Novel Unit: Little Women: Part 1 Common Core Aligned

This is a novel study and unit for Little Women Part 1 . It is cross-curricular and Common Core State Standards-aligned. The activities are differentiated and designed to help struggling students understand the content of the novel with chapter-by-chapter reading fluency drills that may also be used as close reading assignments. Also included are cross-curricular science and social studies activities. The chapter “Think and Writes” are great stand alone assignments but are also perfect for Daily Reading and Writing Warm-Up.

Table of Contents

Introduction page 5
Character List page 6
Chapter by Chapter Think and Writes
Chapter 1: Compare and Contrast page 8
Chapter 1: Active Reading Making Inferences pages 9‐10
Chapter 2: Historical Context: Non‐Fiction pages 11‐14
Chapter 3: Critical Thinking page 15
Chapter 4: Character Burdens page 16
Chapter 5: Character Traits and Motives page 17
Chapter 6: Critical Thinking page 18
Chapter 7: Civil War Critical Thinking page 19
Chapter 8: The Ideal of Womanhood – Women in the 1860s page 20
Chapter 9: Social Studies Tie‐In Reading and Writing page 21‐23
Chapter 10: The P.C. and the P.O. and Your Life page 24
Chapter 11: Real World Tie‐In Transcendentalists page 25
Chapter 12: Camp Laurence – Your Life page 26
Chapter 13: Foreshadowing page 27
Chapter 13: Literature and Your Life page 28
Chapter 14: Your Future Dreams – Your Castles page 29
Chapter 15: Questions with Personal Tie‐In page 30
Chapter 16: Your Letter to Marmee page 31
Chapter 17: Penicillin: Science Tie‐In page 32
Chapter 17: Science Experiment – Growing Mold page 33
Chapter 18: My Dark Event page 34
Chapter 19: Conflict and Graphic Novel Activity page 35
Chapter 20: Confidential: My Bundle of Naughties page 36
Chapter 21: Critical Thinking page 37
Chapter 22: What Would My Gift’s Be page 38
Chapter 23: My Predictions for the Future page 39
My Little Notebook Instructions page 40‐56
1. Literary Terms: Throughout the reading.
2. What is Your Favorite Literary Term and Why – Halfway through the reading
3. Write and Think: You and the Novel. Which Character Are You Most Like? – After Chapter 10
4. What I Think: Are the Character’s Likeable? – Anytime after Chapter 3 (you may want to include this page twice and have
students re‐do it at the end of the story and compare to see if their perspective changed).
5. Social Studies Tie‐In: Feminist Literature Non‐Fiction Read and Write – Anytime after Chapter 14 (2‐3 days)
6. Non‐Fiction Tie‐In: Orchard House – The Home of