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Lesson 2

We will continue reading Part 1 of The Warmth of Other Suns and begin tracking our ideas about Wilkerson’s use of sources and structure in the text to convey her ideas and perspective about the Great Migration. We will also preview the unit’s Culminating Task.

Lesson Goals

  • Can I recognize and interpret important relationships among ideas and structure within The Warmth of Other Suns?

  • Can I gather relevant and sufficient evidence to demonstrate understanding of the initial pages of The Warmth of Other Suns?

Texts

Core

  • Tradebook
    • The Warmth of Other Suns, Isabel Wilkerson, Vintage Books, 2010

Materials

Tools

Reference Guides

Question Sets

Editable Google Docs

Activity 1: Read

We will begin using the Structure Note-Taking Tool to deepen our understanding of pages vii-7 of The Warmth of Other Suns.

Using the following guiding questions from the Structure Note-Taking Tool, work in pairs or trios to deepen your understanding of the text in each of the sections within pages vii-7 of The Warmth of Other Suns.

Establishing Understanding:

  1. What knowledge do I gain from this section of the text? (Include page numbers for each note.)

  2. What questions do I still have after reading this section of the text?

Deepening Understanding:

  1. How does the organization of the ideas and information in this section enhance my understanding of the text?

  2. What stylistic elements stand out in this section? How does the style enhance my understanding of the text?

  3. What do the organization and style convey about the point of view and purpose of this section of text?

Activity 2: Discuss

We will share and discuss our responses on a Structure Note-Taking Tool for pages vii-7 of The Warmth of Other Suns.

Join with another group and compare your responses on a Structure Note-Taking Tool.

  1. What is similar between your responses and those of the other group?

  2. What is different?

  3. What questions do you have?

Be prepared to share any outstanding questions during discussion.

Activity 3: Read

We will continue working in our groups to take notes on Wilkerson’s sections of “The Great Migration, 1915–1970” in part 1 of The Warmth of Other Suns (pp. 8–15) using the Structure Note-Taking Tool.

Continue to work with your group to deepen your understanding by tracking and evaluating the effects of details used by Wilkerson in each section of "The Great Migration, 1915-1970" from Part 1 of The Warmth of Other Suns (pp. 8-15), which you read for the previous lesson’s homework. Use your Learning Log notes to respond to the following guiding questions on the Structure Note-Taking Tool:

Establishing Understanding

  1. What knowledge do I gain from this section of the text?

  2. What questions do I still have after reading this section of the text?

Deepening Understanding

  1. How does the organization of ideas and information in this section of the text enhance my understanding?

  2. What stylistic elements stand out? How does the style enhance my understanding?

  3. What do the organization and style convey about the point of view and purpose of this section of text?

Activity 4: Read

We will review some key vocabulary from part 1, focusing on important concepts and challenging words and paying attention to their use and meaning in the context in which Wilkerson presents them. We will write down important terms in a Vocabulary Journal so that we can refer back to them later in the unit.

Working as a whole class, review the Vocabulary List for Part 1 of the text. Locate the words as they are used in the text, referencing the provided page number, and consider the following questions for each term:

  1. What does the context suggest that Wilkerson means when using this word? What is this word’s connotation, and how does it compare to a dictionary definition?

  2. Why are this word and its meaning important to Wilkerson’s discussion and ideas?

  3. How might I use this word in my own thinking, speaking, and writing?

Write down each key word, with your notes about its meaning and importance, in your Vocabulary Journal.

Activity 5: Discuss

We will share our observations about Wilkerson’s use of structure in part 1.

In a round-robin quick-share, individually respond to the following question:

  1. What is one word or phrase you would use to describe Wilkerson’s structure, given what you noticed about her use of sources and organization in Part 1?

Activity 6: Read

We will review the unit’s Central Question and framing questions.

Step 1

Listen and read along silently as your teacher or one of your peers reads the Central Question and the Framing Questions aloud.

Individually, review the Framing Questions, paying special attention to Questions 1 and 5. Those are the focusing questions for this first section of the unit.

Central Question:

How do we construct the story of a complicated history?

Framing Questions:

  1. What were the push-and-pull factors that impacted people’s decisions to migrate from the South?

  2. What is the relationship between the "end" of slavery and the Great Migration?

  3. How can a single decision change the trajectory of someone’s life?

  4. What were the long-term impacts of the single decision to leave the South?

  5. How do Wilkerson’s choices in terms of sources, organization, and structure convey her perspective and purpose?

  6. How does Lawrence’s The Migration Series represent and connect to the history Wilkerson constructs in her text?

  7. How and why do authors and artists help us to construct the truth of this history?

  8. How do Wilkerson’s structural choices impact our understanding of the Great Migration?

Step 2

In your Learning Log, create a two-column table with one side labeled "Notice" and the other labeled "Wonder." Add responses to the questions to your Notice and Wonder table to track your observations.

With a partner, discuss your Notice and Wonder table and your ideas about what you think we’ll be doing in this unit.

Share your responses with the class.

Activity 7: Discuss

We will read and analyze the Culminating Task. We will identify the specific knowledge you are expected to learn throughout the unit and the specific skills you will need to succeed on the Culminating Task.

Individually, review the Culminating Task Checklist and your Notice and Wonder table from the previous lesson. Jot down some initial notes in response to the following questions:

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

  2. What is the focus of the Culminating Task? What does it 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 be successful on the Culminating Task. Respond to the following questions:

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

  2. What do I need to do to succeed 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 be successful on the Culminating Task. For each type of knowledge and skill identified, assess how prepared you are currently.

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