The final task of this unit will culminate with each student conducting a literary analysis of the main character, Zits. This literary analysis will be assigned within the general education class. Although it will not explicitly ask the students to think about identity, in exploring Sherman Alexie’s creative choices, the students will be forced to make connections between how Zits’ out of body experiences ultimately lead him to reclaiming his name.
While reading
Flight
the students will focus on the choices Sherman Alexie has made, including imagery, symbolism, character development, and structure. Throughout the unit, the students have learned that authors make specific choices in order to give the reader deeper meaning to their characters in an interesting way. Working to understand and analyze these choices gives readers a better sense of the emotions/struggles of the characters of the text. This unit is aligned with the 9
th
grade Common Core Standards and the New Haven Public School English I Curriculum. The focus standards to be implemented in the resource room will only include the speaking and listening standards (Appendix A).
