The Crucible- Lesson Plan #3
GRADE LEVEL / AGE GROUP
11th grade/ Juniors
CONTENT AREA
English 11- American literature
FOCUS AREA / CENTRAL FOCUS
In-class oral reading of Act 1 of The Crucible by
Arthur Miller and assessment of Act 1.
STANDARDS CONNECTION
Common Core Standards:
RL 11-12.2 Determine two or more themes or central ideas of a text and analyze their
development over the course of the text, including how they interact and build on one another
to produce a complex account; provide an objective summary of the text.
RL. 11-12.3 Analyze the impact of the author’s choices regarding how to develop and relate
elements of a story or drama (e.g. where a story is set, how the action is ordered, how the
characters are introduced, and developed)
L. 11-12.4.b. Identify and correctly use patterns of word changes that indicate different
meanings of parts of speech.
GOALS/OBJECTIVES
The goal of this lesson is to read Act 1 of The Crucible out loud as a class. The objective of
this lesson is to present the text in a way that is both engaging and informative all while
practicing the proper way to read a drama aloud. At the end of Act 1 students will be able to
successfully complete the assessment.
Academic Language Demands and Vocabulary
The students will use the terms “rising action”, “character development”, and “plot” to describe
the events that take place in Act 1 of The Crucible.
PRE-REQUISITE KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
Students have covered background knowledge on McCarthyism, Arthur Miller, and the proper
way to read a drama from Lesson #1. They had guided notes on the information. Students
have also worked through the dramatic exposition at the beginning of Act 1 prior to reading
the dialogue in Act 1. The dramatic exposition provided them with necessary background
information on Puritan lifestyle and the type of government that they had.
Rationale of Learning Activities / Tasks
This lesson reflects prior learning because students are able to finally read the text that they
have been building up background information knowledge for from the previous two lessons.
They are now able to read The Crucible.
Content Pedagogy-Choral readings are readings that are done aloud as a class that increase
comprehension as well as fluency. Students are encouraged to read a line or section of text
over again until it makes sense to them as well as to the rest of the class (Tompkins 18).
INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS, RESOURCES, EQUIPMENT
F For this lesson, students need to have their textbook, the character cards, and copies of the
assessment for each student.
USE OF TECHNOLOGY
For this lesson, the only technology that was used was a computer to create the assessment.
INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS/STRATEGIES
The teacher will interact with the students through a large cooperative group. The students will
be talking back and forth with one another to role play the character that they have been
assigned. The teacher will monitor this collaborative group work by reading the part of the
narrator and making sure that the students are reading their parts with the correct stage
directions.
INSTRUCTIONAL PROCEDURES
Day 1:
1. Students will be given out cards that have the names of characters on them that
appear in Act 1.
2. The students should then begin to read Act 1. The teacher should stop the reading
when there is an important event that needs to be either discussed or have attention
drawn to. The teacher should also scaffold students to understand the rising action in
the dialogue as well as the character development that is prevalent in Act 1 that moves
the plot forward.
3. While the students are reading, the teacher should remind students that they need to
be following the narrators lead meaning that they need to be reading their part
following the stage directions that are written.
4. At the end of Act 1, the teacher should make sure that there are no questions about
Act 1 and review with them the major events and characters that are introduced.
5. Remind the students that they will have a test over that Act 1 material tomorrow.
Day 2 (Assessment):
1. The teacher should pass out the Act 1 test to all students.
2. The teacher should remind students that cheating of any form is not permitted and if
caught cheating, the students test will be taken and not scored.
3. Students are to remain in their seats until all quizzes are collected. There should be no
talking at all.
4. Remind students that they will need their books for tomorrow.
PRE-ASSESSMENT STRATEGIES/TOOLS
The teacher should perform a short memory jolt to review that material that was covered in
Lesson #2. The teacher should ask the students a series of questions to make sure that they
remember the material prior to reading.
Monitoring Student Learning
The teacher will monitor student learning by stopping while reading the text to cover any
important lines that were said or information that was revealed by a character that helps to
develop the play. The teacher may also ask comprehension questions to students so that the
teacher knows the information is being understood.
POST-ASSESSMENT STRATEGIES/TOOLS
The post-assessment for this lesson is a test over Act 1 (test is attached at the end of this
lesson).
Assessment Criteria / Rubric
The assessment answer sheet is also attached at the end of this lesson with the correct
answers. This assessment is worth 20 points. Questions 1-5 are worth 3 points each, question
6 is worth 5 points.
EXTENSION OPPORTUNITIES
H As an extension to this lesson, students will be invited to predict/write/or draw what they think
is going to happen to the town of Salem. This activity could be done at the end of class or
prior to reading Act 2 the following day.
ACCOMMODATION, ACCELERATION, AND DIFFERENTIATION FOR STUDENTS
504 for Student #3- For this lesson, the student would benefit from having an active reading
role in the in-class reading of Act 1. This would help the student to hear the dialogue and keep
track of the events happening to move the plot forward. For the assessment at the end of this
learning segment, the student should have the questions read aloud to him in the shared
space of the classroom. The teacher should not give the student answers, but should read the
questions on the test to the student. If desired, the student may choose to say the questions
again himself so that he is able to hear them one more time.
POST-INSTRUCTION REFLECTION
Overall, this lesson went well. After teaching this lesson, I would have allowed for more time
for students to talk about the text that was being read. The students were excited to pick out
different roles and take on their character. With that, there were questions that the students
asked along the reading that would have made for good discussion starters. Next time I teach
this lesson, I will add in an extra day for this type of discussion.
The students did well with the language that Miller uses, using the context of the play to figure
out unknown words.
COLLABORATION
For this lesson, I worked with the two other English 11 teachers in the building. I also was able
to use some of the material that my cooperating teacher had available for use from prior years
of teacher the unit over The Crucible.
SOURCES
Class textbookPrentice Hall Literature The American Experience
Tompkins, Gail. 50 Literacy Strategies: Step by Step. New York: Pearson, 2009. Print.
Name _________________________________________ Date __________
THE CRUCIBLE—Act One
Question Support: Literary Analysis
Directions: Answer the questions below.
1. Infer Character Motives Toward the end of the first act, both Abigail and Tituba confess to
witchcraft because
.
2. Draw Conclusions About Characters Write JP for John Proctor, AW for Abigail Williams,
or RH for Reverend Hale on the line next to the character traits that each character exhibits.
Two characters may have the same trait.
__________ assertive
__________ bitter
__________ confident
__________ emotional
__________ independent
__________ outspoken
__________ persuasive
__________ proud
__________ weak
3. Make Predictions Underline only one of the characters in parentheses and then complete
the following sentence.
Based on the events of Act One, Abigail is most likely to come into conflict with (Thomas
Putnam/ John Proctor/ Reverend Hale) because
.
4. Identify Beliefs How do the characters in The Crucible feel about witches?
5. Connect Setting and Mood Describe the setting and the mood in Act One.
6. Analyze Conventions of Drama Re-read the mini-essay in the stage directions at the end
of Act One. What similarities did Arthur Miller see between attitudes in the Salem community in
1692 and attitudes of Americans in the 1940s and 1950s?
Answer Key
The Crucible—Act One
Responses will vary. Possible answers are provided. Questions 1-5 are worth 3 points each,
question 6 is worth 5 points.
1. Tituba realizes that admitting to witchcraft will save her from punishment, and that by
accusing others in the community, she will shift the blame elsewhere. Both Tituba and Abigail
confess because Reverend Hale persuades them that God will bless them for their help.
2. JP: assertive, confident, independent
AW: emotional, outspoken, proud
RH: persuasive, proud
3. Most students will probably say that Abigail will come into conflict with John Proctor as the
play progresses because he does not want to resume their love affair, while she does.
4. They believed in witchcraft. They used witchcraft as something on which they could blame
their troubles or any strange behavior. They believed that Satan recruited witches to work for
him. They feared witchcraft. They used witchcraft as a means to seek revenge on enemies and
to settle old scores.
5. The Crucible takes place in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. The setting for the first act is
Betty Parris’s bedroom in spring, 1692. There is an “air of clean spareness” and natural wood
colors. The room appears to be quite ordinary and plain—especially for a young girl.
The mood established in act one is of fear washing over the community. It is very dark.
6. Both illustrate a clash between good and evil. In Salem, Puritan ideals represent good and
witchcraft represents evil. In the 1940s and 1950s, capitalism represented good and
Communism evil.