Heroes and Villains Syllabus Texts: Greek Gods and Heroes, Robert Graves; Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, JRR Tolkien; King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table (Puffin Classics), Roger Lancelyn Green; Out of the Silent Planet, CS Lewis DAY ACTIVITIES OBJECTIVES/DETAILS  Mon. AM Icebreaker Make name tag “I am Sir/Madame …The …” based on Sir  Day 1 Richard the Lion-Hearted. Have students re-introduce each other. ♦ Pre-Assessment

Administer Pre-Assessment.

♦ Discussion Why did you take this course? What ideas do you have already about heroes and villains, and what do you hope to learn? ♦ Vocabulary Game Human thesaurus: Using common words such as “good” and “bad”, have students generate synonyms on their own, then use thesauruses to find more. Discuss the spectrum of different meanings and connotations. ♦ Group Activity Divide class in two and have one half come up with specific words that are associated with heroes and the other half do the same with villains. Share these on a space on the wall. 

PM Honor Code

Review and sign the CTY Honor Code

♦ Read Aloud/Discuss “Demeter’s Lost Daughter”—discuss who is or who are the ♦ hero(es)? How so? Match with character traits on the wall. Who’s acting badly? How so? Match with character traits.

 Tues.  Day 2

♦ Read Aloud/Discuss

“Racing the Great Bear” Native-American tale

AM

Prompt: Is Demeter a hero?

Journal Writing

♦ Small Group Work Compare and contrast Swift Runner and Demeter’s heroic traits. Have each group create a chart of heroic traits. ♦ Discussion The Evolving Self and The Hero’s Journey handout. ♦ Group Work Discuss lively language. Have groups list specific examples from texts that give life to the stories and that advance the text.

 PM

Writing Assignment #1 Discuss the process of brainstorming, free writing, organizing. ♦ Brainstorm as a group on villains and their sidekicks/henchmen. Write a vignette that features a villain describing their master plan for world domination to their sidekick/henchman. Be sure to incorporate examples of lively language. 1

Heroes and Villains Syllabus DAY

ACTIVITIES 

• •

Weds. AM about Day 3

OBJECTIVES/DETAILS

Silent Reading

“The Labors of Heracles” and “Daedalus”.

Journal Writing

Prompt: What new ideas have you seen/experienced heroes and villains so far?



Workshopping for

Model the process with an outside piece of writing. Ask 

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Movie   

o

PM what

Small Group Activity   

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Create a chart for each principal character emphasizing qualities each possesses and that each individually lacks. Discuss, too, how despite these limitations, each is capable of some aspects of heroism.

Reading Aloud Read an excerpt from John Muir’s essay “Stickeen” (handout) about a heroic little dog. Compare and contrast Stickeen and Toto.

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Writing Assignment #2 Brainstorm as a group around the idea of dogs as heroes. Freewrite for twenty minutes after the brainstorm session. Journal Writing

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PM

The Wizard of Oz: Students will be prompted to look for parallels to the Freytag and Campbell outlines as well as to the stories of Midas and Daedalus. Who functions for Dorothy in ways that both Freytag and Campbell anticipate?



Thurs. AM Day 4

o

volunteers to continue process.

Prompt: Toto is the real hero of The Wizard of Oz?

Writing Assignment #2 Organizing a compare and contrast essay. Use the pointby point and subject-by-subject models. Create a model for both  using Toto and Stickeen. Using the model and the freewrite, students will draft body paragraphs on the idea of these animal heroes. Workshopping 

Workshopping continued. Discuss introductions and conclusions. Model the process. Students will revise essays based upon workshopping. 2

Heroes and Villains Syllabus

 •

Silent Reading

“Theseus” focusing on the idea of strong hero.

Fri. AM Warm-Up profiles for a Day 5 movie/book/tv show. Include 2

In groups of two, create paper drafts of Facebook hero and villain from the same 

DAY

ACTIVITIES

wall posts other characters and 2 status updates detailing the individual character’s most heroic act or villainous deed.

OBJECTIVES/DETAILS

♦ Journal Writing After reading the poem “Ithaca” ,choose a line that resonates ♦ with you. Explain your choice. ♦ Read Aloud 

PM Journal Writing

Prompt: Predict what’s going to happen to Gawain? What ♦ would I do in his situation? ♦ Writing Assignment #1 Revise essays: Discuss how to go about revisions.

 Mon. AM  Day 6 Knight; discuss 

♦ 10.

Read Aloud

PM Writing Assignment #1 Discuss effective introductions by looking at a variety of models and comparing and contrasting what various authors do. Idea of “hook, line, and sinker.” Compose rough draft of introduction.

AM

Sir Gawain, Part 2.

Journal Writing

Prompt: Now predict what is going to happen, and now would I do?

♦ Class discussion ♦ Read Aloud 

Read sections 10-21 of Sir Gawain and the Green

♦ indoor/outdoor scenes, characters, Gawain’s qualities.

♦ Read Aloud  Tues. what  Day 7

Introduce Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and read Sections 1-

Part 2 of Sir Gawain.

Part 3 of Sir Gawain. Discuss “how well was I able to predict ♦ what would happen next?

PM Writing Assignment #2 Workshopping introductions/composing conclusions. 3

Heroes and Villains Syllabus

♦ Arthur Handouts Discuss the historical origins of the Arthur myth. List Arthur’s ♦ attributes using the dedication to Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s Idylls ♦ of the King. Discuss the need for historical myths.  Weds. like? If  Day 8

AM

Journal Writing

Prompt: If bravery were an outfit, what would it look cowardice were a horse, how would it behave?

♦ Writing Workshop Worshop conclusions.

DAY

♦ Revision

Revise conclusions

ACTIVITIES

OBJECTIVES/DETAILS

♦ Reading Aloud 

PM Computer Time ♦ Read Silently

Part 4 of Sir Gawain. Type third draft of essay. Finish Part 4 of Sir Gawain.

♦ Class Discussion How do the principal characters appear the same and ♦ differently in this story. Who is heroic and who are the ♦ villains?  Thurs.  Day 9



AM

Journal Writing

Tabloid treatment.

♦ Class Discussion

Tabloid treatment of a Greek myth or Arthurian tale.

♦ Read Silently

Assigned myths/tales.

PM Computer Time

Revising introduction/conclusion.

♦ Drafting Session Assignment #3-Turning a myth/story into a tabloid—work on tone, newspaper style, dialogue, audience, purpose, etc.  Fri. AM  Day 10

Journal Writing ♦ Writing Session



PM Workshopping

Prompt: If I had no language, what five words would I need the most? Explain. Write second draft of Assignment #3. Workshopping continued. 4

Heroes and Villains Syllabus

♦ Computer Time

Work on final draft of essays/third draft of story.

♦ Group Activity Reverse MadLib Poem: students generate lists of words and pass to other students in sequence. Use those words to generate a poem.  Mon. this how  Day 11



AM

Journal Writing

♦ you’d define a hero? How would you refine the definition? ♦ Group Work adapt.

Select groups for radio plays. Students select myth to

♦ Reading Aloud

Out of the Silent Planet, Ch. 1-3

PM Computer time ♦ Reading Aloud

DAY

ACTIVITIES

 Tues.  Day 12



Prompt: “A hero gives his life to something greater.” Is

Final drafts of essays, stories. Second drafts of poems. Out of the Silent Planet, Ch. 4-5

OBJECTIVES/DETAILS

♦ Group Work

Radio play, drafting session.

AM

Radio play drafting cont.

Group Work

♦ Reading Aloud

Out of the Silent Planet, Ch. 6-8

♦ Group Work

Team time, radio play drafting and revision.

PM Reading Aloud ♦ Computer Time

Out of the Silent Planet, Chaps. 9-10 Final drafts of stories/poems.

♦ Creative Exercise Give students a handout with definitions of literary terms and examples (from zeugma to chiasmus). Have them create their own examples.  Weds.  Day 13 

AM

Radio Play

♦ Reading Aloud PM Poetry Discussion

Finish drafting/rehearsal. OSP Chapters 11-13 Students read poem “The Trees” after hearing the definition of

5

Heroes and Villains Syllabus ♦ allegory. They then decode the symbols in the poem and discuss their significance in relation to larger plot structures of heroism/villainy. DAY

ACTIVITIES

OBJECTIVES/DETAILS

 Reading Aloud ♦ Post-Assessment  Thurs.  Day 14 

 Fri. AM  Day 15

AM

Computer Time

♦ Radio Play PM Poetry Exercise

Chapters 13-14 Administer Post-Assessment Final revisions. Recording

Each student is to write a poem on a theme associated with ♦ villainy/heroism, read the poem to the class—other students give close readings of their peers’ poems.

Reading Aloud

Finish Out of the Silent Planet. Class discussion

♦ Journal Writing

Final thoughts on Heroes and Villains

♦ Closing

Certificates, congratulations, and final comments

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