Unit Map and Teacher Overview
Essential Question
What does a journey teach you about yourself and the meaning of home?
Guiding Questions
What is a journey? (Week 1)
What makes a place a home? (Week 2)
This unit is organized by both subject and date, in a calendar that follows. You can choose to use some or all of the lessons presented here.
| Week 1 - What is a Journey? |
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | |
| Journey to Topaz Reading and Discussion Questions A | Excerpts from Chapters 1-2 A1 | Excerpts from Chapters 3-4 A2 | Excerpts from Chapters 5-6 A3 | Excerpts from Chapters 7-8 A4 | Excerpts from Chapters 9-10 A5 |
| Journal Writing Prompts B | Describe yourself and your family. How are you similar to and different from Yuki and her family? | If you had to pack your most precious belongings in a suitcase like Yuki, what would you take? Why? B2 | Describe a journey you have taken. B3 | Write about someone who is a friend. What do you like to do together? How do you help each other? B4 | If you had to leave and go on a journey, what would you miss most? Why? B5 |
| Word Skills C | Vocabulary and Spelling List for Week 1 C1 | Proper Adjectives C2 | Euphemisms C3 | Vocabulary Book C4 | Vocabulary and Spelling Test, Week 1 C5 |
| Reading Comprehension D | Reading Graphs and Statistics D1 | Reading Haiku D2 | Interpreting Political Cartoons D3 | Reading the Poetry of Lawson Fusao Inada D4 | Reading Charts and Statistics D5 |
| Social Studies E | a) Early Prejudice and Discrimination Ea1b) Pearl Harbor E1b | When Liberty and Justice Failed E2 | Cause and Effect E3 | WWII and the Home Front Timeline E4 | Map of Camp sites E5 |
| Visual Arts F | Journal F1 | Family F2 | The Mess Hall F3 | Morning Glories F4 | Journey F5 |
| Extra Suggested Reading G | A Promise Kept F1 | The Bracelet G2 | Suggested Reading and Resources for Further Lessons G3 | Suggested Reading and Resources for Further Lessons G4 | Suggested Reading and Resources for Further Lessons G5 |
| Week 2 - What makes a place a home? |
| Journey to Topaz Reading and Discussion Questions A | Excerpts from Chapters 11-12 A6 | Excerpts from Chapters 13-14 A7 | Excerpts from Chapters 15-16 A8 | Excerpts from Chapter 17 A9 | Conclusion A10 |
| Journal Writing Prompts B | Describe your home. What are your favorite things about your home? B6 | Write about a sad time in your life. How did others help you? B7 | Write about a time you had to goodbye to something or someone. how did you feel? B8 | Describe what it would be like if you were like Yuki, starting all over again on a new journey. B9 | Think about Yuki's journey in the book. What do journeys teach us about ourselves and our homes? B10 |
| Word Skills C | Vocabulary and Spelling List for Week 2 C6 | Writing a Friendly Letter C7 | Cubing C8 | Connect Two C9 | Vocabulary and Spelling Test, Week 2 C10 |
| Reading Comprehension D | Reading Weather Facts D6 | Letters from the Camps D7 | Daniel Inouye D8 | Under One Flag: A Year at Rohwer D9 | Students' Portfolio Presentation D10 |
| Social Studies E | Climate Comparison: Desert E6 | Camp Experience E7 | Photographs E8 | Role Playing E9 | George Takei Visits Rohwer E10 |
| Visual Arts F | Home F6 | A Gift F7 | Mother and Child F8 | The Caged Bird Sings of Freedom F9 | Student Portfolio Presentations F10 |
| Extra Suggested Reading G | Suggested Reading and Resources for Further Lessons G6 | Suggested Reading and Resources for Further Lessons G7 | Suggested Reading and Resources for Further Lessons G8 | Suggested Reading and Resources for Further Lessons G9 | Suggested Reading and Resources for Further Lessons G10 |
Download the Entire Journey Home Curriculum (PDF)
Use the following links to download sections of the Journey Home Curriculum.
Title and Table of Contents
Introduction and Content Overview Essay
A: Journey to Topaz Reading and Discussion Questions
C: Word Skills (Vocabulary, Spelling and Grammar) C1-C5 | C6-C10
D: Reading Comprehension D1-D2 | D3-D4 | D5-D10
E: Social Studies E1-E4 | E5 | E6 | E7 | E8 | E8 continued | E9-E10
F: Visual Arts F1 | F2 | F3 | F4 | F5 | F6 | F7 | F8 | F9-F10 | F10 continued
Each section contains a list of daily lesson plans, as well as the Arkansas curriculum frameworks to which it applies. The culminating assessment for this unit is a portfolio, in which students collect samples of their work over the two weeks. An assignment sheet and scoring rubric are provided in the Portfolio Assignment download.
*The banner photo shows Japanese American school children sit around a table coloring while Japanese American teacher looks on at Jerome Relocation Center [courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration].