Informational Text Lectures

NEW IN 2020: Rigorous! Engaging! Thought-provoking! This EDITABLE slideshow will kindle a fascination with Fitzgerald's novel before your students even crack the cover of The Great Gatsby. Open your unit on Fitzgerald's masterpiece with this powerful 41-slide PowerPoint SLIDESHOW presentation on the life of F. Scott Fitzgerald's and the culture of 1920s America called "The Road to Gatsby: A Slideshow on F. Scott Fitzgerald and the Roaring Twenties."

While this slideshow can be downloaded for free, it is meant to be accompanied by a 9-page LECTURE that you can preview and/or purchase for $1.99 by clicking HERE!!

Here's a quick glimpse into each of the four sections featured in the slideshow:

• Part I. The Artist as a Young Man: This section features photographs of Fitzgerald from his childhood in Minnesota, his college years at Princeton, his military training at Camp Sheridan, and his romantic courtship of Zelda Sayre in Montgomery, Alabama. Your students will be fascinated by the parallels between Fitzgerald's life and Jay Gatsby's upbringing, military training, and romantic life. After all, it is only because Gatsby is wearing his military uniform — which erases the signs of his class status — that he can get close to Daisy Faye! (13 slides)

• Part II. New York in the Artistic Imagination: This section features photographs and paintings of the rapidly changing skyline of New York in the 1920s. Photographs by Alfred Stiegliz reveal how 5-story brownstones were replaced by 50-story skyscrapers. Paintings by Georgia O'Keefe and Howard Thain reveal how the invention of electric lights imbued the cityscape with color and romantic allure. (7 slides)

• Part III. The Characters as Readers: This section will not only prepare students to catch the literary allusions in The Great Gatsby but will get students thinking about what the books that various characters are reading might reveal about their personalities. What does his interest in Horatio Alger's rags-to-riches novels reveal about the character of Jay Gatsby? What does his interest in Lothrop Stoddard's The Rising Tide of Color reveal about the racist and xenophobic views of Tom Buchanan? (7 slides)

• Part IV. Drafting The Great Gatsby: This section features photographs of the mansions and parties that Scott and Zelda attended on Long Island in 1923. It also features Fitzgerald's handwritten drafts of the first and last pages of his novel, a list of the six titles that Fitzgerald rejected (plus the title he actually preferred but requested after the book had gone to print), and the painting by Fancis Cugat that Fitzgerald selected for the cover of The Great Gatsby. (12 slides)

This slideshow will come to you in a 41-slide EDITABLE PowerPoint presentation which you can customize to the needs of your students! The 9-page EDITABLE lecture accompanying the slideshow can be previewed and/or purchased for $1.99 by clicking HERE. (Sellers are only able to upload one document per TeachShare product, so I've had to upload the lecture under a separate product listing. Apologies in advance for the inconvenience). As a bonus for purchasing the lecture, you'll also get a Spotify playlist of the songs that characters listen to in The Great Gatsby.

Thank you for choosing “Rigorous Resources”!!

Happy teaching!

Adam Jernigan, Ph.D.

adamjernigan@gmail.com

Note: This slideshow and lecture also included in my Gatsby MEGA-Bundle. The bundle contains everything you'll need to deliver amazing and comprehensive lessons on Fitzgerald's novel: over 40 slides and over 240 pages of content-rich handouts and activities. If you've already purchased the bundle, you don't need to purchase this slideshow. Thanks!

Click to view the Gatsby MEGA-Bundle

Click to view my TeachShare store

Dive deep into the history of racial segregation in the United States with this comprehensive lesson on Jim Crow laws. Students will explore the origins, implementation, and impact of these laws that shaped American society for decades.

What is included:

• Article: Provide students with background knowledge about the origin of Jim Crow.
• Engaging Worksheet: Critical thinking questions and activities that reinforce learning and encourage deeper understanding.
• Reflective Writing Prompts: Encourage students to connect historical events to their own lives and today's world.

Features:

• Critical Insights: Help your students understand the systemic racism that shaped much of American history.
• Interactive Learning: Dynamic content that promotes discussion and critical thinking.

This resource is for personal use in one classroom only. Please do not distribute

to others or post publically online (within your Google Classroom, etc. is

permitted). If a friend or colleague would enjoy this resource, you may

purchase additional licenses at a discounted price. The information ,activities

and images included are copyrighted. You may not reuse or sell any part of

this resource as your own. 

I would love to hear how you used this resource in your classroom. Please leave your feedback for TeachShare credits towards your next purchase.

To view more of my products, please check out my store at Nemo's Nook.