In this set of lessons which extend over several days, students read excerpts from "The Death of Benny Paret" by Norman Mailer and "The Fight" by William Hazlitt. Students annotate the text, specifically looking for metaphor and simile, tone, and syntax. Working with a partner, students write three paragraphs, analyzing metaphor or simile, tone, and syntax in "The Death of Benny Paret." Working independently, students write one paragraph, choosing to analyze metaphor or simile, tone, or syntax in "The Fight."

In this lesson, the students will learn to create their own digital flyer for an upcoming event, choosing either something done by the school or something they create on their own. The event doesn't need to be real, but the digital flyer should target and appeal to a specific audience, drawing on specific rhetorical strategies to encourage that audience to attend the event.  

This lesson plan asks students to create a new, original film or podcast that is based on a specific element from a text (either a film, written text, or podcast). Students will analyze their chosen text, focusing specifically on character, theme, narrative style, use of sound, or setting analysis. This project will be taught asynchronously over the course of 5-6 class periods. 

The focus of this project will be a personal narrative of an event or situation that caused a major change in the students' lives for the better. Instead of a traditional written story, students are required to complete a digital story using school tools available to them through the school license or on their personal devices. The face-to-face lesson instruction will take 45 minutes. The remainder of the 90-minute block will be given to students to work on their projects. An additional class period should be added to finish, revise, edit, and share their projects within small groups. This plan is for high school grade levels. 

This set of lessons extends over several days. Students work with a partner to read and annotate G.K. Chesterton's "The Fallacy of Success." Students take notes which summarize each section of the text. Students write an objective summary of the text, identifying two claims and determining how those claims are developed in the text.

This lesson extends over several class periods. Students view a Prezi presentation on Toulmin's argument and complete an assignment based on the presentation. Students then write an argument essay about the power of prevailing passion over reason.

A sample plan for implementing a Genius Hour project in CE English 1010 to help students determine what they want to do after high school and how to achieve that.Preview Image: Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash