Students will interview a local community member (could be a classmate, parent, or neighbor) who has positively stood out from the crowd—just like the big idea of the unit.

Product:

A short written or video report (1–2 minutes) explaining:

• Who they interviewed

• What makes that person stand out

Poets & stanzas about their homelands

1. Mahmoud Darwish (Palestine — Arabic)
   Stanza I chose (English translation, short):
   “Write down! I am an Arab.”. 
   My reflection:
   This tiny command — “Write down! I am an Arab.” — carries fierce pride and a refusal to be erased. In one short line Darwish claims identity, history, and dignity against dispossession. The power is in its simplicity: identity is both a claim and a protest.

2. Mustafa Balilah — “وطني الحبيب / My Beloved Homeland” (Saudi/Arabic)
   Stanza I chose (translation, short):
   “My soul and what I own is a ransom for you, my beloved homeland.”. 
   My reflection:
   This line frames love for homeland as devotion and sacrifice. It’s intimate and filial — the speaker offers everything, even life, as testament to belonging. That humble, personal tone makes the poet’s patriotism feel human, not only rhetorical.

3. Pablo Neruda — Canto General (Chile — Spanish → English)
   Stanza I chose (short excerpt / paraphrase):
   Neruda’s Canto General builds a sweeping image of the land—its mountains, mines and people—so the voice becomes a chorus for the whole country. (See From the Heights of Machu Picchu / Canto General). 
   My reflection:
   Neruda’s poem reads like a long love letter to a continent and a people. He mixes geography, history, and labor to show how homeland is shaped by both natural features and human struggle. That breadth makes patriotism also a social and ethical stance.

no one leaves home unless

home is the mouth of a shark.

📝 By Aya

This line made me feel sad and also thankful. It means people don’t leave their country unless it’s too dangerous to stay. A shark is scary, so calling home “the mouth of a shark” means it’s not safe anymore. I think about families who have to run away to find peace. I’m lucky that my home is safe, and I hope one day everyone can live without fear.

Graphic organizer

• Event: Me starting a new school last year

• Feelings: Nervous, excited

• What helped: Soccer, new friends

• Easy: Making friends

• Hard: New rules, missing old friends

• Point of view: I, past tense

/ My introduction hooks the reader and sets time/place.

Body 1 has a clear main idea with supporting details and sensory language.

Body 2 shows how I responsed/adapted, with vivid,

concrete details,

v l used transitions between ideas and paragraphs (e.g..

Later, After that, Finally).

I revised to add stronger details, remove repetition, and improve clarity.

Ireplaced weak words with stronger, more precise vocabulary.

• I formatted paragraphs correctly (indentation, spacing, margins).

• My conclusion reflects on lessons learned and the importance of the memory.

•I read aloud for fluency and fixed any awkward sentences.

• I prepared a neat final copy (typed or best handwriting) and added a title.

When a person loses someone they love, the way they act, behave, and decide, can change drastically which could lead to rash decisions. Love and Loss are two powerful elements together, because when you love someone, the harder it hurts when you lose them. Both experiences together, can either help or ruin a person’s life physically and mentally together. Which is why understanding love and loss is very important, even if you don’t have any experience in them, it is important to understand why a person’s behaviour changes when they lose someone they love, and why we should always be there for them no matter what to help them move on. Because losing someone you love, is a normal stage of life, but also can cause a lot of grief.

To begin with, experiencing love can impact a person’s life and feelings, for example: heart beating faster, blushing, and jealousy. Although love is a beautiful feeling, it also causes rash decisions. Sometimes, people mistake obsession for love, and when they see the person they’re obsessed with someone else, they can very jealous and super possessive, which can cause some very serious crime related behaviours. And when they lose that person they’ll only get more and more obsessed, which is why you should be aware of your emotions, and if you realise you are obsessed with someone, try and get some therapy before it gets stronger. The real feeling of love involves deep affection and care, not deep devotion to the point you’d even do bad things just to get the person you’re obsessed with.

Furthermore, when a person loses someone they love, they start feeling intense emotions. Such intense emotions can influence a person’s actions and decisions. Like how a person becomes extra protective of a person they care about, because they don’t want to lose anyone else they love. And not only that, it can also influence a persons’s way of thinking of other people and themselves. If a person lost someone, not once, but over and over again, they may start blaming themselves for it, and even for small stuff. You may notice they cry easily, and have a strong attachment, but that doesn’t mean they’re just weak. They’re afraid that if they don’t try harder, they’ll lose someone else again. Also, if a person lost someone again, they may hide their emotions and pretend everything is fine. Just because you see a smile don’t think you know what’s going on underneath it.

So overall, these experiences of loss and love can change and impact the decisions of a persons life. Both leave wounds that cant be healed, which influences not only just decisions, but also a person’s emotions and behaviour. Learning these feelings helps us understand to those who experienced it before, and support them without judgement.

By Alzahraa Al Yousef <3The Effects of Loss and Love

When a person loses someone they love, the way they act, behave, and decide, can change drastically which could lead to rash decisions. Love and Loss are two powerful elements together, because when you love someone, the harder it hurts when you lose them. Both experiences together, can either help or ruin a person’s life physically and mentally together. Which is why understanding love and loss is very important, even if you don’t have any experience in them, it is important to understand why a person’s behaviour changes when they lose someone they love, and why we should always be there for them no matter what to help them move on. Because losing someone you love, is a normal stage of life, but also can cause a lot of grief.

To begin with, experiencing love can impact a person’s life and feelings, for example: heart beating faster, blushing, and jealousy. Although love is a beautiful feeling, it also causes rash decisions. Sometimes, people mistake obsession for love, and when they see the person they’re obsessed with someone else, they can very jealous and super possessive, which can cause some very serious crime related behaviours. And when they lose that person they’ll only get more and more obsessed, which is why you should be aware of your emotions, and if you realise you are obsessed with someone, try and get some therapy before it gets stronger. The real feeling of love involves deep affection and care, not deep devotion to the point you’d even do bad things just to get the person you’re obsessed with.

Furthermore, when a person loses someone they love, they start feeling intense emotions. Such intense emotions can influence a person’s actions and decisions. Like how a person becomes extra protective of a person they care about, because they don’t want to lose anyone else they love. And not only that, it can also influence a persons’s way of thinking of other people and themselves. If a person lost someone, not once, but over and over again, they may start blaming themselves for it, and even for small stuff. You may notice they cry easily, and have a strong attachment, but that doesn’t mean they’re just weak. They’re afraid that if they don’t try harder, they’ll lose someone else again. Also, if a person lost someone again, they may hide their emotions and pretend everything is fine. Just because you see a smile don’t think you know what’s going on underneath it.

So overall, these experiences of loss and love can change and impact the decisions of a persons life. Both leave wounds that cant be healed, which influences not only just decisions, but also a person’s emotions and behaviour. Learning these feelings helps us understand to those who experienced it before, and support them without judgement.

By Alzahraa Al Yousef <3

2. Did the speaker do a good job of making the case? Why or why not?

3. Did the speaker persuade you to do something or to accept her opinion about the issue? Why or why not?

Why do I think taking risks is important for creative people

I think taking risks is important for creative people because it helps them try new ideas and express themselves without fear. When creative people take risks they learn from mistakes and grow. Taking risks can also lead to unique and original work that inspires others.

focusing carefully on the speaker’s ideas and evidence in the text

One thing I will do today to be successful in analyzing the text

I will identify the main claim and look for reasons that support it

One challenge I expect while reading an argumentative speech

I may find it difficult to understand the speaker’s opinion if the language is persuasive or emotional

1. Summarize the speaker’s argument:
   I think people should think for themselves and accept that others can like or believe different things.

2. Did the speaker do a good job of making the case? Why or why not?
   Yes, because I used easy examples that people can understand.

3. Did the speaker persuade you to do something or accept her opinion? Why or why not?
   Yes, because the examples made the idea clea

manipulated

Part of Speech

verb

Definition in your own words

controlled or influenced by someone in an unfair way

Context Sentence from the text

We need to dare disturb the universe by not being manipulated or frightened by judgmental groups

Word

judgmental

Part of Speech

adjective

Definition in your own words

quick to criticize others and say they are wrong

Context Sentence from the text

We need to dare disturb the universe by not being manipulated or frightened by judgmental groups

Word

mystery

Part of Speech

noun

Definition in your own words

something that is unknown or not fully understood

Context Sentence from the text

How sad it would be if we had to give up all sense of mystery for the limited world of provable fact

Word

society

Part of Speech

noun

Definition in your own words

a group of people living together with shared rules or culture

Context Sentence from the text

We would be a society of ants if we couldn’t have personal tastes and honest differences

2. Did the speaker do a good job of making the case? Why or why not?

Yes, because she uses relatable examples to show why differences are important.

3. Did the speaker persuade you to do something or accept her opinion? Why or why not?

Yes, because her examples make the argument easy to understand and convincing.

1. Summarize the speaker’s argument
   The speaker wants the listener to accept differences and not be controlled by groups who judge others for having different opinions tastes or feelings

2. Did the speaker do a good job of making the case Why or why not
   Yes the speaker did a good job because she used clear examples from real life to show that people are naturally different and that these differences make the world interesting

3. Did the speaker persuade you to do something or to accept her opinion about the issue Why or why not
   Yes the speaker persuaded me to accept her opinion because she showed that having different ideas and tastes is normal and important for a creative and meaningful life

How does Madeleine L’Engle use historical examples (vaccination and Dr. Semmelweis) to support her claim about the dangers of zeal driven by fear?

• What reason is she trying to prove?

• What evidence from history strengthens her argument?

⸻

🔹 Question 2: Evaluating the Argument’s Effectiveness

Why are these historical examples more convincing than a simple opinion?

• How do they help the reader understand the real consequences of fear and resistance to change?

• Do these examples make the argument stronger? Why or why not?

How does Madeleine L’Engle use historical examples (vaccination and Dr. Semmelweis) to support her claim about the dangers of zeal driven by fear?

• What reason is she trying to prove?

• What evidence from history strengthens her argument?

⸻

🔹 Question 2: Evaluating the Argument’s Effectiveness

Why are these historical examples more convincing than a simple opinion?

• How do they help the reader understand the real consequences of fear and resistance to change?

• Do these examples make the argument stronger? Why or why not?

Question 1: Analyzing Reason + Evidence

What reason is she trying to prove?

She is trying to show that fear can make people strongly reject new ideas.

What evidence from history strengthens her argument?

She uses vaccines and Dr. Semmelweis to show that fear caused people to fight ideas that later saved lives.

Question 2: Evaluating the Argument’s Effectiveness

Why are these examples more convincing than an opinion?

Because they are real events from history.

How do they show the consequences of fear and resistance?

They show that fear can lead to people getting sick or dying.

Do these examples make the argument stronger?

Yes, because they prove her point with real evidence.

What reason is she trying to prove

Madeleine L’Engle is trying to prove that zeal often comes from fear and that fear can cause people to reject helpful new ideas

What evidence from history strengthens her argument

She uses the example of vaccination to show that fearful people fought against it even though it saved lives and removed smallpox

She also uses Dr Semmelweis to show that doctors feared change and punished him even though washing hands saved women from dying

Question 2 Evaluating the Argument’s Effectiveness

Why are these historical examples more convincing than a simple opinion

They are more convincing because they are real events from history and show what truly happened when fear controlled people

How do they help the reader understand the real consequences of fear and resistance to change

They show that fear can stop progress and cause serious harm like sickness and death

Do these examples make the argument stronger Why or why not

Yes they make the argument stronger because they clearly prove that fear driven zeal can hurt people and slow down important improvements

It gives hope and motivation and helps people turn fear into ideas that can lead to growth and change

The sentence uses the past perfect tense to communicate the action.

Support

It shows that the boy completed his homework earlier than his mother arriving so one past action happened before another past action.

Question

When should I use past perfect instead of simple past in sentences with two past events?

Idea

Biles had a natural high energy talent that stood out even as a child.

Textual Evidence

Biles told ESPN that she was very crazy very hyper and energetic and could copy harder moves from older girls at the gym.

Idea

Despite her natural power Biles had to work hard to master the technical skills of gymnastics.

Textual Evidence

She did not know how to control her strong power at first and she lacked finesse.

2 Vocabulary Clarification

Word or Reference

Finesse

Meaning

Great skill and style in doing something difficult especially careful and precise movements.

Word or Reference

The Biles

Meaning

A very difficult gymnastics move named after Simone Biles because she performed it first in competition.

3 Group Discussion Roles Checklist

Express ideas clearly.

Listen carefully to the ideas of others.

Show respect for others ideas and feelings.

Encourage participation by asking others for their thoughts.

Stay on task and answer all parts of the question.

Summary of Requirements Met

Two ideas from the text are included.

Each idea has evidence from the article.

One unfamiliar word or reference is explained.

By: Hawra Alsakkak

* ✅Is my introduction interesting and does it state my thesis?

* ✅Did I use transition words between ideas?

* ✅Are my body paragraphs clear with reasons and examples?

* ✅Did I explain how my evidence supports my argument?

* ✅Does my conclusion restate the thesis and summarize points?

* ✅Did I check spelling, grammar, and punctuation?