Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing is an excellent addition to AP Literature and American Literature classes, so long as you’ve read it cover to cover and know that it is something your department and community will support. There are scenes of physical and sexual violence, as well as sexually explicit scenes that you should be aware of. If you’ve decided to teach the novel this year, you already know that this powerful novel doesn’t just tell a straightforward story – it weaves together generations of experience, trauma, and resilience in a way that captivates students and creates opportunities for deep, meaningful learning. If you’ve ever read Alex Haley’s Roots, you’ll recognize many parallels. This modern novel, Homegoing, is a new classic for a reason!
Understanding the Novel’s Core At its heart, Homegoing is about family, ancestry, home, and the ways the past echoes through generations. The novel’s unique structure – alternating between the two family lines descended from Maame – allows students to trace how displacement, violence, colonialism, slavery, and systemic racism affect each generation in ways that are similar and unique. Through this narrative approach, students discover how family secrets and unresolved traumas ripple through time, but also how understanding and acknowledging the past can begin the healing process.
Setting the Foundation I begin our unit with essential context. Students read about the novel’s origins, historical background, and unique structure, along with information about Yaa Gyasi herself. This foundation proves invaluable as we move into our anticipation activity, where students engage with agree/disagree statements about key themes like family, ancestry, displacement, home, and belonging. These discussions set the stage for the deep exploration to come! Make sure you include some kind of anticipation activity and background reading to ensure everyone has the knowledge he or she needs frontloaded & to prepare students for the key themes you want them to focus on as they read!
Daily Reading and Discussion Our daily routine is carefully structured to maximize engagement and understanding. Students read one chapter each night, preparing for next day’s in-depth discussion. The 140 chapter questions I’ve developed (8-13 per chapter) guide us through key literary elements:
- Theme development
- Character evolution
- Setting and historical context
- Narrative structure and point of view
- Symbolism (the black stone pendant, fire, water, scars)
- Figurative language
These questions align with Common Core Reading Literature Standards RL 1-6 for grades 11-12, ensuring rigorous literary analysis while maintaining student engagement. If you are familiar with AP Literature, they also match up with the “Big Ideas” 1-6!
You can find my reading questions here 🙂
Discussion Strategies That Work Variety keeps our discussions fresh and engaging. I rotate between:
- Socratic seminars
- Fishbowl discussions
- TQE (Thoughts, Questions, Epiphanies)
- Gallery walks
- Small group work with class share-outs
Click here to read more about discussion strategies!
I also use a PowerPoint version of discussion questions to help keep us focused and organized. Teachers can use whatever discussion strategies and activities they like best, or they can use the Chapter Reading Questions (which you can make up yourself, or grab just that one part of my Homegoing unit ) as homework, individual work, or small group assignments! They can also serve as a study guide or as prep for reading quizzes.
Personal Connections Through Journaling The second half of each class period during this unit is devoted to journaling, and whatever time students have left can be used to start reading the next chapter, which will be their homework for the night. For their journals, students choose one out of four prompts per chapter, allowing them to connect with aspects of the text that resonate most personally. These 10-minute writing sessions aren’t about right or wrong answers – they’re opportunities for students to process emotional connections and relate the text to their own experiences. I grade these for engagement and completion, creating a safe space for personal reflection.
If you’d like my journal prompts, you can see previews & grab them here.
Keeping Students on Track Regular reading check quizzes (every 2-4 chapters) help ensure students keep pace with assignments while highlighting any areas needing clarification. I use a flexible format (multiple choice, true/false, or short answer) because it allows me to adapt assessments to our schedule while maintaining accountability. Often, I give them the entire quiz for each chapter, but other times, I’ll just do the true/false if we are short on time & it’s a quick entrance ticket.
Culminating Essays We end the unit with a week of focused essay writing. Students choose from six diverse prompts covering themes and authorial choices, and I’ve included in my unit materials options for both timed and formal essays, depending on what skills teachers want to focus on. For AP teachers, it may be best to practice timed essay writing, while English 11/12 or American Lit teachers may wish to emphasize formal writing and MLA citation, in which case the typed essay version of the directions is more appropriate. If I’m doing formal essays, I have an accompanying PowerPoint to guide students through the entire writing process – from prompt selection to final revision – with specific instruction on MLA citation and using textual evidence effectively. (This is also included in the full unit!)
Why This Unit Works: My Homegoing unit is ideal for AP Literature, English 11/12, and American Literature courses because the unit allows teachers to…
- Address multiple standards (RL 1-6, W1, W2, W4, W9, and SL 1)
- Align with AP Literature Big Ideas
- Work with students to identify and analyze accessible yet profound symbolism and figurative language
- Create natural opportunities for improving critical thinking
- Encourage democratic discussion skills
- Teach something that connects deeply with students’ own experiences and questions about identity, belonging, history, and family
Most importantly, students genuinely engage with this text. They see themselves and their questions about family, identity, and belonging reflected in its pages. The straightforward symbolism of the novel provides students with confident entry points for literary analysis, while the novel’s complex themes challenge students to think deeply about history, justice, and healing.
Through teaching Homegoing, your students will develop not only as readers and writers, but as thinkers and discussion participants. They will leave the unit with stronger analytical skills and a deeper understanding of how literature can help us process both personal and societal challenges. For educators looking to build a meaningful, standards-aligned unit that resonates with students, Homegoing offers rich opportunities for both academic growth and personal connection!
Note: Check out my complete Homegoing teaching unit on Teachers Pay Teachers for all the resources mentioned in this post! They are also sold individually, if you only want quizzes, essays, reading questions, intro materials (free), or journals!
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