Brief Overview of Lesson: This lesson builds background knowledge for students before they closely read Macaulay’s Cathedral. It is meant to help motivate students and provide them with information that will make their reading more familiar and understandable. As you plan, consider the variability of learners in your class and make adaptations as necessary. Prior Knowledge Required: None Estimated Time: 90 minutes Resources for Lessons: Access to show NOVA’s “Building the Great Cathedrals”: Classroom blog, set up previous to lesson, on a free, safe web site (such as or the school intranet Teacher Resource Sheet in Lesson Resources Student Worksheet in Lesson Resources
Guide students through answering Question 4 on the Close Reading Student Worksheet (See Close Reading Teacher Guide for possible responses.) Closing the Lesson Students fill in the answer to Question 4 on the Close Reading Worksheet and discuss what they have found as a class. Lesson 5 Opening the Lesson: Ask students to explain the acronym and alert them to the fact that they will be using it again several times as they are reading the book. Review pages 8 and 10-11 with students and ask them to explain what they see the craftsmen doing and the tools that they are using. During the Lesson: Student read pages 7-17 individually or in pairs as needed, and answer questions 5-10, also in pairs as needed, on the Close Reading Student Worksheet. Encourage students to reread sentences and phrases to understand them. Remind students to use the glossary. Encourage students to create questions of their own to ask the class. Students stop at page 17 and prepare to ask and answer questions orally for the checking page citations and information if they finish early. Ask volunteers to explain their answers and reasons for them as the class reviews the pages cited. If convenient, students finishing before others might watch the video again or watch the end of the video. Closing the Lesson Ask students the strategies they used to understand the information in the pages they read. Tally the results on a chart as a reminder through the close reading lessons. Ask students to compare information presented in the book and that presented in the video. Lesson 6 Opening the Lesson: Review with students the floor plan of the cathedral on page 12. The Romanesque crypt (burial) in the center is the older construction and kept beneath the new construction. Show an online, if possible of Romanesque architecture (small windows, round “arches,” no stained glass. Note that the back cover of the paperback edition of Cathedral shows the Romanesque cathedral that the newer architecture replaced. Ask students for questions they have about reading from Lesson 5 and discuss. Students will need OPTIC Analysis sheet for this lesson. students that anyone may be called on to answer the questions today if appropriate. . During the Lesson: Student pairs read pages 8-38 individually or in pairs as needed, and monitor their comprehension using familiar strategies. Students answer questions 11-19 on the Reading Student Worksheet.
RI.7.3 Chutreaux? What effect would these thoughts and feelings have on the future construction of the cathedral? you can see a group of townspeople walking around the cathedral with their dog to take a look. They would be proud to have such a magnificent structure in honor of God in the center of their city. This would probably make them more motivated to complete the construction. CCSS. ELA-Literacy. RI.7.1 CCSS. ELA-Literacy. RI.7.5 the OPTIC acronym, explain how the illustration on pages 38-39 helps you understand part of the process of building a cathedral. As you look at pages 38-39, flip back to the illustration that William of Planz drew for the Wall Elevation on page 13. How are the two illustrations the same and different O Overview Conduct a tour of the image O = View looking down on the choir end of cathedral P on the parts Read all the labels Notice important details P = walls, windows, stairs, bricks, wood T Title Read/Create the title for a clear understanding of the image T = The Choir I Internal Relationships Does title help identify the main subject? I = All the walls and parts fit together to create one part of the cathedral. C Conclusion Draw a conclusion about the image: Summarize the image. The image on pages 38-39 shows the actual choir of the cathedral as a viewer might see it from above. (Of course, nobody would actually see it this way, so Macaulay helps us imagine what it would look like if we could see it from this viewpoint). This drawing has the components that are in the Wall Elevation on page 13, but it is much more complete because it is drawn in three C = The cathedral is built and this shows the three layers of the choir, the arcade of piers, the triforium, and the clerestory.
many narratives, the characters change over time, but in Cathedral, it is the building and the town landscape that changes. CCSS. ELA-Literacy. RI.7.1 CCSS. ELA-Literacy. RI.7.3 CCSS. ELA-Literacy. RI.7.5 How is Macaulay's approach to explaining the complex process of building a gothic cathedral different from an article you find in a textbook? Telling the a story of making a building over time from beginning to end makes it easier to understand the process. The illustrations also made the process immeasurably easier to understand. The book as a OPTIC: Close Reading Analysis for Illustrations Adapted from How to Study in College by Walter Pauk and Ross J. Q. Owens, Cengage Learning; 11th edition (January 9, 2013) O Overview Visually tour the illustration top to bottom, left to right Notice what stands out through perspective, color, shading, and size P Focus on the parts Read any labels Note important details
cathedral. As you look at pages 38-39, flip back to the illustration that William of Planz drew for the Wall Elevation on page 13. How are the two illustrations the same and different P Parts Focus on the parts Read all the labels Notice important details P = T Read/Create the for a clear understanding of the image T = I Internal Relationships Does help identify the main subject? I =. C Conclusion Draw a conclusion about the images C = Lesson 7, Questions 20-22 Questions Answers in Your Own Words Textual Evidence 20. According to pages 40-44, what master craftsmen were mainly responsible for the construction of the roof? 21. What does the illustration on page 48 tell you about the construction of the cathedral that the text does not?
craftsmen were finishing the cathedral's west front entrance as described on pages 69 to 73? Explain. 29. What is the main theme of this story? Use specific and relevant evidence from the text to support your answers. 30. How is this narrative different in structure from other narratives you have read? How did these differences affect the story? Why do you think Macaulay wrote the story as he did? 31. How is Macaulay's approach to explaining the complex process of building a gothic cathedral different from an article you might find in a textbook? . Analyzing an Author’s Style
Mill Rome Antics Building Big City: A Story of Roman Planning Castle: How It Works Underground Pyramid Jet Plane: How It Works other How It Works books Small group or whole group copies of “Verifying Conclusions About Macaulay’s Style,” found at the end of the lesson Unit: Analyzing an Author’s Style: Macaulay’s Unique Way of Explaining a Complex Process Content Area/Course: English Language Arts, Grade 7 Lessons 9 and 10: How is Macaulay’s Style Unique? Time: two 50-minute periods By the end of this lesson students will know and be able to: Identify the elements that mark Macaulay’s style of explaining a process. Essential Question(s) addressed in this lesson: EQ3 How do authors develop a distinctive style of writing and illustration? Standard(s)/Unit Goal(s) to be addressed in this lesson: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.7.5 Analyze the structure an author uses to organize a text, including how the major sections contribute to the whole and the development of ideas. Instructional Tips/ Strategies/Notes for Teacher
Have students scan or quickly read sections of a Macaulay book to find examples that show elements of Macaulay’s of explaining a complex process that are similar to (or different from) Cathedral. Use the information on the organizer to help direct students for their analysis. Students discuss, cite evidence, and write their answers on the chart on the worksheet. Repeat the process with another Macaulay book Lesson Closing: Students report their answers so that the rest of the class gets proof from various parts of one of the books. Have students read aloud phrases or sentences, as needed, to support their ideas. Analyzing an Author’s Comparing Authors’ Styles: Teacher Guide Elements Cathedral “Building a Medieval Cathedral” “Gothic Cathedrals” Purpose of the text To explain the complex process of how a Gothic cathedral was built in a fictional village in France over 86 years and the ideas that motivated its construction and design To explain the technology of building a medieval cathedral in England To explain the history and spread of gothic architecture, some of its key architectural features, and how the style was revived in the 17th-19th centuries Text type – genre and form Literary nonfiction book Informational on-line article, one in a series that deals with topics about medieval England, from a site in Great Britain Informational on-line article from a school site in Massachusetts Organization of the text Narrative of how a town, architects, and craftsmen created a single building Explanation of the technology Explanation of the technology, origin, and revival of the Gothic style of architecture Word Choice – use of domain-specific words Use of specific technical vocabulary for architectural features, craftsmen, and their tools Use of specific technical for craftsmen and their tools Use of specific technical terms for building, history of architecture, specific place names, specific people who were important in Gothic architecture
Illustrations Tone – the writer’s attitude toward the subject Literary devices – point of view Based upon the chart above summarize what makes Macaulay’s style different from the other authors who explained building a gothic cathedral. Why does Macaulay make the stylistic choices he does when explaining the complex process of building a Gothic cathedral? Analyzing an Author’s Style Student Handout – Verifying Conclusions about Macaulay’s Style Names of students in the group: _______________________________________________________________