Invisible Man

For about 2 years I have been actively creating and selling products on Teachers Pay Teachers. Using lessons and units I have taught over the course of several years, I have been able to make a small amount of money through my store. At this point, given my small successes, I am taking it up a notch to find new ways to share and connect with teachers who are doing their best to create authentic and meaningful educational experiences for their students. 

My most successful product is my Invisible Man 8-week unit plan, and, in fact, likely one of the best units I teach. Four years ago, I went to a seminar through the NEH that focused on integrating existentialism in the classroom. Smartypants from all across the country came to read Sartre and while I was initially in WAY over my head, I learned a lot, and was able to integrate my Invisible Man unit with Camus' The Stranger, Thoreau's Walden, and Hesse's Siddhartha. I taught this to my IB Literature HL 1 students, and the whole kit and caboodle has been a great success. 

My students are not private school or prep school students, they are public (magnet) high school students in a large East Coast city. Some come extremely prepared for reading, analysis, and writing at this level, but others need a lot of support. Still, the quality of Invisible Man as a literary text is an amazing way to start the year, and the relevance of existentialism to a bunch of teenagers remains significant, year after year. 

I am excited to share what I learn with others, and if I can be of any help to other teachers, I will be happy. These past few years have been difficult, and I know that we are all quite stressed, so anything we can do to help each other is valuable.