Primary Type: Lesson Plan
Status: Published
This is a resource from CPALMS (www.cpalms.org) where all educators go for bright ideas!
Resource ID#: 32908
The Lottery: Tradition's Impact on Human Behavior
This lesson provides students an opportunity to closely read Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" and analyze the impact of tradition on human behavior
through speaking, listening, reading, and writing.
Subject(s): English Language Arts
Grade Level(s): 8
Intended Audience: Educators
Suggested Technology: Document Camera,
Computer for Presenter, LCD Projector
Instructional Time: 2 Hour(s) 40 Minute(s)
Freely Available: Yes
Keywords: close reading, theme, tradition, character, setting, and plot, The Lottery, Shirley Jackson
Instructional Design Framework(s): Direct Instruction, Writing to Learn, Cooperative Learning
Resource Collection: CPALMS Lesson Plan Development Initiative
ATTACHMENTS
The Lottery Activity Guide.docx
The Lottery Tea Party Vocabulary.docx
Question stems The Lottery.docx
The Lottery CIS.docx
The Lottery student handout.docx
Socratic Rubric.pdf
LESSON CONTENT
Lesson Plan Template: General Lesson Plan
Learning Objectives: What should students know and be able to do as a result of this lesson?
Students will be able to analyze how tradition influences the behavior of the villagers through marking and categorizing specific lines from the text and lines of
dialogue.
Students will able to summarize the development of tradition in Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" and analyze how rituals and tradition changes over time noting how
the changes are conveyed through character, setting, and plot in a one to two paragraph written response.
Students will be able to create, pose, and respond to each other's questions regarding "The Lottery" through the use of the Socratic Seminar structure.
Prior Knowledge: What prior knowledge should students have for this lesson?
Students should have knowledge of the terms tradition and ritual. Students should be able to discuss and provide examples of traditions and rituals from their own
various cultures.
In order to ensure success in comprehending academic vocabulary, students will activate background knowledge on key vocabulary words by examining the word
and context clues. Academic vocabulary to activate background knowledge and make predictions: ritual, profusely, assembled, boisterous, reluctantly, conducted,
jovial, shabbier, paraphernalia, chant, soberly, petulantly, and stoutly.
Students will activate prior knowledge and make predictions of word meaning by utilizing the Tea Party strategy. See instructions in "The Lottery" activities handout
and resources in "The Lottery" Vocabulary handout.
Guiding Questions: What are the guiding questions for this lesson?
page 1 of 3 How does tradition and ritual influence behavior?
Teaching Phase: How will the teacher present the concept or skill to students?
1. The teacher will model and think aloud marking the text while reading. The teacher will say, "Today you are going to read a short story called "The Lottery" by Shirley
Jackson. Good readers think actively about what they are reading while they are reading, so today I will model how to think actively about reading while marking the
text. When you read the text, you will need to think about whether or not the villagers are staying faithful to their traditions by marking the text with a "T" or whether
they are straying from their traditions by marking the text with a "C" in the right hand margin. Remember no two people will mark the text exactly the same. The
purpose is to think actively about what the text is saying while you are reading."
2. The teacher will read the first paragraph aloud and model how he or she would mark the text in the right hand margin. The teacher reads the first sentence and
second sentence. After the second sentence, the teacher states, "I will place a T next to this part of the sentence in the margin because it reveals a specific date and
time requirements for conducting the lottery (the lottery had to be started on June 2nd)."
3. Teacher will ask for student volunteers to assist in marking the second paragraph. Depending on student responses, the teacher can continue to model and think
aloud marking the text and soliciting student volunteers or allow the students to read the remainder of the text.
4. Depending on the level of the students, the students will silently read the text, partner read the text, or listen to the text stopping intermittently to mark the text.
5. Once students have finished reading the text, they can share and discuss their best examples of staying faithful to tradition and straying from tradition.
Guided Practice: What activities or exercises will the students complete with teacher guidance?
1. Students will then respond to the focus question by writing a one paragraph response in "The Lottery" close read student handout resource.
2. Students will re­read (or skim – depending on the level of the students) the text in order to complete the directed note­taking handout (see "The Lottery" Close read
student handout resource). Students will review the practices in the lottery and determine whether it is faithful to tradition or strays from tradition. Students can work
in pairs or independently.
3. Question generation is a powerful comprehension strategy; thus, students will use higher order question stems in order to develop three of their own legitimate
questions about the text. Questions could be unanswered in the text or ambiguous in the text. Each student needs to write three questions. Question stems are
provided for student use.
4. Once students have written down three questions in the "The Lottery" close read student handout, they will share their questions with a small group. Each group
will briefly discuss the questions, and students will write down their best question on a post-it note.
Independent Practice: What activities or exercises will students complete to reinforce the concepts and skills developed in the
lesson?
Using their best questions, students will participate in a Socratic Seminar. Socratic Seminar rubric and detailed description included in "The Lottery" activity resource.
Socratic Seminars are student led inquiry based and question oriented discussions. The teacher serves as a time keeper and a reminder of protocols, but the teacher
is not an active participant in the discussion. "Correctness" is not stressed, but rather inquiry and meaning making are valued in this process. Teacher poses a focus
question and refers to it again if students get off track; however, student questions and responses drive the conversation.
Closure: How will the teacher assist students in organizing the knowledge gained in the lesson?
After students have participated in the Socratic Seminar, they will revisit the focus question and write a new response. Revised focus question responses will serve as a
summative assessment. Responses should introduce a clear argument, support argument with at least three logical pieces of text evidence, and provide the reader with
a sense of closure.
Summative Assessment
The teacher will determine if students have mastered the specified skills by reading their revised response to the focus question. The response must introduce a claim,
provide at least three pieces of logical text evidence for support, and give the reader a sense of closure. Responses will range from one to two paragraphs in length.
Formative Assessment
Students will answer a question in writing immediately after reading "The Lottery." The question is: "How does tradition influence the villagers' behavior?"
After the second read, students will sort and categorize text evidence in a graphic organizer to answer the question, "What aspects of the lottery have maintained true
to tradition or have changed over time?" Students will discuss their responses with a partner.
Feedback to Students
Students will receive feedback from their peers and their teacher while they are marking the text and completing the directed-note taking component. Students will work
with peers during these assignments.
ACCOMMODATIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
Accommodations: 1. Tea Party vocabulary strategy to activate prior knowledge, use context clues to make meaning predictions, and front-load some challenging
academic vocabulary for struggling readers.
2. Partner read text on the first read. To complete a partner read, pair students according to independent reading levels (high-medium or medium-low). The first
partner reads the text aloud while the second partner listens. After the reader finishes reading aloud a designated amount of text (one paragraph for lower level
students and larger chunks for higher level students), the listener summarizes the portion read aloud. The reader verifies or corrects the summary, and the two switch
roles. Partners continue reading, listening, summarizing, and switching roles until the entire text has been read.
3. Conduct teacher modeling and think-alouds for marking the text, directed note taking, and question generation.
4. Graphic organizers for directed note-taking to sort and organize thoughts.
5. Question stems for question generation to facilitate question writing.
6. Provide sentence frames for the revised response to focus question, such as: Tradition influences the villagers' behavior by...
page 2 of 3 Extensions: "The Lottery" can be coupled with an excerpt from The Hunger Games. Students can compare and contrast the rituals and traditions of the hunger
games with the rituals and traditions of the lottery through discussion and writing.
Suggested Technology: Document Camera, Computer for Presenter, LCD Projector
Special Materials Needed:
For the Socratic seminar, arrange the classroom in the shape of a semi-circle.
Cut out Tea Party strips and question stems prior to class.
Additional Information/Instructions
By Author/Submitter
Society often encourages blind submission to rules and procedures; however, The Lottery: Tradition's Impact on Human Behavior requires students to closely examine the
practices of a village through speaking, questioning, and writing.
SOURCE AND ACCESS INFORMATION
Contributed by: Helen Davis
Name of Author/Source: Helen Davis
District/Organization of Contributor(s): Lee
Is this Resource freely Available? Yes
Access Privileges: Public
License: CPALMS License - no distribution - non commercial
Related Standards
Name
LAFS.8.RL.1.2:
LAFS.8.RL.1.3:
LAFS.8.SL.1.1:
LAFS.8.W.4.10:
Description
Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its
relationship to the characters, setting, and plot; provide an objective summary of the text.
Analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action, reveal aspects of a character,
or provoke a decision.
Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners
on grade 8 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.
a. Come to discussions prepared, having read or researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation
by referring to evidence on the topic, text, or issue to probe and reflect on ideas under discussion.
b. Follow rules for collegial discussions and decision-making, track progress toward specific goals and deadlines, and
define individual roles as needed.
c. Pose questions that connect the ideas of several speakers and respond to others’ questions and comments with
relevant evidence, observations, and ideas.
d. Acknowledge new information expressed by others, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views in light
of the evidence presented.
Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a
single sitting or a day or two) for a range of discipline-specific tasks, purposes, and audiences.
page 3 of 3