Beth Kohn

112B/Dr. Warner

Unit Plan

Self-Esteem: The Young Adults search for value through multiple genres:

Autobiography and Contemporary Realistic Fiction

The period of development between youth and maturation is a time in life when having low self-esteem can intensify and result in detrimental and life long destructive behavior. It is also during these years that adolescents distance themselves from their familial relationships, peers become increasingly important and they search to find their own individuality. Because of this, it is crucial during these years for teenagers to possess a positive sense of self in order to ensure they will become secure, well-adjusted adults. Self-esteem is defined as pride in oneself and/or having self-respect. There are plethoras of factors, however, which can thwart a young adults’ sense of self-respect, from seemingly minor concerns to the most severe circumstances. These include, but are not limited to, physical and emotional abuse, dysfunctional families, race, prejudice, physical handicaps, drugs, class, academic pressures, identity issues, looks, body image, etc. Furthermore, today more than ever, adolescents are exposed to dominating outside influences, which affect their character, such as the media and the internet. As a result, teens are exposed to more and mature faster than ever before. Conversely, it is also a time in a young adult’s life when they can immerse themselves in other people’s stories, through literature, and learn they are not alone. Through literature, the reader can identify, sympathize, escape and learn from various characters in stories. By reading, they can gain comfort and strength in knowing they are not the only ones dealing with certain issues.

Why I chose this Autobiography as my centerpiece work and the genre of Contemporary Realistic Fiction for my supports:

Because self-esteem is vital during this time in life, I chose to create a unit plan curriculum that focuses on two genres of literature, both, which have the ability to illustrate various situations in young people’s lives that contribute to low self-esteem. More importantly, however, I chose these genres to help illuminate how adolescents can overcome various obstacles. The novel I chose as my centerpiece is Maya Angelou’s, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings. While this book is her first autobiography, it is a canonical work that delves into multiple factors that affected the author’s self-esteem negatively. Some of these factors include, race, prejudice, sexual abuse, appearance and sexual identity. These are elements that Angelou endured, prevailed over, and moved beyond to lead an extraordinary life. In addition to the negative influences noted in Maya Angelou’s autobiography, her book also provides readers with hope by suggesting that through the power of knowledge, by reading, a person can overcome negative obstacles to become a person who believes in himself or herself and possess a positive sense of self-worth. As Angelou states in her biography, “I wouldn’t miss Mrs. Flowers, for she had given me her secret word which called forth a djinn who was to serve me all my life: Books.” (Angelou, 170). As a supplement to Angenlou’s biography, I also chose to incorporate various contemporary realistic fictions to extend my unit. As Dr. Mary Warner suggests in Adolescents in The Search for Meaning, “Building from the idea that stories are a powerful source of meaning, particularly those that resonate with our own lives”, (back jacket) this genre opens up a world that adolescents can identify with.

Launching the Unit:

Prior to having students read I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, introduce the theme of self-esteem by having the students listen to the song, “Perfect” by Alanis Morissette.

“Perfect”

Alanis Morissette

Sometimes is never quite enough

If you’re flawless, then you’ll win my love

Don’t forget to win first place

Don’t forget to keep that smile on your face

Be a good boy

Try a little harder

You’ve got to measure up

And make me prouder

How long before you screw it up

How many times do I have to tell you to hurry up

With everything I do for you

The least you can do is keep quiet

Be a good girl

You’ve gotta try a little harder

That simply wasn’t good enough

To make us proud

I’ll live through you

I’ll make you what I never was

If you’re the best, them maybe so am I

Compared to him compared to her

I’m doing this for your own damn good

You’ll make up for what I blew

What’s the problem…why are you crying

Be a good boy

Push a little farther now

That wasn’t fast enough

To make us happy

We’ll love you just the way you are if you’re perfect

After they have listened to the song, have the students form a circle and provide approximately fifteen to twenty minutes to launch a discussion of what self-esteem is and is not. Have them relate this discussion to the words in the song. Next, break the class up into smaller groups (4 to 5 students per group) and have them write down what words or lines are powerful to them (from the song) and how they think it could affect someone’s self-esteem negatively.

The Center Piece:

The following discussions and activities regarding Maya Angelou’s I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings will expand on the theme of self-esteem in this unit plan:

1. While reading the book, have the students write in a journal various “power

lines” that relate to young Marguerite’s self-esteem, both negatively and positively. They should read approximately fifty pages per day in order to complete the book during one week’s period. In class, divide the students in half. Have one group discuss the power lines they thought attributed to negative self-worth and have the other group discuss the power lines they felt contributed to a positive sense of self. It will be interesting to see how many students came up with the same and/or different passages in the book. After they have discussed the power lines in groups, have the students present to the whole class what lines (or words) struck them and how they felt it affected the Author’s self-esteem. (Idea of “power lines” taken from Dr. Warner).

2. Have the students keep a characterization log for all the individuals in the

story that affect young Marguerite Johnson’s self-esteem. Include in the log:

• What relation the character is to Marguerite.
• What the character does.
• Something specific the character says.
• What the author says about the character.
• How the character influences Marguerite.
• Is the character a positive or negative influence on Marguerite?

(Characterization log taken from

Once the students have completed their characterization logs, create an in-class tableau. Working in groups, students select and create a frozen scene from the characterization logs. “A leader will tap a person in the scene who will, while the others remain frozen, speak ‘in character.’ The character stops when tapped again. Each character gets an opportunity to speak. Only one character speaks at a time. The speaker can simply speak words that the character might be thinking at the time of the scene.” ( Idea of tableau taken from <http://urbandreams.ousd.k12.ca.us/lessonplans/angelou/lesson11.html>)

3. Throughout the story, the author refers to many instances when books and

reading gets her through difficult times. Have each student write a one to two page essay discussing a specific time when Angelou refers to such instances and explain how and why it was beneficial to her as it relates to her self-esteem.

Supplement to the Centerpiece:

After reading I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, have the students read in class the following poem, (which was the source of Maya Angelou’s title for her autobiography) Paul Laurence Danbar’s “Sympathy.”

Sympathy

Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906)

I know what the caged bird feels.

Ah me, when the sun is bright on the upland slopes,

When the wind blows soft through the springtime grass

And the river floats like a sheet of glass,

When the first bird sings and the first bud ops,

And the faint perfume from its chalice steals.

I know what the caged bird feels.

I know why the caged bird beats his wing

Till its blood is red on the cruel bars,

For he must fly back to his perch and cling

When he fain would be on the bow aswing.

And the blood still throbs in the old, old scars

And they pulse again with a keener sting.

I know why he beats his wing.

I know why the caged bird sings.

Ah, me, when its wings are bruised and its bosom sore.

It beats its bars and would be free.

It’s not a carol of joy or glee,

but a prayer that it sends from its heart’s deep core,

a plea that upward to heaven it flings.

I know why the caged bird sings.

(Taken from <http://www.geocities.com/frankie_meehan/CagedBirdDunbarPoem.h...>

After the poem has been read in the classroom, pair two students each, and have one be the “free bird” and the other be the “caged bird”. Have the free bird interview the caged bird and have the caged bird answer what it means to be caged as it relates to the poem, “Sympathy” and the novel I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings. (Idea taken from Gaylene McGowan).

Extending the Unit:

The following novels are all contemporary realistic fiction, which deal with various factors that affect young adult’s self-esteem and are appropriate compliments to Maya Angelou’s I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings:

Am I Blue? by Bruce Coville: “This collection of short stories focuses on adolescents and sexual identity. One of the most powerful stories is that of Bruce Coville, for whom the collection is named. Coville’s narrator is a young man who has just been attacked and harassed. Melvin, a fairy godfather, appears to the young man and grants him three wishes. One of the wishes involves an experiment—anyone who is gay or lesbian turns blue, to varying degrees. The narrator is surprised to realize who and how many people have kept their sexual orientation hidden”. (Taken from Adolescents in the Search for Meaning by Mary Warner).

Breathing Underwater, byAlex Flinn: “Sixteen-year old Nick Andreas is wealthy, handsome and in love with Caitlin McCourt. Unfortunately, his childhood was filled with family violence, as Nick’s father used violence against Nick’s mother-who left the family-and still punches Nick as his first line of discipline. This technique of dominance and control runs deep in Nick, who has the sense that he can control Caitlin through manipulation and force. When the restraining order Caitlin files against Nick requires that he write an extensive journal and attend an anger management program, Nick’s underlying attitudes and assumptions get the attention they deserve. But is it too late to change?” (Taken from Jeannine’s book talk).

Life In The Fat Lane, by Cherie Bennet: This story is about a sixteen-year old beauty pageant winner and homecoming queen who appears to have it all: supportive family, friends and a gorgeous bohemian/artist boyfriend. She seems to have it all until she acquires a rare metabolic disorder, which makes her gain 100 lbs. in one year. As she gains weight, Lara discovers what it is like to go from being thin and popular, to being fat and ostracized. Even among those she is closest to, including her image-conscious family, Lara is viewed harshly and critically. When her family moves to a different town, Lara is mortified that she is seen only as a “fat person” and that nobody will know her as the thin, beautiful girl she used to be. While her fears are realized, something else also begins to happen. She begins to play the piano again and starts taking lessons with a new teacher. This opens up a new world for Lara; a world that does not focus on looks.

Smack, by Melvin Burgess: “Like so many teenagers, Tar and Gemma are fed up with their parents. Tar’s family is alcoholic and abusive, and Gemma feels her home life is cramped by too many restrictions. The young, British teens run away to Bristol in search of freedom, and find it in the form of a “squat”. This vacant building is also occupied by two slightly older teens who share everything with Tar and Gemma (including their heroin habits). For a while, everything is parties and adventures, but slowly Tar and Gemma find themselves growing more and more dependent on the drug—whose strict mandates are even less forgiving than those of the parents they fled. As Gemma says, ‘You take more and more, and more. Then you get sick of it and give it up for a few days. And that’s the really nasty thing because then you’re clean, that’s when it works so well.’” (Taken from Amazon.com’s Editorial Review).

Smack received Winner of the Carnegie Medal and the Guardian Prize for Fiction (Amazon.com).

Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson: “Melinda is raped at a party during the summer before her freshman year of high school. She calls the police, but flees in fear before they arrive. All of her friends abandon her and kids she does not even know hate her because they think she ratted to break up the party. Melinda tells no one her traumatizing experience. Speak is her inner monologue, full of sarcastic wit and dark humor. She details her long and troublesome freshman year, trapped in depression and silence, until she is finally able to speak the truth, and liberate herself from the burden of seclusion.” (Taken from Natalie Smith’s book talk).

Stargirl, by Jerry Spinelli: “When Stargirl Caraway first arrives at Mica High School, all of the students are taken aback by her many unusual eccentricities. She immediately captures junior Leo Borlock’s heart with her doe-eyes and luminous smile. And, likewise, she captivates almost the entire student body with her whimsical personality. Caught in a whirlwind of nonconformity, the students embrace Stargirl and begin to imitate her uniqueness. However, all of this quickly changes, and the students begin to hate her for her differences. Nevertheless, Leo and Stargirl become a couple, and he quickly experiences what it’s like to be shunned by the entire student body. Desperately seeking to fit in, Leo urges Stargirl to become normal, the repercussions of which cause an even colder backlash. Through this meaningful relationship with Stargirl, Leo learns a lesson in conformity and the importance of staying true to oneself.”

(Taken from Diana Nguyen’s book talk).

The Bigger Book of Lydia, by Margaret Willey: “Self-conscious about her smallness, Lydia develops an obsession with size. She begins keeping a journal called her Bigger Book, collecting information about getting bigger and stronger. As Lydia enters high school, she loses the journal, but not her anxiety about size and survival. Then Michelle comes into her life, fresh from an eating disorder clinic, still very ill with anorexia. Lydia and Michelle become true friends and share secrets and fears. When Lydia’s old Bigger Book resurfaces, both girls find healing inspiration between its yellowed pages.” (Taken from Amazon.com’s Editorial Review)/ALA Booklist.

Whale Talk, by Chris Crutcher: “A group of misfits brought together by T.J. Jones (the J is redundant), the Cutter All Night Mermen struggle to find their places in a school that has no place for them. T.J. is convinced that a varsity letter jacket-- unattainable for most, exclusive, revered, the symbol (as far as T.J. is concerned) of all that is screwed up at Cutter High—will be an effective tool. He’s right. He’s also wrong. Still, it’s always the quest that counts. And the bus on which the Mermen travel to swim meets soon becomes the space where they gradually allow themselves to talk, to fit, to grow. Together they’ll fight for dignity in a world where tragedy and comedy dance side by side, where a moment’s inattention can bring lifelong heartache, and where true acceptance is the only prescription for what ails us.” (Taken from Whale Talk’s back jacket).

A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year

An ALA Top Ten Best Book for Young Adults

Works Cited

Amazon.Com. 4 Dec. 2006 <http://www.amazon.com>

Anderson, Laurie Halse. Speak. Puffin, 2001.

Anderson, Laurie Halse. Speak. Book talk presentation by Natalie Smith, English

112B, Fall 2006.

Angelou, Maya. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings. New York: Bantam Books, 1993.

Bennet, Cherie. Life In The Fat Lane. Delacorte Books for Young Readers: 1998.

Burgess, Melvin. Smack. New York: HarperCollins, 1996.

Coville, Bruce. Am I Blue? Harper Trophy: 1995.

Crutcher, Chris. Whale Talk. New York: Random, 2001.

Dunbar, Paul Laurence. “Sympathy”. 28 Nov. 2006

<http://www.geocities.com/frankie_meehan?CagedBirdDunbarPoem.h...>

Flinn, Alex. Breathing Underwater. HarperCollins, 2001.

Flinn, Alex. Breathing Underwater. Book talk presentation by Jeannine ,

English 112B, Fall 2006.

Morissette, Alanis. “Perfect”. U.S.A.: Time Warner Co., 1995.

Oakland Unified School District. “Learning, Equity and Shared Responsibility”. 3 Dec.

2006 <http://urbandreams.ousd.K12.ca.us/lessonplans/angelou>

Spinelli, Jerry. Stargirl. New York: Alfred. A. Knopf, 2000.

Spinelli, Jerry. Stargirl. New York: Alfred. Book talk presentation by Diana Nguyen,

English 112B, Fall 2006.

Warner, Mary. Adolescents in the Search for Meaning: Tapping the Powerful Resource

of Story. Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 2006.

Wiley, Margaret. The Bigger Book of Lydia. Harper & Row, 1983.