KAKhaemenes AcademyEnglish 9 · Unit 4
High SchoolLanguage Arts

Term II · Weeks 10–12

Unit 04

Poetry, Voice & Form

Analyze imagery, diction, figurative language, rhythm, meter, form, translation, and performance while composing an original portfolio.

Begin Week 10Unit OverviewAssessments

Essential Question

How can compressed language carry sound, image, argument, memory, and emotion?

Text and Source Family

Public-domain poetry by Shakespeare, Dickinson, Whitman, Dunbar, Bashō, Li Bai in approved translation, and other global poets.

Learning Priorities

  • Read closely and cite precise textual evidence.
  • Write through planning, drafting, feedback, revision, editing, and reflection.
  • Use language conventions and vocabulary as tools for meaning and style.
  • Discuss, present, listen, question, and respond with intellectual fairness.
  • Preserve major work in the Grade 9 portfolio.

Unit 4 required reading · The Witness at the Bridge

Original Khaemenes Academy passage for Grade 9; available offline.

From his upstairs window, Theo saw someone hurry across the bridge just before the lights failed. He later told his friends the stranger had caused the blackout.

A repair report revealed a damaged wire, but it did not identify the stranger. Theo revised his account: he had seen a crossing and a blackout close together, not proof that one caused the other.

Focus: Argument. Read twice. Underline two specific details, explain how they support or complicate an interpretation, and write an evidence-based paragraph relevant to this unit's focus. Keep the paragraph in your existing portfolio; revisit it during Weeks 10–12.

Unit reading-response assessment · 100 points

After completing the unit reading, submit a response in the existing portfolio. Your teacher can use this rubric for feedback; this page does not automatically change your grade or mastery status.

Reading response scoring guide
CriterionPointsWhat strong work demonstrates
Comprehension20Accurately explains the text without inventing details.
Textual evidence25Uses specific, accurately contextualized quotations or details.
Interpretation25Explains how evidence supports a nuanced interpretation and acknowledges uncertainty.
Writing clarity15Organizes claims and reasoning in clear, precise language.
Revision15Demonstrates a meaningful change after review and explains why it improves the work.

Process: Read and annotate → draft → check quotations → seek feedback → revise → preserve both drafts. If a reading is a brief instructional microtext, also complete the course's longer assigned literature; the microtext does not replace it.

Three-Week Sequence

Read, analyze, compose, and demonstrate.

Week 10

Image, Diction & Figurative Language

How does a poet make an idea sensuous and memorable?

denotation, connotation, and word families
Open Week
Week 11

Sound, Rhythm & Form

How do sound and structure create expectation and emphasis?

syntax for emphasis and purposeful inversion
Open Week
Week 12

Comparison, Translation & Performance

What is gained, changed, or contested when poetry is translated and performed?

punctuation as a guide to voice and pace
Open Week

Performance Evidence

Four-poem portfolio, comparative analysis, and formal oral reading.

Students submit planning, one meaningful draft, feedback or conference notes, the finished product, and a short reflection explaining the strongest revision.

Add to PortfolioOpen RubricsDraft in PROSE

Standards Emphasis

Measured through authentic work.

  • RL.9-10.4–7
  • W.9-10.3–5
  • SL.9-10.4–6
  • L.9-10.3–5