My path to teaching has been winding, and was largely unforeseen as a career choice. I began
college as a psychology major, then studied philosophy, and finally decided on english, after
taking the most challenging and enjoyable English course of my collegiate career. I became
very involved in the English club, English Honors association, and as a tutor in the Reading and
Writing center on campus.
I had been accepted to a doctorate program in English Literature, and planned on entering study
this past fall, when I was accepted to Teach For America. Although I was skeptical of my
abilities as a teacher, I believed in the mission of Teach For America, and was excited about my
placement as an English Teacher in St. Louis.
Teaching has taught me so many things about myself, much of which I can attribute to the life
experiences and circumstances my students have exposed me to. They have taught me more
than I could ever teach them. Although I already have one million things pinpointed that I plan
to do differently next year in the classroom, I hope I have at least unleashed a little bit of the
greatness that is literature, reading, and writing in my students!
“I teach, because they deserve it” – Cetera Altepeter
“I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule
of others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence.”
– Frederick Douglass
Writing Unit
ISearch Paper on a Teen Issue in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
Rationale:
I am creating this writing unit because I believe my students’ voices deserve to be heard regarding
topics which are relevant to their lives that arise in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian; I
want them to be able fuse their ideas, opinions, and questions into an ISearch paper, which will
ultimately reach teens across the nation through blogging.
I’m focusing on my freshman reading intervention students in this writing unit. They are 3+ grade
levels behind in reading and they are just as far behind, if not more, in writing. They truly have great
ideas and voices, but struggle putting their ideas into writing. Their writing conventions need the most
work. I think my students would really benefit from an ISearch paper. I definitely want them to be
exposed to a form of a research paper early on in their high school careers. I think it’s vital that they
understand the process of writing a research paper as soon as they can. With an Isearch, they can
choose a topic that is important to them, so it doesn’t feel so “research paper-like” in the negative
sense. We are going to center the writing unit on the book The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time
Indian by Sherman Alexie. There are so many controversial topics and themes in this book that I’m
sure they will have opinions about and will be interested in researching, including: racism, “fitting in”
in high school, teen violence, being defined by your surroundings and culture, addiction, eating
disorders, etc.
We have studied teen blogs in class to evaluate writing and to discuss the opinions of teens across the
nation. I would like my students to experiment with teen blogging on some of the sites we’ve used.
They can enter their own Isearch papers on these blogs, which welcome writing by teens on
controversial topics or any issues relevant to today’s teens. This way, they will have experience
publishing their writing online, and will be able to get feedback from teens across the country regarding
what they’ve written and how they’ve presented it. I think this dialogue with other teens outside of
their high school will be an excellent conclusion to the unit. It will give them something to work
toward instead of just the typical grade at the top of their papers. They will learn from, and also teach,
students across the country.
Summary: We will read The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie in class.
We will read this text in a variety of ways: whole class, through group jigsaws, literature circles, and
through silent reading occasionally. I will teach “mini-lessons” so students are taught skills such as:
point of view, irony, imagery, etc. Depending on how we read on a given day, students will
simultaneously complete graphic organizers, reading guides, literature circle discussion guides, or
Cornell notes. Students will record their thoughts and pick out quotes they consider intriguing,
confusing, funny, or interesting in Double Entry Diaries as we read. We will ground our reading with
discussions which access pre-, during, and –post reading strategies. Writing will be our main focus
with this book. There are so many relevant topics of discussion and consideration in this text,
especially for my students, who live in the inner-city. As we read, they will choose a topic which
comes up in the book that they either have an opinion about, want to learn more about, or find
incredibly interesting. They will first write a topic proposal for their ISearch paper explaining what
their topic is, how it is presented in the book, and what they’d like to find out about it. Their final
ISearch paper will be posted on a Teen Blog online so they can interact with other teens on the topics
which are posted. They will also be exposed to other teens’ writing styles through the blog. They will
work on their ISearch paper over the entire unit. We will have research days in the library, and they
will be responsible for some research outside of class as well. They will finalize their papers through
many proofreading and peer-editing exercises.
Objectives:
R1D(a, b): Read grade-level instructional text with fluency, adjusting reading rate to difficulty and type
of text
R1F: Apply pre-reading strategies to aid comprehension (a-d)
R1G (a-g): During reading strategies
R1H(a-f): Post-reading skills to comprehend, interpret, analyze, and evaluate
R1I(a-c): Compare, contrast, analyze and evaluate connections
R3’s: Develop and apply skills and strategies to comprehend, analyze and evaluate nonfiction
(R3A, R1B(a-d), R3C(a-g)
W1A(a-e): Follow a writing process to use appropriate prewriting strategies, generate a draft, revise in
response to feedback, edit for conventions, and share writing
W2A(a & B): Compose well-developed text showing awareness of audience, and choosing a form and
point of view appropriate to purpose and audience
W2B(a-d): Compose text with strong controlling idea, relevant specific details, complex ideas,
freshness of thought
W2C(a-g): Compose text with effective beginning, middle, and end, a logical order, effective
paragraphing, cohesive devices, varied sentence structure, clarity of expression, active voice
W2E(a-c): In written text apply conventions of capitalization, conventions of punctuation, standard
usage
W3A(a-e): Compose a variety of texts using narrative, descriptive, expository, and/or persuasive
features & including literary analysis
Length of Curriculum:
Weekly class: Monday & Wednesday- 90 minutes, Friday- 45 minutes
Total: 6 weeks
Materials and Resources:
School
 Computers, printer,
paper
 Chart paper
 Copies of The
Absolutely True
Diary of a Part-Time
Indian from the book
room
 Cornell notes for
DEDs
 Overhead projector
 White board
 Internet access to
view and post blogs
Teacher
 Copies of text
 Online websites for
teaching The
Absolutely True
Diary of a Part-Time
Indian
 “Make-up Work”
binder for absent
students
 Daily agenda
 Note cards and postits
 Graphic organizers
 Teen Blog articles
Student
 Pencils
 Individual class
folders
 Copies of book
 Notebook
 Various handouts
 Highlighters
Means of Assessment:
 Formative Assessments: Students will be assessed frequently through their mastery of objectives
via exit slips, participation in discussions (whichever form- class, group, partner, lit circles), and
vocabulary quizzes. Furthermore, students will receive participation points, “Do Now” points,
check+ marks on “A” assignments, check marks on average- “C” papers, minus (-) mark for
assignments earning less than C. I also include detailed feedback on homework, daily work,
quizzes, and tests. As we read, their DEDs will be a source of daily progress for students as they
will choose quotes from the text that we read in class and will write a reflection on each quote.
Also, their writing for their ISearch papers will be assessed weekly, or biweekly as the unit
progresses. They will have set due dates for portions of their papers. For instance, the topic
proposal will be their first writing assignment, then research, and finally portions of the paper
will be due progressively.
 Unit Summative Assessments: To test comprehension of the story, students will complete a
written test. The major summative assessment will be the major writing assessment to mark the
culmination of the unit: an ISearch paper on one of the topics or themes within The Absolutely
True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. For instance, a student might be interested in addiction,
which is a topic that arises in the story. The student would work on researching this topic
throughout the unit. The ISearch paper (4-5 pages) will be due at the end of the unit, and will be
the culmination of the unit. They will post their papers on a teen blog online so they may
receive feedback from other peers across the nation and will learn from other teens’ posts as
well.
Lesson Plan #1 (90 minutes) (Not actually first lesson plan of the unit…)
Students will be able “turn the knob” on the “binoculars” to describe tangible objects- this will
make them more detailed and more successful writers. Students will also be able to
successfully read The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. My objective with this
lesson is for them to understand the importance of including details, specifics, and fun imagery
in their writing.
W2D: Compose text using precise and vivid language and writing techniques, such as
imagery, humor, voice and figurative language
Assessment
I want students to understand and be able to make objects “come alive” (in reference to Barry
By the end of class,
Lane’s video) through their writing.
what should your
I want them to learn, at the very basic level, how to think and how to write in an entertaining
students be able to do,
and lively manner. I want them to include details and vivid descriptions in any writing that
know, or answer?
they do.
Spiraled Skills
*Listening and Responding
What other skills will be *Reading fluency (R1D)
touched upon or
*Question to Clarify
reviewed during class? *Reading Comprehension
How will this be
*Reflection (post-reading)
integrated? Please
*Writing practice
choose at least one
other skill.
Objective
Students will be able to
Opening
What is the purpose of
this lesson?
10 minutes
Direct Instruction/
Intro New Material
What key points will the
teacher convey to the
students?
15 minutes
Guided Reading
How will you and your
students cover the
reading (partners,
whole group,
independent, etc.)?
How will students
engage in during
reading strategies
during this time?
35 minutes
Do Now: 6-way paragraph
Rationale: I want my students to be confident independent readers. This is why I begin each
class period by having them complete 10 questions after reading a short passage independently;
this is called a “6-way paragraph.”
*There is also a writing portion to this Do Now. The last question asks them to write where
they found their answer to question #4 (a question regarding conclusions), or why they chose
the answer that they did
Students use the first 10 minutes of class to read a short passage and then identify the main
idea, another possible title for the passage, draw conclusions, define a vocabulary word from
the passage using context clues, and practice other “during/post- reading” skills. They
typically find the passages entertaining to read, and their confidence is built because they have
become quite successful with this activity each day. It gets them in the habit of working hard
and reading on a daily basis right from the beginning of class. It’s proven to be a great way to
begin each class.
To introduce the idea of writing using more specifics and details, I will demonstrate “Google
Earth” on the computer/projector (which I will need to borrow…)
 Google Earth opens by showing the entire Earth from outer space: A big, blue and
green sphere
 Students will explain what they see... “blue, green, swirls, ball, atmosphere, etc.”
 Next, I will “turn the knob” by choosing a specific place. I click the mouse to focus on
“North America.”
 Students will now explain what they see: “Canada, the United States, Mexico,
etc….more brown colors, the shape of the continent, the water surrounding it, etc.”
Even though this is all part of the Earth from outer space, which is what they first
described, they can become more and more specific as to what they see as we “turn the
knob.”
 Next, I will choose a state: I choose MN
 Students describe what they see as we zero in on MN: blue rivers, big blue lakes, the
shape of the state of MN, the states that border MN, the highways and roads that are on
the map in black, the major highways and interstates…
 Then, I will hone in on my hometown: Crookston. They will describe what they see
from an aerial view of this town; they will describe the river, the trees, the colors, the
houses, the cars, etc.
 Finally, I will zoom in through Google Earth on my own house from an aerial view.
 They will need to add more details to what they see now: my white house with rocks in
the front, the gravel driveway leading up to my house, the basketball hoop in front of
my house, the cars parked in the driveway.
 I will continue to ask the students questions to further their descriptions of what they
see
 This introduction will get them in the right state of mind to understand how details are
important- this should translate into their own writing later in this lesson…
First, we will read whole-class (students may volunteer to read aloud) the daily assigned inclass reading of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Students will complete
Double Entry Diaries while they are reading, choosing quotations from the text that they can
purposefully reflect on. We will go through examples and non-examples of “good” DED
entries.
 Students will “pair up” and each group will be given an object (ex: hat, notebook,
stuffed animal, telephone, magazine ad, calculator, etc.)
 Students will ask each other questions about the object (NOT yes or no questions) in
order to force them to give more and more details about the object; they will continue
to “turn the knob” of the binoculars on this object to make it “come alive”
 I will walk around and monitor the things students are saying. In order to get full
points, they need to talk about their object for 5 minutes. There cannot be any silence
during this time. They need to continue asking more and more questions of their
partner regarding their object. They need to get as specific as they possibly can so that
their object cannot be confused with any other object in the world…
Independent Practice/
Assessment
How will students
practice this skill
independently?
How will the
assessment be
administered?
20 min
Closing
How will students
receive feedback on
their performance?
How will you determine
evidence of mastery?
10 minutes
Students will individually demonstrate that they understand the idea of “turning the knob” on
issues and objects through their writing in response to issues in the text we have read today.
 I will give the students options of things to write about based on the daily reading we
have just done. For instance, “tell me about Junior’s (main character in The
Absolutely True Diary…) family” or “what problems does Junior face so far?”
 In the same way as they did in describing objects with their partners, they need to
answer these questions through thoughtful reflection and DETAILS
 They need to write for 15 minutes after they have chosen the question they want to
respond to
 They will need to write 2 complete paragraphs that are extremely detail-oriented and
are entertaining to read…
Students will complete an exit ticket individually. The exit slip will tell me if they understand
how to “turn the knob” in order to be more detail oriented and descriptive.
So that I have a more concrete idea of which students have mastered this idea and which
haven’t, they will complete an exit slip based “turning the knob” on certain objects and also
ideas in the text. There will be a few objects for them to write details of that I will pass around
the room, and they will also respond to one more question relating to the book.
The idea of “turning the knob” and being descriptive will be an ongoing writing skill that we
will continue to use throughout the unit and year. When we get to the stages of peer-edited the
ISearch papers, I will have them break into groups or partners and they will ask each other
questions (not yes or no) in the same manner they did today. This way, they will force each
other to get more specific and create better papers!
Sample topics in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian:
Bulimia/Eating Disorders
Alcoholism
Bullying
Teen “cliques”
Poverty
Family tensions
Coming of age
Alcoholism
Identity
Teen Relationships
Friendship
Death
 Do any of these topics seem interesting to you?
 Do you want to know more about one of these topics?
 Do you have a personal connection to any of these topics?
Steps to an
I-Search Paper:
 Choose a topic that means something to you!
 Ask a question about that topic! (What do you want answered?!)
 Write a topic proposal (this states what you’re writing about and why)
 Write a rough draft- explaining your topic, what you’ve learned, the questions you
asked/answered, etc.)
 Peer edit, edit, edit, edit 
 Final I-Search (5-6 pages)
 Post on teen blog online so teens from around the world can read it!
 Check to view comments on your paper
 Write comments on others’ papers!
We will have “search” days in class, but you must be “searching” on your own as well. Ways to
search:
 Talk to a person you know about this topic
 Internet websites
 Encyclopedias
 Books
 Articles
 Journals
 Anything else you can think of!
Final I-Search will be due the last day of the unit (5 weeks from now). TO DO NOW: start paying close
attention to topics that you find interesting in our reading and begin searching for answers when you
have an idea of what you’d like to study!
Research Process
Explanation of
Significance and
impact
Question that is the
basis of I-Search
Paper
Accuracy and
Proficiency with
Citation
Organization
Mechanics
4
You successfully
completed the topic
proposal, rough draft,
research, and final
draft by the due dates
You explicitly
explain why you
chose the topic, how
it relates to you
3
You completed the
topic proposal, rough
draft, research, and
final draft
2
You completed part of
the topic proposal,
rough draft, research
and final draft
1
You did not complete
the topic proposal,
rough draft, research
and final draft
You explain why you
chose the topic, and
how it relates to you
You explicitly state
the question you had
relating to your topic
at the beginning of
your research
Your citations fit in
perfectly as
supplemental
sources. Your
citations are
impeccable and are in
correct format.
You begin your paper
with an explanation
of why you chose the
topic and you state
the question you
want answered, and
have a middle and
end with appropriate
transitions
You have no
mechanical errors
relative to length or
You state the
question you had
relating to your topic
at the beginning of
your research
Your citations fit in
decently as
supplemental
sources. Your
citations are mostly
in correct format.
You vaguely explain at
least one of the
following: why you
chose the topic, how it
relates to you
You explain what you
were researching but
did not have a specific
question
You did not clearly
explain any of the
following: why you
chose the topic, how it
relates to you
You had no guiding
question to lead your
research or paper
You use citations but
they are not formatted
correctly and do not fit
cohesively in your
paper.
You either have not
cited your sources or
have not given
accurate credit to any
sources.
You begin your paper
with an explanation
of why you chose the
topic and state the
question you want
answered- you also
have a middle and
end
You have a beginning,
middle, and end in
your paper and have
appropriate transitions
with some lapses in
organization
You do not have any
organizational pattern
in your paper
Your paper contains
few mechanical
errors relative to
Your paper has some
mechanical errors that
do not interfere with
Your mechanical
errors do interfere with
communication.
Word Choice and
Structure
complexity- you have
good paragraphing
You use rich,
effective vocabulary,
accurate and vivid
language, overall
correct usage; no
errors in sentence
structure
length or complexity.
communication.
You are generally
successful in rich
language; generally
correct usage; few
errors in sentence
structure
You use acceptable
vocabulary; attempts
to use rich language;
generally correct
usage; some errors in
structure
You use simplistic
vocabulary with
limited word choice;
numerous usage errors;
errors in structure
interfere with meaning
Teacher Calendar
Cetera Altepeter
Writing Unit: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian; ISearch Paper
Mon
Week
One
Tuesday
Introduce The Absolutely True Diary of a PartTime Indian
p. 1-20
 Photo gallery of Native American
Reservations, such as the Spokane
Reservation from the book
(Setting)
 Students will view pictures
around the room of the
reservations, and will write
reflections on corresponding
handout
 Preview book by discussing a few
of the topics that will arise
 Teach how to write Double Entry
Diaries
 2 columns: “Quote from text” and
“Reflection”
 Teach students to make personal
connections through the story:
how does this remind me of my
life? (practice together and
independently)
 Go through examples and non
examples of acceptable Double
Entry Diary entries on overhead
 Have students practice with first
20 pages
 At the end of class, students need
to have 3 entries in their DEDs
R2Cb: (Setting, plot, point of view)
R2F: Apply pre-reading strategies to aid
comprehension (access prior knowledge,
preview, predict with text support or
rationale, set a purpose and rate for reading)
Assign Homework: Double Entry Diaries and
read p. 20-30
Wed
Thursday
The Absolutely True Diary of a
Part-Time Indian
p. 30-50





Students will complete a
vocabulary handout
2 sentences will be
included for each new
vocabulary word: the
sentence from the text
which uses the word, and
a sentence I made up
using the word- which
gives context clues for
the students to guess the
meaning of the word
After the students have
read the sentences, and
made a guess about the
meaning of each
vocabulary word, they
will look up the
dictionary definition of
the word
Discuss and write
character traits of the
characters introduced so
far
Characterization!
(Indirect and Direct)
R1E: Vocabulary
R2Cb: Use details from text to
analyze character, plot, setting,
point of view
Assign Homework: Reading
Guide and read p. 50-60
Friday
Introduce ISearch
Paper
 What is an
ISearch?
 What an ISearch
needs to
have: grab
readers'
attention
- provide
writer's
connection
to the
topic
- express
the central
question
- give a
strategy
for
answering
the
question
 Explain
that the
student
will
research a
topic,
introduced
in the
book, that
they
genuinely
want to
learn more
about
 Give
students
examples
of ISearch
papers
others
have
written
Give them
handout
with
expectatio
ns of
ISearch
paper
 Give them
rubric of
how they
will be
assessed
on ISearch
paper
Topic Proposal
Due!

Week
Two
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time
Indian
p. 60-80
The Absolutely True Diary of a
Part-Time Indian
p. 90-115






Discuss themes, topics & issues that
arise in story
Have students formulate questions
regarding those topics that they would
like answered through research
Begin thinking about one specific
topic that they would like to research
Explain what is expected in a “topic
proposal” (due Friday)
Hand out example of topic proposal- 1
page length
R1I: Compare, contrast, analyze and
evaluate connections: text to text, text to self,
and text to world
R2C: Use details from text to analyze the
development of a theme across genres and
evaluate the effect of author’s style
Assign Homework: Double Entry Diaries and
read p. 80-90
Week
Three
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time
Indian
p. 115-130
Writing practice: “Turn the Knob”
on the binoculars
 Today is designed to
have students get very
specific in their writing
 We will use the ideas
Barry Lane presents in
his video- I will bring in
objects such as an “old
hat” and “binoculars”students need to be as
specific as they can in
describing these items
 We will work wholeclass, in small groups,
and partners through
these exercises
 Students will pair-up and
ask questions of their
partners to force them to
describe an object or
item in greater detail to
make them “come alive”
 Students will need to
write 3-4 paragraphs
about an object in the
classroom, describing it
Research Day in Library for
Isearch paper



Explain how to complete reading
guide while reading the assigned pages
Students will independently read while
completing a reading guide
Students will use the
media in the library
(books, encyclopedias,
internet, articles,
journals, etc.) to research
the topics they proposed
Students
will have
their
completed
topic
proposals
today for
their
ISearch
papers
 Students
will
partner up
and share
their topics
with each
other- they
will
question
each other
and force
each other
to think
critically
about their
topicsnarrowing
their focus
 We will
share our
topic
proposals
wholeclass
informally
The Absolutely
True Diary of a
Part-Time Indian
p. 140-160

DEDs
R1G: During
reading strategies:
R1G: During reading strategies: selfmonitor comprehension, question the
text, infer, visualize


Homework: Double Entry Diaries and
read p. 130-140
Week
Four
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time
Indian
p. 160-180
for their ISearch papers
Students will attempt to
“get questions answered”
Students will explore
their topics and hone in
on what resources are
applicable to their
questions and answers
The Absolutely True Diary of a
Part-Time Indian
p. 200-230



Imagery!
 Give handout of what imagery is and
how it pertains to the author’s
intention
 Explain the 5 senses and how they are
manipulated in writing to make the
reader have a more enjoyable
experience
 Have students write their own short
stories (5 paragraphs) using imagerymust incorporate all the 5 senses
 They should describe a situation or
experience (for example- going to a
movie, to a mall, a date, a sporting
event, etc.) where all the senses can be
manipulated in writing
 Share them with class
 Read pages in The Absolutely True
Diary and identify 5 examples of
imagery in text
self-monitor
comprehension,
question the text,
infer
R1Hc: Reflect on
reading
Catch Up Day!!

DEDs individually
Finish Book!
Split into groups and
discuss major themes

Writing Exercise: Reflections on
reading
W3A: Compose a variety of
texts, including summary,
literary analysis, and reflective
writing
Show
students
their
grades and
see what
assignmen
ts they are
missing
If students
have all
assignmen
ts in, they
need to
continue
reserachin
g or
writing
their
ISearch
papers
R2B: Identify and explain literary
techniques, in text emphasizing imagery
Mon
Week
Five
First page of ISearch paper DUE
Introduction, pose questions
Tuesday
Library Research Day
 Final day for students to use in-class
time to research for their ISearch
papers
 At this point, they should have at least
1-2 pages, they need to have 3 pages
by Thursday, and the rough draft done
for Friday
 This is their time to ask any final
questions
 They should have most of their
“questions” in regard to their topic
answered through their research
Wed
Thursday
Peer edit and review each other’s
first 3 pages of ISearch papers
 This peer-edit is more to
assess one another’s
main ideas, topic,
questions, and answers
rather than the
conventions and
technicalities of their
papers
 Students will further
each other’s point of
view by asking questions
and challenging each
other’s findings and
opinions
Three pages of ISearch paper
DUE
W2E (apply conventions of
punctuation, capitalization, etc.)
Friday
Rough Draft of
ISearch (4-5
pages)
DUE

Students
will hand
in their
rough
drafts of
their
ISearch
papers and
will begin
preparatio
n for their
final drafts
W1Ac & d (edit and peer-edit)
Week
Six
Fishbowl discussion of topics presented in
ISearch papers
 Students will informally present their
findings, opinions, and general stances
on the topics they researched
 Do you agree with your classmates’
opinions and findings?
 We will have a discussion on the
topics presented from the book and on
the papers students wrote
Final ISearch papers due!
Post ISearch papers on teen
blog


Listening and Speaking skills: LS2BA: In
discussions and presentations, create concise
presentations on a variety of topics,
incorporate appropriate media or
technology, respond to feedback, defend
ideas

Students will post their
ISearch papers on a teen
blog- they can choose
from a variety of
approved sites
They will continue to
check the blog site to see
what others have said in
response to them over the
coming weeks/months
They will respond to
other peers across the
nation on other topics
and papers, to create an
ongoing academic
dialogue regarding
important topics and
issues that affect them
Finished
with
Writing
Unit!
Reading
Comprehension
quiz/test on
Monday
Teacher: Ms. Altepeter
Writing Unit: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian; ISearch Paper
Mon
Week
One
Tuesday
The Absolutely True Diary of a PartTime Indian
p. 1-20
Wed
Thursday
The Absolutely True Diary of a PartTime Indian
p. 30-50


Homework: Double Entry Diaries and
read p. 20-30
Week
Two
Get to know the characters!
Characterization
Homework: Reading Guide and read p.
50-60
The Absolutely True Diary of a PartTime Indian
p. 60-80
The Absolutely True Diary of a PartTime Indian
p. 90-115
Discuss topics I want to write about!
(Proposal due Friday)
 themes, topics, issues
 What questions do I have?
Writing practice: “Turn the Knob” on
the binoculars
 Get specific!
 Details!
Homework: Double Entry Diaries and
read p. 80-90
Friday
What is an
ISearch?
Topic Proposal
Due!
What might I want
to write about?
Week
Three
The Absolutely True Diary of a PartTime Indian
p. 115-130


Independent Reading
During reading strategies: selfmonitor comprehension,
question the text, infer, visualize
Research Day in Library for Isearch
paper
 Research the topic you
proposed
 Get questions answered
 Explore!
The Absolutely
True Diary of a
Part-Time Indian
p. 140-160

DEDs
Homework: Double Entry
Diaries and read p. 130-140
Week
Four
The Absolutely True Diary of a PartTime Indian
p. 160-180
Imagery!
 Identify 5 examples of imagery
in reading
The Absolutely True Diary of a PartTime Indian
p. 200-230

Finish Book
Writing Exercise: Reflections on
reading
First page of ISearch paper DUE
Introduction, pose questions
Catch Up Day!!
Continue researching outside of class
“Education'
s purpose is
to replace
an empty
mind with
an open
one.”
- Malcolm
Forbes
Week
Five
Library Research Day
 Final Research day!
 Work on papers
Peer edit and review each other’s first
3 pages of ISearch papers
 Use 6-traits rubric
Rough Draft of
ISearch (4-5
pages)
DUE
Three pages of ISearch paper DUE
Week
Fishbowl discussion of topics presented
Finished with
Six
in ISearch papers
 Informal presentations of topics
and findings
 Do you agree with your
classmates’ opinions and
findings?
Post ISearch papers on teen blog


Read other students’ blogs
Check back to read comments
in a month
Writing Unit!
Reading
Comprehension
quiz/test on
Monday
Final ISearch Paper due!
Central Question:
Attention Grabber:
Topic
__________
Strategy for answering the question:
Personal Connection: