HS ELA Guide

Sample Theme

Sample Essential Questions

●​ How did the 19th Century shape what it means to be an American? ●​ How did regionalism affect the themes, subject matter, dialect, and style of American writing in the 19th century? ●​ How did authors of the time period, particularly Mark Twain, reveal and reflect the culture and conflict of the era? ●​ How did the Civil War reshape American society, beliefs, and identity? ●​ How did the western expansion impact the country and its culture? ●​ How did the Civil War and the Reconstruction period address racism in America?. ●​ Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann ●​ “The Gettysburg Address”by Abraham Lincoln ( Mirrors and Windows , p. 298) ●​ “I Will Fight No More Forever” by Chief Joseph ( Mirrors and Windows , p. 441) ●​ “Ain’t I a Woman” by Sojourner Truth ( Mirrors and Windows , p. 465) ●​ “Up From Slavery” by Booker T. Washington ( Mirrors and Windows , p. 495) ●​ The Souls of Black Folks by W. E. B. Du Bois ( Mirrors and Windows , p. 497) Informational Texts

A Troubled Young Nation

Literary Texts

Unit 3 and 4 in Mirrors and Windows : American Tradition . Novels ●​ Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass Short Stories ●​ “To Build a Fire” by Jack London ( Mirrors and Windows , p. 418) ●​ “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin ( Mirrors and Windows , p. 481) ●​ “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman Poetry ●​ “I hear America Singing” by Walt Whitman ●​ “O Captain! My Captain!” by Walt Whitman ●​ “Ode to Walt Whitman” by Pablo Neruda ●​ “Booker T. and W. E. B.” by Dudley Randlall ( Mirrors and Windows , p. 508)

Media Texts ●​ Frederick Douglass, Crash Course ●​ “The Gettysburg Address: The Two-Minute Speech That Saved America” American Battlefield Trust

Sample Theme

Sample Essential Questions

Emerging Modernism / Twentieth Century

Emerging Modernism ●​ How did world events influence isolation and disillusionment in the early American twentieth century? ●​ How did the historical events and social issues of the 1920’s affect the country? ●​ How did the Harlem Renaissance shape the future of African American culture and civil rights? ●​ How did the changes in the Women’s movement affect politics? Twentieth Century ●​ How does postmodern text reflect change in American values and culture? ●​ How did the emergence of civil right movements affect women, African Americans and other minorities? ●​ How did the 1960’s and the Vietnam war impact the country? ●​ How have the events of the 1960’s affected the 21st century?

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Last Updated

High School ELA, Page 96

Jun 4, 2026