Julius Caesar and Persuasive Writing Unit Plan

Title of the Unit: Julius Caesar and Persuasive Writing Unit Plan
Length of Unit: Four Weeks

Grade Level: 9-10

Instructors Name: Katy Sanderlin

UNIT OVERVIEW

Students will begin the unit by learning about different forms of rhetoric and persuasive writing. They will examine four different
soliloquies and speeches from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar in order to better understand the persuasive rhetoric in a classical setting.
After they study the rhetoric in Julius Caesar, they will study the modern-day examples of rhetoric that they encounter each day, such
as in print advertising. Using their understanding of making and defending arguments, students will focus on applying their own logic
and appeal to write persuasive rhetoric of their own.

MAJOR GOALS

Students will learn how an argument is constructed and supported

Students will learn to recognize what makes a thesis strong or weak
Students will recognize the importance of evidence and supporting details in an argument
Students will be transcribe the language of Shakespeare into modern-day equivalences
Students will identify different perspectives, tones, and bias in writing styles
Students will compose their own arguments and feel comfortable writing theses for them
Students will explore and compare different forms of arguments, including those in alphabetic text, images, and video
Students will compare and contrast plain alphabetic text with multimodal arguments
Students will discuss how social media contains methods of arguments and claim-making
Students will compose their own alphabetic and multimodal arguments, explaining how they get their point across and how they are
successful

Prior knowledge for unit:

N/A
Strategy for those who lack the necessary prior knowledge:
N/A

LEARNING STYLES AND DIVERSITY ISSUES (Includes targeted learning modes)

Students with verbal-linguistic intelligences will benefit from the heavy focus on writing and editing techniques
Students with visual-spatial intelligences will come to an understanding of these techniques via the visual imagery used in the lessons
(theater acting, advertising visuals, Internet memes)
Students with logical intelligences will appreciate the logic-filled aspects of rhetorical devices and argument making/defending
Students who learn well kinesthetically will enjoy the physical aspects of the active group work.

INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this unit of study, students will
1. Identify terms referring to rhetoric
2. Identify and correctly use rhetorical devices in their writing
3. Demonstrate their ability to write a professional email by composing a fake one that is addressed to the school principal
4. Collaborate in groups to analyze forms of arguments, including arguments in alphabetic text, dramatic lines, videos, and
pictures
5. Transcribe Shakespearean verse into modern-day language
6. Speak aloud and paraphrase Shakespearean verse in a dramatic fashion
7. Demonstrate their ability to interpret arguments by writing thesis statements for various speeches and advertisements

Lesson Title

PASS Objective

Activities

Materials

Assessment

Adaptations and
Modifications

Opening Activity - Quote Quick

Write: Get the brain warmed up, start
by getting their mind on writing

Worksheets

Will visually assess

the students
progress as they
work together

IEPs will be
followed

and a brief
description
ABCD Format
Objective

Lesson 1
Introduction to
Rhetoric

Visual Literacy:
Standard 2: Evaluate
Media .
1.

Television
commercial
s
Logos,
pathos,
ethos

Define and
design language
and content that
reflect the target
audience for
particular
messages and
products (e.g., in
advertising and
sales techniques
aimed
specifically
towards
teenagers; in
products aimed
toward different
classes, races,
ages, genders;
in the appeal of
popular
television shows
and films for a
particular
audience).

Reading/Literature:
Standard 2:
Comprehension
2. Inferences and
Interpretation
a. Analyze
characteristics
of text, including

Students will be asked to number off

and divide themselves into four to five
separate groups.
Students will be shown a series of
three separate videos:

Sarah McLachlan Animal

Cruelty Video
https://youtu.be/9gspElv1yvc
Old Spice The Man Your
Man Could Smell Like
https://youtu.be/owGykVbfgU
E
The Snuggie Commercial
https://youtu.be/2xZpGLMMJ0

Students will be given a series of

questions (worksheet) to answer about
each video. Each group of students
will discuss their answers together, but
write down their answers on a
collective worksheet. Before they
discuss their answers for each video,
the class will re-watch each video for a
second time.
Questions:

How do you feel watching this

commercial?
Who is the intended audience
for this commercial?
What does this commercial

Youtube videos

Will collect the

groups worksheets
Homework will be
collected the next
day

its structure,
word choice,
and intended
audience.
b. Draw inferences
such as
conclusions,
generalizations,
and predictions,
and support
them with text
evidence and
personal
experience. c.
Recognize
influences on a
readers
response to a
text (e.g.,
personal
experience and
values;
perspective
shaped by age,
gender, class, or
nationality).
Students will
thoughtfully answer the
questions about the
commercials regarding
their intended audience
and their effects.

want its audience to do?

How does it try and convince
its audience to do it?
Is the commercial convincing?
Why or why not?

After each group has discussed and

answered the questions about each
video, a representative from each
group will write the groups responses
on the board.
The class will discuss and
compare/contrast each groups
answer. The students will be asked to
detect patterns among the
commercials, based upon the classs
responses. The discussion will
ultimately lead to the teachers
introduction to logos, ethos, and
pathos.
Closing Activity Students will
record the definitions of logos,
pathos, and ethos in their
notebooks.

HomeworkStudents will choose

one of the three videos and write a
journal response about the
commercials use of either logos,
pathos, or ethos for homework.
They will be given another list of
questions to answer in their
response.

Give three examples

of the commercials
use of
logos/pathos/ethos.
Write about at least
one reason why the
commercial
wouldnt convince
the viewer to buy

Lesson Title

PASS Objective

the product.
Why did the
commercial choose
to use
logos/pathos/ethos?
Without the
commercials
logos/pathos/ethos,
how would the
commercial be
different?

Activities

Materials

Assessment

Adaptations and
Modifications

Opening Activity Quote Quick Write: Get the

brain warmed up, start by getting their mind on
writing.

YouTube
videos

Visual

IEPs will be followed

and a brief
description
ABCD Format
Objective

Lesson 2
All About the
Thesis
What is a
thesis?
How a
commercia
l has a
thesis
Relation
between
argument
and
evidence

Standard 2: Modes and

Forms of Writing
3. Compose
persuasive/argumentativ
e compositions that:
a. include a welldefined thesis
that makes a
clear and
knowledgeable
appeal in a
sustained and
effective fashion.
b.
c. clarify and
defend positions
with precise and
relevant
evidence,
including facts,
expert opinions,
quotations,

Students will take out their journal responses

about the video they selected to write about.
They will highlight each of the examples that
they mentioned in their text in one color.
They will highlight any criticisms they had of the
commercials effectiveness in another color.
They will highlight their reasoning for the
commercial needing its use of
logos/pathos/ethos in another color.
The students will listen to an explanation about
how the questions they answered in their journal
response make up the information needed to
write a thesis about the commercial. Thesis will
be defined, and the class will discuss the
difference between a strong thesis and a weak
thesis.
Resources:

Highlighters

Highlighted
journal responses
will be collected
Thesis statements
will be collected

expressions of
commonly
accepted beliefs,
and logical
reasoning.
d. effectively
address reader's
concerns,
counterclaims,
biases, and
expectations

http://www.brighthubeducation.com/highschool-english-lessons/20762-thesisstatement-lesson-plan/

.
Closing Activity There will be final
instruction on writing a thesis, and the
students will respond by turning their journal
response into one sentencea strong thesis.

Students will
compose a thesis for
one of the
commercials that
adheres to these
standards.

Lesson Title

PASS Objective

and a brief
description
ABCD Format
Objective

Activities

Materials

Assessment

Adaptations and
Modifications

Lesson 3
Other rhetorical
devices

Hyperbole
Satire
Nostalgia
Allegory
Connotation

Standard 2: Modes and

Forms of Writing
3. Compose
persuasive/argumentativ
e compositions that:
a.
b.
c. clarify and defend
positions with
precise and
relevant evidence,
including facts,
expert opinions,
quotations,
expressions of
commonly
accepted beliefs,
and logical
reasoning.
d. effectively address
reader's concerns,
counterclaims,
biases, and
expectations
4. Create documents
related to career
development that:
a. use a conventional
format to write a
formal letter, email,
or memorandum.

Standard 4: Research
and Information
2. Interpreting
Information - The student
will analyze and evaluate
information from a
variety of sources.
a. Summarize,
paraphrase, and/or
quote relevant

Opening Activity - Quote

Quick Write: Get the brain
warmed up, start by getting
their mind on writing.
Students will draw sticks and
become divided up into five
new groups.
Each group will be assigned
a rhetorical device:

Hyperbole
Satire
Nostalgia
Allegory
Connotation

Each group will be instructed

to define their rhetorical
device, find one to two
examples of it, and prepare
an explanation that they will
present to their fellow
classmates. They must
incorporate the Smartboard
into their impromptu
presentations.
Each group will be given time
to research and prepare their
presentations.
While each student group
presents, the others will be
instructed to take notes
about each rhetorical device
in their notebooks.
Questions will be
encouraged after each
presentation. The teacher will
assist the presenters if they
are asked a question that
they cannot answer.

Individual
computers
and/or phones
Smartboard

Visual
Fake emails will be
collected

IEPs will be followed

information.
b.
c.
d.
e. Draw conclusions
from information
gathered

Lesson Title

PASS Objective

Closing Activity: Class will

discuss how these devices
can strengthen an
argument.

Homework: Students will

write a (fake) email to the
principal asking for a snow
day. They must use one of
the rhetorical devices
discussed in class.
Example will use
hyperbole, so students
must choose a different
device.

Activities

Materials

Assessment

Adaptations and
Modifications

Standard 3: Literature

[Day 1]
Opening Activity - Quote
Quick Write: Get the brain
warmed up, start by getting
their mind on writing.

Visual (group work +

pro/con list)

IEPs will be followed

1. Literary Genres Demonstrate a

knowledge of and an
appreciation for various
forms of literature.

Documentary
(YouTube)
Worksheets

Worksheets will be
collected

and a brief
description
ABCD Format
Objective

Lesson 4
Introduction to
Julius Caesar
Historical
context
Who was JC?
Shakespeare
s adaptation
(Multiple-class
lesson)

a. Analyze the
characteristics of
genres including
short story, novel,
drama, poetry, and
essay.
b. Analyze the
characteristics of

Each student will receive a

worksheet that contains a
number of general questions
about the documentary The
Roman Empire First King
Julius Caesar.
https://youtu.be/i8JgYkVS5LI

If applicable, absent
students are still able to
watch documentary on
their own time as it is on
YouTube.

subgenres
including tragedy,
sonnet, epic, lyric,
and narrative
4. Literary Works - The
student will read and
respond to historically
and culturally significant
works of literature.
a. Analyze and
evaluate works of
literature and the
historical context in
which they were
written.
b. Analyze and
evaluate literature
from various
cultures to broaden
cultural awareness.
c. Compare works
that express the
recurrence of
archetypal
(universal modes
or patterns)
characters,
settings, and
themes in literature
and provide
evidence to
support the ideas
expressed in each
work.

The students will be informed

of what information they are
to look for in the
documentary, including basic
information about Julius
Caesar and his popularity (or
lack thereof).
The class will watch the
documentary, and they will
turn in their worksheets at
the end of class.
[Day 2]
Opening Activity - Quote
Quick Write: Get the brain
warmed up, start by getting
their mind on writing.
The class will be divided into
two groups: one group will be
designated as fans of Julius
Caesar, and one group will
be designated as not fans
of Julius Caesar. Using the
information they gathered
from the documentary, each
side of the class will discuss
the reasons why they like or
dislike Caesar.
If there is any confusion
about the information in the
documentary, the teacher will
be there to assist in
answering questions.
After each side has had time
to discuss and record their
reasons, a representative
from each group will come to
the board and complete a
Pro/Con list for Julius
Caesar.
The class will discuss how
one person could be

considered so controversial.
The discussion will transition
into a lecture about
Shakespeares interpretation
of Julius Caesar (Prezi).
Students will record notes in
notebook.
Closing
Activity/Homework: None

PASS
Objective

Activities

Materials

Assessment

ABCD
Format
Objective

Lesson 5:
Rhetoric in
Julius
Caesar
Cassiu
ss
speec
h to
Brutus
Brutus
s
soliloq
uy
Brutus
s

Standard
3:
Literature
2. Literary
Elements Demonstr
ate
knowledg
e of
literary
elements
and
technique
s and
show how
they affect
the
developm
ent of a

Adaptation
s and
Modificatio
ns

IEPs will
be
followed
[Day 1]
Opening Activity - Quote Quick Write: Get the brain warmed up, start by
getting their mind on writing (it will be a Shakespeare quote)

Printed JC
texts:

The class will be given a brief presentation on Shakespeare language

hacks, which they will record in their notebooks.
Each student will receive a packet of printed Shakespeare text: specifically,
JC Act 1, Scene 2.
Using the Smartboard, the teacher and the class will collaborate and
translate the Shakespearean lines of Cassiuss and Brutuss speech into
modern language.
The class will discuss the dialogue and explain Cassiuss rhetorical
techniques when talking to Brutus. They will also discuss reasons why
Cassius needs to convince Brutus of something in the first place. After this
discussion, two students will be chosen to read the lines out loud.

Act 1,
Scene
2
(Cassi
us and
Brutus)
Act 2,
Scene
1
(Brutus
s
soliloq
uy)
Act 3,
Scene
2

Visual
Will collect
annotated/transcri
bed texts

Students
who are
unable to
participate
or elect to
sit out of
the
activities
are
welcome
to be on
the awards
team, aka
the game
facilitators,
score

funeral
speec
h
Mark
Anton
ys
funeral
speec
h
(Multiple-day
lesson)

literary
work.
3.
Figurative
Language
and
Sound
Devices Identify
figurative
language
and sound
devices
and
analyze
how they
affect the
developm
ent of a
literary
work.
4. Literary
Works The
student
will read
and
respond
to
historicall
y and
culturally
significant
works of
literature

Resources:

http://shakespeare.about.com/od/teachingshakespeare/a/shakespea
re_words.htm
http://genius.com/2524533
https://youtu.be/wgPymD-NBQU
http://meanshakespeare.tumblr.com/image/113596006957
http://meanshakespeare.tumblr.com/post/113658495062/speakhands-for-me
http://meanshakespeare.tumblr.com/post/45409317874/brutus-andcaesar-what-should-be-in-that
http://meanshakespeare.tumblr.com/post/45409528854/when-couldthey-say-till-now-that-talkd-of-rome
http://meanshakespeare.tumblr.com/post/79569875628/sotomorrow-is-the-ides-of-march-thanks-for
https://youtu.be/6ovOboVwB7g

Closing Activity Shakespeare + Mean Girls connection

[Day 2]
Opening Activity - Quote Quick Write: Get the brain warmed up, start by
getting their mind on writing (it will be a Shakespeare quote)
Each student will receive a piece of paper with Brutuss speech on it. The
class will be informed of the context of the speech so that they understand
Brutus is revealing his innermost thoughts after speaking with Cassius
(define soliloquy).
The class will work as a group to transcribe the first four lines of the soliloquy
together. After this, each student will work individually to transcribe the rest
of the lines.
The class will discuss Brutuss response to Cassiuss persuasion, and they
will discuss how Brutus persuades himself to go along with Caesars
assassination. Together, the class will write a thesis that summarizes
Brutuss feelings in his soliloquy.
Closing ActivityPop Sonnets; students will translate pop sonnets
in order to become more comfortable with Shakespearian language.
Homework: Finish transcription if they have not already.
Resources:

Pop sonnets: http://popsonnet.tumblr.com/

(Brutus
s and
Antony
s
funeral
speech
es)
Smartboard

keepers,
and
announcer
s.

[Day 3]
Opening Activity Students will be given another pop sonnet and asked to
annotate it.
Students will watch a clip that shows the murder of Caesar and the following
funeral scene. They will see the crowds reaction to Brutus and Antony, and
they will determine what has just occurred in the play.

After watching the video, the students will receive two pieces of paper each:
one with Brutuss speech, and the other with Antonys speech. They will
annotate and transcribe the two texts.
The class will be divided into two groups, and the teacher will declare one
group the Brutus group and the other the Antony group. Each group will
discuss the main argument of each speech and the evidence that the other
uses to support it.
After each group discusses their texts, a representative from each group will
explain to the other half of the class why their speech was successful or
unsuccessful in winning over the Roman crowd.
Closing ActivityStudents will have a toga fashion show for extra
credit.

PASS
Objective

Activities

Materials

Opening Activity - Quote Quick Write:

Get the brain warmed up, start by getting
their mind on writing

Smartboard

ABCD
Format
Objective

Lesson 6:
Modern Day
Rhetoric
Visual
literacy
Print
advertisin
g

Visual
Literacy:
Standard 1:
Interpret
Meaning - The
student will
interpret and
evaluate the
various ways
visual imagemakers
including
graphic
artists,
illustrators,
and news
photographer
s represent
meaning.
Standard 2:
Evaluate
Media - The
student will
evaluate
visual and
electronic
media, such
as film, as
compared
with print
messages.
Standard 3:

Students will be shown a slideshow of 4

different print advertisements. For each
image, students will be asked to go up to
the white board and write the words or
feelings that they think the picture
evokes.
After the board is full of different words
and phrases describing each
advertisement, the class will discuss the
message of each picture. The class will
discuss how a picture can make an
argument.
A volunteer will collaborate with the class
to write a thesis on the board for each
picture (from the sellers perspective).
You should buy ___ because ___.
Pictures:

http://media.galaxant.com/000/02
2/430/print-ads-3.jpg (Colgate
floss)
http://media.galaxant.com/000/02
2/432/print-ads-5.jpg (Weight
Watchers)
http://media.galaxant.com/000/02
2/449/print-ads-22.jpg (Pedigree)
http://media.galaxant.com/000/02
2/457/print-ads-30.jpg

Advertisements

Assessment

Compose
Visual
Messages The student
will create a
visual
message that
effectively
communicates
an idea.

(Guinness)
The class will have a discussion about
ads, why they largely rely on images
instead of words, and what they say
about the company that makes them.
They will also discuss how they reflect
the values of the consumers that buy
them.
The class will then compare vintage ads
to modern ads and discuss what
offensive ads say about societal values.
Vintage Ads:

http://thoughtcatalog.files.wordpr
ess.com/2013/09/creditfabulousfr
eakyfun-e1380579698477.png?
w=511&h=644
http://thoughtcatalog.files.wordpr
ess.com/2013/09/vintageadbrow
ser2.jpeg?w=1140&h=1620

Modern Ads:

https://metrouk2.files.wordpress.
com/2015/03/ad_163265402.jpg
?w=620&h=496&crop=1
http://static6.businessinsider.com
/image/4fa282df69bedd4b44000
02a-480/ashton-kutcherpopchips.jpg

Resources:

http://www.viralnova.com/creativ
e-print-ads/
http://www.123inspiration.com/cr
eative-and-clever-anti-smokingads/
http://www.businessinsider.com/t
he-10-most-racist-ads-of-themodern-era-2012-6
http://metro.co.uk/2015/03/18/dol
ce-gabbana-in-hot-water-againafter-gang-rape-ad-campaign-

resurfaces-just-days-after-ivffurore-5108624/
Closing Activity/Homework Students
will select an ad from one of the
provided resources. For homework,
they will annotate the ad and write a
thesis for it.