included about each text. These texts are also listed in the activities in which they appear, under the Materials tab. You will notice that each text has an icon by it. These indicate where the text is located, which corresponds to the Location column in the Unit Text List.

Text locations:

  • Tradebook: These texts are full-length novels or nonfiction books you will most likely have copies of.

  • Digital Access: You can find these texts online. Use the information provided in the Unit Text List or on the Texts tab for the activity to conduct a web search for the resource. Digital Access resources include online articles, videos, podcasts, and other web sources.

  • PDF Texts: These are formatted PDFs of texts that are available for download on the Materials tab.

  • CD/DVD: These materials are available on CD or DVD and might also be available through online content providers.

Step 2

Review the Independent Reading Text Options. Here, you will find suggested options for independent reading related to the unit.

Activity 4: View

We will watch Lin-Manuel Miranda’s performance at the white House poetry evening.

Watch and discuss the video of Lin-Manuel Miranda at the White House poetry evening.

Add responses to your Act 1Notice and Wonder Note-Taking Tool to track your observations, thoughts, and questions as you watch and listen to the video.

In a whole-class discussion, share your observations first, your thoughts second, and your questions last.

Activity 5: View

We will watch the Grammy Awards performance of “Alexander Hamilton.”

Watch the original Broadway cast performance of "Alexander Hamilton" at the Grammy Awards.

While watching, add responses to your Act 1Notice and Wonder Note-Taking Tool in the "Alexander Hamilton" section to track your observations, thoughts, and questions. Think about the following questions:

  1. What do you learn about Alexander Hamilton?

  2. What characters are you introduced to in this song?

In a whole-class discussion, share your observations first, your thoughts second, and your questions last.

Activity 6: View

We will view and discuss the song “Alexander Hamilton” from the filmed stage production of Hamilton.

View the performance of the song “Alexander Hamilton” from the filmed stage production of Hamilton.

While watching, add responses to your Act 1Notice and Wonder Note-Taking Tool in the "Alexander Hamilton" section to track your observations, thoughts, and questions. Think about the following questions:

  1. What do you learn about Alexander Hamilton?

  2. What characters are you introduced to in this song?

In a whole-class discussion, share your observations first, your thoughts second, and your questions last.

Continue the discussion by responding to the following questions:

  1. What else do you learn about Alexander Hamilton from his movement, facial expressions, gestures, and interactions with other characters in this scene?

  2. What do you notice and wonder so far about the casting of the stage production?

  3. What do you notice and wonder so far about the set and the staging of the stage production?

  4. What do you notice and wonder so far about the costumes of the stage production?

Activity 7: Read

We will review independent and dependent clauses, and rewrite sections of "Alexander Hamilton” into prose.

Working as a whole group, review the definitions of independent versus dependent clauses and the punctuation that is used to separate them (commas with coordinating conjunctions, semicolons, or periods). Use your Conventions Reference Guide if you need additional support.

Several of the songs in Hamilton: The Revolution are written in poetry for style. Rewriting the lines in prose may change or deepen your understanding of the plot or characters.

Find the first song, “Alexander Hamilton” from Hamilton: The Revolution. As a class, rewrite the lines from “There would have been nothin’" to “In New York you can be a new man” in prose, using semicolons to separate closely related independent clauses and adding words (nouns, verbs, pronouns, etc.) as needed for clarity.

With a partner, rewrite the lines from “Then a hurricane came” to “a testament to his pain” from "Alexander Hamilton" in prose, using semicolons to separate closely related independent clauses and adding words (nouns, verbs, pronouns, etc.) as needed for clarity:

On your own, rewrite the lines from “When he was ten” to “his mother went quick” from "Alexander Hamilton" in prose, using semicolons to separate closely related independent clauses and adding words (nouns, verbs, pronouns, etc.) as needed for clarity:

Consider the following question:

  1. How does rewriting this into prose affect your understanding of the plot or characters? Share your thoughts in a whole-class discussion.