In this unit, students explore the concept of personal identity as a backdrop for reading the play Pygmalion in Unit 2. Unit 1 begins with a mystery text about an individual’s struggle with her own identity and introduces students to key concepts in identity formation. Students consider the question, “In what ways can individuals define themselves?” as they distinguish between internal and external identifiers. Students read informational texts such as first-person narratives and conduct close reading using text-dependent questions and Reader’s Notes to conduct close reading using text-dependent questions and Reader’s Notes to support the development of their skills such as citing evidence from text, making inferences, summarizing central ideas, and analyzing interactions within a text. This prepares them for both the mid-unit assessment and end of unit assessment. Both assessments require students to read a previously unseen informational text and then make inferences and claims based on the evidence provided in the text.
Big Ideas & Guiding Questions
- Individuals define themselves in myriad of ways, including both internal and external characteristics.
- Identity can develop and change over time.
- How do individuals define themselves?
- How can struggling with your identity help you to strengthen your sense of self?
- How can reading different texts about the same topic build our understanding of a complex idea?
Content Connections
This module is designed to address English Language Arts standards as students read literature and informational text about identity formation and transformation. However, the module intentionally incorporates Social Studies Practices and Themes to support potential interdisciplinary connections to this compelling content.
These intentional connections are described below.
Big ideas and guiding questions are informed by the New York State Common Core K-8 Social Studies Framework: Unifying Themes (pages 6–7)
- Theme 1: Individual Development and Cultural Identity: The role of social, political, and cultural interactions supports the development of identity; personal identity is a function of an individual’s culture, time, place, geography, interaction with groups, influences from institutions, and lived experiences.
- Theme 5: Development and Transformation of Social Structures: Role of social class, systems of stratification, social groups, and institutions; role of gender, race, ethnicity, education, class, age, and religion in defining social structures within a culture; social and political inequalities.
Unit-at-a-Glance
Texts to Buy
Texts that need to be procured. Please download the Trade Book List for procurement guidance.
| Text | Quantity | ISBNs |
|---|---|---|
| Nadia's Hands | Teacher copy only |
ISBN: 978-1563976674 |
| Pygmalion | One per student |
ISBN: 978-1580493994, 1580493998 |
Lessons
Optional: Community, Experts, Fieldwork, Service, and Extensions
Experts
- Invite a guest speaker from an organization that works with class or social justice issues.
- Invite a guest speaker with a psychology background to speak about identity formation and transformation.
- Invite an author of a memoir or personal narrative about identity to come and speak to the class or be interviewed by the class.
Field work
N/A
Services
N/A
Extentions
- Watch the musical My Fair Lady and compare the filmed version to the play, particularly paying attention to the different endings.
- Conduct a more in-depth study of class in England and in America. Use the PBS documentary People Like Us to support your study.
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