Beowulf Bundle with 3 Leveled Text Options + Side-by-Side Questions
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Description
My first year of teaching, I was given several sections of senior English and told that I had to teach Beowulf. Since senior English is a graduation requirement in my state, this was a daunting task. Over the years, I tried different versions and translations of Beowulf: the Gummere, the Heaney, and the Raffel. Each had its strengths, but none quite matched what I wanted or my students needed.
Eventually, I realized that part of my frustration was that Beowulf is a complex text, and I had too many students reading at too many levels for them all to find success with the exact same translation.
- some students needed a heavily modified and abridged text;
- many students were ready for an intermediate version;
- and my honors students were prepared for an advanced translation.
To that end, I have assembled 3 versions of Beowulf designed to meet the needs of diverse learners. Each version of the text has been modified or abridged in some way, including the addition of side-by-side questions. And all three are included in this bundle!
The texts can be mixed and matched to fit the needs of your students. Students using the beginner version will likely benefit from guided reading groups while students using the intermediate version are likely ready for partner or small group reading and students using the advanced version are likely ready or independent work.
To help you navigate planning for a unit as long as this, I have included my unit planner! When I was a new teacher, I could not have juggled 3 different versions of the text, so I put this unit planner together to show you how I make this work! At the end of the day, this is just suggested pacing, but it's what I wish someone had given me as a new teacher!
With the Beowulf Bundle, you get all 16 parts of Beowulf, each of which comes in 3 different reading levels (beginner, intermediate, and advanced). Each part comes with a fillable .pdf! The first part is free so you can decide if this resource is for you! Check them all out today:
Part 1: Prologue *free*
Part 2: Heorot and Grendel
Part 3: Beowulf Sets Sails
Part 4: The Coastal Warden
Part 5: Meeting Hrothgar
Part 6: Unferth's Quarrel
Part 7: Fighting Grendel
Part 8: The Feast of Joy
Part 9: Grendel's Mother Attacks
Part 10: The Fight with Grendel's Mother
Part 11: Hrothgar Honors Beowulf
Part 12: Beowulf Returns Home
Part 13: The Dragon Enraged
Part 14: Beowulf's Last Boast
Part 15: Beowulf Fights the Dragon
Part 16: The Death of Beowulf
To help students tackle CCRA.7 and CCRA.9, each "part" also includes an activity that asks students to synthesize across the three different translations, comparing and contrasting the author and translator's choices.
Additionally, the Beowulf Bundle comes with everything you need for this unit:
Beowulf Unit Planner: As a new teacher, I really struggled with how to pace my Beowulf unit, so I put together a free unit planner to show exactly how I would pace this unit now. This is the resource I wish I had as a new teacher!
Visualizing Beowulf: I have long found CCRA.7 to be a challenging standard, so I have compiled these visual representations of scenes from Beowulf. With this resource, students can analyze how artists and writers use different strategies to produce similar reactions! This is a great tool for helping students synthesize across mediums!
Beowulf Family Trees: The family trees in Beowulf are intricate, so I use this resource to help students keep track of everyone! I've included a blank version and a completed option, so you can decide how you want to use this with your students!
Beowulf Writing Journals: Helping students connect with a text as old as Beowulf can be tricky, which is where these journals come in handy! With these journals, students can practice writing skills while also finding meaningful connections with the text!
Free Beowulf Anticipation Guide: This is the perfect way to begin this unit! Get students engaged with themes and ideas that appear throughout the text with this ready-to-print freebie!
Beowulf Background Notes and Stations: Building context before reading Beowulf is important, especially since the text has its own vocabulary (thane, scope, kenning, etc.). With these notes and stations, students can learn everything they need before reading this epic poem!
Hero and Antihero Think Sheet: To help students learn about archetypes, I have included this easy-to-use think sheet. This is perfect to use when analyzing Grendel and Beowulf!
If you were to purchase each item in this bundle separately, you would spend more than $57.82, but with the bundle, you will save $12, which is like getting 3 parts of Beowulf for free! Plus, the bundle also comes with ready-to-use writing prompts and an easy-to-use rubric!
Most of the resources in this bundle are fillable .pdfs, but the Background Notes, Visualizing Activity, Journals, and Anticipation Guide have Google Drive components. This means that TPT will create a folder in your Google Drive where you will find these resources!
Check out more resources for teaching epic heroes!
2 Coat of Arms Writing Activities
30 Characterization Task Cards
Hero and Antihero Think Sheet
The Odyssey Ultimate Bundle
Keep in touch and get more great ideas for teaching secondary ELA!
Read more about how to get students writing from day one at Moore English; check out these related posts:
-First Week Writing Ideas
-Analyze Test Data in 6 Steps
-Using Student Data Professionally
-Sharing Student Data with Parents
-3 Secrets for Goal Setting in Secondary
-8 Myths to Overcome in Teaching Writing
-Data-Driven, Student-Centered Conversations
Credit for Comments
Thank you for downloading this product. I’d love your feedback, and for each rating and comment you provide, TpT will give you credit toward a future purchase! Login in to your TpT account, click My Purchases, and beside each purchase, you’ll find a link to Provide Feedback! Rate, comment, and earn TpT credit! Let me know how you use this product in your classroom, what resources I should work on next, and ideas you have for Moore English
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