The Odyssey by Homer   
The State of Michigan has identified this piece as an "Anchor Text" for 9th grade
(see ELA 9 Michigan Merit Curriculum Course, pg 32).

Week 1: The Odyssey      April 6-9

Tues--Thrus                   Day 1 & 2
Discuss Big Ideas & Themes for this quarter (see right side of page). 

In some ways we are all connected, and the relationships we have with others impact our lives. Some relationships are beyond our control, such as our families. Others, we choose such as friends and lovers. Having a successful relationship often takes effort from all parties. Think about relationships and how courage, love, acceptance, understanding, and honesty are important components of a relationship.
Writing Prompt: What relationships have had the greatest impact on you? Respond to one of the choices in the prompt below:
ØDescribe one of your own relationships and explain why it is important.  OR
ØWrite about a relationship that helped shape who you are today.  OR
ØPersuade a parent or a friend why a relationship that you have is valuable.

Use examples from real life, from what you have read or watched, or from your imagination.  Your writing will be read by interested adults.   Before beginning, you are required to create a pre-write, which can be notes, freewriting, outlining, or clustering. 

Wed                   
Parent -teacher conferences

Focus for 4th Quarter:
From ELA 9 Michigan Merit Curriculum Course Requirements, pg 32

Big Ideas
XX Relationships
XX Survival
XX Courage and Bravery
XX Effects of War
XX Faithfulness
XX Passage of Time
Themes
Balance is best in all things.
Love conquers all.
Nothing is more important than getting home.
Family relationships sustain us.
In time of tragedy, we rely on past relationships to give us hope for survival.

Week 2: The Odyssey    April 12-16

Wed Mon                     Day 3
Read and discuss "My Mother Combs My Hair" by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni and "Only Daughter"  by Sandra Cisneros.  Use "windows" graphic organizers to compare these two works.  Students do NOT need to make sure the have a response in each of the boxes.  They do need to make sure the have a total of nine responses. 

Wed       Day 6
Patterns exist in nature and in life. A pattern in nature is a repetition of a shape or design.  For example, a leaf or spider's web are two natural designs.  A pattern of behavior is a repetition of a series of actions, like a ritual.  There are physical and emotional patterns.  An example of a physical pattern is your morning routine.  You may complete a certain series of events that happen in order to start each day (get up, wash face, brush teeth, get dressed, have breakfast etc…).  An example of an emotional pattern is a series of feelings triggered by an event.  For example, there are 5 stages of grief that humans usually experience after a tragic loss: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance.
Quick Write a response to the following prompt: What patterns of behavior do high school freshmen experience?

Define Epic. 
Watch this explanation with the examples from film
Students will complete the handout "The Hero's Adventure/Cycle"

Review the term epic and the hero's journey.
This clip is a short musical version of the film

Watch DVD: (Background Info--The Illiad)
Ch 1--A Son is Born
Ch 2--Farewell Song
Ch 3--Bound for Troy
Ch 4--The Trojan War   (27 minutes)

Essential Questions
What is a relationship?

What obstacles stand in the way of enduring relationships?

In times of adversity, do family bonds/ relationships help us survive?

Does it take courage to sustain a relationship?

How do relationships endure over time?

· What is a relationship?
· What obstacles stand in the way of relationships' enduring?
· In times of adversity, do family bonds/relationships help us survive?
· Does it take courage to sustain a relationship?

Quotations
"Balance is best in all things."
-Homer, The Odyssey

"No man is an island"
-John Donne

As per ELA9 Michigan Merit Curriculum, page 32

Tues  Days 4 and 5
Complete a Webquest to discover
TASK 1: Who was HOMER?
· Read about him
· Click on the link  to enter the site,
· and then click on "Homer's History".
Write a summary of each section.  Summarize the findings in an article by identifying the main points and conclusions of the research along with reviewing the broader implications of the results obtained in the passage.

TASK 2: HUMANS, GODS, & SUPERNATURAL BEINGS
Look up the terms that are on your handout and define them using The Encyclopedia Mythica. 

TASK 3: Play the Odyssey Game
Choose your character and begin your adventure!  Summarize what happens on YOUR quest!

Thur-Fri                 day 12-13
In the Red Book, read Ch 1: Leaving Calypso. 

Students will read aloud the Poem "Calypso" by Suzanne Vega (pg 897). 
1 For 3 - 4 minutes, write as quickly as you can about all that this poem brings to mind for you.
2 Borrow any line and write as quickly and as specifically as you can all that comes to mind, let the line lead your thinking.
3 Write about a time when you had to part with something or someone you cared a great deal about. 

Watch DVD: (about 15 minutes.)
Ch 18 Calypso - Odysseus Arrives on Calypso's Island 
XXXX skip Ch 19 for now, set in Ithaca
Ch 20 No One Leaves My Island - Calypso and Hermes
XXXX skip part at end, set in Ithaca
Ch 21 Freedom - Hermes comes to Calypso's Island
XXXX skip Ch 22 for now, set in Ithaca
Ch 23 Poseidon's Wrath - Odysseus leaves Calypso's Island
XXXX skip part at end, set in Sparta

Focus Question #1: Odysseus is a virtual prisoner of Calypso and is in the abyss part of the hero's journey because he is facing his biggest fear: the knowledge that he will never return to Ithaca and never see Penelope again.  Athena intercedes on Odysseus' behalf.  Once Odysseus' hope of returning home is restored, he begins the transformation part of his journey, and he begins plans with vigor and zeal.  What is the relationship between hope and his will to survive?  Trace the changes in Odysseus' character from the time he arrives on Calypso's island, while he lives on the island, and as he is preparing to leave the island.
Answer Plan
1. Restate the question using a strong start (lead).
2. Write a few sentences describing Odysseus' character as he lands on the island. Who is he? How does he behave? What characteristics define his behavior and attitude?
3. Write a few sentences describing Odysseus' character as he lives on the island. What is his behavior like? What does his behavior suggest about his attitude?
4. Write a few sentences describing the change in Odysseus' behavior once he learns that he is to finally return home to Ithaca. What characteristics define his behavior and attitude?
5. Conclude by stating your thoughts on what role you think hope has to do with Odysseus' will to survive.

Week 3: The Odyssey    April 19-22

Mon 
From the red book, read
XXCh 2: Arrival on the Island of the Phaeacians
XXCh 3: In The Palace of the King
XXCh 4 Phaeacian Sports

Wed
From the red book, read
Ch 5 The One-Eyed Giant
Quiz over chapters 1-5

Watch DVD:
Ch 5 Homeward Bound (Telemachus is chastised; Odysseus arrives at Cyclops's Island)  and chapter 6 Cyclops.  This is 17 min. 

We may also watch chapter 7 Aeolus, an additional 12 min (total of 29 min). 

Focus for Viewing: How does Odysseus win freedom for himself and for his men? Why is his strategy effective? What role do relationships play in this scene?

Students will now write a persuasive speech from Odysseus' point of view convincing the Cyclops to free his men.  Read the "Persuasive Speech Writing" handout.  Have the students use the handout to frame their piece.  Make sure that they know the difference between persuasive writing and a persuasive speech (use the handout as a guide).

Thurs 16 Apr--Fri 17 Apr         day 13
Read in the Red Book Ch 6 The Sorceress

Watch on the DVD:
8 On the Far Side of the World - The Island of Circe
9 The Rescue - Odysseus talks Circe into returning his men to human form
10 Circe -
12 Five Years Gone - Leaving the Island of Circe about 4 min
(Total running time for chs 8, 9, 10, & 12 is 22 minutes. 
Adding Ch 11 "Anticlea's Sorrow" will add 4 minutes, total running time of 26 minutes.
If we also watch chapter 7 Aeolus, it will be an additional 12 min, a total of 38 minutes.) 

Tue               day 14

Afterward, we will read the lyrics for Big and Rich's song, 8th of November.  Students should be able to explain the story that is being told in this song.  We can watch the music video for the song.

Quick-Write: complete a 3-4 minute quick-write discussing the similarities between Odysseus and the protagonist from the song.