Embedded Files
My Unit's Essential Questions
How do Holocaust narratives of realistic fiction and nonfiction impact our relationship with society and literature?
Why should we continue to read and respond to Holocaust narratives from the past?
How do we prepare for an extended discussion in which we are both the facilitators and the observers of rhetorical arguments?
How My Students
Answered These Questions
My students read, discussed, and analyzed Art Spiegelman's Pulitzer Prize winning (and recently banned) graphic novel, Maus: A Survivor's Tale, My Father Bleeds History
They read and discussed the cold-hearing on the banning of Maus by the McMinn County Board of Education in Tennessee
At the end of the unit, my students debated on statements regarding book banning, the plot and characters of Maus, the educational purposes of Maus, controversial statements from the cold-hearing, and their role(s) as students in secondary education curriculum making
Unit Rationale
Why Teach This?
The students will be exposed to the concept of critical literacy and the skill of rhetorical argumentation
The students will develop a better understanding of the purpose of their previous education on the Holocaust as they will engage in recent critical discourse on Holocaust literature
My unit allows students the opportunity to improve their public speaking skills and recognize their agency within the classroom as students of literary history, and in that, students of forever developing cultural perspectives
How Will it Make Students Better Citizens?
My unit exposes the students to a critical perspective of the education systems and history and ELA curriculum in the United States
My unit encourages the students to develop empathy and a position of advocacy towards the marginalized groups discussed in my unit
My unit helps the students develop the confidence to verbalize their positions on sociopolitical conflicts that affect those of their age group
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