Legion Teaching Unit
Legion Teaching Unit
Legion Teaching Unit
Lesson Title
1st Novella: Day 1
We will review the 1st Novella and focus on the “aspects” that Stephen has.
Learning Objectives & Utah ELA Standards
Reading: Literature Standard 5
Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure specific parts of a text (e.g., the
choice of where to begin or end a story, the choice to provide a comedic or tragic resolution)
contribute to its overall structure and meaning as well as its aesthetic impact
Required Materials & Resources
Paper, writing utensil, and teacher example
Academic Skills & Vocabulary
Language Skill: character mapping
Discipline Vocabulary: aspect
Instructional Procedures
5 MIN Discuss Stephen’s aspects. Which one is their favorite? What did they find
interesting about them?
10 MIN Introduce Assignment
● Explain how students will create their own aspects
● Show teacher examples and read quote from second novella
○ “They aren’t personalities,” I said. “They’re separate from me. I
don’t have dissociative identity disorder. If anything, I’m
schizophrenic.”
● Hand out papers
● Answer any questions
● Allow students to work quietly
12 MIN Students will share their aspects in small groups
3 MIN On the back of their paper students will answer the question, “How does this help
you understand Stephen’s mindset as he has to deal with multiple aspects?”
Assessment
Read character sheet and the answers to their questions to check for understanding.
Name___________________________________ Date__________________ Period_______
Aspect creation
Name: Age: Gender:
Distinguishing characteristics:
Personality:
Interests:
On the back, write how this process has helped you understand Stephen’s mindset as he
deals with his multitude of aspects.
Cover Letter
We were excited to design this unit based on the book Legion by Brandon Sanderson. We felt
like there was a lot to be gained for high schoolers who may be struggling with their own
identities and/or their mental health. Legion provides an opportunity to address both of these
topics and others in a fresh and exciting way. It is also a novel that works well with Utah’s ELA
Standards.
As we began to plan this unit, we began with the end in mind. We asked ourselves what we
wanted students to be able to do, know, and understand by the end of this unit. We knew that
there would need to be a summative assessment that would show us how we did at teaching
the content and provide students an opportunity to display what they had learned during the
unit. We decided that instead of writing a standard paper on the novel, students would write a
eulogy for one of the Aspects (characters) that are found in the book. Once we had this vision,
all of our planning called back to this final assessment.
Stefani’s research question was to dive into what a successful lesson plan actually looked like
and how individual lesson plans build on each other to create a unit. She researched several
articles that became very valuable resources. Because of this research we decided to focus on
student collaboration. Almost every day in class, students are able to discuss the text and help
each other answer questions and create more questions based on the content they are reading.
We were also excited to have activities and assignments that helped students build toward their
final assessment. Our first major class activity is the Aspect worksheet. That activity allows
students to practice different aspects of character development and allows them to analyze
those characters. The second major activity is the Aspect Personality assignment. There
students will take their favorite Aspect (a set of characters from the novel) and research a
possible lens for their personality by using things like personality quizzes, zodiac signs, Hogwart
houses, and similar categories. By the time the final assignment is introduced, students will be
comfortable analyzing the different Aspects and will be able to stretch those skills by creating a
eulogy for an Aspect which will provide the opportunity for students to analyze those characters
at an even deeper level and learn about what eulogies are.
We felt like these two choices were really beneficial to Stefani’s questions about lesson and unit
planning. Creating this unit provided enough content to be created so that she could see the
building of the unit and how each lesson had a hand in that. We were also excited because we
feel confident that the sequence of the lessons will provide students the opportunity to
collaborate with each other and gain or expand new skills like analysis, summarization,
synthesis, and many others. In addition, the activities were creative for the students so that they
will have an opportunity to create and expand on their own thoughts from reading the novel.
This unit also provides ample opportunity for students to create, ask, and discuss questions of
their own design. This was the subject of Amelia’s research question, and reading journals
combined with the multitude of discussions provides a rich environment for student created
questions. The art of questioning is missing from much of the modern curriculum, which is
becoming increasingly detrimental for students. Students attend class and wait for the instructor
to tell them what questions to ask, because they have been conditioned that those are the ‘right’
questions. As a result, they do not know how to ask productive questions and learn about what
they were unaware they did not know. This mentality has led to many people today who are so
afraid of being wrong that they hold firmly to their understanding without acknowledging there is
more to learn, which has brought an end to most productive debate and discussion (just look at
the presidential debates of the past two elections). This unit is designed to combat that
approach to learning and to begin dismantling the idea that questions and not having the
answer are bad.
As you will notice reading through the lesson plans below, just about every lesson has a
discussion element to it. While we had some concerns that this amount may seem excessive,
we came to the conclusion that students would learn better from each other’s questions and
insights than they would from a lecture. This also forces students to be accountable for their
own reading, as they will be asked to actively interact with and respond to the text that will not
be summarized for them in class. This should encourage students to spend time actually
reading the text as opposed to “not reading” the text and relying on outside sources to get
through the class and assignments.
Culminating Assignment with Explanation of Assessment Method
Students will create a eulogy of an Aspect of their choice from the book. Eulogies may
be in any format the students wish (speech, video presentation, audio recording, etc.), but must
only take 3-7 minutes to present. Eulogies will be graded on the following criteria that are worth
30 points each:
As we began planning we both knew that we did not want to end this unit with a generic paper.
We wanted to find a creative way that still assessed the students’ learning, but also allowed
them to enjoy the assignment and learn while completing it. After some brainstorming, we both
felt like a eulogy for one of the Aspects (a group of characters from the book) would be a great
way to accomplish what we wanted for the unit’s final project.
A eulogy was chosen because *spoiler alert* all of the Aspects die at the end of the novel, so
we felt that it was a medium that worked well with the events of the novel and our need for an
assessment. With this project students will be able to analyze a specific character more deeply
and translate that knowledge into a speech, presentation, podcast, or another medium. Not only
will they perform in depth analysis, but they will have to turn around and synthesize the
information they find so that it will flow well in their eulogies.
We both wanted to explore assessment that was not reading quizzes. We felt like we could help
students utilize a reading journal to collect their responses to what they were reading and
translate those thoughts into questions for class and small group discussions. This also
provides them with practice for the final project. Each class period they practice analyzing and
summarizing what they are reading. It allows them to practice the skills that will help them in the
assignments and the project. Ideally, students will also be able to use their reading journals to
gather information for their eulogies at the end of class.
Annotated Bibliography
Amelia’s Bibliography:
This article discusses how having students generate their own questions improves their
ability to remember content and concepts. It also examines how creating questions
causes students to think deeper about the subject.
This article affirmed that I was thinking in the right direction and showed me how
important this topic is for students' growth and long term learning.
Schwartz, Katrina. “How Helping Students to Ask Better Questions Can Transform Classrooms”.
https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/51186/how-helping-students-to-ask-better-questions-
can-transform-classrooms
This article emphasized the importance of curiosity in the classroom and introduced the
Question Formulation Technique, which they used to teach people to create questions.
This gave me insight into how to scaffold question creation in my future classroom and
helped me feel more at ease including a large quantity of discussions.
Rothstein, Dan and Luz Santana. “Teaching Students to Ask Their Own Questions”.
https://www.hepg.org/hel-home/issues/27_5/helarticle/teaching-students-to-ask-their-
own-questions_507
This article also focuses on the Question Formulation Technique, but was more
anecdotal than the previous article. It focused on the effects that question creation had
on individual students, some of whom had not been very successful in school up to that
point.
This article further drove home the point that creating and asking questions is a
fundamental skill that we need to be teaching our students.
Stefani’s Bibliography:
Readwritethink.org provides many resources for teachers including activities and lesson
plans. This article introduced a comic creating activity that could be used for any grade
to supplement materials.
I love this site and this page in particular helped me to brainstorm how we can
implement activities to help students make connections to the text in a more “hands on”
way. We did not use this resource as an activity, but it definitely helped me brainstorm.
Finley, Todd. “Common Core and Planning: Organizing a Unit of Instruction.” Edutopia.
www.edutopia.org/blog/common-core-planning-organizing-unit-todd-finley.
This article provided information for new or curious teachers who would like to know
more about aligning their curriculum with ELA Standards or other learning objectives.
Finley discussed two organic methods to plan with the standards in mind and resources
to help teachers know which is best for their class and content.
This article was a great resource for me because I have been a little nervous about
trying to write lesson plans that conform to the ELA Standards and other objectives that I
will be trying to teach. I utilized the process that Finley discusses in his article and it
made a huge difference as I went into the unit development.
This resource was a compilation of other articles found on Edutopia. They were selected
specifically to help new teachers who may be struggling to build a foundation on the
basics. There were really informative articles including the ELA Standards article by
Todd Finley that I used.
I was really excited to find this resource. It led to a lot of learning and resource gathering
that I will keep for the future as well. It helped remind me of the importance of backward
design and helped me brainstorm how we can build the unit toward a final project and
how we can have students collaborate with each other and learn from each other. I was
also able to find more information about lesson planning and what aspects make lesson
plans effective.
Legion by B. Sanderson: Unit
Aspect creation
Name: Age: Gender:
Distinguishing characteristics:
Personality:
Interests:
On the back, write how this process has helped you understand Stephen’s mindset as he
deals with his multitude of aspects.
Lesson 3: First Novella Day Two
Learning Objectives & Utah ELA Standards
Reading: Literature Standard 5
Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure specific parts of a text (e.g., the
choice of where to begin or end a story, the choice to provide a comedic or tragic resolution)
contribute to its overall structure and meaning as well as its aesthetic impact.
Required Materials & Resources
Reading journals, completed Aspect worksheets, and Legion by B. Sanderson
Academic Skills & Vocabulary
Academic skills: analysis, synthesis, plot structure
Discipline vocabulary: foreshadowing, character development, plot
Instructional Procedures
10 MIN In their reading journals, students will write any questions that they have after
reading the first novella and if they think that those questions will be answered in the
next novella.
15 MIN Students will be divided into small groups to discuss their aspects that they
created.
25 MIN Facilitate a discussion about the next novella. Have students share the questions
they created at the beginning of class. Make predictions about the next novella and
what the plot line could be, what other aspects could Stephen create, etc.
25 MIN Read the first chapter of the second novella as a class. Any remaining time
students can continue to read quietly. Aspect worksheets will be turned in at the end
of class.
Assessment
Assessment will be based on participation in discussions, completion of Aspect worksheet, and
their reading journal entry.
*Adaptations/Accommodations
Students who do not want to participate in discussions can turn in written responses to the
questions we discuss. Students who do not want to participate in class reading can pass.
Lesson 4: Second Novella Day One
Learning Objectives & Utah ELA Standards
Reading: Literature Standard 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.
Required Materials & Resources
Reading journals and community professional
Academic Skills & Vocabulary
Academic skills: active listening and informational note taking
Instructional Procedures
10 MIN In their reading journals, have students record some of their reactions to the
second novella, especially any questions that they have.
5 MIN Introduce our community professional who agreed to come and talk with the
class about the following topics and any other topics that he/she felt were relevant to
our novel and the students.
● Mental Illnesses
● Resources for help
● Healthy mental habits
45 MIN Turn time over to community professional
15 MIN Thank our visitor for their time. After he/she leaves, ask students about their
thoughts and/or questions from the presentation. Ask students if they see any
differences between how mental illness is portrayed in our novel vs. how mental
illness is in reality.
Assessment
Assessment will include reading journal entries, but mostly the post-presentation discussion
because mental illness is a large theme from the book.
*Adaptations/Accommodations
Students who do not want to participate in the discussion can turn in a written response to the
topics we discuss.
Lesson 5: Second Novella Day Two
Learning Objectives & Utah ELA Standards
Reading: Literature Standard 1
Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as
well as inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the text leaves matters
uncertain.
Required Materials & Resources
Legion by B. Sanderson, reading journals
Academic Skills & Vocabulary
Academic skills: summarize, analyze
Discipline vocabulary: foreshadowing, character development
Instructional Procedures
15 MIN As a class, discuss the second novella. Were any of the students’ predictions
correct? How close were some of their predictions? What surprised them about the
second novella?
5 MIN Have students divide into small groups for a discussion.
10 MIN Have students discuss how Stephen’s aspects affect his everyday life,
romantically, friendships, and his workplace.
10 MIN Back in a class discussion, summarize their small group discussions, direct the
conversation to Sandra, Stephen’s mentor. What do students think reuniting with his
mentor will mean for Stephen in the future? Do you still feel like Stephen is being
honest in his narration?
10 MIN Have students write in their reading journals about the discussion so far and
predictions that they have for the last novella.
15 MIN Read the first chapter of the last novella as a class. Any remaining time can be
spent reading quietly.
Assessment
Reading journals and discussion participation will be the main forms of assessment. Especially,
as we analyze Stephen’s mentor, Sandra, and what the text says about that reunion.
*Adaptations/Accommodations
Students who do not want to participate in the discussions can turn in written responses and if
they are uncomfortable, they can pass their turn reading.
5 MIN: Students will write one question each on the whiteboard from their reading
journal regarding the ending of the book. Students will be encouraged to avoid
repeating a question that has already been written.
10 MIN: Students will participate in a whole class discussion focused on the
questions written on the board. The students may briefly break into smaller groups
when needed, but have them regroup and discuss after.
10 MIN: Students will participate in a discussion that loops back to topics from the
first lesson (title, unreliable narrator, etc). Instructor will write the topics on the board
and facilitate the discussion.
Last 5 min: Students will write an exit ticket answering the following question:
What was your biggest take away from the novel or discussion today?
Assessment
Reading journals, discussion, and an exit ticket to assess knowledge, comprehension, and
application.
*Adaptations/Accommodations
Students who do not want to participate in the discussions can turn in written responses on the
topics on discussion.
Lesson 8: Introduce and begin work on the final project
Learning Objectives & Utah ELA Standards
Writing Standard 5
Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or
trying a new approach, focusing on addressing what is most significant for a specific purpose
and audience.
Required Materials & Resources
Computer or other device, rubric
Instructional Procedures
10 MIN: Introduce the final project to students, go over the rubric, provide examples of
eulogies
Remainder of class: Students will begin working on their eulogies, instructor will be available to
assist and answer questions. Students will be asked to bring a complete draft to the
next class for peer review.
Assessment
None in this lesson
*Adaptations/Accommodations
Additional assistance provided when needed, individual accommodations will be arranged with
the students on a case by case basis
Lesson 9: Peer review of final project
Learning Objectives & Utah ELA Standards
Writing Standard 5
Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or
trying a new approach, focusing on addressing what is most significant for a specific purpose
and audience.
Required Materials & Resources
Draft of Eulogy, copy of the rubric, pencil and paper
Academic Skills & Vocabulary
Peer review
Instructional Procedures
10 MIN: Introduce the concept of peer review, pass out rubrics and assign partnerships. Field
any questions students may have about the peer review or project in general.
30 MIN: Students will peer review their partner’s draft, fill out the rubric, and provide
constructive feedback. They will discuss the feedback with their partner.
35 MIN: Students will revise their project based on feedback received and prepare to present
it next class. Project is due online at midnight the day before it is presented.
Remind students to wear black to the presentations next class
Assessment
Students will turn in the peer review worksheet at the end of class
*Adaptations/Accommodations
Students may peer review in groups of three if there is an odd number, additional
accommodations will be done on an individual basis.
Lesson 10: Present final projects
Learning Objectives & Utah ELA Standards
Speaking and Listening Standard 5
Make strategic use of digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual, and interactive
elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings, reasoning, and evidence and
to add interest.
Speaking and Listening Standard 6
Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal
English when indicated or appropriate. (See grades 9-10 Language Standards 1 and 3 for
specific expectations.)
Required Materials & Resources
Computer with audio capability, projector, internet access, decorations to set the mood (candles
and such)
Academic Skills & Vocabulary
Presentation skills, speaking
Instructional Procedures
Ask students to dress in black
Set the mood using decorations
Students may go all out during their presentations as long as it remains appropriate for school
and does not cause any damage