9th Grade Curriculum Guide
First Six Weeks
Theme: Alienation/Isolation
*Novel: The Crazy Horse Electric Game
Chris Crutcher
Nonfiction: “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” (text)
Maya Angelou
Poetry: “Sympathy” and “We Wear the Mask” (handout)
Paul Laurence Dunbar
“Desiderata (text)
Max Ehrmann
“Miss Rosie” (text)
Lucille Clifton
*Short story: “Harrison Bergeron” (handout)
Kurt Vonnegut
Grammar: Sentence Structure
• Fragments
• Run-ons
• End punctuation
• Punctuation for quotations and lead-ins to quotes
TAKS: Begin Objective Strategies
A-C-E format for open-ended responses
Understanding and using the OER rubric
Writings: Open-ended responses (OERs) on reading pieces
Journals
Research: Internet scavenger hunt
Introduction to databases
Evaluating the credibility of Internet sources
Vocabulary: Vocabulary from reading
Literary terms
Homonyms: cite, site, and sight
TEKS: 1A, 1C, 2A-D, 3A, 5A-B, 6A-F, 7B, 7F-G, 7J, 8B-C, 9B, 10B, 11A-H,
12 A-B, 12D, 13 B, 13E, 14 A-C, 16A, 16 F, 17A-B, 18A-B, 19C,
20A-B, 20E
9th Grade Curriculum Guide
Second Six Weeks
Theme: Struggle/Survival
*Novel: The Crazy Horse Electric Game (cont’d.)
Chris Crutcher
Short Story: “The Most Dangerous Game” (textbook)
Richard Connell
“The Interlopers” (textbook)
Saki
*Non-fiction: “The Strongest Dad in the World” (handout)
Rick Reilly (Sports Illustrated)
Poetry: “I Am a Black Woman” (textbook)
Mari Evans
Grammar: Compound Sentences
Punctuation for compound sentences
Writing: Journals
In-class book tests
OERs and Crossover OERs
Vocabulary: Vocabulary from reading
Literary terms
Viewing and Presenting: The Crazy Horse Electric Game Project
(students interpret/present through video, drama,
art, or music)
TAKS: Format for Crossover OERs
Understanding the rubric for crossover OERs
Practice multiple choice questions on triplet (The
Crazy Horse Electric Game, “The Strongest Dad
In the World, and “Harrison Bergeron”)
Supplemental
Outside Reading: A novel of choice over 150 pages
TEKS: 1A-C, 2A-E, 3A-B, 3D, 4 A-B, 4D-G, 5A-B, 6A-F, 7A-J, 8A-D, 9A-
B, 10A-C, 11A-H, 12A, 13C, 14A-D, 15A-E, 16A-F, 17A-D, 19C,
21B-D
9th Grade Curriculum Guide
Third Six Weeks
Theme: Growing Up
Novel: The Call of the Wild (textbook)
Jack London
*Nonfiction: Night
Ellie Wiesel
“A Christmas Memory” (textbook)
Truman Capote
Short Story: “Through the Tunnel” (textbook)
Doris Lessing
“The Scarlet Ibis” (textbook)
James Hurst
Grammar: Complex sentences and punctuation
Writing: Journals
More OER practice
Vocabulary: Holocaust vocabulary
Propaganda Terms
Vocabulary from reading
Literary Terms
Research: Use selected web sites to understand historical context of Night
Create “Found” poems with researched information
TAKS: Practice taking multiple-choice questions using readings
More OER practice
Supplemental Video: Escape from Sobibor
TEKS: 1A-C, 2A-E, 3A-B, 3D, 4A-F, 5A-B, 6A-F, 7A-J,
8A-D, 9A-B, 10 A-B, 11A-H, 12A-B, 12C, 13B-D, 14A-D,
15 A-C, 16A-F, 17A-C, 18A, 19 A-C, 20A-C, 21A
9th Grade Curriculum Guide
Fourth Six Weeks
Theme: Discrimination/Prejudices
Novel: Student choice from a list of theme novels related to the Holocaust
and/or prejudice found in the library (will be done in literature circles)
*Nonfiction: Night (continued))
Ellie Wiesel
Editorial – “Breaking Our Silence Over Evil”
Philip Berquist
Short Story: Two Kinds by Amy Tan (handout)
*Poetry: “The Hangman” (handout)
Maurice Ogden
“Babi Yar” (handout)
Yevgeni Yevtushenko
“Boast Not, Proud English” (textbook)
Roger Williams
“Saying Yes” (textbook)
Diana Chang
“Bury Me in a Free Land” (textbook)
Frances Ellen Watkins Harper
“Theme for English B” (handout)
Langston Hughes
“When I Think About Myself” (handout)
Maya Angelou
Grammar: Review of all three sentence types and punctuation
Review of using quotations
Editing as needed in OERS
Writing: Extensive practice on OERs
Literary circle “jobs” or analysis
Journals
Vocabulary: Terms of Endearment for TAKS
Vocabulary in context
TAKS: Test-taking techniques/ Several practice tests
Analyzing the visual part of the test
More OERS on practice and on reading
Terms of Endearment for TAKS
TEKS: 1A-C, 2A-D, 3A-D, 4A-B, 5A-B, 6A-C, 6E, 7A-J, 8A-D, 9A-B, 10A-B,
11A-H, 12A, 12 D, 14A-D, 16A-F, 17A-C, 18A, 19 A-C, 20A-C
9th Grade Curriculum Guide
Fifth Six Weeks
Theme: Love/Sacrifice
*Drama: The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet (textbook)
William Shakespeare
Poetry: “the lesson of the moth” (textbook)
Don Marquis
“How Do I Love Thee” (handout)
Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Selected sonnets from Shakespeare and Petrarch (handouts)
Song: “When a Man Loves a Woman” (handout)
Short Story: “The Gift of the Magi” (textbook)
Vocabulary: Shakespearean language
Drama terms
Vocabulary from Romeo and Juliet
Grammar: Achieving sentence variety with verbals
Study of Shakespearean language/syntax
Writing: RAFT Writing assignment (assuming the persona of a character
in Romeo and Juliet and writing a letter of persuasion to another
character)
TAKS: Return to objective portion of test, especially inferencing, predicting,
and understanding how literary terms are used
Supplemental:
Videos: The Life of William Shakespeare
Introduction to Shakespeare in the Classroom
Franco Zefferelli’s Romeo and Juliet
Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo and Juliet (with Leonardo di
Caprio)
Outside Reading: Fiction or nonfiction book of choice of over 150 pages
TEKS: 1A-C, 2A-E, 3A-D, 4A-B, 5A-B, 6A-F, 7A-D, 7F-J, 8A-D, 9A-B, 10A-
C, 11 A-H, 12A, 14 A-D, 15 A-E, 16 A-F, 18A-B, 19B-C, 20D
9th Grade Curriculum Guide
Sixth Six Weeks
Theme: Journey
*Epic Poem: The Odyssey (textbook)
Homer
Poetry: “Paul Revere’s Ride (textbook)
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
“Ulysses” (handout)
Alfred, Lord Tennyson
“Ithaca” (handout)
C. P. Cavafy
“The Sea Call” (handout)
Nikos Kazantzakis
Short Story: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (textbook)
Nonfiction: Mississippi Solo (textbook)
Eddy L. Harris
Blue Highways : A Journey into America (textbook)
William Least Heat-Moon
Vocabulary: Research terminology
Vocabulary from reading selections
*Research: Researching project (use databases to find pro/con arguments
for a controversial issue, learn how to categorize database information, learn how to use a bibliography creator to do a works cited page, learn how to do note cards, synthesize the information into a well developed paragraph or series of paragraphs)
Grammar: Agreement (Subject/verb and pronoun/antecedent)
Formal writing style - 3rd person, formal language conventions, etc.
Writing: Research project/paragraph
In-class book reports/analysis on outside reading
TAKS: Final exam preparation
Supplemental:
Outside reading on book of choice over 150 pages
Videos:
The Odyssey
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
TEKS: 1A-C, 2A-E, 3A-D, 4A-G, 5A-B, 6A-E, 7A-G, 8A-D, 9A-B, 10A-C,
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