Writing about neighborhoods: Activity Description

“I Grew Up in the North End, an Island” is a celebration of home. The poet writes of the ordinary things and people of her childhood with joy and reverence. After all, the people and items of our childhood stay with us long into adulthood, even if they remain with us only in our minds. After reading  “I Grew Up in the North End, an Island” by María Luisa Arroyo, please write your own poem about your childhood neighborhood. You may not feel the same way that Arroyo does toward her home, but the point in writing this poem isn’t to imitate exactly, but to capture the spirit of a place, as she does. Focus on the deepest honesty, employ ordinary language, and welcome other languages (the languages of your friends and family, and languages outside of English, if applicable); populate your poem with items which may not carry meaning for many others but you. Focus your attention on the people from your childhood who loved you, betrayed you, saddened you, gladdened you and lifted you into the future.

Race, Gender, Class, and Place: A Critical Analysis of "I Grew Up on the North End"

Students will use an equity lens to process how race/ ethnicity, class, and gender intersect with place to impact how groups experience power and/or oppression

• View full instructions for critical analysis activity

• Read article White Privilege Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack