Unit+Overview

This will be the start of a multi-genre unit focused on propaganda and the socio-political situations that propaganda is born out of. The general idea is to get students to recognize different forms and purposes of mass communication and to think critically about what they read/see/consume. My main text will be George Orwell’s __1984__ but it will be supplemented with excerpts from other dystopian literature as well as visuals such as current day advertisements, WWII posters and the movie //V for Vendetta//.
 * Multi Genre Unit Overview**

This unit will be working with “multies” on two different levels. The first multi has to do with the various genres of texts being used to teach students about propaganda and U/D societies. We have the main text, __1984,__ which is the actual novel being used. The book will be supplemented by auxiliary texts: excerpts from More’s __Utopia__, WWII war posters, a Mac commercial, and the movie //V for Vendetta.// With these various genres of texts, I intend to teach students the skills and the importance of “reading” material that isn’t in traditional written form.

The next multi has to do with the students’ multiliteracies and how they are addressed in this unit. There are a number of assessments throughout the unit, from double-entry journals to creating a Utopian/Dystopian society. Some students might be more creative than others, and some might be more interested in expressing themselves in a traditional written fashion. This unit accounts for most everyone in the different assessments. The final assessments in particular allow students to work to their strengths and pick from a variety of smaller parts within the larger projects so to exhibit their understanding of the material in their own way. Where we are starting: I am assuming that most of my students have had little formal instruction in propaganda with the exception of perhaps reading __Animal Farm__. I hope to build on their fundamental understanding of what propaganda is and how it manifests itself in government and society. Where we are ending: The ultimate goal is to have students write a persuasive essay on their own, and create utopian/dystopian societies or propaganda campaigns in groups.

This lesson will be taught at a 10th & 11th grade level in a suburban high school. Classes are 70 minutes long. The class will be the regular English literature class (not remedial, not AP), and will be working on the set curriculum and Michigan benchmarks. Up to this point, students have been reading a broad spectrum of literature from classics to lesser known short stories. Students have revisited the writing basics such as essay writing and reader-response papers a number of times, and so have a solid writing base to work upon. This unit starts a 4 week long multi-genre unit that centers on the idea of propaganda and uses literature, art, and cinema to teach students about what propaganda is and how it is used in society.
 * Context:**


 * Unit Themes/Concepts:**
 * What is propaganda/Uses of propaganda
 * How messages can persuade people to think one way or another
 * Dystopia/Utopia

1. In what kinds of circumstances would a government create propaganda? 2. What kind of imagery is used in art and literature that gets the audience to buy into the message? 3. Is there evidence that propaganda exists today? 4. What reasons might there be for today’s government to create propaganda? 5. Do you think propaganda works? 6. What does a Dystopian/Utopian society look like? 7. How does a government rule its people?
 * Unit Essential Questions:**

I’ll be building off students’ prior knowledge of utopian society and propaganda which may or may not be concepts made explicit in their earlier classes. Most of my students will have already read __Animal Farm__ a year earlier, making it easier for me to draw on examples and pieces of literature that they already know and build upon those. My purpose in revisiting themes that were touched on a year or two earlier is to engage students in recursive thinking. The texts and assessments in this unit will ask them to revisit prior knowledge and then dig deeper this time around. My purpose for emphasizing propaganda is to teach my students how to look at their world more critically and “read between the lines.” We are all being bombarded with messages everyday, it is important to be able to be critical of what we are reading and seeing in order to be more informed consumers. Through the texts chosen and the planned assessments, this unit is really laying down the fundamental groundwork needed for students to engage in critical thinking. The importance of bringing in the utopia/dystopia discussion is again to help students become more critical of their immediate surroundings. The final assessments and the essential questions of this entire unit will require them to relate aspects of their daily lives to aspects found in the utopian/dystopian literature and other texts in this unit. Lastly, the two main assessments require that students pull from all of the different texts presented in this unit (art, literature, movies, etc) to create: 1) A persuasive speech about a current event 2) Choose to either create an entire propaganda campaign that includes three different types of media (i.e. posters, commercials, pamphlets, songs). Or, create an entire utopian/dystopian society. This final assessment will be done in groups of 3. __ 1984 __ (Orwell) Excerpts from __Utopia__ (More) V for Vendetta (movie) Mac //1984// Commercial WWII posters
 * Unit Rationale:**
 * Anchoring Texts: **


 * Goals** (Objectives/SWBATS will go in daily plans)
 * Students will be able to critically evaluate literature and other forms of texts they encounter.
 * Students will be literate in multi-media comprehension.
 * Students will be able to demonstrate and apply critical thinking skills through individual and group projects.
 * Students will be able to apply their knowledge of propaganda by identifying examples in class texts as well as current events.
 * Students will create their own versions of propaganda using a chosen format of their own, including but not limited to computer technology, paintings, drawings, poems, or music.
 * Students will write a persuasive speech pulling from the texts used in class as examples.


 * Standards:**
 * CE 1.5.1 Students will use writing, speaking, and visual expression to develop powerful, creative and critical messages.
 * CE 1.3.5 Students will from the outset, identify and assess audience expectations and needs; consider the rhetorical effects of style, form, and content based on that assessment and adapt communication strategies appropriately and effectively.
 * CE 1.4.4 Students will interpret, synthesize, and evaluate information/findings in various print sources and media (e.g., fact and opinion, comprehensiveness of the evidence, bias, varied perspectives, motives and credibility of the author; date of publication) to draw conclusions and implications.
 * CE 1.5.4 Use technology tools to produce polished written and multimedia work.
 * CE 2.1.4 Identify and evaluate the primary focus, logical argument, structure, and style of a text or speech and the ways in which these elements support or confound meaning or purpose.
 * CE 2.1.7 Demonstrate understanding of written, spoken, or visual information by restating, paraphrasing, summarizing, critiquing, or composing a personal response
 * CE 2.1.9 Examine the intersections and distinctions between visual and verbal communication.
 * CE 2.1.10 Listen to and view speeches, presentations, and multimedia works to identify and respond to key ideas, significant details, logical organization, fact and opinion and propaganda.
 * CE 2.2 Use a variety of reading, listening, and viewing strategies to construct meaning beyond the literal level.
 * CE 3.2.1 Recognize a variety of literary genres and forms and demonstrate an understanding of the way in which genre and form influence meaning.
 * CE 3.4.3 Understand the ways people use media in their personal and public lives.
 * CE 3.4.4 Understand how the commercial and political purposes of producers and publishers influence not only the nature of advertisements and the selection of media content, but the slant of news articles in newspapers, magazines and visual media.
 * CE 4.2 Understand how language variety reflects and shapes experiences.

Burke, Jim. __The English Teacher’s Companion.__ Heinemann 2008 Smagorinski, Peter. __Teaching English by Design__. Heinemann 2008
 * References:**