Goals:

The students will be able to identify similarities and differences between the story of the Titanic told in the book A Night to Remember, by Walter Lord and in the film A Night to Remember.

The students will work in a cooperatively within a group and communicate effectively with the class.

Materials:

Lord, Walter. (1955). A Night to Remember. New York: Henry Holt and Company.

Video: A Night to Remember

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Time:

This lesson will take about three hours.

Procedure:

1.  The students take out their journal entries they had written from the past two weeks on the book A Night to Remember and review them.

2.  Hold a ten minute class discussion about events which happened earlier in the book so that the students recall events which they may have forgotten.

3.  Tell the students to jot down differences between the stories, events which were left out, or events that were added as they watch the movie. Also have them take note of the characters who may have been added, deleted, or combined.

4.  Begin the two hour movie A Night to Remember.

5.  After the movie is over have the students get into groups of 4-5 people.

6.  Within groups the students will discuss their findings and make a list of the similarities and the differences between the book and the movie.

7.  After about twenty minutes, the class reconvenes and each group presents one of their findings.

Assessment:

The students must find similarities and differences between the two sources. Criteria for success: Each group must have at least five similarities and five differences.

The students will do a peer evaluation of each other using the peer evaluation form. Criteria for success: Students must get a positive evaluation from the majority of the group.

Curricular Strands and Major Concepts:

Language Arts - using communication skills; learning how to compare and contrast

History - seeing the story of the Titanic in its historical nature

Possible Extensions:

Have the students explore other books and movies which tell the same story such as:
 
Lewis, C. S. (1970). The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. New York: Collier.

Montgomery, L. M. (1992). Anne of Green Gables. New York: Bantam.
 

Have the students take scenes from the book which were not in the movie and act them out in class.

Bibliography:

Lord, Walter. A Night to Remember. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1955.

The Titanic - developed by Kelly Coleman, Nikki Cosgrove, Megan Mills, & Dorothy Weber

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This page submitted by St. Norbert College Ocean Voyagers Program.