Identity & Social Awareness

Standards' Sources

Personal Identity

Materials for Lesson Plans

Videos

Complexities of Experience

Materials for Lesson Plans

Videos

Intersections of Identity and History

Materials for Lesson Plans

Videos

Standards' Sources

Social Justice Standards. SPLC Learning for Justice. https://www.learningforjustice.org/frameworks/social-justice-standards

Personal Identity

Content Statement: Personal identity has many facets which can include (but is not limited to) any of the following: race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, world belief systems, cultural values, family structure, and socio-economic status.

CONTENT ELABORATION:

Many factors influence one’s sense of self. Understanding those factors and one’s personal answers to them helps a person understand who they are and their unique life experiences. An exploration of identity and the self is one of the oldest philosophical questions that humans have explored. Personal identity can change over time and reflect life experiences. Having an understanding of personal identity and the many factors that influence it helps with understanding others’ identities.

EXPECTATIONS FOR LEARNING:

Students will be able to explain the facets of personal identity that they want to discuss.

Materials for Lesson Plans

Understanding IdentityStudents consider the question "Who am I?" and identify social and cultural factors that shape identity by reading a short story and creating personal identity charts.

‘Bibi’ Lesson 1: What Makes Us Who We Are?In this first lesson in a series of three, students will explore how people are comprised of personal and social identities.

Identity ChartsUse identity charts to help students consider the many factors that shape their own identity and that of groups, nations, and historical and literary figures.

Lesson plan for The Spectrum Activity, Questions of Identity from the University of Michigan's Inclusive Teaching webpage helps students consider their own identities and think about the relationship between identity and context.

Digging Deep Into the Social Justice Standards: Identity

Learning for Justice PD material describing the four elements of Identity, Diversity, Justice, and Action of LFJ's Social Justice Standards and how educators can implement them in their classrooms.

Lesson plan for The Social Identity Wheel from the University of Michigan's Inclusive Teaching webpage helps students consider their own identities and think about the relationship between identity and context.

Videos

Video from Edutopia is designed to help students explore their own perceptions of identity and the processes of identity development.

Bibi

"Bibi" is an 18-minute movie from Learning for Justice designed to coincide with specific lessons about identity development, intersectionality, and the power of letter writing.

Complexities of Experience

Content Statement: Acknowledgment and acceptance of the complexity of the individual experience throughout the course of time provides consideration for how personal identity helps connect with others and reflect upon personal experiences.

CONTENT ELABORATION:

Many aspects of personal identity reflect social and cultural norms and expectations. Meeting these expectations helps with group identity and acceptance. However, due to life experiences members of groups do not all have identical identities. Understanding the many intersections of people allows for greater understanding for acceptance due to interlinked experiences.

EXPECTATIONS FOR LEARNING:

Students will be able to assess where facets of identity intersect in their life experiences.

Materials for Lesson Plans

Reflection: What’s Your FRAME?This activity encourages students to reflect on their individual cultures and histories, their backgrounds, the things they grew up with (some that may have been in their control and others that they had no choice about), and their values. In the end, students will begin to enlarge their perspective and recognize diversity of belief and background.

Learning Empowerment and Self-Identification

Lesson plan from GLSEN exploring the empowering nature of self-identification, what it means to be proud of the labels and identities that we all hold, and analyze the harm that can be caused when labels are applied to others without their consent.

LibGuide of resources Including lesson plans, tool-kids, articles, and videos for teaching Intersectionality from Salisbury University.

‘Bibi’ Lesson 2: Intersectionality in ‘Bibi’In this second of three lessons on the film ‘Bibi,’ students will apply the concepts of intersectionality, privilege and oppression to characters from the film ‘Bibi.’

Diversity Toolkit: A Guide to Discussing Identity, Power and PrivilegeThis training is meant for anyone who feels there is a lack of productive discourse around issues of diversity and the role of identity in social relationships, both on a micro (individual) and macro (communal) level.

Creating a Learning Environment Where All Kids Feel ValuedA five-step exercise on identity and belonging helps middle school students appreciate differences—in themselves and in their peers.

‘Bibi’ Lesson 3: The Power of Letter Writing: Enhancing Communication and UnderstandingIn this third and final lesson on the film ‘Bibi,’ students will write a letter to Ernesto explaining the concepts of intersectionality, privilege and oppression.

Videos

Video designed to provide an overview of the concept of Intersectionality to a classroom audience from Learning for Justice.

My identity is a superpower -- not an obstacleHollywood needs to stop resisting what the world actually looks like, says actor, director and activist America Ferrera. Tracing the contours of her career, she calls for more authentic representation of different cultures in media -- and a shift in how we tell our stories. "Presence creates possibility," she says. "Who we see thriving in the world teaches us how to see ourselves, how to think about our own value, how to dream about our futures."

Intersections of Identity and History

Content Statement: The intersectionality of race, ethnicity, gender, class, religion, sex, and other identifiable characteristics for a person not only adds depth to the study of history, but also provides inclusivity that leads to a more objective study of what happened in the past.

CONTENT ELABORATION:

The intersectionality of race, ethnicity, gender, class, religion, sex, and other identifiable characteristics for a person not only adds depth to the study of history, but also provides inclusivity that leads to a more objective study of what happened in the past.

An example of this relates to civil rights leader Dolores Huerta. In the 1960s, Huerta worked with Che Guevera to achieve rights for migrant farm workers in California and formed the United Farm Workers Union. Huerta’s work also fell in line with the goals of

Second Wave Feminism
Environmentalism
African American Civil Rights

EXPECTATIONS FOR LEARNING:

Analyze how intersecting identities shape perspectives and the way people experience the world through historical events.

Materials for Lesson Plans

Toolkit for "Teaching at the Intersections"This toolkit for “Teaching at the Intersections” provides anti-bias essential questions and readings from Perspectives for a Diverse America that can be used to build student understanding of intersectionality in grades K-12.

Lesson plan from the Immigrant History Initiative featuring the intersections of identity and gender through the lens of Asian American history.

Lesson-2-Intersectionality-Lesson-Plan-and-Resources_.pdf

Lesson plan from the One Out of Five: Disability History and Pride Project featuring the intersections of identity and disability. The link to the GoogleDrive materials with slides and print-outs needed for the lesson can be found here.

Unit Plan from the Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute titled "20th Century Latinx Movements: Intersectionality and Cultures of Resistance" looks at the relationship between Latinx rights movements In the 20th century and the intersectionalities of experiences people with Latin American ancestry.

Videos

Video from The Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture describing elements of intersectionality and the intersectionality of African American women In the United States.

Video from The Ford Foundation describing experiences with the intersectionality of disability and race.

Identity & Social Awareness

Standards' Sources

Personal Identity

Content Statement: Personal identity has many facets which can include (but is not limited to) any of the following: race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, world belief systems, cultural values, family structure, and socio-economic status.

Materials for Lesson Plans

Videos

Complexities of Experience

Content Statement: Acknowledgment and acceptance of the complexity of the individual experience throughout the course of time provides consideration for how personal identity helps connect with others and reflect upon personal experiences.

Materials for Lesson Plans

Videos

Intersections of Identity and History

Content Statement: The intersectionality of race, ethnicity, gender, class, religion, sex, and other identifiable characteristics for a person not only adds depth to the study of history, but also provides inclusivity that leads to a more objective study of what happened in the past.

Materials for Lesson Plans

Videos

Further Reading