Love him or hate him, it’s time to get to know Holden Caulfield!
Essential Questions:
1. In what ways do our experiences inform our identity?
2. How can we understand the relationship between the individual and society?
3. Which state is more desirable innocence or experience?
4. What does it mean to stay true to yourself?
5. What are the effects of alienation on the individual?
What you should be able to do after this unit:
1. Deepen your critical reading skills
2. Identify and discuss how motifs contribute to the theme of a work
3. Understand how experiences contribute to character transformation
4. Identify areas where a narrator may not be telling the whole truth and discuss how that contributes to the theme of a work and the power of storytelling
Final-Assignment Final Assignment:
Student Choice of Personal Narrative or Creative Piece (more details to follow…)
- We’ll be brainstorming and practicing with each kind
Mon 11/18
Intro to Catcher
- I say “we’re reading a book written in 1945, what images, thoughts, themes, etc. come to mind?
- Post war America
- NYC Images
Tues 11/19
Pick up with NYC Images
QW: Describe the social scene here at NCHS. Where do you fit in?
- Reading p 1 of Catcher together
- “all that David Copperfield kind of crap”
- Reading Journal Assignment
HW: Reading journal for chapters 1 & 2
Wed 11/20
QW: Is life a game?
Initial Understanding of Holden
Reading chapter 3 together and the journal
HW: finish reading journal for chapter 3
Thurs 11/21
What new information did you learn about Holden last night?
What quotes did you choose to add to your understanding about Holden?
Life’s a Game writing exercise
Fri 11/22
QW: How can the feeling of alienation affect the individual? How might someone who is feeling alienated feel and behave?
- Where has Holden felt alienated?
- How has Holden felt and behaved in these moments?
- Is his feelings of alienation self-inflicted, caused by others, or a combination of both?
Holden so far
- What are his categories for people?
- Who and what are the people and things Holden likes so far?
Symbols and Motifs
Reading journal for 4 & 5 — Include 1 motif & 1 symbol (at least!)
Mon 11/25
Reviewing symbols and motifs – what insight do they provide to Holden’s internal conflicts?
HW: Finish reading 6-7
Tues 11/26
What are Holden’s patterns of behavior established in the beginning of the novel?
- Patterns handout
Mon 12/2 & Tues 12/3
Body Biography
Reading chapter 8 together and annotating
HW: Finish reading Chapter 8 & 9 and reading journal
Wed 12/4
Reviewing Body Biographies
Thurs 12/5
Re-enacting the Mrs. Morrow Scene
- How Holden says it happened?
- How do you think it went down? What language suggests this?
- What does this reveal about Holden’s character and his internal conflict?
Consider the pattern of details in the scene with the phone call with Faith Cavendish and the scene with the three witches and write a response to each of the following questions:
- What patterns do you see in these two instances that lead you to see inconsistency and unreliability in Holden? What insight does this give you to Holden and his internal conflicts and unresolved issues?
- Pick either Faith or one of the three witches and consider her point of view. How would their experience differ from Holden’s portrayal? How does he come across to them? Write from their perspective, describing the encounter?
HW: Finishing the writing of the scene from Mrs. Morrow, Faith, or one of the 3 Witches’ point of view
Fri 12/6
Holden’s Reaction to Are You Popular?
- writing and submitting on classroom.google.com
- Reading aloud paragraphs
HW: Reading journal chapters 12-13
Mon 12/9
Faith call (bottom of 63-66 & 3 witches 70-75)
Tracing Holden’s Saturday so far
- What emotional state is he in?
- What physical state is he in?
Sharing homework
Acting out scene from the other character’s perspective
HW: Reading journal for Chapter 14&15
Tues 12/10
Reviewing chapters 13-15
- Annotating quotes from 14 & 15 by making connections with previous details
Wed 12/11
Drop
Thurs 12/12
Mapping Holden’s Saturday and Reading 16 & 17
HW: Finish reading and journal for 16 & 17
Fri 12/13
Reviewing his date with Sally Hayes
Choose one or more of the prompts below:
- Consider a time when you disagreed with a friend or a parent. If you were telling that story to another friend, how would you tell it with emotional embellishment? Write that version.
- Remember a time when you tried to impress someone you had your eye on at the pool/beach. At school? When you ran into them in town? At a party? Now pick one of those moments and write the story the way you wished it had happened.
- Think about a time in which you did or said something embarrassing in front of your friends or people you don’t know. Now tell that story but in a way that it wasn’t really your fault or that you come out not as embarrassing.
HW: Spend 20 more minutes on your personal writing response.
Mon 12/16
Carl and reading 18 &19
- What would Carl say about his encounter with Holden?
- Identify 2 quotes that reveal Holden’s behavior and emotions during their meeting.
- What is Carl’s motivation for meeting with Holden?
- Identify 2 quotes that suggest Carl’s motivation for meeting up with Holden.
HW: Reading journal 20 & 21
Tues 12/17
Snow Day
Wed 12/18
Reading Chapter 22
- What does this chapter reveal about Holden?
- What are the events that have shaped Holden’s emotional life?
- Tracking Holden’s emotional pain – what is the impact on him?
HW: Catcher 23 & 24
In class reading of 25 &26
HW: Finishing the reading journal for Friday’s class
Fri 12/20
Visually mapping Holden’s emotional journey while leaving room for the end
- With your group, create a visual representation of Holden’s emotional journey. How you choose to represent this journey is up to you, but you must include the following:
- Include 6 stops/places/events/indicators with corresponding quote about his emotional truth at this moment
- Include also a prediction for the end – Remember his question he has in the back of his mind, is where will he go and you know that he ends up in a hospital in LA. What happens between being at home and getting to LA?
Fri 1/3
Reviewing Holden’s Journey
Assignment Overview
Mon 1/6
Brainstorming and selecting option
Including a symbol and beginning the drafting process
Tues 1/7
Drafting day & conferencing
Wed 1/8
Drafting day & conferencing
Bring printed copy of full draft to tomorrow’s class
Thurs 1/9
Peer Review
Fri 1/10
Revising for the portfolio
Mon 1/13
Revising the portfolio
HW: Portfolio due Thurs 1/16
Wed 1/15
Overview for the exam & the writer’s reflection tomorrow
Revising the portfolio
HW: Portfolio due tomorrow
Thurs 1/16
Writing the writer’s reflection
Portfolio due at 2.05
Arri Weeks 