NYS Common Core ELA & Literacy Curriculum Grade 9 • Module 1 Overview

9.1 Module Overview

“So you want a double life”:
Reading Closely and Writing to Analyze
Texts Unit 1: “St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves,” Karen Russell

Unit 2: Letters to a Young Poet, Rainer Maria Rilke; Black Swan Green, David
Mitchell

Unit 3: Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare

Number of
Lessons 52 (including Module Performance Assessment)
in Module

Introduction
In this module, students read, discuss, and analyze contemporary and classic texts, focusing on how
authors develop complex characters and central ideas and considering the effects of authors’ structural
choices on the texts.

Module 9.1 establishes key protocols and routines for reading, writing, and discussion that continue
throughout the year. Students learn to work in a variety of contexts, including whole-class, pairs, small
groups, and independently, as they learn to annotate texts and develop academic vocabulary in context.
This 10-week module is the longest of the school year, in part to allow time for deliberate teaching and
reinforcement of these key practices and habits.

Module 9.1 is comprised of three units, referred to as 9.1.1, 9.1.2, and 9.1.3 respectively. Each of the
module texts is a complex work with multiple central ideas that complement or echo the central ideas of
other texts in the module.

In 9.1.1, students read Karen Russell’s short story “St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves,” paying
close attention to the author’s use of language. In the story, feral girls with werewolf parents attend a
Jesuit boarding school founded to socialize the girls by teaching them “normal” human behaviors.
Russell organizes the text according to five stages of development using epigraphs from an imaginary

File: 9.1 Module Overview, v2 Date: 8/31/14 Classroom Use: Starting

9/2014 1
© 2014 Public Consulting Group. This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
NYS Common Core ELA & Literacy Curriculum Grade 9 • Module 1 Overview

text, The Jesuit Handbook on Lycanthropic Culture Shock. Students analyze how Russell’s structural
choices create tone in the story as well as contribute to the development of the characters and central
ideas. The central ideas students discuss in their analysis of “St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by
Wolves”—individual identity vs. group identification and the meaning of beauty—also appear in relation
to the other module texts. The End-of-Unit Assessment asks students to compose a formal, multi-
paragraph response analyzing the narrator Claudette’s development in relation to the five stages of
Lycanthropic Culture Shock.

In 9.1.2, students read excerpts from fiction and nonfiction texts: Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer
Maria Rilke and Black Swan Green by David Mitchell. Students analyze the character of Jason as he is
revealed in the two fictional excerpts and examine the parallels between “Solarium” in Black Swan
Green and Rilke’s “Letter One.” In “Letter One,” Rilke counsels an aspiring poet on how to look within
himself for the source of his inspiration to write. In the chapters “Hangman” and “Solarium” of Black
Swan Green, Mitchell introduces the narrator, Jason, through Jason’s description of his stammer.
Students’ work with these texts includes analysis of the authors’ use of specific word choices and
figurative language to develop central ideas. In Black Swan Green students continue their analysis of
character interactions in relation to the development of central ideas. The End-of-Unit Assessment asks
students to compose a formal, multi-paragraph response analyzing how Rilke and Mitchell develop a
similar idea in their respective texts.

In 9.1.3, students participate in an unconventional study of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet by
considering representations of the play in other media, first in film via Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet
and then in painting with Marc Chagall’s “Romeo and Juliet.” Students examine key portions of the text
through close reading, collaborative discussion, and writing to synthesize ideas. The portions of the play
selected for close reading are based on their pivotal role in the play and how historically and culturally
relevant they are in the wider range of reading. Because this may be students’ first exposure to
Shakespeare, students examine Shakespeare’s rich use of figurative language, word play, and powerful
cadence throughout their reading and viewing of the play. Students also analyze how Shakespeare uses
the structure of the text and elements of tragedy to refine central ideas, advance the plot, and create
effects such as tension. The End-of-Unit Assessment asks students to compose a formal, multi-paragraph
response analyzing how Shakespeare develops either Romeo or Juliet as a tragic hero(ine).

All Module 9.1 assessments provide scaffolding for the Module Performance Assessment, in which
students read paragraphs 4–9 in Rilke’s “Letter Seven,” identify a specific phrase or central idea in that
excerpt, and analyze how that phrase or idea relates to one or more characters or central ideas in “St.
Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves” or Romeo and Juliet.

File: 9.1 Module Overview, v2 Date: 8/31/14 Classroom Use: Starting

9/2014 2
© 2014 Public Consulting Group. This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
NYS Common Core ELA & Literacy Curriculum Grade 9 • Module 1 Overview

Literacy Skills & Habits

 Read closely for textual details
 Annotate texts to support comprehension and analysis
 Engage in productive evidence-based discussions about texts
 Collect and organize evidence from texts to support analysis in writing
 Make claims about texts using specific textual evidence
 Use vocabulary strategies to define unknown words
 Analyze an author’s craft
 Independently preview texts in preparation for supported analysis
 Paraphrase and quote relevant evidence from texts

English Language Arts Outcomes

Yearlong Target Standards

These standards embody the pedagogical shifts required by the Common Core State Standards and will
be a strong focus in every English Language Arts module and unit in grades 9–12.

CCS Standards: Reading—Literature

RL.9-10.1 Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says
explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
RL.9-10.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including
figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word
choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and
place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).
RL.9-10.10 By the end of grade 9, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and
poems, in the grades 9–10 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as
needed at the high end of the range.
CCS Standards: Reading—Informational Text
RI.9-10.1 Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says
explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text, including determining where the
text leaves matters uncertain.
RI.9-10.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including

File: 9.1 Module Overview, v2 Date: 8/31/14 Classroom Use: Starting

9/2014 3
© 2014 Public Consulting Group. This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
NYS Common Core ELA & Literacy Curriculum Grade 9 • Module 1 Overview

figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of

specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language of a court opinion
differs from that of a newspaper).
RI.9-10.10 By the end of grade 9, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 9–10 text
complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
CCS Standards: Writing
W.9-10.9.a-b Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and
research.
a. Apply grades 9–10 Reading standards to literature (e.g., “Analyze how an author
draws on and transforms source material in a specific work [e.g., how Shakespeare
treats a theme or topic from Ovid or the Bible or how a later author draws on a
play by Shakespeare]”).
b. Apply grades 9–10 Reading standards to literary nonfiction (e.g., “Delineate and
evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the
reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false
statements and fallacious reasoning”).
W.9-10.10 Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision)
and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for a range of tasks, purposes,
and audiences.
CCS Standards: Speaking & Listening
SL.9-10.1 Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one,
in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9–10 topics, texts, and
issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
CCS Standards: Language
L.9-10.4.a-d Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and
phrases based on grades 9–10 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of
strategies.
a. Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence, paragraph, or text; a word’s
position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
b. Identify and correctly use patterns of word changes that indicate different
meanings or parts of speech (e.g., analyze, analysis, analytical; advocate,
advocacy).
c. Consult general and specialized reference materials (e.g., dictionaries, glossaries,
thesauruses), both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or
determine or clarify its precise meaning, its part of speech, or its etymology.

File: 9.1 Module Overview, v2 Date: 8/31/14 Classroom Use: Starting

9/2014 4
© 2014 Public Consulting Group. This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
NYS Common Core ELA & Literacy Curriculum Grade 9 • Module 1 Overview

d. Verify the preliminary determination of the meaning of a word or phrase (e.g., by

checking the inferred meaning in context or in a dictionary).

Module-Specific Assessed Standards

These standards will be the specific focus of instruction and assessment, based on the texts studied and
proficiencies developed in this module.

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Reading

CCRA.R.9 Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build
knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.
CCS Standards: Reading—Literature
RL.9-10.1 Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says
explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
RL.9-10.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze in detail its development over
the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific
details; provide an objective summary of the text.
RL.9-10.3 Analyze how complex characters (e.g., those with multiple or conflicting motivations)
develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot
or develop the theme.
RL.9-10.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including
figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word
choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and
place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).
RL.9-10.5 Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure a text, order events
within it (e.g., parallel plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks) create such
effects as mystery, tension, or surprise.
RL.9-10.7 Analyze the representation of a subject or a key scene in two different artistic
mediums, including what is emphasized or absent in each treatment (e.g., Auden’s
“Musée des Beaux Arts” and Breughel’s Landscape with the Fall of Icarus).
RL.9-10.11 Interpret, analyze, and evaluate narratives, poetry, and drama, aesthetically and
ethically by making connections to: other texts, ideas, cultural perspectives, eras,
personal events, and situations.
CCS Standards: Reading—Informational Text
RI.9-10.2 Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the

File: 9.1 Module Overview, v2 Date: 8/31/14 Classroom Use: Starting

9/2014 5
© 2014 Public Consulting Group. This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
NYS Common Core ELA & Literacy Curriculum Grade 9 • Module 1 Overview

text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an
objective summary of the text.
RI.9-10.3 Analyze how the author unfolds an analysis or series of ideas or events, including the
order in which the points are made, how they are introduced and developed, and the
connections that are drawn between them.
RI.9-10.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including
figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of
specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language of a court opinion
differs from that of a newspaper).
CCS Standards: Writing
W.9- Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts,
10.2.a,c,f and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization,
and analysis of content.
a. Introduce a topic; organize complex ideas, concepts, and information to make
important connections and distinctions; include formatting (e.g., headings),
graphics (e.g., figures, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding
comprehension.
c. Use appropriate and varied transitions to link the major sections of the text, create
cohesion, and clarify the relationships among complex ideas and concepts.
f. Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the
information or explanation presented (e.g., articulating implications or the
significance of the topic).
CCS Standards: Speaking & Listening
SL.9-10.1.b, Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one,
c in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9–10 topics, texts, and
issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
b. Work with peers to set rules for collegial discussions and decision-making (e.g.,
informal consensus, taking votes on key issues, presentation of alternate views),
clear goals and deadlines, and individual roles as needed.
c. Propel conversations by posing and responding to questions that relate the current
discussion to broader themes or larger ideas; actively incorporate others into the
discussion; and clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and conclusions.
CCS Standards: Language
L.9-10.5.a Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in
word meanings.

File: 9.1 Module Overview, v2 Date: 8/31/14 Classroom Use: Starting

9/2014 6
© 2014 Public Consulting Group. This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
NYS Common Core ELA & Literacy Curriculum Grade 9 • Module 1 Overview

a. Interpret figures of speech (e.g., euphemism, oxymoron) in context and analyze

their role in the text.

Addressed Standards
These standards will be addressed at the unit or module level, and may be considered in assessment,
but will not be the focus of extended instruction in this module.

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Reading

None.
CCS Standards: Reading–Literature
None.
CCS Standards: Reading–Informational Text
None.
CCS Standards: Writing
None.
CCS Standards: Speaking & Listening
SL.9-10.4 Present information, findings, and supporting evidence clearly, concisely, and logically
such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization,
development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and task.

CCS Standards: Language

L.9-10.4.a, Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases
b, c based on grades 9–10 reading and content, choosing flexibly from a range of strategies.
a. Use context (e.g., the overall meaning of a sentence, paragraph, or text; a word’s
position or function in a sentence) as a clue to the meaning of a word or phrase.
b. Identify and correctly use patterns of word changes that indicate different
meanings or parts of speech (e.g., analyze, analysis, analytical; advocate,
advocacy).
c. Consult general and specialized reference materials (e.g., dictionaries, glossaries,
thesauruses), both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or
determine or clarify its precise meaning, its part of speech, or its etymology.

File: 9.1 Module Overview, v2 Date: 8/31/14 Classroom Use: Starting

9/2014 7
© 2014 Public Consulting Group. This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
NYS Common Core ELA & Literacy Curriculum Grade 9 • Module 1 Overview

Module Performance Assessment

Prompt

In this four-day performance task, students discuss, organize, compose, and revise a multi-paragraph
response to the following prompt:
Identify a specific phrase or central idea in paragraphs 4–9 of Rilke’s “Letter Seven.” Analyze how
that phrase or central idea relates to one or more central ideas in “St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised
by Wolves” or Romeo and Juliet.

Lesson 1

In Lesson 1, students work in small groups to read and annotate an excerpt from “Letter Seven” of
Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet. Students use the first column of the Performance Assessment
Synthesis Tool to record specific phrases or evidence related to important ideas they notice in the
excerpt. Students then participate in a “gallery walk” where they rotate around the room, viewing
quotes and evidence related to important ideas that each group noticed. Students add comments or
additional evidence to chart paper during the gallery walk and also pause to record ideas on the
Performance Assessment Synthesis Tool. When students return to their group’s original chart paper,
they review new comments and/or evidence that other students have added and discuss. At the
lesson’s end, students engage in a brief, whole-class discussion through which they work to identify
significant quotes and central ideas.

Lesson 2

In Lesson 2, students work in small groups to review texts, annotations, notes, and tools to gather
evidence that relates central ideas or characters from “St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves” or
Romeo and Juliet.to the phrases and central idea(s) identified in Rilke’s “Letter Seven.” Students
complete the second and third columns of the Performance Assessment Synthesis Tool. At the end of
the lesson, students use the evidence-based discussion to help them select which ideas or characters
from a selected text they will pair with “Letter Seven.”

Lesson 3

In Lesson 3, students review evidence to use in their responses. Students then independently write a
first draft of their responses using the analysis from the previous lesson.

File: 9.1 Module Overview, v2 Date: 8/31/14 Classroom Use: Starting

9/2014 8
© 2014 Public Consulting Group. This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
NYS Common Core ELA & Literacy Curriculum Grade 9 • Module 1 Overview

Lesson 4

In Lesson 4, students self-review or peer-review using the 9.1 Performance Assessment Text Analysis
Rubric. Students use this review to strengthen and refine the response they drafted in the previous
lesson. Students edit, revise, and rewrite as necessary, ensuring their analysis is clear, accurate, and
effectively supported by relevant and sufficient textual evidence.

Texts
Unit 1: “I’m home”
Russell, Karen. St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves. New York: Vintage Books, 2006.
Unit 2: “[T]he jewel beyond all price”
Rilke, Rainer Maria. Letters to a Young Poet. Trans. Stephen Mitchell. New York: Random House, 1986.
Mitchell, David. Black Swan Green. New York: Random House, 2007.
Unit 3: “A pair of star-crossed lovers”
Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. Ed. René Weis. New York: Bloomsbury, 2012.
Romeo + Juliet. Dir. Baz Luhrmann. Perf. Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes. 20 th Century Fox, 1996.

Module-at-a-Glance Calendar
Lessons Assessed and
in the Addressed
Text Unit Literacy Skills and Habits CCSS Assessments
Unit 1: “I’m Home”
“St. Lucy’s 17  Read closely for textual RL.9-10.1 Mid-Unit:
Home for Girls details RL.9-10.2 Students write a multi-
Raised by  Annotate texts to RL.9-10.3 paragraph response to
Wolves” by support comprehension RL.9-10.4 the following prompt:
Karen Russell and analysis RL.9-10.5 Choose and explain
 Engage in productive W.9-10.2.a,f one epigraph. Analyze
evidence-based SL.9-10.1.b, c the relationship
discussions about texts SL.9-10.4 between that epigraph
L.9-10.4.a, b and the girls’
 Collect and organize
development in that

File: 9.1 Module Overview, v2 Date: 8/31/14 Classroom Use: Starting

9/2014 9
© 2014 Public Consulting Group. This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
NYS Common Core ELA & Literacy Curriculum Grade 9 • Module 1 Overview

Lessons Assessed and

in the Addressed
Text Unit Literacy Skills and Habits CCSS Assessments
evidence from texts to L.9-10.5.a stage.
support analysis in End-of-Unit:
writing Students write a
 Make claims about texts formal, multi-
using specific textual paragraph response to
evidence the following prompt:
 Use vocabulary Analyze Claudette’s
strategies to define development in
unknown words relation to the five
stages of Lycanthropic
Culture Shock.
Unit 2: “[T]he jewel beyond all price”
Letters to a 11  Read closely for textual CCRA.R.9 Mid-Unit:
Young Poet by details RL.9-10.2 Students write a
Rainer Maria  Annotate texts to RL.9-10.3 formal, multi-
Rilke support comprehension RL.9-10.4 paragraph response to
Black Swan and analysis RI.9-10.2 the following prompt:
Green by David RI.9-10.3 What is the impact of
 Engage in productive
Mitchell RI.9-10.4 Rilke’s specific word
evidence-based
conversations about W.9-10.2.a, f choices on the meaning
texts SL.9-10.1.b, c and tone of his letter?
L.9-10.4.a, b End-of-Unit:
 Determine meanings of
L.9-10.5.a Students write a
unknown vocabulary
formal, multi-
 Independently preview
paragraph response to
text in preparation for
the following prompt:
supported analysis
Identify similar central
 Paraphrase and quote
ideas in Letters to a
relevant evidence from
Young Poet and Black
a text
Swan Green. How do
Rilke and Mitchell
develop these similar
ideas?

File: 9.1 Module Overview, v2 Date: 8/31/14 Classroom Use: Starting

9/2014 10
© 2014 Public Consulting Group. This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
NYS Common Core ELA & Literacy Curriculum Grade 9 • Module 1 Overview

Lessons Assessed and

in the Addressed
Text Unit Literacy Skills and Habits CCSS Assessments
Unit 3: “A pair of star-crossed lovers”
Romeo and 20  Read closely for textual RL.9-10.2 Mid-Unit:
Juliet by William details RL.9-10.3 Students write a multi-
Shakespeare  Annotate texts to RL.9-10.4 paragraph response to
support comprehension RL.9-10.5 the following prompt:
and analysis RL.9-10.7 How does
 Engage in productive W.9-10.2.a, c, f Shakespeare’s
evidence-based SL.9-10.1.b, c development of the
discussions about text L.9-10.4.a, b, c characters of Romeo
L.9-10.5.a and Juliet refine a
 Collect and organize
central idea in the
content from the text to
play?
support analysis in
writing End-of-Unit:
Students write a
 Analyze an author’s
formal, multi-
craft
paragraph response to
the following prompt:
Select either Romeo or
Juliet. How does
Shakespeare develop
this character as a
tragic hero(ine)?
Note: Bold text indicates targeted standards that will be assessed in the module.

File: 9.1 Module Overview, v2 Date: 8/31/14 Classroom Use: Starting

9/2014 11
© 2014 Public Consulting Group. This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/