American Dream Unit 1
The first unit can introduce the sub themes that will be covered
the rest of the semester.
Students
will read one-two articles each week to introduce them to the concepts.
Unit one's end of the unit assignment will be a personal essay (though
they need to interact with the texts and refer to the readings.) When
they are in the full
three-week unit dedicated to a sub-theme, that’s when they will write
about it critically. Unit one will be more of a personal response.
Our Unit (Example)
Unit 1 Weeks 1-3
Week 1: What is the American dream? Is it still possible? (Jim)
Readings:
- Biography of the American Dream (Time Article)
- The American Dream's Empty Promise
Skill Focus: Time management, critical reading strategies (narrow down specifically)
Pre-Reading Strategies
Pre-Reading Strategies
- Scanning
- K-W-L+
- freewrite (what do you know about this topic? What do you want to know?)
- time management - lecture and writing (how do you manage your time? write a sample daily schedule and share with classmate/class)
- Annotation (questioning, difficulties, stopping and reflecting)
- Summarizing
- Filling gaps
- graphic organizer
- reflection paper (allows student to look back on readings and reflect on them personally but also is a preparation for end of unit personal essay)
Week 2: Economic Divide
and Inequality (Jordana)
Readings:
- Inequality Undermines Democracy ,
- Poverty in America: Why Can't We End It?
- Defending the Dream: Why Income Inequality Doesn't Threaten Opportunity
Skill Focus: critical reading strategies, essay and sentence focus
Week 3: Twenty somethings:college (Katie and Susan)
Readings:
- What is it with Twenty-Somethings Anyways?
- Students Loans Weighing Down a Generation with Heavy Debt
Skill Focus: critical reading strategies, essay and sentence focus
End of Unit Assignment- Personal Essay (We can all create a prompt for our unit and put it on the handout for them to choose from.)
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