Lesson 4: Cluster 2: My People Lesson 1 - Vocabulary
Duration of Days: 2
Lesson Objective
Determine the meaning of words and phrases
Use new words in writing
Who am I?
What makes us unique?
Beautiful
Grow
Hard
Home
Leave
Miss
Together
Wait
9.12.8 determine the meaning of words and phrases in oral presentations and literary and informational text.
Reading for comprehension
Writing for comprehension
Understanding and applying vocabulary
To master polysemous words and expand descriptive vocabulary for figurative language.
DOK Level: Level 1 (Recall) & Level 2 (Skill/Concept)
Afro-Descendant Global Cultures: Many ESOL students from regions like the Caribbean, Central/South America (e.g., Colombia, Brazil), or various African nations can connect the Harlem Renaissance to their own cultures' celebrations of Black identity and resistance to Eurocentric beauty standards.
Dual Identity / Transnationalism: The page mentions connecting this text to a story called "Growing Together" about being part of two cultures. High school ESOL students navigate this exact reality every day—balancing their home culture with American culture.
Art as Activism: The illustration by Sara Tyson and the mention of the Harlem Renaissance connect directly to how modern youth use art, hip-hop, graffiti, and poetry to express pride in their community and fight discrimination.
Literal vs. Figurative Comparisons: Students might take the comparison "faces like the night" literally (e.g., thinking the people only come out at night or that their faces are literally pitch black) rather than understanding "night" as a metaphor for deep, beautiful skin tones.
The Meaning of "Beautiful": In some cultures and media, beauty standards heavily favor light skin. Students might struggle to see how "night" or "darkness" is being praised as beautiful without understanding the poem's historical and cultural context.
Historical Timeline Confusion: Because high school ESOL students come from various backgrounds, they might confuse the Harlem Renaissance with the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s or assume Langston Hughes is a contemporary modern writer.
Grammatical Structure ("So the..."): The poetic structure "The night is beautiful, / So the faces of my people" can be confusing. Students might misinterpret "So" as "Therefore" or "Very" instead of understanding it as an archaic or poetic way of saying "And so are..." or "Likewise."
Sentence starters
Visual aids
Small group instruction
Student participation
Exit Ticket
Test