In this lesson, students consider what it means to be an American, using an opinion piece about the “American Identity Crisis” and several related videos as central texts. They answer a series of text-dependent questions, debate their opinions, write a brief constructed response, and make their own video that reflects their interpretation of “the face of America.”

In this lesson, students will examine their digital footprints, discuss the positives and negatives of having a footprint, and determine how they can most safely manage their footprints.

This series help students think about their bodies and body images in a social justice context. Each lesson looks at a different aspect of the relationship children have with their bodies. The series helps students take ownership over their own feelings and attitudes and develop an activist stance in terms of understanding body image and also looking after their own physical and emotional wellbeing.

Identity charts are a graphic tool that can help students consider the many factors that shape who we are as individuals and as communities. Use identity charts to deepen students’ understanding of themselves, groups, nations, and historical and literary figures. Sharing their own identity charts with peers can help students build relationships and break down stereotypes. In this way, identity charts can be used as an effective classroom community-building tool. This strategy can be used in grades 3-12 in any content area.

A video and series of slides detailing Erikson's Identity vs Role Confusion. Compares the effects of Erikson's Fifth Stage between teenagers of differing countries and cultures.

Book List Topics:Identity MattersAmerican Indian VoicesVoices Around the WorldInclusive VoicesBoundary BreakersExpanding the Narrative

International Women’s Voices has several objectives. It introduces students to a variety of works by contemporary women writers from Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and North America. The emphasis is on non-western writers. The readings are chosen to encourage students to think about how each author’s work reflects a distinct cultural heritage and to what extent, if any, we can identify a female voice that transcends national cultures. In lectures and readings distributed in class, students learn about the history and culture of each of the countries these authors represent. The way in which colonialism, religion, nation formation and language influence each writer is a major concern of this course. In addition, students examine the patterns of socialization of women in patriarchal cultures, and how, in the imaginary world, authors resolve or understand the relationship of the characters to love, work, identity, sex roles, marriage, and politics.

Through the comparative study of different cultures, anthropology explores fundamental questions about what it means to be human. It seeks to understand how culture both shapes societies, from the smallest island in the South Pacific to the largest Asian metropolis, and affects the way institutions work, from scientific laboratories to Christian mega-churches. This course will provide a framework for analyzing diverse facets of human experience such as gender, ethnicity, language, politics, economics, and art.

forall x is an introduction to sentential logic and first-order predicate logic with identity, logical systems that significantly influenced twentieth-century analytic philosophy. After working through the material in this book, a student should be able to understand most quantified expressions that arise in their philosophical reading.

This books treats symbolization, formal semantics, and proof theory for each language. The discussion of formal semantics is more direct than in many introductory texts. Although forall x does not contain proofs of soundness and completeness, it lays the groundwork for understanding why these are things that need to be proven.

Shape grammars are systems of visual rules by which one shape may be transformed into another. By applying these rules recursively, a simple shape can be elaborated into a complex pattern. This course offers an in-depth introduction to shape grammars and their applications in architecture and related areas of design. More specifically, it involves manipulation of shapes in the algebras Uij, in the algebras Vij and Wij incorporating labels and weights, and in algebras formed as composites of these. Discussions center on rules and computations, shape and structure, and designs.

This course examines Israeli identity using a broad array of materials, including popular music, film, documentaries, and art, in addition to academic historical writings. Topics include Israel’s political system and society, ethnic relations, settlement projects, and the Arab minorities in the Jewish state. Students also discuss whether there is a unique Israeli culture and the struggle for Israel’s identity.
Preference is given to students in the MISTI MIT-Israel program.

Explore the complex identity of Sammy Davis, Jr. and its impact on his career as a performer in this video from American Masters, Sammy Davis, Jr.: I've Gotta Be Me. As a black man in a predominantly white industry, Sammy struggled to be accepted by both groups. This resource explores how Sammy persevered in a society where race and culture posed many challenges. Support materials include discussion questions, vocabulary, and an identity map activity where students analyze the many factors that shape who we are as individuals and as members of different communities.

This lesson is part of The Role of Gay Men and Lesbians in the Civil Rights Movement series.

Japanese Americans suffered terrible injustices as a result of governmental policies during World War II that discriminated against them by treating them like enemies. In this lesson, students examine what happened to Japanese Americans during WWII, what constitutional rights were violated in the process, and why such a massive injustice happened.

2021 Social Science Standards Integrated with Ethnic Studies:
Civics and Government: 2.4, 3.2, 5.1, 6.4
Economics: 1.4, 4.4
Geography: 5.13
Historical Knowledge: K.14, 1.12, 2.16, 5.22, 6.21
Historical Thinking: 2.21, 2.22, 6.23
Social Science Analysis: 1.19, 2.23, 2.25, 3.18, 3.19, 4.21, 4.24, 5.27, 5.28, 6.24, 6.27, 6.28

This lesson covers personal narratives from victims and descendants and highlights how the American government forced Japanese Americans and the Aleuts of Alaska into incarceration camps under President Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066. It additionally covers the forced removal process, conditions and lives in the camps, and the eventual release of prisoners. The lesson analyzes the incarceration of Japanese Americans and Aleuts as a violation of their constitutional rights. Students discuss examples of incarceration and connect instances of incarceration with current social and political events pertaining to the concept of “families belong together.”

2021 Social Science Standards Integrated with Ethnic Studies:
Civics and Government: 8.2, 8.5, 8.8, HS.1, HS.9
Historical Knowledge: 6.20, 6.21, 8,22, HS.52, HS.64
Historical Thinking: 7.25, 8.31, HS.67
Social Science Analysis: 6.24, 6.28, 7.27, 7.30, 8.33, 8.36, HS.71, HS.72, HS.73, HS.74

In this lesson, students will consider the importance of learning ethnic studies in the classroom and engaging with the lived experiences of their own families and communities, particularly as people of color. They will also learn and discuss concepts of intergenerational trauma in the context of mass incarceration and its effects on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders by examining the ROOTS (Restoring Our Original True Selves) program at San Quentin State Prison. Lastly, students will learn about the current impact of incarceration on youth of color and relate it to the experiences of ROOTS program participants.

2021 Social Science Standards Integrated with Ethnic Studies:
Civics and Government: 8.8, HS.2
Economics: 7.8
Historical Knowledge: 6.20, 6.21, 8.25, HS.63, HS.64
Historical Thinking: 7.25, 8.31, 8.32, HS.68, HS.69
Social Science Analysis: 5.26, 5.27, 5.28, 6.24, 6.26, 6.27, 6.28, 7.29, 7.30, 8.36, HS.71, HS.72, HS.73, HS.74, HS.76, HS.78

This unit will introduce middle and high school students to LGBTQ civil rights with an emphasis on the struggle for marriage equality. They will learn about ideas, events, and individuals that influenced George Takei and his decision to come out as an advocate for LGBTQ rights and contextualize the fight for LGBTQ rights as an extension of the Civil Rights Movement. The unit will culminate in an essay assignment in which students will analyze how the discussed events, people, and ideas influenced the struggle for marriage equality.

2021 Social Science Standards Integrated with Ethnic Studies:
Civics and Government: 6.4, 7.5, 8.2, 8.5, 8.6, 8.8, 8.9, HS.1, HS.2, HS.7, HS.9
Historical Knowledge: 6.21, 8.22, 8.25, 8.27, HS.52, HS.58, HS.60, HS.63, HS.64, HS.66
Historical Thinking: 8.32
Social Science Analysis: 6.24, 6.28, 7.27, 7.30, 8.33, 8.34, 8.36, HS.71, HS.72, HS.73, HS.74, HS.77, HS.78

In this lesson, students explore race and self-identity by creating self-portraits. The lesson aims to help students develop detailed observational skills and use these skills in relation to themselves and others. It also begins constructing a vocabulary that is crucial in helping build community and discuss some of the more challenging aspects of race and racial identity formation.

Asian American histories or contributions are often left out when students study the development of the nation up to 1850, which could inaccurately lead students to believe that Asian American communities did not exist during this time period. In fact, Asian Americans were here at the formation of the United States. Specifically, Filipino Americans settled in the U.S. as early as 1763, and Filipino sailors had arrived in California as early as 1587. In 1763, Filipino sailors settled in a Louisiana bayou, and became the first Filipino immigrants to settle in the United States, known as “Manilamen.” Along with enslaved people and other people of color, the Filipino immigrants built a small fishing village called Saint Malo. These Manilamen made many contributions to Louisiana and the U.S., including revolutionizing the shrimping industry.

2021 Social Science Standards Integrated with Ethnic Studies:
Geography: 5.13, 8.20
Historical Knowledge: 8.27, 8.28
Historical Thinking: 8.31, 8.32
Social Science Analysis: 4.21, 4.24, 5.26, 5.27, 5.28, 6.24, 6.27,6.28, 7.29, 7.30, 8.36

This lesson focuses on questions of identity as students read and analyze Angelou’s inspirational poem “Still I Rise” and apply its message to their own lives. Students learn how Maya Angelou overcame hardship and discrimination to find her own voice and to influence others to believe in themselves and use their voices for positive change.