Lessons

Grade 7

Lesson

1

:

Learning Courage from Literature

Lesson
1
:

Learning Courage from Literature

Grade

Grade 7

UNIT

5

•

Courage

Last Updated:

June 10, 2025

In Unit 5, Lesson 1, “Learning Courage from Literature,” students will learn examples of courage from a contemporary work of young adult literature, I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys. Students will develop their reading comprehension, critical thinking, and writing skills by answering questions about the text. Additionally, students will develop their academic dialogue skills by participating in class discussions.

Copy to Drive

Download PDF

Copy to Drive

Download PDF

SUGGESTED TIME:

  • 1 class period to introduce the text; 1 class period to discuss the text; if desired, additional class periods can be devoted to in-class silent reading of the text  
  • I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys is 310 pages, divided into 80 very short chapters.
  • The suggested reading assignment is 8 chapters daily for either in-class silent reading or homework. 
  • With this schedule, students will complete the book in 10 in-class reading sessions or 10 homework sessions.
  • Students should complete the short-answer questions on the worksheet as they read the book. 
  • Allow at least 50 minutes for in-class discussion of the short-answer questions on the worksheet.

‍

RELATED SUBJECT:

English Language Arts

‍

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

  • Read a contemporary work of young adult literature 
  • Identify and analyze the book’s genre, point of view, characters, setting, and plot 
  • Identify and analyze the book’s central ideas 
  • Write answers to questions about the book, demonstrating understanding of standard English sentence structure and grammar   
  • Engage effectively in collaborative discussions about the book

‍

REQUIRED MATERIALS:

‍

‍

ELA COMMON CORE STANDARDS MET

‍

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.7.1

Cite several pieces of textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

✔

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.7.2

Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text; provide an objective summary of the text.

✔

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.7.3

Analyze how particular elements of a story or drama interact (e.g., how setting shapes the characters or plot).

✔

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.7.4

Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of rhymes and other repetitions of sounds (e.g., alliteration) on a specific verse or stanza of a poem or section of a story or drama.

✔

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.7.10

By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 6-8 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.

✔

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.1

Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 7 topics, texts, and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.

✔

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.1.A

Come to discussions prepared, having read or researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation by referring to evidence on the topic, text, or issue to probe and reflect on ideas under discussion.

✔

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.1.B

Follow rules for collegial discussions, track progress toward specific goals and deadlines, and define individual roles as needed.

✔

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.1.C

Pose questions that elicit elaboration and respond to others' questions and comments with relevant observations and ideas that bring the discussion back on topic as needed.

✔

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.1.D

Acknowledge new information expressed by others and, when warranted, modify their own views.

✔

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.7.6

Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.

✔

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.7.1

Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.

✔

‍

‍

CHARACTER AND SOCIAL EMOTIONAL (CSED) NATIONAL STANDARDS MET

‍

Moral Character A1

Understand and explain why “white lies” often lead to bigger lies

✔

Moral Character A2

Understand and explain why it’s important to do the right thing, even when no one is looking

✔

Moral Character A3

List and explain the reasons why people sometimes lie, steal, or cheat (e.g., “everybody is doing it”)

✔

Moral Character A5

Understand and explain why caring (and helping others) should never be motivated by the likelihood of being recognized or rewarded for your help or support

✔

Moral Character A6

List and explain the reasons why people sometimes do not care or help others

✔

Civic Character A4

Explain why protest and civil disobedience are essential to the democratic process

✔

Social-Awareness A1

Experience and demonstrate empathy

✔

Social-Awareness A3

Demonstrate respect for other people’s opinions and perspectives

✔

Social-Awareness A5

Practice “perspective taking” as a strategy to strengthen your acceptance of others

✔

Social-Awareness A6

Demonstrate awareness and understanding that despite differences, all people have similar needs, feelings and wants

✔

Responsible and Ethical Decision-Making A3

Write about and share a principle you want to live by that you learned from a family member, book, movie, or personal experience

✔

‍

‍

LESSON PROCEDURE

Step 1:

‍

Step 2: 

  • Have students complete the book, I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys, either through multiple in-class silent reading sessions or as homework.
  • Students should complete the short-answer questions on the worksheet as they read the book. 

‍

Step 3: 

  • Allow at least 50 minutes for in-class discussion of the short-answer questions on the worksheet.

‍

‍

‍

‍

‍

GRADE 7 UNIT 1 WORKSHEET 1: LEARNING OPTIMISM FROM LITERATURE

‍

  • Vocabulary
  • Ceaușescu: Nicolae Ceaușescu (1918-89) was a Communist official who was the leader of Romania from 1965 until he was killed in a revolution in 1989.
  • Cult of personality: A deliberately created system of art, symbolism, and ritual centred on the institutionalized quasi-religious glorification of a specific individual.
  • Dissident: During the Soviet Union, a person who disagreed with Soviet ideology and who spoke out against it.
  • Glasnost: A Soviet policy declared by Gorbachev in the mid-1980s allowing open discussion of political and social issues and freer dissemination of news and information.
  • Iron Curtain: The political, military, and ideological barrier erected by the Soviet Union after World War II to seal off itself and its dependent eastern and central European allies from open contact with the West and other noncommunist areas.
  • Perestroika: In the former Soviet Union, the policy or practice of restructuring or reforming the economic and political system. First proposed by Leonid Brezhnev in 1979 and actively promoted by Mikhail Gorbachev, it came to entail greater awareness of economic markets and the ending of central planning.
  • Securitate: Established in Romania in 1948 by the communist regime as a Soviet-style secret political police entrusted with eliminating opponents to consolidate power, ensuring compliance to the regime, and gaining acceptance for public policies. Scholars estimate that political police employed about 14,000 full-time agents and 400,000-700,000 part-time informers from all walks of life.
  • Socialist Republic of Romania: A Marxist–Leninist one-party socialist state that existed officially in Romania from 1947 to 1989. Romania was not part of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.), but it was a satellite state of the U.S.S.R. from 1948 to 1964.
  • Soviet Union: A former northern Eurasian empire (1917/22–1991) consisting of 15 Soviet Socialist Republics: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belorussia (now Belarus), Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kirgiziya (now Kyrgyzstan), Latvia, Lithuania, Moldavia (now Moldova), Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.

‍

QUESTIONS TO ANSWER WHILE READING I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys:

  1. How did the author choose to structure this book? Explain at least three unique aspects of this novel’s structure. 

‍

  1. Who is the protagonist of this story, where does he live, and what is happening in his country at the time of the story?

‍

  1. What were the living conditions like in Romania at the time of this story? 

‍

  1. In Chapter 3, what was Bunu’s advice about power and control of the mind? 

‍

  1. How is Cristian recruited to be an informer and why does he agree to do it? 

‍

  1. What is the “double bind” that Cristian finds himself in (pg. 124)?

‍

  1. In Chapter 39-40, what is happening to nearby Communist countries? 

‍

  1. Bunu says: “We can’t join together in solidarity because we never know whom we can trust or who might be an informer” (pg. 60). What are some examples of how we see this truth play out in the book? 

‍

  1. On page 148, what is the maxim about courage and how does Cristian show courage?

‍

  1. In Chapter 46, what do we find out about Bunu’s death? 

‍

  1. Who is Cristian inspired by and what does he hope to achieve with his notebook, Screaming Whispers: An American Teenager in Bucharest? 

‍

  1. In Chapter 58, what does Cristian discover about his sister?

‍

  1. In Chapter 62, what are the demands of the people?

‍

  1. At the end of this book, what happened to Ceaușescu?

‍

  1. What do we learn in the Epilogue about Cristian’s mother? 

‍

  1. What is a principle about courage that you learned from this book, and how can you show courage in your life?

‍

Prohuman K-12 Curriculum © 2025 by Prohuman Foundation is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0.
To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

unlock all lessons:

Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.