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.

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ELA

Unit 1

9th Grade

Unit Summary


This is the new 2023 edition of our 9th Grade unit, Me, Myself, and I: Examining Personal Identity in Short Texts. Visit our ELA archives to view the 2021 edition of the unit.

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 a personal reflection in which they analyze 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 Materials

Assessment


These assessment accompany Unit 1 and should be given on the days suggested in the Lesson Map. Additionally, there are formative and creative assessments integrated into the unit to prepare students for the Performance Task.

Socratic Seminar

The Socratic Seminar assesses students on their ability to push themselves and their peers to think critically and participate meaningfully in conversation by collecting and evaluating evidence, actively listening, and responding thoughtfully. Socratic Seminar assessments may occur mid-unit as a way to synthesize the ideas of the text/unit to that point or summative, taking place at the end of a unit.

Performance Task

The Performance Task is the culminating assessment of the unit in which students have the opportunity to show the skills and content they have learned.

Key Knowledge


Intellectual Prep

Unit Launch

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

abstractionabatebrittlecounterfactualconcedeconferdefiantderidedissipateexistentialformidablefreightfrivolousgravitasinherentinalienableinanelitanymenageriemisanthropemundaneparadoxpensivepunditreclamationtemperamenttinnytranslucentwallow

Literary Terms

dictionethosfigurative languagefirst personflashbackimagerylogosmetaphormoodmotifnarrative point of viewpathospersonificationrhetoricrhyme schemesecond personsimilestructurestanzasymbolthird person limitedthird person omniscientthird personthemetone

To see all the vocabulary for Unit 1 , view our 9th Grade Vocabulary Glossary.

Notes for Teachers

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:

Lesson Map


Common Core Standards


Core Standards

L.9-10.1
L.9-10.2
L.9-10.5
RI.9-10.1
RI.9-10.2
RI.9-10.3
RI.9-10.4
RI.9-10.5
RI.9-10.6
RI.9-10.7
RL.9-10.1
RL.9-10.2
RL.9-10.3
RL.9-10.4
RL.9-10.5
RL.9-10.6
SL.9-10.1
SL.9-10.1.a
SL.9-10.1.b
SL.9-10.1.c
SL.9-10.1.d
SL.9-10.3
SL.9-10.6
W.9-10.1
W.9-10.2
W.9-10.2.d
W.9-10.3
W.9-10.4
W.9-10.5
W.9-10.9
W.9-10.10

Supporting Standards

L.9-10.1
L.9-10.2
L.9-10.6
RI.9-10.1
RI.9-10.2
RI.9-10.9
RI.9-10.10
RL.9-10.1
RL.9-10.2
RL.9-10.4
RL.9-10.5
RL.9-10.10
SL.9-10.1
SL.9-10.4
SL.9-10.6
W.9-10.1
W.9-10.9
W.9-10.10
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Unit 2

You Laugh But It’s True: Humor and Institutional Racism in Born a Crime

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