Witch House  
Salem, Massachusetts


English Language Arts DESE Frameworks
Witch House, Salem


General Standard 6: Formal and Informal English

Grades 5-8

For example, students compare selections of dialogue by various
characters in Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in order to
identify and analyze differences in language style.



General Standard 9: Making Connections



Grades 7–8

For example, students read Irene Hunt’s Across Five Aprils or Stephen
Crane’s Red Badge of Courage. In order to understand the historical
background of the work, they examine Matthew Brady’s photographs
from the Civil War, read excerpts from various soldiers’ diaries and
letters, and study Julia Ward Howe’s “Battle Hymn of the Republic”
and other Civil War songs. Then they relate what they learn to events,
settings, and characters from the book.

For example, students read The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel
Hawthorne. In order to deepen their understanding of the early
colonial period and of Puritan beliefs, they read poems by Anne
Bradstreet, transcripts of witch trials in Salem, “Sinners in the Hands of
an Angry God,” by Jonathan Edwards (a sermon written during the
Great Awakening), and excerpts from several colonial-era diaries
(Judge Sewall, William Byrd III, Mary Rowlandson). Then students
relate what they have learned to events, characters, and themes in The
Scarlet Letter.



For example, students read Matthew Arnold’s poem, “Dover Beach.” In
order to understand the 19th century controversy over the implications
of evolutionary theory, they read letters, essays, and excerpts from the
period. Then they use what they have learned to inform their
understanding of the poem and write an interpretive essay.





General Standard 10: Genre

Grades 5-6



Grades 7–8

For example, students read Anne Frank’s Diary of a Young Girl and the
play based on it. After analyzing the differences between them,
students take excerpts from the diary not used in the play, create a
scene, and perform it.





Suggested Authors:

Grade 5-8

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Grades 9-12

Playwright : Arthur Miller