About This Unit
When a teacher begins forming a unit plan, there are many questions that run through their minds. In this section I will address my answers to the questions posed to me while developing my unit on gun violence relating to The Hate U Give.
- The central theme/ issue is gun violence with some emphasis on police brutality.
- This unit connects to the lives of my students because gun violence is very prevalent in students lives with how often school shootings happen or how often we see Black lives matters movements in relation to children their age dying at the hands of others. Even if a student cannot directly relate to this unit or theme, they can see the importance in how this issue relates to the world.
- Students need to be given a chance to look at this from multiple perspectives. Starr and the officer are the two opposite points of view in this reading. By giving opportunities for the students to think as both of these characters in the lessons, we are allowing them to look at both points of view.
- There is and will be a lot of controversy surrounding teaching not only this book, but this theme. As a teacher, know the guidelines and rules of your school and find creative ways to push them through adjusting my activities and lessons. Set a comfortable and safe classroom environment with strong classroom guidelines so your students feel okay exploring the controversy at hand.
- End with the students taking action to address the issue, such as my final project does.
- Use a critical inquiry approach. This will assist in the students forming meaningful questions, fosters their ability to direct their own learning, and gives them to tools to question what is going on in the real world.
- Be prepared that this book is heavy in terms of the emotions, content, and reading level. Set the high expectations that students can and will accomplish the task of reading and learning The Hate U Give. Do things found in my activities such as checking for understanding, exit tickets, and journaling in order to further their critical thinking skills and know what level the students are at with the material.
- If you have a diverse amount of reading levels or ELL students, consider doing this in book groups rather than at a class level like my unit plan is. Thoughtfully pair students and know who to check in with more regularly. Chunk the reading so that every level of student can complete what is needed to be at a solid pace.
- Collaborate with other teachers, the community, and families. Ask students if anyone they know advocates for black lives matter or gun control. See what kind of events or resources exits in the town you're teaching in.