Teaching Ideas for a Modern World Literature Curriculum

Teaching World Lit can feel like a beast. How do you narrow it down? What will engage your students? Can you stand another year pulling 9th graders through The Odyssey? What are they actually learning about the world?

I inherited a really amazing framing for World Literature from the teacher I took over for. She focused the year on personal narratives from around the world. The class was an exploration of “I” in literature. Her curriculum ranged from Diary of a Part-Time Indian to Macbeth. I used some of the texts she used, but have had so much fun choosing my own books that I love.

Teaching 9th grade is such a wild ride. They come in middle schoolers grow so profoundly through the year with you. I love growing with 9th graders—and enjoy them much more by the end of the year ;) The more you can connect with them at the beginning, the better their entire high school English career will be. It’s worth it to teach books that both you and they can connect with.

Some Favorites

1. Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

   • I love teaching Persepolis because it drops Western students into a world so foreign from their own, but in a style that is so accessible. Students can’t help being intrigued by the graphic novel style of the book—it pulls them in to the story and engages their imagination. The text also lends itself to so many teaching and project activities. You, of course, have to talk about graphic novels, and why not have students make their own? It’s an autobiography and a history lesson in one. I’ve always found that engaging students in strong cultural education around a text piques their interest. Food is such a huge part of Persian culture, so lots of fun things to do there if you’re brave. Overall, I love this text as an introduction to World Lit. It’s even good for summer reading!

2. Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

   • In early high school, students are eager to differentiate themselves as high schoolers. They want to feel mature and worldly. They want to engage on tough subjects. Purple Hibiscus is excellent for this. While the subject matter is heavy (domestic and religious violence), students become deeply invested in the characters and story. It is also EXCELLENT for teaching strong close reading skills and character analysis, both of which then leads to writing analysis paragraphs (a critical skill to teach early and often). Adichie’s very popular “The Danger of a Single Story” pairs really well with this text along with strong cultural education about Nigeria and the time period.

3. Poetry with Podcasts

   • Poetry is an easy way to quickly pull texts from all over the world. You can spend a day on a poem and culture and then move on to the next day. I love teaching poetry with podcasts (in fact, I have a whole mini unit on using Poetry Unbound). It takes a lot of the analysis lift off of your shoulders and engages students automatically! If you need some resources, here are five podcasts that are great for teaching poetry.

4. When the Ground Is Hard by Malla Nunn

   • This is one of those books that sneaks up on students. It’s set in a Swazi boarding school and deals with class, race, and girlhood, but it’s the voice that really lands. Adele starts off status-obsessed, but her growth arc is so satisfying and so teachable. It pairs beautifully with Jane Eyre (which the characters read), and it’s great for narrative voice, identity writing, and creative projects like letters or alternative scenes. It’s short, accessible, and opens the door to conversations students don’t usually get to have in English class.

5. Born a Crime by Trevor Noah

   • This one is always a hit. Trevor Noah’s voice is funny, sharp, and full of heart, and students love how he can pivot from humor to something deeply serious in a single paragraph. It’s great for talking about code-switching, voice, and memoir structure. I like to pair it with You Laugh But It’s True, which is a documentary about Noah’s early comedy career in South Africa—students get a fuller picture of his background, not just his American career, and how he uses storytelling as power. A memoir writing project works perfectly here, especially if you give students options for humor, reflection, and cultural identity.

6. The Silence of Bones by June Hur

   • This one is moody, quiet, and so rich for literary analysis. It’s a historical mystery set in Joseon-era Korea, but the heart of it is a teenage girl navigating power, silence, and loyalty. The tone is incredibly well-crafted—perfect for teaching mood, character interiority, and historical perspective. It pairs well with nonfiction about Confucian values or underground faith traditions, and students love unpacking the tension between duty and justice. Great for writing response journals or historical fiction extensions. If you need some creative writing ideas, here are some story writing prompts that lead students to a deeper analysis: 6 Free Story Writing Prompts

7. Independent Reading!

   • Freshman year is such an important year for independent reading. Students often lose their love for reading in middle school. This is when books get more challenging and teachers stop reading aloud. Ninth graders need the chance to reestablish themselves as readers and need help choosing books that they love. Also, read out loud to them. They love it! One of my favorite ways to make independent reading collaborative and analysis based is to assign creative projects that students create inspired by their independent reading books. If you need some ideas for projects, here are some that my students loved: 5 Creative Projects Perfect for Independent Reading

Have fun and let me know what you teach! I’d love to hear.