BHS ELA Instructional Guide

Sample Theme

Sample Essential Questions

●​ How does literature reflect and/or comment on political and social issues? ●​ What is the difference between equity and equality? ●​ How does education and learning affect equity and disparity? ●​ How can individuals and societies protect human rights and dignity? ●​ How does accessibility affect equity and disparity? ●​ How does the author’s point of view impact their argument? ●​ “Radium Girls: The Women Who Fought for Their Lives in a Killer Workplace” by Don Vaughan ●​ Flesh and Blood So Cheap by Albert Marrin ●​ “On Dumpster Diving” by Lar Eighner ●​ “The U.S. men's and women's soccer teams will be paid equally under a new deal” by Joe Hernandez ●​ “Why Women Apologize and Should Stop” by Sloane Crosley ●​ “Social Media Changing The Nature Of Activism?” by NPR ●​ “The Perils of Indifference” by Elie Wiesel ●​ “A 105-mile-long city will snake through the Saudi desert. Is that a good idea?” by Bill Chappell ●​ “How it Feels to be Colored Me” by Zora Neale Hurston ●​ “Teens are using TikTok to talk about difficult issues” by Philadelphia Inquirer (Newsela) ●​ “Teenagers are rewriting the rules of the news” by The Economist (Newsela) Media Texts ●​ Miley Cyrus 2014 VMA Video of the Year Speech ●​ The Miniature Earth . 2010 edition ●​ What is Health Equity? By Health Equity Institute ●​ Global Wealth Inequality by The RulesOrg ●​ What does adulthood mean? How/when does one “adult”? ●​ What does it mean to be mature? ●​ What does it mean to be a responsible adult? ●​ Are mature adults responsible? ●​ How do personal choices help or hinder your transition to adulthood? ●​ How do we grow up by adapting to our environment? ●​ How do you navigate the journey from adolescence to adulthood? ●​ “Today’s Exhausted Superkids” by Frank Bruni, The New York Times ●​ “The Teen Brain: It's Just Not Grown Up Yet” by Richard Knox, NPR ●​ “The teenage brain” by Amanda Leigh Mascarelli, Science News Explorers ●​ “The rocky road to adulthood” by Anne Byrne Media Text ●​ This I Believe Essays and Audio ●​ Why 30 is not the new 20 by Meg Jay (Ted-Ed) Informational Texts Sample Essential Questions Informational Texts

Equity and Disparity

Literary Texts

Novels ●​ The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot ●​ Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds ●​ Uprising by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Sample Theme

Transition to Adulthood

Literary Texts

Novels ●​ Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom ●​ The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho Poetry ●​ “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” by Dylan Thomas ●​ “To An Athlete” by AE Housman ●​ “When I Consider How My Light is Spent” by John Milton

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Last Updated

High School ELA, Page 113

Jun 4, 2026