The first “identity ingredient” we explored was our names.

We began by reading an adapted article from Harvard Business Review on why learning to pronounce each other’s names matters. Together, we learned about the idea of “Anglicizing” names—why some people might choose to do so—and reflected on what we can do as a classroom community to make sure every name is valued and welcomed.

Afterwards, each student explored a variety of picture books in which the main character reflects on their name—its story, its meaning, or its connection to their family or community. These books represent names from a wide range of cultural backgrounds. (You can listen to the stories with your child at home by using the slides to the left!)

I also shared the story of my own name (you’ll also find it in the slide deck), and students have a “Name Reflection” homework assignment to complete with a parent. This is a special opportunity to talk with your child about their name’s history, meaning, and the pride you hope they carry in it.

Our second “identity ingredient” was body diversity.

We began by reading The Best Part of Me, a collection of poems and reflections by children about their favorite body parts. Inspired by the book, students wrote their own pieces—paragraphs or poems—expressing gratitude for body parts that help them live, play, learn, and connect with others.

From there, we broadened our lens to think about the wide array of human bodies and needs. Students explored a “choose-your-own-adventure” slide deck with videos from the YouTube series Kids Meet. Through these stories, they met people with diverse bodies and experiences—such as a person with cerebral palsy, a little person, a girl with alopecia, a person with Tourette’s syndrome, a man who uses a wheelchair, and a woman with spina bifida. They also learned about assistive tools like prosthetic legs and guide dogs for people who are blind.

Together, we discussed the idea of body diversity: that while all humans share certain features, every body is also unique. Some are tall, some are short; some move with ease, others use tools to move; skin comes in many beautiful shades; hair can be straight, curly, or anything in between. We emphasized that there is no single “right” way to look or be. Our differences are part of what make our communities strong, interesting, and full of care.

Students are welcome to continue this learning at home by exploring the videos in the slide deck together (left).

In this lesson, we explored the many ways families can look and the important roles they play in shaping who we are. 

Together, we reflected on how families influence our values, beliefs, and interests, and how they help shape our most meaningful life experiences. Students read an excerpt from Barack Obama’s memoir A Promised Land, where he describes his mother’s impact on his growth and identity, as well as my own Common App college essay, in which I described how my dad profoundly shaped the values I wish to carry with me into the world. We even discussed the idea of chosen family — people we may not be biologically related to, but who feel like family because of the love, support, belonging, and influence they bring to our lives.

Students learned about my own family, which reflects many forms of diversity, including: 

• immigration and mixed-race families (I am Chinese, Colombian, and was raised Jewish; both my parents are mixed race themselves)

• divorce (my parents separated when I was 20 and are both happily in relationships with new partners)

• adoption (my dad's partner has two children adopted from Korea)

• LGBTQ identities (my brother recently got engaged to his boyfriend!)

It was important to me that students could see that even their teacher’s family doesn’t fit into just one “traditional” mold. I wanted them to see that families come in all shapes and sizes — and maybe even recognize a part of their own family story in mine. Check out the slides to the left to learn more about my family!

This is a big topic — one that couldn’t possibly be covered in a single week (or even a lifetime!). This week was an introduction: a chance to build some shared vocabulary and background knowledge that we’ll continue to explore throughout the year.

We divided this big topic into three parts:

1) What is ethnicity? What is culture?

We began by defining these ideas through a kid-friendly text and then studied cultures from a variety of ethnic backgrounds, choosing from a big menu of books representing a wide variety of cultures. This helped prepare students for their homework assignment, in which they reflected on cultural practices that have shaped their own identities.

2) What is race? How have the categories of race and ethnicity changed over time?

Students read  excerpts from The Antiracist Kid to define these terms and learn about the historical origins of the idea of race. They then analyzed U.S. Census questions from 1970–2020 to see how “official” racial and ethnic categories have shifted over time — and discussed why those changes matter. 

Some students who finished "Must Do" work early also had an opportunity to read an NPR article breaking down the racial and ethnic identities reported in the 2020 census. Other students read a piece about Americans of Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) descent who advocated for their own census category. (In fact, in our census analysis, the whole class noticed that for the first time in 2020, the census invited white and Black Americans to name their specific ethnic origins.)

Takeaway for students: the ways humans define race and ethnicity have changed — and continue to evolve — over time.

3) What is racism? How can it impact people?

We read Our Skin: A First Conversation About Race to learn about the origins of the concept of race and the different ways racism can show up in people’s lives. Students then chose from a menu of picture books about historical examples of racism and courage — including the Greensboro sit-ins, Japanese American incarceration during World War II, Sylvia Mendez’s fight for school desegregation in California, and Ruby Bridges’ brave leadership in desegregating schools ten years later.

Families are encouraged to explore and discuss these picture books together at home using the slides linked to the left ("Stories of Racism"). Or, if your child did not get to explore some of the optional articles, you are welcome to print and read them together! There another interesting NPR article that we did not have time to read in class; it describes a poll that captured some Native Americans' experiences of discrimination in the U.S. You are welcome to read this article with your child at home!

In this lesson, we explored how places — both near and far — help shape who we are. We thought about local places that are part of our everyday lives, such as a school, soccer field, laundromat, or place of worship, as well as global places that connect to our families or ancestors in another city, state, or country.

We began by reading My Papi Has a Motorcycle, which follows a young girl and her father as they ride through their neighborhood in Corona, California. Along the way, she reflects on the places in her community that have shaped her sense of self — inspired by the author’s own childhood experiences with her dad.

We then took another tour with Lin-Manuel Miranda, who shared the New York City places that influenced his identity and inspired his work on Hamilton and In the Heights (see slides). I also shared some examples of the local and global places that have shaped my own story.

In the coming weeks, students will learn how to create their own Google Earth identity tours with Mrs. Lechowski, highlighting the meaningful places that have influenced their growth and sense of self.

We ran out of time to read the article "How Are We Shaped by the Places We Call Home?" (adapted from this original article), but I attached it to the left should you wish to continue the learning at home!

I encourage families to read this letter, which provides an overview of our first unit on identity.

In this letter, I also explain how and why I will be teaching students about Down syndrome and "the R word" for our novel study.

As always, reach out with questions at any time! I will be updating this website throughout the unit to share the texts we are reading.

To preview our novel, Marcus Vega Doesn't Speak Spanish, students went on a virtual field trip to Puerto Rico – with Lin-Manuel Miranda! Students are welcome to continue their virtual field trip at home!