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Lesson 1

We will preview the unit’s Central Question and Culminating Task before we begin reading the novel Frankenstein. We will also review the Frankenstein Big Ideas Note-Taking Tool that will be used throughout the unit.

Lesson Goals

  • Can I establish purpose for reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelley?

  • Can I make predictions using characteristics of genre and structures?

  • Can I analyze 19th-century British literature by reading Frankenstein?

Texts

Core

  • Tradebook
    • Frankenstein, Mary Shelley, Signet Classics, 1831

Materials

Tools

Reference Guides

Question Sets

Editable Google Docs

Activity 1: Discuss – Write

We will reflect on our knowledge of Frankenstein, then discuss the unit’s Central Question and reflect on its significance by completing a quick-write in our Learning Logs.

Step 1

Independently, jot down in your Learning Log what you know about Frankenstein.

As a class, discuss your ideas.

Step 2

Review the Central Question of the unit:

What does it mean to be human?

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 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 question today, what would it be?

Step 3

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.

Activity 2: Read – Discuss

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

Step 1

In a small group, read the Culminating Task Checklist. 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 succeed on the Culminating Task?

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

Step 2

Discuss the questions as a whole group. Use the Culminating Task Progress Tracker to determine what you need to know and do to succeed on the Culminating Task. For the knowledge and skills identified, assess how prepared you are.

Activity 3: Read – Discuss

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 and Texts tabs. 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: This material is available on a CD or DVD. These materials 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: Read – Write – Discuss

We will use guiding questions with the Attending to Details Tool to help us read letter 1 of Frankenstein, discuss guiding questions, and begin taking notes on the characters we are introduced to in the novel.

Step 1

The Attending to Details Tool supports and guides a process for preparing to read, reading, and initially reacting to a text. This is a helpful process to internalize when you are working with a complex text that might require multiple reads, or one that is being read over a long period. Using this tool usually begins with a guiding question or reading purpose to determine which textual details to notice and annotate.

Step 2

Use the tool in the following way:

  1. Write down the guiding question in the space provided at the top. Read the text, paying attention to details that relate to the guiding question. Depending on how long the section of text is, you might find several examples. Use the Attend to Details row to write down the details that most strongly relate to the guiding question.

  2. Make connections between the details you recorded and the guiding question in the Think About the Details row. This is often the "reasoning" that is asked for when you make an observation or claim, and then use evidence to support it. It makes your thinking visible to others and helps you remember what that thinking was if you come back to this later.

  3. In the Express Your Understanding row, write new connections, observations, ideas, or questions that result from reading and analyzing the text.

Step 3

Read Letter 1 of Frankenstein, and use an Attending to Details Tool to respond to one of the following questions:

  1. Who is the letter from? Who is it written to? What do we learn about the writer of the letter?

  2. What imagery is depicted in Letter 1? What impact does it have on the tone of the text?

  3. Predict why the author Mary Shelley may have started the novel with this letter. How might the setting or ideas in Walton’s letter impact the story? What evidence from the text supports your prediction?

Step 4

With a partner, discuss your responses to the guiding questions.

Step 5

You will be introduced to many characters in this novel. Create a new section in your Learning Log to track the characters. Each time you learn about a new character, add to the notes in your Learning Log.

Add entries for Margaret Saville and Walton in your Learning Log.

Activity 5: Read – Write

We will become familiar with the Vocabulary Journal.

For this activity, you will use a Vocabulary Journal, which you will maintain for the entire unit. You might use a Vocabulary in Context Tool for words you can decipher from the text; for others, you might use morphology to decipher the meaning, or a reference resource to check if your meaning is accurate. For some words, your teacher might present you with definitions.

Record the words and definitions for the following words from Letter 1. These words can also be found in the unit’s Vocabulary List.

  • ardent

  • celestial

  • commencement

  • fervent

For each word, identify the vocabulary strategy (e.g., context, morphology, reference resource) you used to determine its meaning.

Activity 6: Discuss

We will work with a partner or group to respond to vocabulary exercises.

Work with a partner or group to respond to the vocabulary exercises, as directed by your teacher.

Activity 7: Read – Write

For homework, we will read and annotate letter 2 of Frankenstein and answer guiding questions.

For homework, we will read and annotate Letter 2 of Frankenstein. Respond to the following questions in your Learning Log:

  1. What does Walton confess to his sister? What does this tell you about human nature?

  2. Walton alludes to the poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” written by Romantic poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, a contemporary of Shelley and Byron. This epic poem depicts a sailor who commits an inexcusable act and spends his life trying to make amends for it. Using the context of his allusion, what do you think it may suggest about the novel?

Record new or interesting words you encounter in your Vocabulary Journal.Refer to the words in the Vocabulary List for additional guidance.

Consult the Annotating and Note-Taking Reference Guide for information on annotating texts.