Unit:The Odyssey
Grade:9-10
Day 4: Books III & IV
Goals:
- The student will develop skills in writing mechanics, grammar, structure/organization and the importance of content.
- The student will think critically about literature and its function in history, culture and personal experience.
- The student will assume responsibility for assigned tasks while working cooperatively towards group goals.
Materials:
- none! (maybe an overhead of the activity intro...?)
- Procedures:
- Introduction-- Class business; collect response cards
- Review/Discussion-- (10-15 min.) Well, we know that Telemachos decided to go on the journey suggested by Mentor... Go over events in Books III and IV through question-answer. Also, answer any questions students may have thus far. What happened? Who did Telemachos talk with? What was said?
- Lecture-- (5-10 min.) So, if this is the Odyssey, where is Odysseus? Talk about the overall structure of the Odyssey:
- the Telemachy
- the Wanderings
- the Return
Why was is set up this way?-- originally all separate stories; length... What might this accomplish?-- unification; increase the magnitude of Odyssyes and his deeds; emphasizes the need for Odysseus, and thus the importance of finding him; helps preovide excuses for mass murder; wrath of Athena parallel to wrath of Achilles....etc, etc...[there are lots of answers here! and no one of them is "right"]
- Activity-- (25 min.) Get students into their small groups:
You own a detective agency. Your clients, Penelope and Telemachos, have asked you to find a missing person, Odysseys. What will they be able to tell you about the character, appearance, and last known whereabouts of Odysseus? What additional information can you obtain by interviewing Menelaus and Helen, Eumaeus, Eurclecia, Laertes, and Nestor? Where does the trail turn cold? Where will you tell your clients to look next? Write a mini-report for your clients based upon your findings to be turned in at the end of class.
One might suggest that one way they might go about this assignment is to assign each member of the group and area in which to do "legwork" and have a recorder to take the information, and someone to write the report... or find some other method, if they want.
- Closure-- (10 min.) Back to the question of where is Odyssues-- where has he been all of these years?... what do you think?.... Ask for groups to share a couple of responses... Tomorrow, we meet Odysseus-- one of the greatest heores of the Trojan War... Prepare yourself!!!
Assign Book V.
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