Unit of Work: Earliest English - Beowulf and the Old English Traditions

An understanding of the early period of the English language is novel and exciting for junior high schoolers. This unit of work introduces them to the Anglo-Saxon period and provides a gentle, easy and fun overview of what English language and literature once looked and sounded like. The focus text is Michael Morpurgo’s Beowulf, an excellent version of the heroic poem retold for children and young adult readers. The unit strives to remind students and teachers of all cultural and language backgrounds of their contribution and membership of the worldwide Anglophone community. Written as a combined unit of work and worksheets, teachers only need to purchase Morpurgo’s Beowulf to teach this unit!

The unit includes lessons on:

Our Language Family
Runes, Gods, and the Northern Heritage
Kennings, Riddle Poems, and Gnomic Poetry
The First Hero: Michael Morpurgo’s Beowulf (focus text)
The Hero’s Journey: Overcoming the Monster
The End of Old English
Where is Old English today?
Practice assessment task
Assessment task suitable for ages 11-13