Literature Lesson Plans on Diversity: Poems, Novels, and Short Stories

This document presents a comprehensive set of lesson plans designed for teaching literature with a focus on the theme of diversity. The lesson plans incorporate various texts, including poems, novels, and short stories from the 20th century, with a particular emphasis on works from the Commonwealth. The plans are tailored for students aged 15 and above, who may not be native English speakers, and aim to explore diverse aspects of diversity, such as gender, sexuality, social class, and ethnicity. Each lesson plan includes specific goals, required materials, detailed activities, and homework assignments. The lessons encourage class discussions, analysis of literary techniques, and the exploration of cultural contexts. The assignment emphasizes interactive learning and the development of students' critical thinking and analytical skills.

Running Head: LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 1
LESSON PLAN IN LITERATURE ON
THEME DIVERSITY
Student Name:
Student Number:
Date:

LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 2
Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Lesson Plans...............................................................................................................................3
Lesson Plan 1..........................................................................................................................3
Lesson 2..................................................................................................................................5
Lesson Plan 3..........................................................................................................................6
Lesson Plan 4..........................................................................................................................8
Lesson Plan 5..........................................................................................................................9
Lesson Plan 6........................................................................................................................11
Lesson Plan 7........................................................................................................................12
Lesson Plan 8........................................................................................................................13
Lesson Plan 9........................................................................................................................14
Lesson Plan 10......................................................................................................................15
Conclusion and Recommendations..........................................................................................17
References................................................................................................................................18

LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 3
Introduction
A lesson plan is a guide to the overall teaching and class delivery mechanism adopted by a
teacher. In the current lesson plan, there has been undertaken a selection of drama, poetry,
and literature from the 20th century in spoken English with special attention being given to the
Commonwealth. The lesson plan includes a discussion of some parts of the poems and novel
with certain exercises that were given to the students aged 15 years and above in advance.
There will be a class discussion of the various regarding the various topics as per the selected
material of literature. In the course lesson, students might be dismissed if they fail to show
proficiency in regards to a particular lesson and they will be given feedback on the work they
have completed. The main theme on which these lessons will be developed is diversity
related to gender, sexuality, social class, ethnicity and so on. Each lesson consists of 50-
minute classes and
Lesson Plans
Lesson Plan 1
Lesson 1:
Theme: Cultural diversity
Materials required: Benjamin Zephaniah –
The British – (Zephaniah, 1958)
Goals:
 To explore literature and context of this topic of cultural diversity
 To explore and reflect on value representation in literature drawn from culture and
times varied from student's own time
Introduction:
The current lesson plan focuses on modern poetry drawn from a contemporary source.
Students in this lesson have the opportunity to learn ways in which language forms and
features from selected modern poems are brought about together. This poem has been
selected to explore the student's imagination and develop their sense of humor as applied in

LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 4
the literature. They also get the opportunity to explore ways in which composers make use
of language, imagery, and rhythm in order to engage their audience and ways in which
imaginative text can explore real-world situations (Winsløw, 2011). The poem has been
selected for this student group, who do not belong to the English speaking background and
does not have much knowledge in English literature. The lesson will focus on the theme of
cultural diversity present in varied countries and to teach the importance of tolerance
towards other religions and being sensitive.
 First, the students will be asked to write down the name of the text which might
have an emotional impact on them such as anger, happiness, sadness, etc
 Read through the activity worksheets then solving them after understanding the text
properly.
Activities:
- Students will be asked to read aloud the poem in class
- Explanation regarding the poem will be sought and relevant insights will be shared
- Writing a short text demonstrating the students understand the language choice, devices,
and techniques
- The teacher will make use of smartboard/ projector in order to complete the worksheets
- Access to dictionary and thesaurus will be provided to students such that they can look up
the meaning of difficult words.
- Writing down answers of complicated questions in a short format demonstrating students
can make the choice of particular words.
Conclusion/ lesson wrap up
Students are allowed to make a choice of language and devices in order to attend the
intended effects of building a short note on the poem. The lesson plan will aim at engaging
and an interactive plan aimed at the development of student's ability for the purpose of
maximization of the evocative nature of the diversity text (poem). Through the poem
student's will be exposed to the idea of diversity and tolerance such that they do not have a
tainted understanding of different cultures and religions. The poem has a good embedded
sense of humor in it and also creates a sense of metaphors in students.
During the lesson wrap up, students are asked about their key learning and profound
message that they have received. Students will be asked to read the poem aloud with one
student starting and then followed by another student, taking up the suit. Each student is
asked to contribute to their relevant areas of interest that they have found from the lesson
and will be asked to make the small text as independent readers.
In conclusion, this poem will serve as an introduction to advanced literary and poetic ideas
to conjure the minds of readers. Students are expected to take away a thorough
understanding of the relationship of their mind with the text and knowledge in
incorporating these learned skills into future written tasks.
Homework next lesson:
Homework for the students will include writing a brief summary of the poem as per their
own understanding line by line. In the homework task, they will be allowed to make their
own selection of building sentences and writing down their own sense that they create
diversity. Every student will be asked to write down their own individual sense of diversity
that they have developed from this poem.

LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 5
Lesson 2
Lesson 2
Theme:
Materials required: Annie Proulx –
Brokeback Mountain – (PROULX, 1997)
Goals:
 To understand literature in the text in its context
 To reflect and explore student’s personal understanding of the world
 To explore human experience as interpreted in literature drawn from times and
cultures different from students' own
Introduction:
In these lessons, students are made to write more descriptive content by use of figurative
language. This story 'Brokeback Mountain' is undertaken to enable the development of a
highly visible picture in the reader's head. This selected text opens up to the reader upon
the idea of cultural diversity existing in a place. Students are also made to develop
imagination from learning from this text. They are made to find similes and metaphors for
associating with the image and meaning found in the story to engage the readers with what
has been written in the story. Students are allowed the opportunity to make sense of where
and how commas are used in separating clauses (Kelly, Dorf, Pratt, & Hohmann, 2014).
The story opens up the student's point of view regarding the story and their imagination is
explored. The lesson allows the student to make use of vocabulary choices and evaluate the
use of language which can express various shades of meaning, feelings, and opinions, such
as in words, "jeans crease-ironed", “salty sweet stink of Jack” and so on. Students in this
lesson are investigated regarding their choice of vocabulary and in the evaluation of
language while experimenting with its features and structures in creating literary text. For
example, using imagery, metaphor, word choice, sentence variation.
Activities:
- Students are asked to plan and draft imaginative, information as well as persuasive text
while they make experiment with text structures.
-Students are given various instances and are aked to paint clear pictures of imaginative
texts that they are given examples of in the class after finishing reading and explanation of
this text
-Students are asked the use of various adjectives in the text such that they can create a
much clearer picture by adding such describing words to their writing, also known as a
simile.
- With help from OHP (overhead projector) students are asked to think some statements
connecting to;
o Ice (as cold as an Arctic Winter)
o Kettle (whistling like a steam engine)
o Similar other ideas were sought from students/ they could come up

LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 6
with their own idea
- Students are asked to create an amazing snapshot of such a description in writing
and connect to the reader to make sense of them. Then such senses were discussed
in great detail and listed
Conclusion/ lesson wrap up.
In this lesson, students have explained ways in which authors paint a clear picture in the
heads of readers. Students in this lesson plan were allowed the use of Ipad or another
recording device to take some photos of students' work and then write a few lines based
upon the similes created by them. Students through this lesson plan were allowed to
explore their own ideas, by allowing them to construct plain and simple text by use of
similes and words that appealed to their sense.
The lesson wrap up allowed the students to make a connection between their learned words
and connecting them with real-life so as to be able to make sense from them. Student
feedback from learning from this text was sought and then they were asked to make a
contribution to whichever domain they could connect in the best possible manner.
Homework next lesson:
Students were asked to note down a range of vocabulary that they had learned. Students
were also asked to write down as many similes they could decipher from the text that has
been taught to them. They could also develop their own stories on the basis of the similes
selected and applied by them.
Lesson Plan 3
Lesson 3
Theme:
Materials required: Vikas Swarup – Q and
A- (Swarup, 2005)
Goals:
 To analyze literary text created by and about Asians and also text including a film
produced by and about people of Asian background, and consider varied ways this
text represents people, places, things and issues
 To enable students in analyzing text structures of literary text and make relevant
comparison with other texts
Introduction:
This lesson plan has been created in order to explore the ideas of Asians. Q and A was the
first novel that was published by Vikas Swarup in 2005, which tells the story from rags to
riches of Ram Mohammad Thomas, who is a young waiter and becomes the winner of the
biggest quiz show in history. The indigenous state of Asians is particularly poor and this
story shows the growing up of an Asian lad in rags. The political and cultural depression
and divide across most underdeveloped Asian nations which is quite relevant now as well

LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 7
as in the time when they were written, is integral for the class students to understand.
Students will be asked to examine the different styles of the contemporary issues facing the
Asians and then create text, visuals, designs and create biographical articles (Chai, Koh, &
Tsai, 2010). A variety of resources will be made available to the students such as history,
websites, youtube clips such that they are able to broaden their understanding of this
contemporary style of story.
Activities:
-Students will be asked to read aloud the story in class and the meanings of individual
words or terms will be explained to them.
-Students will be asked to create literary text with stylish features with other text. For
example, narrative viewpoint, contrast and juxtaposition, the structure of stanzas and so on.
-Students will be asked to experiment with language features and their impacts on the
creation of literary texts. For example using sound effects, layout, monologue, navigation,
and color.
- Students are made to analyze text such that their characteristics can be combined with
narratives, then the appeal of different approaches is discussed.
-Students are made to interpret, discuss and understand the use of language as they can be
compressed to produce a dramatic impact in a drama.
-Students are given various texts to discuss their aspects of aesthetic and social values as
found relevant in the metalanguage.
Conclusion/ lesson wrap up.
Students in this lesson plan are made to understand the ways in which text reflects the
context of culture and situation within which they were created. Through the interpretation
of the text, people and culture, literary texts are drawn from different social, cultural and
historical contexts. Students are made to understand the context then create text on their
own. This lesson plan enables the students to respond to characters, ideas, and viewpoints
in texts and to be prepared in presenting arguments regarding literary text on the basis of
initial impression and subsequent analysis of the entire text. Students develop confidence
and capability to read and comprehend literature text on their own. They also develop a
sense of language in developing an entire text on the basis of the impression created and
words they have founded (similes) in the original text. This storyline enables students to
understand and recognize the condition of Asians as in various underdeveloped countries.
Students can now easily create their own articles on the basis of their understanding of this
text.
This lesson will be wrapped up by a question and answer session, where each students
point of view will be understood and explored. The students will be asked to collect and
explore individual texts where they can find more relevant information and data on the
condition of Asians and other developing countries around the world.
Homework next lesson:
The student will be given the homework to read through the text and explore vocabulary
related to the same. Students will be asked to develop and undertake readings of similar
texts such that they can contribute to class in a versatile manner. They will also be asked to
write down the new vocabularies that they have picked up from the current text.

LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 8
Lesson Plan 4
Lesson 4
Theme:
Materials required: Kurt Vonnegut –
Harrison Bergeron – (Vonnegut, 1961)
Goals:
 To present an argument about a literary text on the basis of initial impressions and
subsequent analysis of the whole text
 To enable students to experiment with language features, sounds, and images.
Introduction:
This lesson examines the year when everybody was finally equal in front of God and the
law. The story examines that beforehand there was a discrepancy remaining amongst the
various class and people from the cultural background. The story enables students learning
of visual literacy that is inherent in the version which is a good starting point for discussing
the meta themes from man's inhumanity. The text highlights the meaning of different
communicated language forms. The text enables students to identify and explore the key
ideas and viewpoints about the events, issues, and characters represented in this text and to
the idea of differential treatment in the past ages. The text draws from different time
periods historical, social and cultural contexts and settings (Capps, Crawford, & Constas,
2012). The text is able to explore the ideas of students in an effective manner to the key
issue that is covered in this text with a justifying view regarding the same. Students after
learning from this text are able to reflect upon and discuss responses including plot events,
characterization, themes as well as structures. Most importantly students can capably
achieve particular effects and collaborate findings in characterize merit.
Activities:
-Students are provided with the text and asked to read back at home. They are asked to
draw upon key and relevant meaning from such text and also highlight the new vocabulary
which they find interesting.
-Students are indulged in activities that enable them to analyze text structures and features
of language
-Students make use of comprehension strategies so as to able to interpret and analyze the
text in an appropriate manner
Conclusion/ lesson wrap up.
This is a basic lesson plan that allows students of growing age to make sense of literature
and their day to day applications. This lesson compares the use of language and images to
create characters. This lesson is undertaken to influence emotions and opinions in varied
types of texts. This text extends students' capability in interpreting, analyzing and
evaluating texts. Students will enable share, reflect on and clarify opinions and arguments
regarding specific aspects of literary texts. The lesson creates students' sense regarding
diversity and helps develop knowledge thereof. Students after this lesson will be able to
create language and visual choices similar to ones used by authors while expressing their

LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 9
perspective of different texts.
Summing up on the lesson plan includes students making short points of their learning
from the texts. This lesson also opened up students their use of vocabulary and capability
to use different text types. Various viewpoints regarding the events described in the text are
also drawn upon to understand ways in which modality is attained by means of
discriminating choices.
Homework next lesson:
The homework given to students for this lesson includes reading through the text and
analyzing the same. Students are asked to prepare short notes to prepare similes of texts
they find appealing in this text. Students are asked to reflect on their personal
understanding of God and law from their experience.
Lesson Plan 5
Lesson 5
Theme:
Materials required: Dwight Okita – In
Response to Executive Order 9066-
(National Park Service U.S. Department of
the Interior, 2015)
Goals:
 To reflect on to discuss and explore notions of literary value and ways such notions
vary as per the context
 To understand and analyze the context of history together with literature
Introduction:
This lesson plan is designed to explore the emotions of young students, who have the
capability to connect to the situation that has been depicted in this poem. This poem
explores the emotions of a young girl, who has several dreams attached to her family and
with her friends. She is torn by the emotion that war is going to start in her country soon
and she is divided by this thought. This lesson can be adapted for other year levels as well
as curriculum areas such as history hence it has cross-curriculum priorities (Hyun, 2010).
Explaining this poem in class can be quite an emotional challenge for the teacher, who tries
to communicate the thoughts of the young girl. This lesson plan is aimed at engaging the
students into some aspects of the history of America ad also the world which has already
been suffering from the brutality of wars.
Activities:
-Students (girls) are especially encouraged to enact the role of the fourteen-year-old and
recite the poem with feelings. There is a short role-play in class. The aim is student

LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 10
engagement at the emotional level which the poem aims at.
-Students are asked to interconnect countries with war, people and their identities. They are
asked to analyze the ill-effects fo war on the major cultural communities in the past and in
the contemporary world.
-Discussion with students is undertaken in regard to war conditions and the impact that
they create within countries. Students are encouraged to look up and explore a range of
words and vocabularies to specify abstraction and contribute in a specific manner to
various styles of text used in the literature.
Conclusion/ lesson wrap up.
This war poem explores the unique ideas of students that they have regarding various
countries into war currently. The lesson plan aims at viewing the experience of students
through the social, political and historical lense. This topic is a contemporary one
encourages students to speak and write using a range of vocabulary that tests their
comprehension and composition skills. This intriguing topic is suitable for non-native
English speakers such that they are able to open up their minds and speak their hearts out.
Wrapping up this lesson plan using specific experiences of some students that reveals their
families or distant relatives suffering after the war. The lesson plan is finally ended by
using connotations such as "May the end of their suffering" and so on.
Homework next lesson:
Students are given homework to read through the poem and devise in their own language
some literary text by use of figurative language. Students are asked to experiment and
investigate the use and effect of extended metaphors, allegory, metonymy, myths, and
symbolism found in the poem.
Lesson Plan 6
Lesson 6
Theme:
Materials required: D.H. Lawrence – How
Beastly the Bourgeois is- (Lawrence, 1964)
Goals:
 To reflect and explore the personal understanding of the world and significant
human experience attained from the interpretation of various representations of life
matters in text
Introduction:
Students are made to engage in a variety of text and poetry for enjoyment. Through
literature, they develop capabilities to interpret, evaluate, create and discuss while
performing a wide variety of literary texts. This poem is included as a part of the lesson
plan for the purpose of informing and persuading. There is included a higher level of
reasoning, abstraction with intertextual references. This poem is included to retain the
interests of students in literature and enable students to explore varied similes discussed in
this poem. Lawrence in his poem tries to present the burgeois as a handsome beast. He
makes intelligent use and evaluation of text to include some humor into his poem.

LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 11
However, his criticism of the burgeois is worth noting in the poem. Without using much
negative connotation he makes a steady criticism of this class and still maintains a sense of
newness in every line of his poem.
Activities:
-Students are allowed to read the poem and interpret it in an independent manner.
-Students are allowed to create informative, imaginative and persuasive text types by use of
procedures, narratives, performances, and reviews.
-Students are asked to interpret and represent the way by which the English culture and its
people have been represented in the poem.
Conclusion/ lesson wrap up.
The poem in an effective manner criticizes people of England by the use of varied
adjectives. It has been drawn from a range of genres that involves challenging,
unpredictable and complex sequences. Students can make effective use of such adjectives
to find similes and use them while constructing sentences in their own ways. Various ideas
and viewpoints of the poet are explained and examined to understand the issues and
characters presented in the text. Students are made to reflect upon opinions and ideas
regarding characters, settings, and events in literary texts for identifying agreement areas
and distinctions with others. Students with the application of this poem are asked a
justifying point of view which can suggest their individual opinion regarding the English
people in the past.
While summing up the lesson plan there is a discussion held in class to identify the
synonyms and antonyms of various words used in the poem. Each student is asked to
prepare their own word lists from the poem such as "toadstools", "wormy inside" and so on
and apply them in making a sentence of their own in class for a better understanding of
their meaning.
Homework next lesson:
Students are asked to make relevant sentences back at home of the various words uniquely
found in the poem. These words will be selected from the class discussion undertaken and
the selected words lists will be written on the class discussion board.
Lesson Plan 7
Lesson 7
Theme:
Materials required: Jane Austen – Pride and
Prejudice- (Austen, 1813)
Goals:
 To analyze text from unfamiliar and familiar contexts and discuss as well as
evaluate their content.
 To evaluate the appeal of an individual author’s literary style
Introduction:
Pride and Prejudice is an age-old romantic novel written by Jane Austen. The novel’s main

LESSONS CONCERNING LITERATURE 12
character is Elizabeth Bennet, who is the dynamic protagonist in the book. The plot is sent
in rural England during the early part of the 19th century. In the novel, Mrs. Bennet
persuades Mr. Bennet to visit Mr. Bingley, who is present in their neighborhood. The
complicated and twisted tale of love and romance in the novel of Elizabeth who refuses
first and then accepts Darcy thrills readers. The novel depicts the system of class back
during the 19th century in England. It offers a unique literary experience for young learners
and is an attractive read for new English readers of literary arts. The novel possesses the
capability to attract and retain the interests of young readers of literature.
Activities:
-Students during this later part of the lesson plan will be checked for their capability to
examine literary text.
- Students will be asked to analyze complex text from the novel with which they might
seem unfamiliar in order to evaluate their content of the author's literary style.
-Through the use of ICT (presentation using prezi), students will be asked to make and
present distinction in the traditional and contemporary style of literature
-Students will be asked to investigate and experiment with the use and effects of the
several metaphors that have been used in the current text.
Conclusion/ lesson wrap up.
The lesson will be initiated by discussing the plan of the central theme of the plot. Students
are allowed enough time so that they can develop the real essence of the novel. The lesson
continues over two detailed lesson and students are allowed time to reflect and present a
reasonable argument regarding their learning experience. Students are asked to interrogate
the author's individual appeal in regard to the author's literary style. Through presenting
judgment about the text and comparing others' ideas against the student's individual ideas,
students are able to develop upon independent decision-making capability or a shared
consensus regarding interpretations and ideas expressed.
The lesson is wrapped up by reflecting upon the central theme of the plot and discussing its
main characters such that in the next lesson students can be taken into depths of literary
analysis of the text further and can develop the main essence of the text. Students will be
able to develop literature plots and settle details, their characteristics and factors
formulating the characters lists.
Homework next lesson:
Students will be given homework to read through the complete plot and lesson taught in
the past class, this will enable the teacher to take forward lessons in the next class. The
student will also be asked to prepare a list of words and vocabulary that they have build up
during the lesson plan.
Lesson Plan 8
Lesson 8
Theme:
Materials required: Jane Austen – Pride and
Prejudice- (Austen, 1813)