National Endowment of the Arts - The Big Read

The Grapes of Wrath
Teacher's Guide - Schedule / Lesson Plans

Introduction

Schedule/Lesson Plans

Capstone Project Ideas

Essay Topics

Additional Resources

NCTE Standards

Credits

Back to Reader's Guide

This is a suggested teaching schedule for a 10 class study of John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath. Lesson plans and handouts can be downloaded individually by clicking on the name of the file in the schedule below. Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view these files. Page numbers refer to the Viking Penguin 2006 edition of The Grapes of Wrath.

The CD Audio Guides are available only for the communities participating in The Big Read. If your community is participating, contact the lead community organization to receive a free Audio Guide. If your community is not participating, encourage a local organization (such as a library, museum, literary center, arts council, or similar non-profit organization) to apply.

Day One

FOCUS: Biography
Day One Lesson Plan [PDF]
Activities: Listen to The Big Read CD. Read Reader's Guide essays "Introduction to the Novel," "John Steinbeck," and "Steinbeck and His Other Works." Write about an important, view-changing book.
Homework: Chapters 1-5 (pp. 1-39).

Day Two

FOCUS: Culture and History
Day Two Lesson Plan [PDF]
Activities: Go to www.neajazzintheschools.org. Write an essay about how artists are influenced by politics.
Homework: Reader's Guide essay "Battle Hymn of the Republic." Chapters 6-9 (pp. 40-89).

Day Three

FOCUS: Narrative and Point of View
Day Three Lesson Plan [PDF]
Activities: Explore Steinbeck's use of parallel narration. Tell story from the point of view of one of the characters.
Homework: Chapters 10-13 (pp. 90-149).

Day Four

FOCUS: Characters
Day Four Lesson Plan [PDF]
Activities: Explore the antagonist. Write about how myths inform characters.
Homework: Chapters 14-17 (pp. 150-200).

Day Five

FOCUS: Figurative Language
Day Five Lesson Plan [PDF]
Activities: Document figurative language in assigned chapters. Use metaphors in personal description of a road journey.
Homework: Chapters 18-19 (pp. 201-239).

Day Six

FOCUS: Symbols
Day Six Lesson Plan [PDF]
Activities: Analyze three major symbols: the road, the West, and the grapes of wrath.
Homework: Chapters 20-21 (pp. 240-284).

Day Seven

FOCUS: Character Development
Day Seven Lesson Plan [PDF]
Activities: Map the transformation of individual Joads and the family as a whole.
Homework: Chapters 22-24 (pp.285-345).

Day Eight

FOCUS: The Plot Unfolds
Day Eight Lesson Plan [PDF]
Activities: Chart a time line of the novel. Invent an alternate ending. Read Reader's Guide essay "The Novel at the Movies."
Homework: Chapters 25-26 (pp. 346-405).

Day Nine

FOCUS: Themes of the Novel
Day Nine Lesson Plan [PDF]
Activities: Develop an interpretation based on a theme: the individual against the corporation, the American dream, redemption.
Homework: Chapters 27-28 (pp. 406-455).

Day Ten

FOCUS: What Makes a Great Book?
Day Ten Lesson Plan [PDF]
Activities: Explore the qualities of a great novel and the voice of a generation. Examine qualities that make Steinbeck’s novel successful. Have students review each other's paper outlines or drafts.
Homework: Finish essays.