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Self-Identity: An Oral History ExperienceEducator: Hope GroverOverview: Identity is a complicated facet of adolescence. Students who are marginalized often struggle with self-identity because external identities are thrust upon them. Oral histories present an opportunity for individuals to showcase their identity through personal life stories. In this learning experience, students will have the opportunity to explore, build, and present identities through the lens of oral history. Students will first investigate the difference between external and internal identities. Then, they will have the opportunity to apply this understanding to a primary source video. Next, students will develop internal and external identities for influential modern Muslim Americans and the Somali Skyline project. Finally, will reflect upon their own identities through recording their own oral histories.Target Audience: 6-12th grade students in a variety of humanities coursesExperience Length: 8 class periodsMaterials:Computer with internet access (for each student)Google drive accountsWhiteboard/Smartboard and MarkerPresentation device (Smartboard or projector) with internet access and soundRecording device (one cellphone/tablet required per three students)Scratch paper and writing utensilsWorksheetsWho Am I? (three pages, double-sided, for each student)Influential Modern Muslim Americans (three-page packet, 1 copy per 2 students)Oral History Questions (1 page, double-sided, for each student)Oral History Experience Reflection/Who Am I?-Final (1, double-sided copy per student)Learning Targets: By the end of this learning experience, students will demonstrate the ability to:Recognize the difference between internal and external identities.Develop internal and external identities based on research.Conduct an interview and provide feedback to peers.Process and record their own oral history.Reflect upon the process and materials through writing.Build their own identities based on their oral histories.Day OneBrain EngageWrite “What is identity?” on the whiteboard/Smartboard. Give students two minutes to construct a definition of this on scratch paper.Think-Pair-Share: Have students get into groups of 2-3 and share the definitions that they wrote down. Then, as a group of 2-3, have students construct a definition that encompasses all of their viewpoints and write it on the whiteboard/Smartboard.Lead a discussion with the entire class about “What is identity?”Share the Cambridge Dictionary definition of identity: “Who a person is; or the qualities of a person or group that makes them different from others.”Discuss how their definitions may change after the dictionary definition is given.The Plan:Watch the video of Wjahat Ali discussing his “Messy Identity.” Begin at 17 seconds. ()Lead a classroom discussion of how Wjahat’s definition fits into the context of the definitions students have already discussed. Possible questions that may be posed are:Who decides one’s identity?Can there be more than one kind of identity?What is the difference between internal and external identity?How can external identity impact a person’s internal identity?How can internal identity impact a person’s external identity?Distribute the packet: Who Am I?-Days 1-5. Explain how the students will fill out the handout: Students should write the name of the person they are evaluating on the line that says “person’s name” on Day 1.While students watch the video of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, they should fill in the drawing on Day 1. Anything that she identifies as a part of her identity should be written INSIDE the drawing. Anything that other people identify should be written on the OUTSIDE of the drawing.Watch the video of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and her Single Story. ()Philosophical Chairs-Conduct a philosophical chairs discussion using the Day 1 sheets as their data.Rules to Philosophical Chairs:All questions that are posed must have two definitive sides. Students must take a side.Before a student may present their viewpoint, they must summarize what the person stated before them. I hear you saying……is this accurate?The teacher should engage in the conversation as little as possible. When everybody [who wants to] has contributed on a question, the teacher should pose a new question and give students an opportunity to change sides.Sample Questions to Pose:Was it fair for her [Chimamanda’s] roommate to impose an identity/single story on her?Was it her roommate’s fault that the identity/single story she imposed was incorrect?Is it Chimamanda’s responsibility to rewrite the single story that her roommate imposed?In the video, Chimamanda says, “the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete.” Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Stop class with 3-4 minutes left and have students return to their seats. Students should then answer the question at the bottom of their worksheet: Who Am I?-Day 1.Students should turn their packets in as they leave the classroom.Assessment: Worksheet: Who Am I?-Day 1Days Two & Three:Brain Engage: Hand back the Who Am I? packets. Have students turn to Day 2 in their packets. Allow two minutes for students to rewrite the identity of Chimamanda after thinking about it for 24 hours. Ask for volunteers who would like to share the identity/single story that they created for Chimamanda.The Plan:Remind students of the difference between internal and external identity. Then, explain to them that the day’s goal is to create identities for some influential Muslim Americans. (I just gave them a hint of two items to include.)Have students get into pairs.Hand out a list of 70 Influential Muslim Americans to each pair of students. Students should read through the list and select two people they would like to research and present.Using the internet, students should research both of the influential Muslim Americans that they chose. (Remind students that it’s important that both of them conduct the research in order to allow for multiple perspectives. In addition, they need to only use relevant sources for their information.) As a pair, students should complete the Who Am I? worksheet for Day 3 (A & B). (Each influential person should have a side.) Despite the fact that students are working in pairs, each student should fill in their own Worksheet 3A and 3B so they have them to refer to later.Once pairs have completed filling in their worksheets, students will select one of the people that they researched that they would like to share with the class (3A or 3B). Students will then work as a pair to make a poster about that person. Though the poster needs to portray the internal and external identities of the person they selected, students should be encouraged to be creative.One poster is required per pair [for assessment]. However, if they would like to make two posters (one for person 3A and one for person 3B), the second poster will be worth extra credit.Students will have Days 2 and 3 to complete their research and poster.Towards the end of Day 3, student pairs will present their posters to the class. Students must explain at least two external and two internal descriptors that they included. Each group should be given a maximum of 2 minutes to present.Students should turn in their poster and packet as they leave the classroom.Assessment:Worksheet: Who Am I?-3A and 3B (each student)Poster based on either page 3A or page 3B (one per pair)Day 4Brain Engage: Write the words “Oral History” on the board. Engage students in a discussion about the definition. Some sample questions that may be included are:What is oral history? “Oral history is a field of study and a method of gathering, preserving and interpreting the voices and memories of people, communities, and participants in past events. Oral history is both the oldest type of historical inquiry, predating the written word, and one of the most modern, initiated with tape recorders in the 1940s and now using 21st-century digital technologies.” (Oral History Association, 2019)Why might oral history (spoken) be more accurate than a written (text-based) history? (Answer: first-person narrative/primary source)How can oral histories challenge identities?(Answer: eliminates objectivity and subjectivity)Who has oral histories? (Answer: Linguistic cultures including many native populations, religious leaders, immigrants, etc.)Can anybody record an oral history?(Answer: Yes, but it tends to be people of prominence and/or influence that are often recorded.)The Plan:1.Introduce students to the Somali Skyline Tower Oral History Project. This was a: “two-year collaboration between the Minnesota Historical Society and Commonbound Communities, funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services in Washington, D.C. In 2004, fifteen young Somali women from St. Paul Public Schools joined together to create two films about what it is like to be Somali in Minnesota, "Two Homes, One Dream: The Somalis in Minnesota" and "What's with the Hijab?". Both films explored a variety of topics about cultural identity and adjusting to life in America as a Somali person. The filmmakers interviewed themselves, their peers, community activists, and elders in the Somali community to present a wide range of viewpoints. These interviews are among those conducted for the project.” (Wilhide, A., 2004)Write the following on the board:Make a list of the questions that were asked during the interviews.Pay attention for the following during the interviews:What patterns did you notice in the questions or answers?What questions were the most difficult for people to answer?What questions were the easiest for people to answer?What question(s) do you wish would have been asked?Assign 2-3 students to listen (separately) to one of the following histories:Abdisalam AdamMaryan DelHared MahAbdi SheikhSumaya Yusuf & Bibi AbdallahMohamed JamaProject Website: students are listening to the history, they should fill in the internal/external identities on the Who Am I?-Day 4A and jot any answers to the questions written on the board on a piece of scratch paper. Please remind students that the process of collecting this information should take the rest of the class period. It is important that they start, stop, and rewind the interview as many times as necessary in order to ensure they are capturing all of the details.If students finish early and still have a period of time before the end of the hour, they should re-listen to the interview to ensure that they did not miss any information.Students should turn their packets and lists of questions into the teacher as they leave the classroom.Assessment:Worksheet: Who Am I?-Day 4AList of questions that were askedDay 5The PlanStudents should get into groups with peers who listened to the same history. Once in groups, they should compare their notes and the identities (Worksheet 4A) that they constructed.What patterns do you notice in the questions and/or answers?What questions were the most difficult for people to answer?What questions were the easiest for people to answer?What question(s) do you wish would have been asked?How are the identities similar?How are the identities different?Students should then work in their groups to create a master identity for their interviewee on Who Am I?-Day 4B.When groups are completed, bring the class back together. Give each group 2-3 minutes to share the identity/oral history of the person(s) they listened to.Then, as a full class, refer to the list of questions that each student recorded. Create a master list of questions that the class feels are appropriate to ask a teenager when they are giving their oral history. [Type up this list for tomorrow.]Explain that tomorrow, students will have a trial run at giving their own oral histories. Thus, students may want to think about the information they feel is important enough to share with others.Students should turn their packets in as they leave the classroom.Assessment:Worksheet: Who Am I-Day 4BMini-presentation to the classDay 6Brain Engage: Do a quick review of the definition, purpose, and benefits of oral histories.The Plan:Students should get into trios and select who is Student A, Student B, and Student C.Pass out the worksheet, Oral History Questions to each student.Without audio recording anything, have Student A interview Student B while Student C takes brief notes on the worksheet: Oral History Questions-Trial Run. After all of the required questions have been asked, Student A and/or C should ask any follow-up questions to Student B. Now, Student B should ask Student C questions while Student A takes notes. Follow the same plan as in step #3.Finally, Student C asks Student A questions while Student B takes notes. Again, follow the same plan as step #3.While students are giving their histories, write the following questions on the board:What did you find the most interesting?What do you want to know more about?What question(s) do you want to add?After the three interviews are completed, students should give each other feedback based on the three questions (Step 6) that are written on the board. Explain that students will repeat the same process the following day, except that the interviews will be recorded.Remind students to bring their charged cellphones to class the next day.Students should turn their packets in as they leave the classroom.Assessment:Worksheet: Oral History Questions-Trial (notes from the interview that was conducted)Participated in the interview, record, and interviewee processDay 7Brain Engage: Give students an opportunity to ask any questions that they may have. Unlock phones so they may be used to record interviews. The Plan:Have student groups break off to opposite corners of the room.Handback worksheet: Oral History Questions.Student A will ask Student B questions while Student C is in charge of recording the audio and taking notes.Student B will ask Student C questions while Student A is in charge of recording the audio and taking notes.Student C will ask questions to Student A while Student B is in charge of recording the audio and taking notes.Remind students to bring headphones/earbuds and their charged phones to class the next day.Students should turn in their packets as they leave the classroom.Assessment:Worksheet: Oral History Questions-Final Run (notes from the interview that was conducted)Participated in the interview, record, and interviewee process.Day 8Brain Engage: Engage students in a short discussion/reminder of what oral histories are.The Plan:Hand each student a copy of a worksheet that has Oral History Project Reflection on the front and Who am I? -Final on the back.Explain how students are going to listen to the recordings of their oral histories while they fill out the two-sided worksheet. Remind them, that like the Skyline Oral History Project interviews, they may have to stop, start, and rewind more than once in order to ensure that they have accurately gathered all of the information.Unlock phones, distribute headphones for those that need them, and start listening/reflecting.When student have completed their reflections/identities, they should upload their recording to Google Drive and share it with the teacher. If they are not happy with their recording, the student should arrange with the teacher and their group members as to when they can rerecord the oral history within the next 48 hours.Assessment:Worksheet: Oral History Project Reflection/Who Am I?-FinalAudio file of their oral historySourcesAdichie C. N. (2009). The danger of a single story. TED Global. Video retrieved from , D. & Stix, M. (2019). 25 influential American muslims-Wajahat Ali. Video retrievedfrom History Association. (2019). Oral history definition. Retrieved from, A. (Project Director). (2004, June 30). Somali skyline tower oral history project. Minnesota Historical Society. Retrieved from Am I? -DAY 1Name: _______________Person’s Name:________________________-13335073025WHO AM I?-1066800-70485000Who Am I? -DAY 2Name: _______________Person’s Name:________________________-13335073025WHO AM I?-1066800-70485000Who Am I? -DAY 3AName: _______________Person’s Name:________________________-13335073025WHO AM I?-1066800-70485000Who Am I? -DAY 3BName: _______________Person’s Name:________________________-13335073025WHO AM I?-1066800-70485000Who Am I? -DAY 4AName: _______________Person’s Name:________________________-13335073025WHO AM I?-1066800-70485000Who Am I? -DAY 4BName: _______________Person’s Name:________________________-13335073025WHO AM I?70 INFLUENTIAL (MODERN) MUSLIM AMERICANSDo you know who they are?NameRole/Job/AchievementAasif MandviActor, Author, TV CorrespondentAhmed ZewailNobel Prize Winner in ChemistryAli Shaheed MuhammadHip Top DJ, Record Producer, Rapper with “A Tribe Called Quest”Ali VelshiTV Correspondent with NBC News; Co-anchor of Velshi & Ruhle on MSNBCAmani Al-KhatahtbehSocial Media All-Star; Creator of Ameer AbdullahNFL Player with MN VikingsAndré CarsonMember of US House of Representative’s Intelligence Committee; Police OfficerAnousheh AnsariEngineer, 1st Female “Space Tourist” to Visit the International Space Station, 1st Iranian in SpaceBetty Hasan AminAtlanta Disability Activist; Experienced Her Hajj in a WheelchairBrother Ali (Ali Douglas Newman)Rapper and Community ActivistBusta Rhymes (Trevor Tahiem Smith, Jr.)Hip Hop Artist, Record Producer, ActorCasey KasemRadio Host of “American Top 40”Dalia MogahedMathematician, Popular Ted Talk Speaker, Institute for Social Policy and UnderstandingDave ChappelleComedianDean ObeidallahRadio Host of the “Dean Obeidallah Show”DJ Khaled (Khaled Mohamed Khaled)DJ, Record Executive, SongwriterDr. Mona Hanna-AttishaPediatrician Who Discovered Flint’s Water ProblemEboo PatelInterfaith Youth Core, CreatorFarhana KheraMuslim ActivistEllen BurstynActress; Winner of the Triple Crown (an Oscar, Emmy, and Tony Award)Faran TahirMovie & TV ActorFazlur Rahman KhanCivil Engineer/Architect Feryal SalemShe is the Co-Director of Hartford SeminaryG. Willow WilsonWriter Who Created a Muslim Marvel SuperheroGhostface Killah (Dennis Coles)Rapper, Songwriter, Member of the Wu-Tang ClanHaima AdenFashion Model; Semi-finalist for Miss MinnesotaHakem “The Dream” OlajuwonRetired NBA Player, 1st NBA Draft Pick Over Michael Jordan in 1984Hamza AbdullahRetired NFL Player (Tampa Bay, Denver, Arizona, & Cleveland)Hasan MinhajComedianHind MakkiSocial Media Superstar; Created “Side Entrance”Husain AbdullahRetired NFL Player (Minnesota Vikings)Ibtihaj MuhammadOlympic Medalist (1st Muslim-American to wear hijab at Olympics)Ice Cube (O’Shea Jackson)Rapper, Actor, Producer, Director, WriterIlhan OmarMember of US House of Representatives; 1st Somali American Elected to Congress; from MinnesotaImam Omar SuleimanFaith Leader, Activist, Founder of YaQueen Institute for Islamic ResearchImam Sayed Hassan Al-QazwiniFounder & Leader of Islamic Institute of AmericaImam Suhaib WebbSnapchat Imam from the Islamic Center at New York UniversityImam Zaid ShakirImam and Co-founder of Zaytuna CollegeIman (Iman Mohamed Abdulmajid)Somali-American Fashion Model, Actress, Entrepreneur, Wife of David BowieJames J. YeeArmy Chaplin, Captain, Author, Illegally Detained by US GovernmentJanet JacksonPop Music Superstar, Youngest Child in Jackson FamilyJermaine JacksonPop Music Superstar, Member of Jackson 5Kamaal Ibn John Fareed (Q-Tip)Rapper, Music Producer, Member of A Tribe Called QuestKareem Abdul-Jabbar (Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr.)Retired NBA Player; 6-time NBA MVP; Greatest College Player of All-TimeKareem Rashad Sultan KhanUS Army Specialist Who Died In Combat; Awarded Bronze Star & Purple HeartKeith EllisonMember of US House of Representatives; 1st Muslim Elected to Congress; from MNKhalid KhannouchiMarathon Runner; Record Holder; First Person to Break 2:06:00Laila LalamiAuthor, Professor, ActivistLinda SarsourCivil Rights Activist & Arabic TranslatorLupe FiascoHip Hop ArtistMahershalalhashbaz AliActor, Rapper, Academy & Oscar Award WinnerM. Hasna MaznaviCreator of The Women’s Mosque of America, (The first in the US.)Maysoon ZayidComedian & Actress; 1st Person To Ever Perform Stand-Up in Palestine and JordanMehmet Oz (Dr. Oz)Cardiothoracic Surgeon, TV Personality, Author, Professor at Columbia UniversityMos DefRapper, LyricistMuhammad Ali (Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.)Professional Boxer, Activist, Philanthropist, The GOATNailah LymusFashion Designer; Creator of Underwraps AgencyNegin FarsadComedian, Actress, Writer, FilmmakerRami NashashibiMacArthur Genius Grant; founder of Inner City Muslim Action NetworkReza AslanFounder of Boomgen Studios; Known as a Great Story TellerSamin NosratProfessional Chef & Netflix StarSania MirzaProfessional Tennis PlayerShahid “Shad” KhanBillionaire Owner of Jacksonville Jaguars (NFL); Richest Pakistani-AmericanShahzia SikanderVisual Artist; Has Received 12 Awards/FellowshipsShaquille O’Neal (Shaquille Rashaun O’Neal)Retired NBA Player and EntrepreneurSheikh Hamza YusufAmerican Sheik Who Co-Founded Zaytuna CollegeSherman JacksonUniversity of Southern California; Cofounder of American Learning Institutes for MuslimSu’ad Abdul KhabeerAssociate Professor at University of Michigan, Artist, Author of Muslim CoolTahera RahmanNewscaster (1st Full-Time Hijab Wearing Muslim on Broadcast TV)Wajahat AliFounder of Domestic Crusaders; Journalist for the “New York Times”Name: ____________________Oral History Project ReflectionPlease answer the following questions in complete sentences and with great thought. Why, in your opinion, are oral histories an important part of history?What was the most challenging part of this project? Why?What was the easiest part of this project? Why?Are you happy with how your history turned out? Why or why not?If you were to do this again, what would you change?Did your oral history capture your true identity? How do you know?-1066800-70485000Who Am I? -FinalName: _______________Person’s Name:________________________-13335073025WHO AM I?Name: _____________________Oral History QuestionsTrial Run (This list needs to be typed up during the unit.)Name: _____________________Oral History QuestionsFinal Run(The questions should be the same as the previous page.) ................
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