Create a classroom environment where each and every student feels comfortable sharing ideas and experiences
By encouraging active reading of the text through collaborative work, my students began to feel more relaxed in the classroom community. Towards the end of the unit, shy students that normally did not participate in class discussion were putting forward ideas. The activity pictured prompted students to collaborate in finding evidence of setting for West Egg, East Egg, and the Valley of Ashes. This is one group's visualization of West Egg or, more specifically, Gatsby's mansion.
Instill passion for reading/ writing in my students, even those more inclined towards other subjects
While this goal proved to be somewhat difficult in the two week lesson that I taught, by creating connections between the texts and my students' lives, my students became more engaged with the text. Additionally, this engagement occurred through activities like the one pictured in which students can apply knowledge from the subject areas they enjoy. In this activity, students were asked to assess responsibility regarding Gatsby's death and create a Pie Chart illustrating which characters were to blame.
Encourage creative exploration and experimentation of genre and style
While, again, this was somewhat difficult in the two week lesson, I was able to encourage exploration and experimentation through encouraging the reader-writer connection. Students would read short stories and song lyrics, connecting them to the text of The Great Gatsby. Additionally, they would use the text to encourage written response. Students wrote in multiple genres such as poetry, prose, and even journalistic pieces like the one shown. In this assignment, students created front-page news articles illustrating the implications of Myrtle Wilson's death.
Provoke curiosity amongst my students and encourage them to read and write outside the classroom
Towards the end of the unit, it became apparent that more and more students had been completing the reading each day. I can only assume that this was because I was able to make this reading purposeful. Each night, students would have to react to the text using the provided graphic organizer. While at first, students were neglecting this assignment, the fact that they were able to use these organizers on quizzes and other assignments pushed them to actually complete the reading. Though this began as an additional "chore", many of my students came to class in the last days, excited to share their reactions to the reading.
