Lesson Plan by: Miranda Ford

Lesson: Beowulf continued                                         Length: 90 minutes

Grade or Grade intended: 12^th Grade Honor’s English

Academic standards:

12.3.2  Evaluate the way in which the theme or meaning of a selection represents a view or comment on life, using textual evidence to support the claim.

12.3.5  Analyze and evaluate works of literary or cultural significance in American, English, or world history that:

·        were written by important authors in each historical period

·        reflect or shed light on the seminal, philosophical, religious, social, political, or ethical ideas of their time.

Performance Objectives

·        Given 80-100 lines, the students will be able to summarize them in a poem of their own words (for completion).

Advanced Preparation by the Teacher:

·        The teacher needs to have read pages 64-77 of the text.

·        The teacher needs to divide the lines in as close to even sections as he/she is able.

·        The teacher needs to create a few questions to ask for the students in class. (On a separate sheet of paper for the teacher only).

·        The teacher needs to assign the students some homework questions from page 78.

Procedure:

Introduction/Motivation:

Ø      The students go over their vocabulary assignment on synonyms and antonyms.

Ø      *Continuing with what we did yesterday, you will get into your same groups and we will discuss pages 64-77.

Step-by-Step Plan

Ø      I will then assign lines 580-673; 674-760; 761-853; 854-945; 946-1043; 1044-1136 to the groups.

Ø      **They will continue to create a modern version of Beowulf and discuss in their groups about their lines and how they want to create a smaller poem, but one that illustrates all of the main points of their section of lines.

Ø      They need to remember (and be reminded) that their poems should be half to two-thirds the amount of lines that each section had to read. For example, if one section had 100 lines, then their poem should be 50-67 lines long.

Ø      After each one is complete, each group will share its poem with the rest of the class. (They will go in order of the lines).

Ø      Once they are all finished reading them, I will take their poems and add them to the other poems that they made yesterday and I will type them up so that the students can use them to study for the exam.

Ø      This process should take roughly 30-35 minutes.

Ø      ***Once we have finished that section of the class, I will ask them to take their chairs and form a circle so we can have a discussion of the poem.

Ø      I will ask the discussion questions which are found on the attached sheet. (Bloom’s is on the sheet).

Ø      We will discuss them and they will take notes because some of these questions (or forms of the questions) may appear on the exam.

Closure:

Ø      The students will be assigned the next three pages in their vocabulary book to complete for tomorrow.

Ø      Students will be assigned a few questions regarding the poem.

o       ****Describe Beowulf and Grendel as symbols.  What might they represent?

o       *****Does our culture still value the epic hero? If yes, explain by relating Beowulf to two or more people/characters in today’s society. If no, then explain how he is not like these people/characters.

Adaptations/Enrichments:

            This lesson helps students with writing, reading, or speaking disabilities. For example, there are two to three people in each group and so if one person has a reading disability, he can write or share the poem with the class. This lesson also incorporates Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences such as the intrapersonal intelligence for both the activity and the discussion.

Self-Reflection:

*Gardner’s

ü      Interpersonal because they work in groups.

**Gardner’s

ü      Verbal/Linguistic because they are creating a modern day Beowulf.  They are putting the poem into their own words.

***Gardener’s

ü      Bodily Kinesthetic because they move from where they were in groups to moving their chairs to form a circle.  It is not a lot of moving, but it is more than just sitting in one seat the whole time.

****Bloom’s

ü      Comprehension because the students take what they know about symbols and figure how what Grendel and Beowulf represent.

*****Bloom’s

ü      Analysis because the students make an inference about whether or not today’s society still values epic heroes.

Questions to ask students in discussion

1. Describe the dragon.  (Bloom’s Comprehension because students are asked to describe something).
   1. Lines 670-695. He had scales and was angry. He was glad it was dark, because now he could attack. He shot fire from his “carnivorous mouth” and burnt down the houses. He could fly.

2. Why/How was the dragon awakened? (Bloom’s Comprehension because students are asked to explain something).
   1. Lines 593-610. A slave stumbled upon the entrance and stole the jeweled cup. He was beaten by his master a lot and this bought him freedom.

3. Discuss Beowulf’s use of fate and religion.  What are his beliefs about fate?  About religion? (Bloom’s Synthesis because the students are asked to take lines from the text and relate them to what they know about Christianity).
   1. Fate: lines 749-750. I won’t run and hide against fate. Fate will decide who wins this battle.
   2. Fate: Lines 795-798. Fate is against Beowulf, yet he still fights but his weapon deserts him.
   3. Fate:Lines 901-910. Again, his weapon fails him and fate makes him fight without a weapon. 
   4. Religion: Pagan because of the cremation…the funeral pyre. Believed in a god, though, because line 1055 and on, Wiglaf prays and talks about the Lord and His will.
   5. Religion: Line 1015. Wiglaf prays to “Our Father in Heaven.” This could be added because of the monk who helped write it or it could show the spread of Christianity and how it was mixing in with pagan traditions.

4. How is Beowulf an epic hero? (Bloom’s Comprehension because the students have to take what they recall from me teaching them about epic heroes and applying it to Beowulf).
   1. He is beloved by his people (especially at the end).
   2. He fights monsters with almost god-like strength.
   3. He is not a coward. Lines 755-774. He boasts about his strength and how he is the best and he walks along the rocky cliffs. He also stood in the dragon’s fire for longer than any other man would have been able.
   4. He was killed in battle. This was (and still is) a glorious way to die. Other heroes have died in battle. Achilles was asked by his mother to choose his way to die. He was given two choices. One, he could live a long, prosperous, uneventful life in the country. Two, he could go to war and die a glorious death.  He chose the second. Beowulf did not have as clear of a choice as Achilles, yet he still had one. He could have chosen not to fight the Dragon…he could have let a younger man do it.  However, Beowulf chose to fight even though he was old and weaker than he had been in his youth.