Life Experiences and Identity
In Search of Self - Identity and Sense of Self
Student Page
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Key Concept:

All people experience situations in their lives that shape who they are or who they will become.  However, it is important to note that everyone may react to a situation differently.  In this lesson, you will look at various situations and react to them.  You will also have the opportunity to write your own personal account of a situation that has changed you. 

Objectives:

You will be able to

- recognize reading as an active process that requires readers to find meaning
- summarize information
- consider the social, historical, and philosophical milieu in which a selection was written
- explore human experiences and values reflected in texts
- use what is known as the writing process
       - use appropriate pre-writing and planning strategies
       - develop ideas previously exploreed into draft form
       - revise and polish compositions
       - share, present, or publish compositions
- write to express self
- experiment with various forms of writing such as a short story

Resources:

- list of scenarios
- reading guide

One of the following pieces of literature
1. "By Any Other Name" ( Santha Rama Rau, India - Literature and Language Arts: World; World Literature (Glencoe) )
2. "from The Metamorphosis" (Franz Kafka, Czechoslovakia - Literature and Language Arts: World)
3. "Split at the Root" (A. Rich, USA - Art of the Personal Essay)
4. "The Superannuated Man" (C. Lamb, USA - Art of the Personal Essay)

- pre-writing handout
- writing process checklist
- example an anecdotal autobiography
- reflective story handout
- peer editing checklist
- evaluation guide

Teacher-Learning Strategies:

reading, you need to consider whether individuals react differently to situations based on their life experiences, values, and beliefs.

Task One: What Would You Do?

1.  Using the list of scenarios provided, choose four or five scenarios and write a paragraph describing what your reaction would be in these situations.

2.  When you have completed the assigned number of scenarios, get into groups and discuss one of your reactions with the other members of your group.

the reading of one of the following pieces of texts, you will be looking at the situations the characters find themselves in and the decisions they make.

Task Two: What Did They Do?

Read one of the following pieces of text. While you are reading, keep track of the characters' major decisions in the decision guide.

Possible selections:
1. "By Any Other Name" ( Santha Rama Rau, India - Literature and Language Arts: World; World Literature (Glencoe) )
2. "from The Metamorphosis" (Franz Kafka, Czechoslovakia - Literature and Language Arts: World)
3. "Split at the Root" (A. Rich, USA - Art of the Personal Essay)
4. "The Superannuated Man" (C. Lamb, USA - Art of the Personal Essay)

When you have finished reading the text, answer the following questions:

1. Write a brief summary of the selection you have just read.
2. What was the main conflict in the text and who was the conflict between?
3. What was the outcome of the situation based on the characters' decisions?
4. How did the main characters change as a result of this situation?
5. What was the theme or message the author was trying to convey?

Discuss the answers with your teacher and the rest of the class after you have completed the questions.

reading the text selection, take the opportunity to reflect upon a situation in your own life that has made an impact on you and changed who you are.

Task Three:  What Did You Do?

Follow these steps and use the writing process to create an anecdotal autobiography describing an event that changed you.  

An anecdotal autobiography uses a flashback to reflect on a moment that made a lasting impact on a person's character.

1. After you have read the assignment description and looked at how you will be evaluated, use the following pre-writing guidelines to help organize your ideas.

Pre-writing is an important step in the writing process. By completing an outline or brainstorming some ideas, you will begin to determine the direction you would like to take with your compostition.

2. Once you have completed the prewriting, you are ready to begin drafting. As you draft, always keep your purpose for writing clear in your mind (Anecdotal Autobiography - to subtly reveal a change in character).

Having a hard time imagining what your final product should look and sound like? View this student written anecdotal autobiography!

3. To ensure that you are completing all the necessary steps in the writing process, use this writing process checklist as you work. Each time you finish one of the steps, check it off the list and move on to the next.  

4. When you are ready to polish your work, begin by reading the autobiography on your own and looking for any revisions that might need to be made regarding format and content. Once you have looked over you work, you are ready to have someone else look at it. Have a partner read your autobiography and use the peer editing checklist to make suggestions for change.

5. When you are done making changes to your work based on your own ideas and your partner's suggestions, you are ready to hand-in your assignment!