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Lesson 3

Through close-reading strategies, small-group discussions, a whole-class discussion, and writing, we will examine the connection between the characteristics of change agents and the characteristics that Malcolm Gladwell discusses in the introduction to his book The Tipping Point, and that Derek Siver outlines in the TED Talk, “How to Start a Movement.”

Lesson Goals

  • Can I use a variety of strategies (e.g., context clues, word study, and vocabulary resources) to determine the meaning of unfamiliar words related to change agents?

  • Can I gather and organize relevant and sufficient evidence to demonstrate an understanding of texts and topics, support claims, and develop ideas about change agents?

  • Can I recognize and interpret important relationships among key details and ideas (tone, point of view, structure, development) within texts about change agents?

  • Can I recognize and interpret the language and sentence elements and structures to deepen my understanding of texts about change agents?

  • Can I evaluate the relevance and credibility of information, ideas, evidence, and reasoning presented in texts about change agents?

  • Can I develop and clearly communicate meaningful and defensible claims that represent valid, evidence-based analysis of texts about change agents?

Texts

Core

  • Unit Reader
    • “Introduction,” excerpt from The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell, Little, Brown and Company, an imprint of Hachette Book Group, Inc., 2000
  • Digital Access
    • “How to Start a Movement,” Derek Sivers, TED.com, 2010

Materials

Tools

Reference Guides

Question Sets

Editable Google Docs

Activity 1: Write – Discuss

We will learn what a “Tipping Point” is and make personal connections to this definition through writing in our Learning Logs.

After thinking about qualities of change agents, think of a personal and important change you would like to create and write about in your Learning Log. Respond to the following question:

  1. If you could create or cause an important change what would you like to change?

Share your writing with a partner.

Activity 2: Read – Discuss

We will read the first part of the introduction to Malcolm Gladwell’s book The Tipping Point and explore the text for elements of change and characteristics of change agents.

Step 1

Read the first four paragraphs of the introduction to The Tipping Point. To help you identify elements and characteristics of change that Gladwell highlights in his example of Hush Puppies, follow the directions below:

  1. Use a highlighter and a writing utensil for this activity. In the first paragraph, highlight the phrase that illuminates where Hush Puppies first made their comeback.

  2. In the second paragraph, highlight two of the four events or people that caused the popularity of Hush Puppies to climb.

  3. In the third paragraph, highlight the statement that describes what started the popularity of Hush Puppies again.

  4. In the fourth paragraph, highlight the statement that describes how the fad spread throughout the country.

Step 2

Get into groups and discuss the following questions:

  1. What elements caused the change? What details did you highlight?

  2. What characteristics did the people who helped spark this change have in common?

  3. What role, if any, did activism, advocacy, and influence play in the events Gladwell describes in the introduction to The Tipping Point?

  4. Could the important change you described in the previous activity be a tipping point? Why or why not?

Under the "Characteristics of Change Agents" heading on the board, have one group member write one of the characteristics that you discussed.

Activity 3: Read – Discuss

We will read section 1 of Gladwell’s The Tipping Point and discuss key distinctions in two events that illuminate different pathways of change.

Read and annotate Section 1 on your own (Paragraphs 5 and 6).

Discuss the following question as a class:

  1. What is different about the change in popularity of Hush Puppies and the decrease in crime in Brownsville?

Activity 4: Read – Discuss

We will read section 2 of Gladwell’s The Tipping Point and begin working with vocabulary and adding words to our Vocabulary Journals. We will interact with the words we defined to cement our understanding of their meaning.

Step 1

Read and annotate Section 2 of The Tipping Point with a partner. Then, with your partner, determine the meaning of the words under the “Academic” vocabulary category for this text in the Vocabulary List.

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.

Record the words and definitions in your Vocabulary Journal. For each word, identify the vocabulary strategy (e.g., context, morphology, reference resource) you used to determine its meaning.

Step 2

With your partner, respond to the following questions: Be prepared to share your responses with the class:

  1. What is an epidemic? What does the word contagious mean? How do you know the meaning of these words? Find the evidence in the text that supports your definition.

  2. What is the relationship between the word epidemic and the word contagious? Write a sentence that uses both words and demonstrates their relationship.

  3. In Paragraph 12, the author provides three characteristics of an epidemic, and he says that the third characteristic is important to understand modern change. What is the third characteristic, and how does it relate to modern change?

Step 3

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

Activity 5: Read – Discuss

We will analyze section 2 of Gladwell’s The Tipping Point by using the Attending to Details Tool to explore the text for connections between the characteristics of an epidemic and the characteristics of systemic change.

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.

Work with a partner as you attend to details in The Tipping Point.

Step 2

  1. Write down the guiding question in the space provided at the top: What is Gladwell’s claim regarding epidemics and change?

  2. Read and annotate Section 2 of The Tipping Point, 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.

  3. Make connections between the details you wrote down 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.

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

Step 3

Discuss the following questions as a whole group:

  1. What is Gladwell’s claim regarding epidemics and change?

  2. Does he provide sufficient evidence to support his three characteristics of an epidemic? If so, what is the evidence?

Activity 6: View – Discuss

We will learn about the characteristics of starting a movement through observation, speaking, and listening practice.

Watch the TED Talk, "How to Start a Movement" by Derek Sivers. Engage in a whole-class discussion using the following questions:

  1. What qualities and characteristics, according to Sivers, are important to starting a movement?

  2. What ideas related to change are expressed in this video?

Reflect on these ideas in your Learning Log.

Activity 7: Write

We will solidify our understanding of the characteristics of change gleaned from Gladwell and Sivers by recording discussed characteristics in our Learning Logs.

Return to your opening writing about a personal tipping point. In your Learning Log, write down the characteristics of change that you learned about in this lesson. Respond to the following question:

  1. How do these characteristics relate to your personal account of a tipping point?