Family ties are the focus of the second unit, which combines a novel, poetry, and nonfiction. Students explore ways that families can support each other, focusing on how different kinds of people can behave like families. Students trace family relationships across the Jacqueline Woodson novel Locomotion, in nonfiction, and in varied genres of poetry. Composing memory poems, debating whether young teens should work, and a poetry slam are some of the high points of this unit.

LITERATURE

Locomotion (Woodson) - Novel told in first person poems that feature an African American boy adjusting to foster care

How to Eat a Poem (Ed. by The American Poetry & Literacy Project and The Academy of American Poets) - Anthology of contemporary and classic poems that highlight topics of relevance to young teens

Foster Families (Poole) – Nonfiction work providing background on the foster care system

Local News (Soto) - Collection of humorous short stories set in the Latino community of Fresno, California 

FLUENCY TOPICS

foster care system, Brooklyn, the Knicks and Mets, African American poets, house fires, nontraditional families, adoption 

FOCUS

Literary analysis

• Genres of poetry, e.g., sonnet and haiku, rhyme scheme, line breaks
• Characterization

Reading comprehension

• Predicting and confirming/disconfirming predictions as a component of Reciprocal Teaching
• Previewing nonfiction using the table of contents and illustrations
• Skimming and scanning as nonfiction reading strategies

Decoding

• Identifying spelling patterns for long and short vowel sounds
• Pronouncing vowel teams
• Identifying syllables as units within words
• VC|CV syllable division rule

Debate

Teens working: A good idea or bad idea?

In Locomotion, how are the different characters “family” to Lonnie?