Langston Hughes: Poems Lesson Plan

A Raisin in the Sun

Kind of Activity:

Mixed Media

Objective:

Students will watch a film version of Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun—named after Hughes's "Harlem (2)"—and will identify why the play was named after Hughes's poem.

Common Core Standards:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.3, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.2, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.7

Structure:

Have students watch a film version of Lorraine Hansberry's play A Raisin in the Sun. There is a 1961 adaptation and a 2008 adaptation available. Before watching the film, write the phrase "a raisin in the sun" on the board, and have students find the poem from which it comes. After they have...