Lesson Plan : Arthur Miller's The Crucible
Teacher Name: | Ms. Mandracchia |
Grade: | Grade 9-10 |
Subject: | Language Arts |
Topic: | The Crucible by Arthur Miller |
Content: | |
Goals: | The teacher will introduce the students to Arthur Miller's play, The Crucible, its themes, characters, and historic context. |
Objectives: | The students will be able to: 1. Understand the historical facts of the Salem Witch Trials and McCarthyism by reviewing important historical facts. 2. Acknowledge certain historical ceoncepts useful for understanding the Salem Witch Trials and McCarthyism in regards to Arthur Miller's play, The Crucible (theocracy, puritanism, slavery, witchcraft, "witch hunts," hate groups, democracy, etc.) 3. Review the important characteristics of fiction: characters, plot, point of view, voice, theme, acts and scenes, stage directions, climax, irony, paradox, allegory). |
Materials: | Texts of Arthur Miller's play The Crucible for each student, board to write down important terms, posterboard, markers. |
Introduction: | Since the play is set in a period most likely unfamiliar to students, it will be important to provide the students with crucial historical background. I will incorporate appropriate terms relevant to the time period and to fully understanding the novel. We will also review the English vocabulary and terms necessary in understanding a text. |
Development: | To begin, I would ask the students what they know about the time period in which this play was written or of the Salem Witch Trials. We would then read an appropriate section from a U.S. history textbook to provide a basic, accurate outline of the events of the period. *Refer to Practice 1* Once they have an idea of when these events occurred, we would discuss critical concepts for the reading of the play (theocracy, democracy, Puritanism, slavery, witchcraft, Joseph McCarthy, "witch hunts," and hate groups). *Refer to Practice 2* Finally, we would move on to the English vocabulary crucial to understanding the play, The Crucible (protagonist, antagonist, plot, point of view, voice, theme, acts and scenes, stage directions, rising and falling action, climax, irony, paradox, allegory). *Refer to Practice 3* |
Practice: | Practice 1: In small groups, the students can develop a timeline of the events of the period using classroom materials (encyclopedia or other source). Practice 2: The students would agree upon a definition for each of the terms and then pick one as a topic for a research paper. Practice 3: With these terms, the students will be able to more fully understand the make-up of the play as well as the crucial parts. Therefore, the students will then create worksheets with each of the topics (theme, characters, plot, point of view, etc) throughout the reading of the play in order to truly understand. For example, I would provide them with the themes found in The Crucible (human cruelty in the name of righteousness, the individual and the community, justice vs. retribution and revenge, Godliness vs. Worldliness, Ignorance vs. Wisdom, The Puritan Myth, and Order vs. Individual Freedom) and the students would then fill in the instances of the play which apply to each of the themes throughout their reading. |
Accommodations: | |
Checking For Understanding: | They students will then be asked if they are confused on any of the vocabulary words they were introduced to and whether or not they fully understand the historical time period of the Salem Witch Trials and McCarthyism. |
Closure: | The class will discuss briefly the events of the 1950's and the structure of a play. |
Evaluation: | The students will be graded on their ability to understand the material, their comprehension of the information provided, and their progress on the worksheets and Research Paper. |
Teacher Reflections: |
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