Akers-Pecht 1

Identity Crisis in Poetry

Week

of 3; Plan #

of 9; [90 mins.]

Plan type: ____Full-Detail ____Summary

Content Requirement Satisfied: Mini-inquiry/research, embedded technology, modeling
(Note: Refer to the list in the document called Concept Unit Lesson Plans)
Unit Learning Objectives (numbered) [from my Backwards Design Unit Document],
followed by Specific lesson objectives (lettered) being taught in this lesson:
SWBAT:
Cognitive (know/understand):
1. Students will know that identity crisis can result in a drastic change in self-image or selfidentity.
a. Students will know that identity crisis can also result in a refusal to change ones selfidentity.
2. Students will know that character development tracks the changes in a character throughout
the course of a literary work.
b. Students will know that annotation is a method by which they can track and respond to
character development in a literary work.
Affective (feel/value) and/or Non-Cognitive:
6. Students will value one anothers personal identities, opinions, and backgrounds.
b. Students will value one anothers opinions as they share, discuss, and debate one
anothers annotations to poetry and conclusions about character development.
Performance (do):
7. Students will be able to locate and describe the sources of identity crisis for themselves and for
literary characters.
e. Students will find potential sources of identity crisis for characters and narrators in
poetry.
SOLs:
Reading 8.5c Explain how authors use characters, conflict, point of view, voice, and tone to
create meaning.
CCSs:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.8.2 Determine a theme or a central idea of a text and analyze its
development over the course of the text, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and
plot; provide an objective summary of the text.
Procedures/Instructional Strategies
[Note: Any words that represent what I would say directly to students appear in italics.]

Akers-Pecht 2

Beginning Room Arrangement:

Students will be seated in groups of three. As they enter the classroom, they will see name tags
on the desks so that they know where to sit. I will group students with varied readiness levels so
that they can have the opportunity to work together and learn from each other. I will provide
these groups with roles so that they all have some sense of personal accountability in the group
activities.
[Changes in this arrangement that become necessary later will be noted in the plan]
1. [5 mins.] Bridge/Hook/Opening to lesson: Do now journal entry
As students enter the classroom, they will see their do now journal entry displayed on the
board: Think back to the Identity video, Fish Cheeks, and the other texts weve studied so
far. Based on these and your personal experiences, how much of someones identity is decided
by other people? Students will be given five minutes to respond following the sounding of the
bell. I will let them know that they will be expected to share their ideas aloud.
Briefly, before students share or before students write depending on their responses, I will
address any misconceptions students had in the questions that they voiced in their exit slips from
the previous class. If students have a misconception about identity or identity crisis, I will want
to address this before they write todays prompt pertaining to identity and society.
2. [15 mins.] Step 1: Sharing journal entries and discussing societys impact on identity
Students will be asked to share their journal entries with the class. I may begin calling on some
students at random who do not have their hands raised in order to encourage them to share their
ideas. When students give their ideas about how others influence their identities, I will ask them,
How do you know? Can you give some evidence from Fish Cheeks or Identity that support
this idea? Maybe think back to this part of the story/video Using these texts to support their
ideas, we will discuss the idea of societies and their role on identity formation, as well as what
societies can look like. I may clarify with some of the following comparisons: So in Fish
Cheeks, Amy was struggling with Asian culture or society versus American society, and both of
these groups expectations of her. Then in Identity, what was the society shown there? The
main characters society was that of her classmates in school and her schools culture.
We will also use this opportunity to refresh students ideas about internal and external conflicts,
as I will ask them, So what kind of conflict was Amys struggle with Asian culture versus
American culture? How about the issue of having all of the food served that seemed strange to
her American guests?
3. [10 mins.] Step 2: Modeling annotation

Akers-Pecht 3
I will explain to students that today, we will be looking at two short poems where people try to
define their own identities apart from societys expectations of them. I will remind students that
last class, we discussed character development some more alongside Fish Cheeks. We pointed
out dialogue, thoughts, actions, and character traits as ways that authors can show
characterization and changes in characters. (I will get out the graphic organizer from last class
and display it on the overhead projector to jog students memories about what we did while
reading the short story.) I will tell students that today, we are going to practice reacting to these
details while we read through a process called annotation. I will tell students that later, theyre
going to be able to annotate each others personal narratives once theyre done, just like were
going to annotate Fish Cheeks now with our thoughts and reactions. Ill remind them that they
should be narrowing down their topics by the next class; this homework assignment will be
written up on the board as well to remind students. (I will write this before students come to class
today.)
As a model, I will use a copy of Fish Cheeks within a Google doc. I will show students how to
insert comments within Google doc as a way to annotate the text. Additionally, I will show them
how to highlight, underline, bold, and change the color of text to make certain phrases or lines
stand out, or to color code actions, dialogue, etc. I will read aloud a sentence or two and
periodically pause to write down an annotation using think aloud strategies. I will specifically
focus on character traits, dialogue, actions, and thoughts as we did yesterday to form questions,
make inferences, and make predictions about Amys character and her identity. After I have
given some examples within the first few paragraphs of the text, I will stop modeling.
4. [10 mins.] Step 3: Students try annotation independently
I will let students know that we are about to read two different poems about societys impact on
identity. The first is called Narcissa by Gwendolyn Brooks. Without any prior background
knowledge, I will first read the poem aloud to the students altogether. Then independently and
silently, students will work for five minutes to annotate the poem themselves, focusing on the
main character Narcissa and what her identity and identity crisis are.
Then we will read Im Nobody Who Are You? by Emily Dickinson. Again, I will read the
poem aloud to students and then allow them to silently and independently annotate it. I will let
students know that they will be sharing these annotations with their peers in groups so that they
have a sense of accountability for trying to analyze the poems. I will ask students to begin
wrapping up their thoughts when there are a couple of minutes left in this section of the lesson.
5. [30 mins.] Step 4: Students research and annotate a poem together
I will let students know that those sitting on the left side of the room will be working on
Narcissa, and those on the right side of the room will be working on Im Nobody. I will
explain that students will be using laptops today to create a Google doc where they can compile
their annotations of passages in their groups of three. The students need to break up the parts of
the poem so that each student works on one stanza or a roughly equal amount of lines. Students

Akers-Pecht 4
can also use the Internet to research the poem and interpretations of it. However, when they make
their annotations, they need to specifically focus on the narrator or main characters identity and
how they handle potential sources of an identity crisis. This is information that they will need to
arrive at by working together to figure out how the poem relates to our unit concept. The
questions they need to focus on answering once they are done annotating are: Who is the narrator
or main character? Does she have an identity crisis? If so, what is it? Does she overcome this
crisis?
After explaining these directions, I will let students retrieve laptops from the schools cart at the
front of the classroom. As students work, I will circle around to assist them with creating Google
docs, finding sources, and interpreting the poem. I will provide some groups with lists of helpful
sources if they become stuck during this research process. When there are about five minutes
left, I will let students know that they need to have answers to the questions I posed for them;
these will also be available on the board as students work.
6. [15 mins.] Step 5: Sharing annotations and interpretations of poetry
I will first start on the left side of the class with the students who studied Narcissa. I will ask
them how they answered our questions, as well as what evidence they found in the text to
support these conclusions. I will transition by asking if any of the groups came to different
conclusions about Narcissa and what her identity crisis is in the poem, or whether she has one.
We will then repeat this process with the right side of the class with those students who studied
Im Nobody. I will encourage students to comment during this time on poems that they did not
annotate in their small groups, as everyone independently annotated both poems at the beginning
of class.
7. [5 mins.]: Closure: Exit slip
In their exit slips for the day, I will provide students with index cards and ask them to reflect on
their research processes. Did they like this activity? What was most difficult about annotating
and researching these poems? How well did their groups work together? I will post these
questions on the overhead projector for students to reference as they respond. I will use these exit
slips to inform my future research activities and group work arrangements in class.
Methods of Assessment:
[How will you know if the intended learning occurred?] List all methods of assessment used in
this lesson or which are related to this lesson and come in a future lesson. After each assessment,
indicate in brackets the number(s) and letter(s) of the unit objective and the related lesson
objectives that the assessment is evaluating.
Diagnostic
Students will reveal their prior knowledge about societys impact on identity by:
o
Completing a journal entry on how others influence their identities [7]

Akers-Pecht 5

Formative
Students will exhibit their understanding of sources of identity crisis by:
o
Locating, analyzing, and discussing sources of identity crisis in poetry [1a, 6c, 7d,
Reading 8.5c, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.8.2
Students will exhibit their understanding of annotation and character development by:
o
Annotating a poem by focusing on characterization [2b, Reading 8.5c,
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.8.2
Summative
In a future lesson, students will show their understanding of annotation by:
o
Workshopping and annotating one anothers drafts of personal narratives by
focusing on character development [2b]
In a future lesson, students will show their understanding of sources of identity crisis by:
o
Retelling their own experiences with this concept in a personal narrative [7]
Differentiated Instruction to accommodate one or more of my profiled students:
(This is where you identify specific aspects of this lesson which have been differentiated in order
to address the needs of one or more of your profiled studentsidentify them by name)
For Raul, an English language learner, I can group him with students who will be able to help
him learn the meanings of unfamiliar words. Jessica, a gifted student, will likely find a new sense
of purpose in the activity if she is able to guide the learning of another student as she works.
Additionally, Raul will be able to have access to online dictionaries as well as his peers to help
him decode the poem he is working on. His peers annotations will serve as further models and
will help him to observe how the annotation process works.
I can group Chris with the peers he feels most comfortable with so that he is more encouraged to
contribute to class. Having access to online resources, including dictionaries and background
information, will likely help him to understand the poem he is working on. I will provide Chris
group with a list of resources that will be on Chris reading level if he wants to learn more about
either poet or poem.
Karen will once again be given her sentence starters, although as the unit progresses, I hope to
steadily decrease these scaffolds to the point where she is able to remember these discussion
etiquette rules and procedures on her own.

Materials Needed:
o Fish Cheeks copy to annotate
o Copy of graphic organizer from last class
o Overhead projector
o Copies of Narcissa and Im Nobody

Akers-Pecht 6
o Laptops for students to use
o Index cards for exit slips
Materials Appendix: (e.g., supplementary texts, Ppts, overheads, graphic organizers,
handouts, etc.)
Copies of Narcissa and Im Nobody
Copy of Fish Cheeks
Copy of graphic organizer from last class

Akers-Pecht 7
Found Poetry with Identity Crisis
Week

of 3; Plan #

of 9; [90 mins.]

Plan type: ____Full-Detail ____Summary

Content Requirement Satisfied: Modeling
(Note: Refer to the list in the document called Concept Unit Lesson Plans)
Unit Learning Objectives (numbered) [from my Backwards Design Unit Document],
followed by Specific lesson objectives (lettered) being taught in this lesson:
SWBAT:
Cognitive (know/understand):
3. Students will understand that identity crisis stems from many different sources, including
cultural, community, and personal pressures.
c. Students will understand that authors present sources of identity crisis in different tones
depending upon how the speaker deals with these issues.
Affective (feel/value) and/or Non-Cognitive:
6. Students will value one anothers personal identities, opinions, and backgrounds.
c. Students will value one anothers creative input while forming found poems together in
groups.
Performance (do):
8. Students will be able to analyze the development of themselves and a literary character.
a. Students will be able to evaluate how the speakers identity changes within a song.
SOLs:
Reading 8.5c Explain how authors use characters, conflict, point of view, voice, and tone to
create meaning.
CCSs:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.8.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its
development over the course of the text, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and
plot; provide an objective summary of the text.
Procedures/Instructional Strategies
[Note: Any words that represent what I would say directly to students appear in italics.]
Beginning Room Arrangement:
Students will be seated in groups of four. Students name tags will appear on their desks as they
walk in so that they immediately know where to sit upon entering the room.
[Changes in this arrangement that become necessary later will be noted in the plan]

Akers-Pecht 8

1. [10 mins.] Bridge/Hook/Opening to lesson: Do now annotation activity

As students enter the room, they will see instructions on the board asking them to each pick up
two different sheets of paper on my desk at the front of the classroom. Both will contain song
lyrics, one to Reflection from Mulan and the other to I Dont Want to Be by Gavin DeGraw.
The instructions will ask students to annotate these readings as we annotated poems yesterday
with a focus on sources of these speakers identity crises. There will also be colored pencils and
pens on my desk for students to use if they want to color code their annotations. Before students
begin or after the bell rings, I will address any of the points about annotating that students said
they disliked in their exit slips at the end of last class. If students struggled with one aspect of
annotating in particular, I may give them another example by modeling how to annotate for them
again.
Additionally, I will ask students to try to pinpoint what the tone of each song is. If they dont
know what tone refers to, I will ask them to try to describe emotions depicted in the songs. I will
inform students in the instructions that we will listen to these songs after they annotate them. As
students work, I will ensure that the video and audio clips to the songs are up on the overhead
projector and that the technology is running smoothly.
2. [10 mins.] Step 1: Listening to the songs
Now, I will let students know that we are about to listen to the songs that they just annotated. As
they listen, they should underline or otherwise mark the words that stand out to them in the
music and consider how hearing the words sung aloud changes their meaning and the tone of the
work. I will ask students to keep in mind what kind of identity crisis Mulan is going through as
we watch the clip of Reflection from the Disney movie. I will suggest that they annotate the
passage as they listen once more using a different colored pen or pencil so that they can compare
and contrast what stood out to them in their reading and in their listening to the song.
I will now let students know that we are about to listen to the other song they annotated, I Dont
Want to Be. I will ask students as they listen to compare this songs tone to that of Reflection.
How did you feel when you listened to the Mulan song as compared to when you heard Gavin
DeGraws song? I will also tell them to mark up the words that stand out to them now that
theyve heard the song as opposed to just reading it on paper. After listening, I will give students
a couple of minutes to wrap up their thoughts before we get into groups for our found poetry
activity.
3. [10 mins.] Step 2: Model found poetry
After students finish annotating, I will let them know that they are going to be working in groups
today to create a found poem. If they arent familiar with this activity, then that is fine; I will let
them know that Im going to show them how to write one before they get into their groups. I will

Akers-Pecht 9
put a copy of Emily Dickinsons Im Nobody! Who Are You? on the overhead projector and
use this poem to write my own found poem. I will use think aloud strategies to show students
how to locate words related to an overall theme of the poem: our theme, both for my model and
for students poems, will be identity crisis. I will write identity crisis at the top of my page.
Thinking aloud, I will read the poem aloud and pick out words that I think exemplify
Dickinsons feelings toward her identity. I will pull these words out and rearrange them into a
short (one stanza or so long) poem so that students can see the process of the activity. I will try to
also capture the tone of Dickinsons poem in my own found poem, and remind students that they
will need to express the same kind of tone in their found poem as they interpret within their song.
I will then ask if students have any questions. After giving them some wait time and answering
any questions, we will move on to the group activity.
4. [25 mins.] Step 3: Found poetry activity
I will let students know that they can vote for whatever song they wish to work on for their found
poems. We will rearrange students in the desks so that each cluster of four students is working on
the same song. After students move (I will remind them to keep our rules and expectations in
mind for keeping quiet during transition times), I will pass out posters and markers for students
to write their found poems on. I will monitor students group work at this time to ensure that they
are on task and are all working together to create a poem. I will point students toward specific
lines or words in the songs to help scaffold them toward making greater meanings out of these
poems interpretations of the concept of identity crisis, and toward the speakers feelings about
his/her identity.
5. [20 mins.] Step 4: Sharing found poetry
I will let students know as the found poetry activity comes to a close that they will be sharing
these aloud. They can choose a speaker for the group or can split the poem up so that more than
one person helps in reading it. Once students have assigned speaking roles, we will read these
aloud. After each poem, we will altogether discuss how the concept of identity crisis comes
across in the poem, as well as what tone it uses to present the concept in the point of view of the
speaker of the song that it was inspired by. We will discuss all of the poems based on
Reflection first, and then compare and contrast what it was different groups decided to focus
on. (Some students may have focused on Mulans internal conflict of trying to determine who
she is, while others may have decided to talk more about external conflicts like her issues with
her family.) Then, we will discuss groups interpretation of I Dont Want to Be in the same
way. To close, we will compare and contrast the two songs tones; students will likely respond
that Reflection is more sad in tone as Mulan is figuring out who she is at the beginning of the
movie, and I Dont Want to Be is more rebellious/positive in that the speaker is defining
himself outside of the rest of society.
6.

[10 mins.] Closure: Graphic organizer exit slip

Akers-Pecht 10
To end class, I will have students make personal connections to the concept of identity crisis in
these two songs via a graphic organizer in the shape of a Venn diagram. With their topic of their
own experience of identity crisis in mind, students will compare and contrast this experience
with one of the songs we studied today; this will be the students choice. In particular, they will
compare and contrast the tone of the song with the tone that they want to be present in their own
piece of writing. (For example, they might realize that their own experience should be
represented with a sad and lonely mood as in Reflection, or that they would prefer to adapt the
kind of triumphant and rebellious tone in I Dont Want to Be, which is more optimistic.) I will
ask students to leave these graphic organizers in the yellow tray on my desk thats labeled exit
slips. I will use these to determine how deeply students are thinking about the tone they want to
convey in their narratives, as well as how well they are able to compare their own experiences to
those of the speakers in the texts we studied today.
7. [5 mins.] Closure: Homework Assignment Instructions
I will ask students to read the very short article, Being Different, for homework tonight. I will
pass out these sheets as I tell them about the article; it is about a boy who comes into contact
with a situation that could cause him to change his identity. The following questions will also be
passed out along with the article: What kind of conflicts does the author encounter? Are they
internal or external? How does the author respond to these conflicts? In the passage, highlight or
underline moments where the author reflects upon this experience with a conflict. How has it
changed him?
I will let students know that they are to answer these questions while they read in preparation for
class tomorrow, where well start to talk about how they can reflect on their own experiences
with identity crisis in their personal narratives. I will let students know that they should bring in
at least partial drafts for class on Monday (lesson 7, two class periods from now). I will remind
them of this in the next class as well. I will allow wait time for any questions, and if time permits
at the end of the bell, students can start skimming the article to get an idea of what it is about
before they read it for the next class.

Methods of Assessment:
[How will you know if the intended learning occurred?] List all methods of assessment used in
this lesson or which are related to this lesson and come in a future lesson. After each assessment,
indicate in brackets the number(s) and letter(s) of the unit objective and the related lesson
objectives that the assessment is evaluating.
Diagnostic
o Students will reveal their prior knowledge about tone and sources of identity crisis by:
o
Individually annotating two songs, focusing in particular on the emotions felt and
tone used by speakers undergoing identity crises [3c, Reading 8.5c]
Formative

Akers-Pecht 11
o Students will exhibit their understanding of tone and characterization by:
o
Creating a found poem in the tone of their chosen song that depicts the characters
struggle with identity crisis [3c, 6c, 8a, SOL 8.5c, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.8.2]
Summative
In a future lesson, students will show their understanding of tone and characterization by:
o
Creating a personal narrative that develops themselves as a literary character and
presents an experience with identity crisis in a chosen tone [3c, 8, SOL 8.5c]
Differentiated Instruction to accommodate one or more of my profiled students:
(This is where you identify specific aspects of this lesson which have been differentiated in order
to address the needs of one or more of your profiled studentsidentify them by name)
Raul, who is an English language learner, will likely find it helpful to explore the text of a song
through many different mediums. For example, Reflection will be first analyzed in words on a
sheet of paper, but he will then be exposed to these same words as they are sung aloud and are
seen within the video clip from the movie. He will be able to combine these images and sounds
to help him come to conclusions about the text and how it relates to identity crisis. This strategy
will also prove helpful for Chris, who reads two grades below the 8th grade level, to put together
words with their sounds and images to construct meaning out of the text.
Karen will be given fewer sentence starters now to help her learn to complete these discussion
rules on her own. I will only provide her with sentence starters now that will help her to work on
those particular issues she still is experiencing trouble with as informed by my observations of
class discussions over the past three weeks.
Jessica, a gifted student, will likely find this creative outlet interesting as well as challenging, as
she can make this poem as complex as she wishes. She also highly enjoys creative writing, and
so she will be able to help other students in her group to experiment with writing poetry.
For the lesson in general, I wished to give students the choice as to which song they used to write
a found poem out of so that they would feel more autonomous as they wrote their poems. I think
that providing choice will help students to feel more affective engagement in the process.
Additionally, I provided one text from a male perspective and one from a female perspective in
order to help students find a song that they could more easily relate to.

Materials Needed:
Copies of Reflection and I Dont Want to Be for students
Poster board and markers for found poems
Overhead projector with links to audio and video of songs
Venn diagram graphic organizers for exit slips

Akers-Pecht 12

Copies of Being Different article with attached questions for homework

Materials Appendix: (e.g., supplementary texts, Ppts, overheads, graphic organizers,

handouts, etc.)
Copies of Reflection and I Dont Want to Be
Venn diagram graphic organizers
Copies of Being Different article with questions

Akers-Pecht 13
Reflective Writing in Mentor Texts
Week

of 3; Plan #

of 9; [90 mins.]

Plan type: ____Full-Detail ____Summary

Content Requirement Satisfied: Writing Lesson, mentor texts
(Note: Refer to the list in the document called Concept Unit Lesson Plans)
Unit Learning Objectives (numbered) [from my Backwards Design Unit Document],
followed by Specific lesson objectives (lettered) being taught in this lesson:
SWBAT:
Cognitive (know/understand):
3. Students will know that identity crisis stems from many different sources.
d. Students will know that writers use reflective writing in order to convey the changes in
their identities.
Affective (feel/value) and/or Non-Cognitive:
6. Students will value one anothers personal identities, opinions, and backgrounds
d. Students will value and respectfully respond to one anothers ideas for their own
reflective writing.
Performance (do):
8. Students will be able to analyze the development of themselves and of literary characters.
b. Students will be able to use reflective writing to analyze and investigate their own
sources of identity crisis.
c. Students will be able to analyze the sources of identity crisis for the author of a text by
examining his or her reflections.
SOLs: [List with numbers portrayed in the SOL document]
Writing 8.7 The student will write in a variety of forms, including narration, exposition,
persuasion, and informational.
b) Use prewriting strategies to generate and organize ideas.
CCSs: [List with numbers portrayed in the CCS document]
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-onone, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 8 topics, texts, and issues,
building on others ideas and expressing their own clearly.
Procedures/Instructional Strategies
[Note: Any words that represent what I would say directly to students appear in italics.]
Beginning Room Arrangement:

Akers-Pecht 14
Students desks will be grouped in clusters of threes in order to easily transition to group work
later on. All desks will face the front of the classroom. A note will be written on the board
explaining to students that they can sit wherever they like for the day.
[Changes in this arrangement that become necessary later will be noted in the plan]
1. [5 mins.] Bridge/Hook/Opening to lesson: Journal entry on reflections
Students will be expected to know that they are to complete the do now activity as directed on
the board. I will remind students to consult the instructions on the board if they forget as they
come in: Remember to look at the board as you come into class; youll see that you have a do
now activity. Please get your journals from the class bin and start working before the bell
rings. The board will read, What does reflect or reflection mean when were talking about
writing? Where have you heard this term used before in your English classes? If youre not
familiar with it, what do you think reflecting in writing means?
Students will write for five minutes independently.
Additionally, if any students requested that they would need a camera to take pictures for their
websites, I will get these to them today. I will pass them out as students enter the class and make
sure that students record what number camera they have if necessary. They can keep these
cameras for the week, as they will need to return them on the last day of the unit a week from
today. I will let students know that they are due back then.
2. [5 mins.] Step 1: Sharing journal entries
Who would like to share their response? If I were to reflect on an event in my life through my
writing, what would that look like? I will call on volunteers to share, and then I may gradually
begin to call on students who do not have their hands raised to ensure that more students are
participating and that we get to hear what they have to say. I will record students responses on
the board under the heading reflective writing. If necessary, I will guide students responses
with questions such as, Why would it be important to reflect on an event that happened to you?
How would that be helpful for your readers? What can a reflection piece of writing say about
you, and in particular, how can it show how you changed as a character? (Think back to our
discussions about character development alongside Fish Cheeks.)
3. [15 mins.] Step 2: Reflective writing in a mentor text teacher facilitates discussion
Now that weve talked about our ideas of reflective writing, lets look at what reflections actually
do to improve our stories. For homework, you all underlined or highlighted parts of the
narrative where the author, Jason, reflected on how his argument with his mom influenced his
identity. Please get out the story along with the questions that you answered. I will provide
students with a minute to retrieve their papers.

Akers-Pecht 15
Would someone like to give me an example of a sentence that you highlighted? I will call on the
first volunteer and will highlight this passage on the overhead projector. Okay, so Tim offered
this passage: Even then, I changed my appearance only to satisfy my mom, not to be accepted.
I was, and still am, almost impervious to peer pressure. Tim mentioned that he was unfamiliar
with the word impervious; lets think about what that means in the context of the passage.
After discussing possibilities with students, we will come to a conclusion: So we decided that
because the author, Jason, has never given in to peer pressure, impervious means not affected
by, so hes unaffected by it.
So how do you know that this is an example of Jason reflecting on his experiences with bullying
and his conversation with his mom? I will also some wait time for students to think. I will guide
them toward possible answers/explanations: What tense is this passage written in?... And
because its written in the past tense, we can see that Jason is thinking back on the experience.
How does he feel about the experience now? How has it changed him or has it? We will
discuss these questions for about half of the time allotted in this section of the lesson.
Lets take one more example of reflection in this passage before we move on to the next activity. I
will call on another volunteer and ask questions about this next example, similarly to the last
example of reflection in the essay that the student Tim gave.
4. [15 mins.] Step 3: Students locate reflective writing in a mentor text
So now that weve worked through some examples together as a class, I want you all to try it out.
Im going to read another essay aloud to you all. This one is called I Hate Being a Nice Girl,
and its also written by a teenager and published online, just like Jasons essay Being
Different that we just talked about. I will begin passing copies of the essay out as I finish
explaining instructions. As I read, I want you all to underline passages where you see the author
reflecting. Ill give you a couple of minutes at the very end to look back over the essay and
underline any examples that you missed. If you have extra time after reading while everyone else
is still finishing, start to look at all of your examples to consider why you underlined certain
parts of the narrative. What about this shows that the author is reflecting or thinking back on her
experiences?
Students will now underline passages as I read aloud, and extra time will be given at the end to
ensure that students have examples of reflections. As students finish up, I will write up the
questions to be used during step 5 on the board.
5. [15 mins.] Step 4: Sharing in groups
It looks like everyone is just about done now. When youre finished, put your pencils down and
look up at me so I know were ready to move on. I will provide some wait time of several seconds
for students to comply with these instructions. Okay, so since youre already grouped in threes at
your desks, I want you to work with your partners to discuss examples of reflective writing that
you found. I want everybody to share at least one example and why you underlined it. Most

Akers-Pecht 16
importantly, I want you to talk about what this reflection shows about the author. How did this
experience change her, and how do you know based on the part you underlined? These questions
are written up on the board so you can see them as you work.
As students share, I will monitor the groups so that I know everyone is contributing and has had
a chance to share their ideas. I will also ask guiding questions to any groups who become stuck
by pointing them to specific places in the text.
6. [10 mins.] Step 5: Share
Lets go around the room, and each group will share one strong example of reflective writing that
they found. Lets start with James group. As James group shares, I will underline the sentence
they recite using the overhead projector so everyone can see it. And why did you all find this a
good example of reflective writing? What did it tell you about the author, and how did you
interpret this within the larger meaning of the essay? I will ask these and similar questions as
students share.
7. [10 mins.] Step 6: Brainstorm writing session
Okay, now that weve looked at examples of reflective writing, were going to start thinking
about what we want to express to our readers in our own personal narratives. You all have
already chosen the topics you want to discuss; now, think about how you want to reflect on this
event that youve chosen in your writing. Think about how it made you feel. Ive got a word bank
to help you all think about this too. I will start passing out the Name that Emotion sheets and
graphic organizers for students planning.
Additionally, I have graphic organizers with space for you to record the event you want to write
about, the emotions it made you feel, and then your reflections. These have sentence starters to
get you started, although you dont have to use them if you want to phrase your answers in a
different way. You all can use these to help you write the reflective ending to your personal
narratives, which are due a week from today. Feel free to share with your peers in your desk
groups when you are done if you have time left over at the end. I will be circling around as well
to see how youre doing. I will monitor students discussions, including how they are staying on
task. I will also ask guiding questions if students need more help reflecting on how their event
changed them.
8. [5 mins.] Step 7: Discussion of photographs for final narratives
You all may remember that I have mentioned throughout the unit that you all will be taking
photos to go along with your personal narratives. If youd like, you could also draw a picture
and upload that instead to go with your stories. I passed out cameras to those students who said
they would need one at the beginning of the unit; let me know if it turns out you do need one, and
I can get one for you by next class.

Akers-Pecht 17
Briefly, I want to show you all some examples of photos that students in California took to go
along with their own stories; its from a book called My So-Called Digital Life. Here you can see
some examples. I will pull up the website below on the overhead projector. So here in the last
picture on this webpage, you can see that a girl used a photo of herself to go along with her
story, which is an option. But see how others took photos of graffiti, their schools, and even their
sneakers? These are some creative options you could go with as well. Whatever you choose to
do, either a photograph or a drawing, you will need to have a digital copy of it to email in to me
before your projects are due next Friday. Well be using the laptops again on Wednesday, so that
would be a good time for you to bring in your cameras and upload your photos.
http://www.santamonicapress.com/index.php?page_name=digitallife&page_type=book&show
9. [5 mins.] Closure
Before you all leave, take the last five minutes of class and write up a game plan or action plan
for how youre going to go back to your personal narratives after learning about reflective
writing. You can list these if you want; they dont have to be complete sentences. I wont take
these up they are for your own use to help you start thinking about incorporating reflective
writing in your personal narratives. So maybe you want to reflect more on how this event
changed other peoples identities, not just your own. Or maybe you want to think about why a
very small event in your life impacted you and changed you in a big way. These are just
suggestions for you to get started. Thanks for all of your great work today; for homework this
weekend, I just want you to keep writing! Remember that you need to have a draft, or at least a
partial draft, by the next class on Monday. Try to get as much done as you can because next
Fridays sharing day will be here before you know it!
Methods of Assessment:
[How will you know if the intended learning occurred?] List all methods of assessment used in
this lesson or which are related to this lesson and come in a future lesson. After each assessment,
indicate in brackets the number(s) and letter(s) of the unit objective and the related lesson
objectives that the assessment is evaluating.
Diagnostic
Students will exhibit their prior knowledge of the concept of reflective writing by
o
Completing a journal entry and discussing their responses [objective 3d]
Formative
Students will reveal their understanding of how authors use reflections to create meaning
in writing by
o
Participating in a reading activity where they locate examples of reflective
writing and analyze them with peers [objectives 3d, 6d, 8c, CCSS.ELALiteracy.SL.8.1]
o
Brainstorming how they can show their own voice through writing [objectives 3d
and 8b, SOL Writing 8.7c]

Akers-Pecht 18

Summative
In a future lesson, students will show their understanding of voice in writing by
o
Creating their own personal narratives [objective 3d, SOL Writing 8.7]
Differentiated Instruction to accommodate one or more of my profiled students:
(This is where you identify specific aspects of this lesson which have been differentiated in order
to address the needs of one or more of your profiled studentsidentify them by name)
Ral will likely find it helpful to have a list of emotions that he wants to convey through his
reflections in the personal narrative. He may know what emotions he wants to show, but may not
have the vocabulary to produce them. When given this list, Ill encourage Ral to use a
dictionary or thesaurus, or to work with a partner to help him decode the list.
Chris will be able to see the process of analyzing reflections modeled by me before beginning to
try out this skill for himself. As a struggling reader, this process will likely help him to make
more inferences while reading after hearing me do so using think aloud strategies.
Karen may benefit from being seated closer to the front of the class during this lesson where she
can better focus on my modeling sessions during the teacher-led portions of class. It may also
help Karen to be given a copy of our class norms and expectations (which we will create together
as a class) before she begins group work. This way, she will have these rules on hand to refer to
as she discusses the second essay with her peers.
Jessica will benefit from being given extra assignments in the case that she finishes an activity
before her peers. During this lesson, I gave different suggestions for how students could use their
time wisely and look ahead to whats coming next if they finish early. As a gifted student, Jessica
may need this extra push to focus on upcoming lessons so that she can stay engaged in our
discussions and objectives for today.
Materials Needed:
o Overhead projector
o Copies of Name that Emotion sheet
o Copies of graphic organizer for reflections
o Copy of Being Different essay to put on overhead projector
o Copies of I Hate Being a Nice Girl essay for students
o Students will need their journals, pencils or pens
Materials Appendix: (e.g., supplementary texts, Ppts, overheads, graphic organizers,
handouts, etc.)
Appendix A: Name that Emotion list
Appendix B: Reflections graphic organizer

Akers-Pecht 19

Appendix C: Being Different essay

Appendix D: I Hate Being a Nice Girl essay

Akers-Pecht 20
Appendix A
Name: _______________________________
Date: _________________________________

Name That Emotion!

Words can be used to reveal many different voices. What mood or
personality do you want your readers to hear in the voice of your story?
Happiness

Compassion

Excitement

Hope

Fear

Anxiety
Loneliness

Relief

Surprise

Satisfaction

Shame

Love
Regret

Confusion
Anger
Boredom
Jealousy
Greed
Guilt
Pride

Curiosity
Disappointment
Shock
Exhaustion
Confidence

Disapproval
Arrogance

Sadness
Gratitude
Panic
Embarrassment

Akers-Pecht 21

Empathy

Add your own:

________________

Sympathy
________________

________________

Appendix B

Event/Source of
Identity Crisis

Emotions it
Caused (Use your
Name That
Emotion sheet)

Reflect: How did

this event change
you?
Samples: Looking back on
this event, I feel ________
about it because
________________.
If I could do things
differently, I would/wouldnt
because ________________.
This event changed me
because I used to _________
and now I _______________.

Akers-Pecht 22

Action Plan: When I look at my personal narrative again and over the weekend, I need to:
1)
2)
3)
Appendix C

BeingDifferent
http://www.teenink.com/hot_topics/pride_prejudice/article/14779/BeingDifferent/
ByJasonG.,Commack,NY
Askteenagerswhattheirviewsareonfittinginwiththecrowd.Manywillreplythatthey

wanttofitin,belikethepopularkids,orgowiththeflow.Themajorityofteenswhoreplythat
theywanttostandoutstillbasemanyoftheiractionsonfittinginwithothers.Askpeoplewhy
theyhangoutwheretheydo.Commonresponsesarethatfriendshangoutthere,orthatitisa
popularplace.Whydopeoplewearwhattheywear?Typicalrepliesarethattheclothesarein
style,orthatthepopularkidswearthem.Manyoftheactionsofteenagersaredrivenbyadesire
tofitin.
Iamoneoftherelativelyfewteenagerswhoreallywantstobeunique.Moreover,Inever
useanyofthesereasons.WhydoIwanttobeunique?Ithinkdeepdown,thereasonisbasedon
humannature.Somethingaboutfeelinguseful,needed,andpurposefulisrewardingtome,and
probablytootherstoo.IfIamunique,thenIcanfillsomenichebetterthananyotherperson.IfI
amjustlikeeveryoneelse,thenanynicheIfillcouldprobablybefilledjustaswellbysomeone
else,andsoIwouldceasetobeusefulandneeded.
Iusuallywearshirtsthatareinsomewayrelatedtomathorscience.Why?Itincreases
thelikelihoodthatsomeonewhosharesmyinterestsmath,science,computers,andlearning
willtalktome,presentingtheopportunityforlearning,myfavoriteactivity.
Historically,Ihaveneverwantedtofitin.OneexampleoccurredwhenIwasinthird
grade.Iwasreadytogotoschoolwithmybulkysweatshirttuckedintomyelasticsweatpants.
SeeinghowIwasdressed,mymomsaid,Whydontyouwearyoursweatshirtout?Ireplied,
No,itsokay.Shetriedagain,Well,itsreallydesignedtobewornout.Ireplied,Ilikeit
betterin.Itsmorecomfortable.Mymomkepttrying,Well,itlookskindofsilly,andyou
dontwantkidstoteaseyou.Icountered,MytruefriendswontteasemeabouthowIdress,

Akers-Pecht 23
andanyonewhoteasesmeisntatruefriend,justabully,sowhyshouldIcarewhathethinks?
Mymomgaveupandinsteadexclaimed,Youreabsolutelyright!But,Ilikeseeingitout,sodo
meafavorandwearitout,assheuntuckedit.
Eventhen,Ichangedmyappearanceonlytosatisfymymom,nottobeaccepted.Iwas,
andstillam,almostimpervioustopeerpressure.Peerpressureisdrivenbyanddrivesadesireto
fitin.Thepeoplewhodothepressuringareattemptingtofitinbychangingthecrowdtomake
othersmorelikethemselves,whilethosewhogiveintopeerpressurearetryingtofitinby
changingthemselvestobemorelikethecrowd.
Contrarytowhatsomewouldsay,Ithinkbeingdifferentisgood.Anyonewhosays
otherwiseisfocusingonthewrongaspectsofbeingdifferent.Bulliesfocusonthenegative
aspectsofhowothersaredifferent.Peoplewhosuccumbtopeerpressurefocusonhowtheyare
differentinnegativewaysfromwhatisconsiderednormal.IenjoybeingdifferentbecauseI
focusonthepositiveaspectsofhowIamdifferent,andengageinpursuitsthatallowmetofeel
goodaboutmyself.
Myadvicetoanyonewhoisbeingbulliedistofindsomethingaboutbeingdifferentthat
ishelpful.Bulliesmostlikelywillstopwhenteasingisnolongerenjoyable.Becausebullyingis
meanttoelicitaresponse,whenthatpersonstopsbeingaffectedbythebullying,itnolonger
accomplishesitsgoal.Sincebulliesareusedtoteasingpeople,itispossiblethattheycantellifa
personisaffectedbythebullyingbysubtlechangesinappearance,justlikewildpredatorscan
sensefearintheirprey.Thus,itmightnotbeenoughtosimplypretendthatthebullyingdoes
notmatter.However,ifthepersonbeingbulliedistrulyunaffected,itwontelicitanyresponse
otherthanmildannoyance.
Iam,asmymomsays,bullyproofbecauseIamlogical.Iseeteasingforwhatitis,
andthatmakesitillogicaltoanyoneotherthanthebully.Anillogicalstatementisobviously
untrueandcannotevokeanemotionalresponse.Toseethelackoflogicbehindtheirstatements
(whichreallyonlyamounttobeinglikemeisbetterthanbeinglikeyou),Ionlyhavetoenjoy
beingmyself.Myadviceforachievingthisistofindanactivityyouloveandbecomethebest
youcanbeatit.
Byviewingbullyinginalogicalway,feelingcomfortablebeingyourself,andlookingfor
thepositiveaspectsofbeingdifferent,itispossibletoovercomebullying,aswellasmanyother
obstacles.

Akers-Pecht 24

Appendix D

IHateBeingaNiceGirl
http://www.teenink.com/nonfiction/personal_experience/article/617999/IHateBeinga
NiceGirl/
Byonesmallinfinity,Dayton,OH

ImageCredit:BeccaW.,Greenbrae,CA

Icanactuallyrememberthefirsttimeithappened.Iwasaboutsixyearsoldandinaclass
withabunchofkidsmyage.Classwasgettingoutofhand.Thekidsweren'tconcentrating.
Theywereantsy.Fidgety.Loudlywhisperingbehindtheirhands.Ourteacher,aftershushingus
halfadozentimesasshetriedtokeepourfocusonthetaskathand,finallygaveupand
informedusthatwecouldhavefreetimeforthenextfifteenminutes.Chaosbrokeloose.Kids
boltedupfromtheirchairs.Everyonewastalkingatonce,giggling,playinggames,andjust
generallywreakinghavoc.
Andthentherewasme.Isatquietlyinmychair.Ifinishedtheactivityandthenworked
onacraft,completelycontent.Ididn'tassociatewhatIwasdoingwithpositivebehavior;Ijust
hadnodesiretobeloudandcrazy.Iwasashy,quiet,reservedlittlegirlwhowashappier
playingbyherself.Simpleasthat.
Asparentsstartedtoarrive,ourfrazzledteacherhelpedeachkidfindhisorhercraftsand
finishedactivitysheetsandhappilyhandedthechatteringchildrenoverwithahalfheartedsmile.
Butwhenmymotherarrived,myteacherbeamed.Yourdaughterissoamazingtohaveinclass.
Sogood.Sohelpful,shegushed.She'sajewel.Suchasweet,nicelittlegirl.Andjustlike
that,thereitwas:myfirstnice.
WhetherornotIknewitatthetime,astandardhadbeensetformyfuturebehavior.And
althoughmyteacherprobablydidn'tmeanitinthisway,myyoungbraininterpretedherpraiseas
tellingmethatthereasonIwasajewelwasbecauseIwasnice.Afterall,nicegirlsweregood

Akers-Pecht 25
andhelpful,andthatwashowshehaddescribedme.Therefore,Ireasoned,Iwasn'tlovableand
nice.IwaslovablebecauseIwasnice.AndifIwantedtopleasetheadultsaroundme,Iwould
havetocontinuetobenice.Sothat'swhatIdid.
Astheyearspassed,Ibecamewelltrainedintheartofnice.Itwasn'tallintentional.
Especiallyatfirst.AsmuchasIadoredpraise,Iwasjustagoodkid,andtooshyandscaredto
darebeanythingbutnice.Beingnicewasn'tsomuchachoiceasagiven.SoIgrewup,andnice
continuedtofollowonmyheels.
InthebeginningIneverfelthemmedinbynice.Nicewas,well,nice.Itgotmepositive
reinforcementfromadultrolemodels.SoIstayedinsidethelines.Iputothersfirst.I
complimentedpeople.Igavegoodadvice.Ibolsteredothers'selfesteem.Ilaughedatmy
friends'jokesevenwhentheyweren'tthatfunny.Andslowly,overtime,peoplelearnedto
expectnicenessfromme.Theyexpectedmetohaveasmileonmyface,tostayinsidethelines,
todowhatIwastold.Notsurprisingly,theyexpectedmetobethegirlIhadtoldthemIwas.
WhichwouldhavebeenfineifIwasthatgirl.But,unfortunately,Iwasnot.Somewherealong
theway,nicechanged.
Nicestoppedbeingachoiceandbecameanecessitysootherswouldn'tbedisappointedin
me.Anecessitysonoonewouldeverseemecomeundone,sonoonewoulddislikeorreject
me,soIwouldneverfail.NicestoppedbeingsomethingIparticipatedinandstartedbeinga
maskIwore,evenwhenIdidn'tfeellikeputtingiton.
NicebecameacurtainIhidmyrealfeelingsbehind,anacceptablewayformeto
embracedenial.NicebecameanexcusesoIwouldn'thavetostandupformyself.Nicebecamea
lie,andIbecamealiar.AndIstillam.
Thetruthis,mostdaysIcan'twaittogethometoshedmymaskofnicesoIcanbreathe
again.I'vetrainedmyselfwellovertheyears.IknowhowtosmileandstuffitwhenI'minthe
middleofahardsituation,andthencomehomeandpunchapillowuntilmytruefeelingsare
relieved.Iknowhowtobenice,atleastwhileotherpeoplecansee.Theonlyproblemis,I'm
forgettinghowtobeme.
PeoplerarelyseetheRealMe,becausetheRealMeismessy.She'sillogical.Shegets
hurtandthencriesaboutitintheshower.She'sterribleatmakingdecisions.Shedoesn'tclean
herroomasoftenassheshould.ShelovesGodbutoftendoesn'twanttogotochurchand
doesn'treadherBibleverymuch.Shetakesthingspersonally,evenwhensheknowsshe
shouldn't.She'sscaredofeverything.Shehatesbeingtoldwhattodo.Shehasatemper.Shegets
irritableandsnapsatpeople.Sheveryrarelysetsheralarmandsleepsinwaytoooften.And
everyfewmonthsshehasafullonemotionalbreakdownwhereshestuffsherfacewithcomfort
foodandliesaroundwatchingTVdespitethecripplinglylongtodolisthangingoverherhead.
Honestly,canyoublamemeforpreferringtheNiceMe?

Akers-Pecht 26
NiceMetakesresponsibilityforheractions.She'saccomplishedandputtogether.She's
happyandwelladjusted.Shecharmseveryonepeersandadultseffortlessly.She'sfunny.
She'sintelligentandcancommunicateherideasandopinionswithpoiseandgrace.Shenever
makesabadjudgmentcall.She'sagoodlistenerandalwaysputsothers'concernsbeforehers.
Sheneverhasproblems.She'sneverbroken.Andshe'ssupereasytogettoknow,'causehow
muchistheretolearnaboutapieceofcardboard?Oh,anddidImentionshe'sfake?
Theotherday,adearfriendofmineandIwerehavingachat.Aftergivingabrief,
shallowsummationofmycurrentlifeexperiences(i.e.Sinclair,transferringsoon,applyingto
colleges,writing,workingatlibrary,[insertfunnyanecdotehere],laughalittle,changethe
subjectbeforesheasksdetailedquestionsandrealizeswhatawreckIactuallyam),Iaskedher,
Sowhathaveyoubeenuptolately?What'snew?Shesmiledpolitelyandstartedrattlingoffa
similarspielaboutschoolandworkandvagueinanities.AndthenIstoppedher.Asuddeninner
desiretostopplayingthesesillygamespromptedmetosay,No,really.Honestly.What'sgoing
onwithyou?Thenshetoldmethetruth.Itturnsoutshewasgoingthroughareallytoughtime.
Shetoldmeaboutitwithasmileonherface.Howcrazyisthat?AndIsmiledback.We
literallydidn'tknowwhatelsetodo.Idon'tthinkeitherofuswerepreparedforherhonesty,or
myinsistenceonit.Aftershefinished,IopenedandshutmymouthafewtimesbeforeIcould
comeupwitharesponse.Becausesometimesnicejustdoesn'twork.Sometimesnicehasno
placeinaconversationbetweenfriends.Andwhatarenicegirlssupposedtodothen?
Ichosetotellthetruth.
It'slikewe'relivingadoublelife,Isaid.Andshenodded.
That'sexactlywhatit'slike.Andtobehonest,Ithinkit'stimetostop.Sohere'sthetruth.
Notricks.Nodistractions.Noexcuses.Justthetruth.Withoutallthesugarcoatingwenicegirls
arefamousfor.
Ihatebeingnice.IhatefeelingguiltyeverytimeIwanttoconfrontsomeone,however
respectfullyIdoit.IhatefeelinglikeI'mfailingifIdon'tmeasureuptothenicegirlstandards.I
hatefeelinglikeIhavetocoverupanyhintofweaknessandrealproblemsinmylife.Ihatethat
Iwatermyselfdowntofitin.Ihatethatnicehasbecomemyballandchain.IhatethatIam
surroundedbygirlswithathousanddifferentpersonalitieswhosomehowallfeeltheneedto
bowdownandworshipthealtarofniceness.Andaboveall,Ihatefeelingterrifiedthattheworld
willfindoutthetruth.
Iamnotanicegirl.AndIlikeitthatway.
Iamahumanbeing.Ihaveupsanddowns,brokenplaces.Ihavescarsandmeltdowns.I
havefaultsnotjustquirky,sillyonesIcanlaughoff.Realfaultsdeepwithinmethatplant
seedsofdoubtinmyheartaboutmyworth.Ihavelazydays.Ihavelazyweeks.Icanbe
irresponsible,petty,stubborn,andmanipulative.TherearethingsaboutmyselfthatItrulyhate.

Akers-Pecht 27
Andperhapsworstofall,IwantyoutoacceptmesobadlythatIamwillingtofakeanice
persona.Iamwillingtocompromisemyintegritytobewellliked.
Butattheendoftheday,Idon'tlikethatnicepersona.Idon'twanttobeher.Iresent
havingtopretendthatthatsmallsliverofmypersonalityismyentireidentity.Ilikebeingthe
wayIam.Myclosefriendscallmetrailmixacombinationofsweetandsalty.Ilikethat.I
neverwanttobejustabagofM&Ms.
Iwanttobeagood,strong,lovingperson.Iwanttobekindbutassertive.Idon'twantto
beanicegirlanymore.Iwanttobethebestversionofmyself,notthenicest.
Iamdonewithbeingnice.It'stimetotrybeingmeinstead.