ELEMENTS OF FICTION:

  • Exposition
  • Rising Action
  • Climax
  • Falling Action
  • Resolution

Other literary terms:

  • Static and dynamic characters
  • Conflict
  • Theme
  • Setting
LEARNING FROM EXPERIENCES:

Essential Question:  How do our experiences, positive or negative, help shape who we are?

Fate versus chance.

NOVELS:


  • Ulysses, Bernard Elvitch

SHORT STORIES:
  • "Thank You, Ma'am", Langston Hughes
  • "My Name", Sandra Cisneros
  • "Nombres", Julia Alvarez
  • "Zebra", Chaim Potok
  • "A Crush", Cynthia Rylant
  • "Waters of Gold", Laurence Yep
  • "Ashputtle", Grimm Brothers
  • "The Pumpkin Seed and the Snake", Norma Livo and Dia
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POETRY:
  • "The Road Not Taken", Robert Frost
  • "Dreams", Langston Hughes
  • "If I Can Stop One Heart From Breaking", Emily Dickinson

NON-FICTION:




PERSONAL CHALLENGES AND CHANGES:

Essential Questions:
What are the traits of a fair and just society?
How do we adapt to changes in life?

NOVELS:
  • Dragonwings, Laurence Yep
  • Touching Spirit Bear, Ben Mikaelson
  • The Giver, Lois Lowry
  • Taking Sides, Gary Soto
           
SHORT STORIES:
  • "Bums in the Attic", Sandra Cisneros
  • "Crazy Boys", Gary Soto
  • "The White Umbrella", Gish Jen
  • "Homeless", Anna Quindlen

POETRY:
  • "The Elephant", Rudyard Kipling
  • "The Turtle", Mary Oliver
  • "Song of Myself", Walt Whitman
   
NON-FICTION:
  • "The Chinese Must Go", Bernard Weisberger
  • "The Story of an Eyewitness", Jack London
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Click here for an article about Gary Soto's career obstacles.
REAL LIFE HEROES:

Essential Questions: What makes a positive role model? What character traits do positive role models share? What makes a hero?

NOVELS:

SHORT STORIES:

POETRY:
  • “To You”, Langston Hughes
  • “The World Is Not a Pleasant Place To Be”, Nikki Giovanni

NON-FICTION:
  • “The Autobiography of Eleanor Roosevelt”, Eleanor Roosevelt
  • “The Autobiography of Malcolm X”, Malcolm X
  • “Barrio Boy”, Ernesto Garza
  • “Exploring the Titanic”, Robert Ballard
  • “Immigrant Kids”, Russell Freedman
  • “Long Walk to Freedom”, Nelson Mandela
LEGACIES:

Essential Questions: How do historical/significant figures still affect us today? What could you do in your lifetime to make a lasting positive impact on the world? What are you doing right now to make a difference?

NOVELS:
  • A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver, E.L. Konigsburg
  • Catherine Called Birdy, Karen Cushman
  • Midwife’s Apprentice, Karen Cushman

SHORT STORIES:


POETRY:

NON-FICTION:
  • "Names/Nombres", Julia Alvarez
  • "My Name", Sandra Cisneros
WORDSMITH:
The above themes support these California Common Core Standards for English Language Arts, grade seven:
RL 7.7
RI 7.3 and 7.7
W 7.1, 7.2, and 7.3
SL 7.1, 7.2, and 7.5