The Namesake Novel Study Unit | Senior English Literary Analysis | Jhumpa Lahiri

A comprehensive Senior English teaching unit for The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri, featuring a 10-week sequence of engaging, activity-based lessons focused on analytical writing and critical thinking. This resource supports students in exploring identity, migration, cultural belonging, family expectations, and the experience of navigating multiple worlds.

What’s included
• Analysis of context, themes, characters, and cultural assumptions
• Exploration of migration, diaspora, identity formation, and cultural hybridity
• Language features, text structures, symbolism, and figurative language analysis
• Study of narrative voice, character development, and generational conflict
• Close reading and comprehension tasks
• Essay questions, analytical writing support, and exemplar paragraphs
• Peer and self-assessment activities
• A 10-week teaching sequence with 3 learning activities per week
• Engaging, classroom-ready activities throughout

Teaching approach
This resource is activity-based rather than a scripted lesson-by-lesson program. It is designed for teachers to select and adapt tasks to suit their own lessons and classroom needs. The unit emphasises discussion, interpretation, collaborative learning, and rich analytical activities rather than worksheet-driven instruction.

File info
• Provided as a non-editable PDF
• Not designed as an editable PowerPoint
How to use
• Upload to your LMS (Google Classroom, Canvas, etc.) for digital use
• Print selected pages for classroom use
• Display pages to guide discussion and activities
• Upload to presentation or design platforms if you wish to adapt for your own use (formatting may vary depending on the program used)