Miller’s themes of group-think, powerful teenage girls, personal revenge, and forbidden love make The Crucible a play that is especially timely today. Students will quickly realize how much this play speaks to questions and ideas that are central to their lives. However, if you don't have a unit that focuses on the most essential elements of each scene, your students will be confused and frustrated and fail to understand what they can learn from this classic text. You'll be wasting your time and theirs and the only thing you'll teach your students is how boring literature is. (Trust me, I've been there!) I've spent so much time over the years working to understand how best to teach this book, and after much hard work, I've figured it out so you don't have to. Honed over years of teaching, this 60-page guide to The Crucible will insure that your students get what they need from this short masterpiece. When you teach The Crucible with this unit you will: Let your students slowly start to grapple with the text by using the no-prep handouts—first with your help, and then more and more on their own—until they are fully confident reading the language independently. Have ready-made plans for each class period when you follow the pacing guidelines which break the text into manageable sections, starting off slowly and then reading more as your students gain in confidence. Enjoy reading the play out loud in class, so that your students can more fully experience the drama. Get a deeper understanding of the key themes and focuses of each chapter with the extensive explanations and answer keys so that you can help your students better understand the play. Enable your classes to understand how literary devices work to create meaning in a text when they analyze Miller’s artistry using the questions for close reading. Get to know your students on a deeper level when you work through the book together. Challenge your students to question their own assumptions about power, gender, sexuality and group dynamics when they grapple with the discussion questions included for each scene. Easily assess your students' understanding of the play with the no-prep quizzes and test. Help the next generation to more fully appreciate the nuances of the American experience. There are no lectures or power points here—students will do the work themselves, with guidance from you. Rather than telling them what the play means, you will be empowering them with the confidence and skills to tackle a challenging text on their own. You’re going to love teaching The Crucible this year.