Curriculum  /  ELA  /  9th Grade  /  Unit 1: Me, Myself, and I: Examining Personal Identity in Short Texts  /  Lesson 13

Me, Myself, and I: Examining Personal Identity in Short Texts

Lesson 13
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ELA

Unit 1

9th Grade

Lesson 13 of 20

Objective

Analyze how the mother's character reveals an important message from the story.

Readings and Materials

  • Book: One Good Story, That One by Thomas King  pp. 133 – 147 — Short Story: "Borders"

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Target Task

Discussion & Writing Prompt

What does Mel mean when he tells the narrator's mother on page 147 that she was "an inspiration to us all"? How does that connect to the message of the story? Provide details from the story and carefully explain your thinking.

Sample Response

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Key Questions

Close Read Questions

  • What borders exist in the story, both literal and figurative? Explain using details from the text as support.

  • The author uses flashbacks throughout the story. Why are these flashbacks important, and how do they connect to the present action of the story?

  • What is the significance of the moment between the mother and the narrator on page 144?

  • How does the media/news play a role in the conflict of the story?

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Standards

  • RL.9-10.2 — Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze in detail its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.
  • RL.9-10.3 — Analyze how complex characters (e.g., those with multiple or conflicting motivations) develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the theme.
  • RL.9-10.5 — Analyze how an author's choices concerning how to structure a text, order events within it (e.g., parallel plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks) create such effects as mystery, tension, or surprise.
  • RL.9-10.6 — Analyze a particular point of view or cultural experience reflected in a work of literature from outside the United States, drawing on a wide reading of world literature.

Supporting Standards

L.9-10.1
L.9-10.6
RL.9-10.1
RL.9-10.10
SL.9-10.1
SL.9-10.6

Next

Analyze how the author uses diction and figurative language to show contrasting perspectives on the speaker's hair.

Lesson 14
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Lesson Map

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