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Me, Myself, and I: Examining Personal Identity in Short Texts
Students explore the factors that contribute to and impact one's personal identity through their reading of short stories, poems, and nonfiction.
ELA
Unit 1
9th Grade
Unit Summary
Please Note: In March 2026, this unit and its lesson plans received a round of enhancements. This unit is now 25 instructional days (previously 20 days). The writing projects of the unit have been adjusted significantly and additional assessment options have been added. Teachers should pay close attention as they intellectually prepare to account for the updates.
Adolescents, especially ninth graders transitioning into high school, are at a pivotal time in their lives when they are thinking about who they are and who they want to be. Unit 1 focuses on that very question, Who am I?, considering both visible and invisible facets of one’s identity—from our hobbies and core beliefs to our gender identity and sexual orientation. Students will examine shorter texts from a variety of genres—nonfiction, poetry, spoken word, and short stories—in which diverse characters explore their identities. While thinking critically about the identity of characters, students will also reflect on their own.
In the first arc of the unit, students will learn first about personal identity versus social identity. Students will consider temperament as part of their personal identity, reading an excerpt from Susan Cain’s Quiet in which she explores the introvert-extrovert spectrum, considering where on that spectrum is the speaker of Emily Dickinson’s poem, "I’m Nobody! Who Are You? (260)" After listening to and analyzing Rudy Francisco’s spoken word poem "My Honest Poem," in which he shares both factual and deeply personal aspects of his identity, students will create their own free verse narrative poem that uses facts and figurative language to share who they are.
In the next arc of the unit, students will consider what happens when our social identities come into conflict with our personal identities. The poems and short stories from this arc investigate the tension that exists when how we define ourselves is different from how others perceive and/or define us. Students will engage in a small-group hexagonal discussion, making connections between texts as they build their academic discourse skills. Students will round out this arc of the unit by analyzing additional short texts, including a TED Talk by disabled rights activist Judy Heumann, seeing how people navigate their identities differently—questioning, denying, or fully embracing who they are.
The unit concludes with the students’ first Socratic seminar of the year, in which they discuss what these texts reveal about the factors that influence someone’s identity. Finally, students will turn inward, crafting an informative essay in which they reflect on how the texts from the unit served as windows and/or mirrors to their own identities. By the end of this unit, students will have established the thematic foundation for the entire year: Personal Identity.
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Texts and Materials
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Core Texts
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Excerpt: “Introduction” from Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain
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Poem: “I'm Nobody! Who are you? (260)” by Emily Dickinson (The Poetry Foundation)
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Video: “My Honest Poem” by Rudy Francisco (Button Poetry, YouTube)
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Excerpt: “Counterfactual” from Counting Descent by Clint Smith
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Book: Fresh Ink: A We Need Diverse Books Anthology by Lamar Giles (editor) (Ember) — HL700L
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Poem: “(citizen)(illegal)” by José Olivarez (Poet's House)
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Book: How Beautiful the Ordinary: Twelve Stories of Identity (HarperTeen)
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Excerpt: “The Paper Menagerie” from The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu
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Excerpt: “Borders” from One Good Story, That One by Thomas King
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Video: “Hair” by Elizabeth Acevedo (The George Washington University, YouTube)
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Poem: “Hair” by Elizabeth Acevedo
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Video: “Our fight for disability rights—and why we're not done yet” by Judith Heumann (TED Talk)
Supporting Texts
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Article: “In 'Turning Red' I finally saw myself reflected in a main character” by Evelyn Kwong (The Toronto Star)
- Recommended Texts for Independent Reading
Rubrics
Resources for Lessons and Projects
Assessment
The following assessments accompany Unit 1. For more guidance, see the Summative Assessments Teacher Tool.
Authentic Assessments
The Socratic Seminar measures students' ability to think critically, engage meaningfully in discussion about key unit content, and support their ideas with evidence.
The Performance Task is the culminating assessment of the unit in which students have the opportunity to demonstrate the skills and content they have learned through an authentic task.
Optional Assessments
The Warm Read Assessment measures students' ability to apply the core reading standards and their knowledge from the unit to comprehend new, topically or thematically aligned texts. It includes both multiple choice and short written response questions and should serve as the primary assessment for the unit.
The Vocabulary Assessment measures students' acquisition of text-based vocabulary words from the unit.
Unit Prep
Intellectual Prep
Before you teach this unit, unpack the texts, themes, and core standards through our guided intellectual preparation process. Each Unit Launch includes a series of short videos, targeted readings, and opportunities for action planning to ensure you're prepared to support every student.
Essential Questions
- What is identity, both personal and social? How are those identities sometimes in conflict with each other?
- What factors impact how and when we can fully be our authentic selves?
- How can shorter texts from different voices, cultures, and experiences help us examine our own identities?
Vocabulary
Text-based
brittleconferderidedefiantformidableinalienableinherentpensivereclamationtemperament
Literary Terms
author's purposeauthor/speaker's purposecharacterizationdictiondirect characterizationethosfirst personfigurative languageflashbackfree verseimageryindirect characterizationlogosmetaphormotifmoodnarrative point of viewpathosperspectivepersonificationrhyme schemerhetoricsecond personsimilestory structure (plot)structurestanzasymbolthird person omniscientthird personthemethird person limitedtone
Root/Affix
-ment-tioncon-de-herin-re-
To see all the vocabulary for Unit 1, view our 9th Grade Vocabulary Glossary.
Supporting All Students
In order to ensure that all students are able to access the texts and tasks in this unit, it is incredibly important to intellectually prepare to teach the unit prior to launching the unit. Use the guidance provided under 'Notes to the Teacher' below in addition to the Unit Launch to determine which supports students will need at the unit and lesson level. To learn more, visit the Supporting All Students Teacher Tool.
Notes to the Teacher
The texts in this unit integrate the following lenses: race, class, gender identity, immigrant status, and sexual orientation. Along with that, the unit discusses issues of racism, implicit bias, stereotypes, transphobia, and homophobia. Be sure to review all content before teaching the unit. No matter the identities of your students, this unit will undoubtedly spark difficult—and important—conversations. As always, it is important to consider the knowledge and diverse experiences your students bring with them to your classroom.
Some resources are listed below that provide information and guidance about how to have conversations about these important topics with your students:
- "Creating an Anti-Bias Learning Environment" (ADL)
- "A Framework for Leading Classroom Conversations About Race" by Stephanie Creary (Harvard Business Publishing Education)
- "Gender and Sexual Identity" (Learning for Justice)
- "Sex? Sexual Orientation? Gender Identity? Gender Expression?" by Joel Baum and Kim Westheimer (Learning for Justice)
Lesson Map
Write an informative paragraph reflecting on how a unit text is a mirror or a window into one's identity.
Generate ideas by taking notes on Unit 1 texts, and write an informative topic sentence.
- Writing Prompt and Rubric Handout (G9, U1, L11)
- Windows and Mirrors Graphic Organizer (G9, U1)
- Informative Paragraph Outline (G9, U1, L11)
- Topic Sentence Practice Page (G9, U1, L11)
Standards
W.9-10.2.aW.9-10.4W.9-10.5
Identify a quotation and an anecdote that effectively support the main idea of a topic sentence.
- Informative Paragraph Outline (G9, U1, L11)
- MLA Citations Guide (G9, U1, L11)
Standards
W.9-10.2.bW.9-10.9
Transform an outline into a coherent paragraph that includes a topic sentence, evidence, explanation, and a last sentence.
- Informative Paragraph Outline (G9, U1, L11)
- Paragraph Structure Practice Handout (G9, U1, L11)
- Paragraph Structure: Highlighted Student Sample (G9, U1, L11)
Standards
W.9-10.2W.9-10.2.f
Write an informative essay reflecting on how unit texts are mirrors and/or windows into one's identity.
Develop an informative, specific, and supportable thesis statement and corresponding topic sentences.
- Performance Task Prompt and Rubric Handout (G9, U1)
- Windows and Mirrors Graphic Organizer (G9, U1)
- Writing a Thesis Statement/Topic Sentences Practice Handout (G9, U1, L19)
- Informative Essay Outline (G9, U1, L19)
Standards
W.9-10.2.aW.9-10.2.bW.9-10.5
Outline body paragraphs by selecting evidence that effectively supports the topic sentence, as well as introducing quotations with context punctuated by a colon.
- Informative Essay Outline (G9, U1, L19)
Standards
L.9-10.2.bW.9-10.2
Write strong body paragraphs by incorporating language that draws comparisons or contrasts between unit texts and personal identity.
- Informative Essay Outline (G9, U1, L19)
- Compare and Contrast Language Practice Page (G9, U1, L19)
Standards
W.9-10.2W.9-10.2.d
Write an introduction paragraph that includes a hook, introductory information, and a thesis statement.
- Informative Essay Outline (G9, U1, L19)
- Types of Hooks Handout (G9, U1, L19)
Standards
W.9-10.2.aW.9-10.5
Provide feedback on a peer's writing and then use peer feedback to improve one's own writing.
- Guide to Effective Feedback Handout (G9–12)
- Performance Task Prompt and Rubric Handout (G9, U1)
Standards
L.9-10.2.bW.9-10.2W.9-10.4W.9-10.5