George Orwell's Animal Farm Book Club
In this 4-week book club, students will read and discuss George Orwell's political satire Animal Farm
Janelle Fila
Average rating:
4.6
Number of reviews:(903)
Star Educator
What's included
4 pre-recorded lessons
4 weeks
of teacher support1 year access
to the contentHomework
1-2 hours per week. Students will read approximately 30 pages a week on their own time. Each Sunday, students will have access to the new video and a corresponding one page worksheet with discussion questions and places for fill-in-the blank answers. Each week, I assign a short writing assignment focused around that week's discussion questions and ask the students to share their responses in the classroom. There are also daily activities each day like vocabulary words and a weekly Kahoot! quiz to test their comprehension from the weekly chapters.Assessment
The more questions, comments, and posts that students share in the classroom, the more I can understand their knowledge and comprehension of the topics we are discussing.Grading
Please let me know if grades are required.Class Experience
US Grade 8 - 11
Animal Farm by George Orwell is a satirical allegory about the corruption and abuse of political power. This novel is often required reading for a lot of high school students. It is the perfect book for group discussion and analysis because Orwell's use of allegory and symbolism can be hard to appreciate and understand when reading alone. We will also tie into historical references regarding World War II and the birth of Soviet Russia. Students will read approximately 30 pages a week on their own time. Each week a new video will discuss the pages that the students have previously read. This class does not meet live. The prerecorded sessions will emphasize characters, their motivations, theme, story plausibility, and inferences about what might come next. We will also refer to any symbolism within the story and discuss what the author intended to represent with those symbols. Students will have access to a video that covers the important elements of the week's reading and a corresponding one page worksheet with discussion questions and places for fill-in-the blank answers. The worksheets will also address/remind the students of some of the important topics from each chapter. I assign a short writing assignment focused around that week's discussion questions and ask the students to share their responses in the classroom (so other students may view, comment, and interact as well). I also ask students to submit any vocabulary words the students didn't recognize or passages the students did not understand. The more questions the students ask, the more "discussion" we can have in the classroom after each chapter. Weekly breakdown: Students will receive a worksheet and discussion questions for each weekly video. There is one weekly writing assignment to complete after the weekly readings. I will post a vocabulary word from the weekly reading for the students to use in a sentence that showcases their understanding of the definition. I post a link to an Animal Farm themed Kahoot! the students can fill out to further immerse themselves in this world. Students can share their score in the classroom to share their experience with their classmates. Kahoot! is a free resource. Students with testing anxiety can disregard this optional activity.
Learning Goals
Week One Chapters 1-3
Week Two Chapters 4-6
Week Three Chapters 7-8
Week Four Chapters 9-10
Syllabus
4 Lessons
over 4 WeeksLesson 1:
Chapters 1-3
Video, worksheet, writing assignment, vocabulary, and Kahoot! review quiz over Chapters 1-3 Lesson 2:
Chapters 4-6
Video, worksheet, writing assignment, vocabulary, and Kahoot! review quiz over Chapters 4-6 Lesson 3:
Chapters 7-8
Video, worksheet, writing assignment, vocabulary, and Kahoot! review quiz over Chapters 7-8 Lesson 4:
Chapters 9-10
Video, worksheet, writing assignment, vocabulary, and Kahoot! review quiz over Chapters 9-10 Other Details
Parental Guidance
From commonsensemedia.org: Parents need to know that Animal Farm is a biting satire of totalitarianism, written in the wake of World War II and published amid the rise of Soviet Russia. Although it tells a fairly simple story of barnyard animals trying to manage themselves after rebelling against their masters, the novel demonstrates how easily good intentions can be subverted into tyranny.
Supply List
The students will need a copy of Animal Farm to read on their own. It can be borrowed from the library or even listened to as an audio book. The students will not need a physical copy of the story in class, although they may find it helpful to have while filling out their worksheets or working on their writing assignment.
External Resources
In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:
Joined June, 2019
4.6
903reviews
Star Educator
Teacher expertise and credentials
Master's Degree in Music or Theatre or Arts from Spalding University
I have a Master's Degree in Creative Writing for Children and Young Adults. I was a substitute teacher for three years before teaching full-time on Outschool for multiple years. I also teach English Composition at my local technical college. I have been blessed to discuss Animal Farm in the classroom many times, including my own high school reading experience! This was my first exposure to foreign politics as a teenager and helped open my eyes to issues within political systems. I found concepts and ideas that I wanted to learn more about and continue discussing. I remember feeling very grown up as I studied this story. As an adult, I have reread this book multiple times because I learn something new every time I am exposed to this story. It is an excellent book to discuss because there are so many lies, half-truths, and cover ups to analyze. I am excited to read it alongside your student to see what emotions, feelings, and gut reactions Animal Farm stirs up for them.Reviews
Self-Paced Course
$10
weekly or $40 for all content4 pre-recorded lessons
4 weeks of teacher support
Choose your start date
1 year of access to the content
Completed by 21 learners
Choose your start date
Ages: 13-18
