Declaring Identity: Being Jazz (2020)

Lesson 13
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ELA

Unit 11

6th Grade

Lesson 13 of 28

Objective


Explain how Jazz’s narrative style develops her point of view and the impact of this on readers.

Readings and Materials


  • Book: Being Jazz: My Life as a (Transgender) Teen by Jazz Jennings  pp. 97 – 114

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Target Task


Writing Prompt

What is the purpose of Jazz’s video for Obama? How do you know? Provide evidence from the video/text to support your answer.

From what point of view is Jazz’s Message to Obama told? How does this perspective impact the viewer’s understanding of the topic discussed? Provide evidence from the video to support your answer.

Key Questions


  • How does Jazz convey the idea that her perspective of her first relationship has changed significantly since it happened? Provide evidence from the text to support your answer.
  • How is Jazz’s point of view of the kiss on page 104–106 different from Zack’s? Provide evidence from the text to support your answer.
  • Discussion: Do you think making a video for YouTube is an effective way to self-advocate for your rights? Why or why not? What are the advantages of video? What are the challenges of having a presence on social media?
  • Discussion: Jazz also has a YouTube channel, a documentary, Twitter, Instagram, and a plethora of other ways she raises awareness through social media. How does Jazz use social media to spread her message? In what ways is social media advantageous to her mission? In what ways is it disadvantageous to her mission?

Lesson Guidance


Standard and Literary Concepts

  • Ask students to recall the three basic perspectives from which a text can be written:
    • First Person
    • Third Person Omniscient
    • Third Person Limited
  • Remind students that while we often think of informational text as written from a third-person perspective (think history books, newspaper articles, biographies, etc.), these texts can also be written from a first-person perspective (opinion pieces, personal essays, memoirs, autobiographies).
  • There are many ways of structuring first-person narration, especially within a memoir. Sometimes, a person will follow a clear chronological structure. Others will organize a memoir thematically, addressing a different aspect of their life thematically.
  • We’ve discussed the fact that Jazz uses a more informal tone in this memoir; she writes like a teenager would actually speak. While her narrative is generally chronological, she does sometimes move around in time and cover different topics within the same chapter. For example, in chapter 10 she talks about having a disastrous day at a carnival and then also her advocacy work and contacting Barack Obama about what it means to be a trans kid.
  • This style is sometimes called “stream of consciousness.” It means that someone writes the way they think— sometimes talking about subjects that don’t necessarily seem totally connected. Stream of consciousness is more common when writers are writing in a more informal way.

Notes

  • Jazz discusses her eagerness to “make out” with her boyfriend. Determine the level of appropriateness for your students.

Homework

  • Read Being Jazz: My Life as a (Transgender) Teen, pages 117–130.

Common Core Standards


  • RI.6.6 — Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and explain how it is conveyed in the text.

Next

Explain the purpose and impact of Camp Aranu’tiq by reading Being Jazz and watching a video, and describe the differences between those two sources.

Lesson 14
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