Interdisciplinary Approaches to Consumer Culture

Classroom Activities

Plan #1: Theme and Universal Theme

Objectives:

Students will be able to cite textual evidence to support analysis of the text and make inferences based on an author's beliefs about a subject; analyze U.S. documents of historical and literary significance, including related themes and concepts; independently gather vocabulary knowledge; write explanatory texts to examine complex ideas and information clearly and accurately; and organize ideas, concepts, and information to make important connections.

Materials:

For this plan, I will need a smart board, projector, computer, speakers, picture of Barack Obama and boy, the Sesame Street video clip, and the final essay assignment sheet.

Learning Plan (2-3 day lesson):

Day 1

Students will be presented with an image of Barack Obama bending over to let a young, black boy touch his hair ⁴⁹. Their Do Now assignment will be to write a brief narrative explaining what they think happened leading up to that photograph being taken. Students will have the opportunity to share their narratives with the class. I will be sure to have at least three students read their narratives aloud so the class has enough to compare during a discussion. Students will then watch a Sesame Street video clip about hair ⁵⁰. After the conclusion of the clip, I will ask students to explain the similarities and differences between the picture and video clip. We will then construct a definition for "theme" as a class. I will then explain what a "universal theme" is and have students to list universal themes that they have seen in movies or read in books. Students will complete a Think-Pair-Share and the class will make a master list of universal themes. We will select a theme that makes sense for their narratives and for their Exit Pass, students will either continue the narrative they began or write another narrative that explains what they think happened after the photograph was taken. Each narrative must have the five parts of plot, at least one major character, and made direct reference to the events portrayed in the picture. For homework, students will revise their narratives and check them for the five parts of plot, one major character, direct reference to the events in the picture, and reference to the universal theme the class decided on. They will also have to write one paragraph explaining how their narratives convey the universal theme selected during class.

Day 2

Students will begin class with a selection of writing prompts about the theme of hair for their Do Now. They will pick one and write a response: describe what you think "good" hair is; describe a time you got a bad haircut or hairstyle and how you felt; describe your hair and compare it with the hair that you want (color, length, style, et cetera); explain how much time and money you think it takes for the average person to maintain "good" hair on a daily basis. Prior to discussing student responses, we will review theme and universal theme. Students will then share their responses to the Do Now prompts and I will facilitate a discussion of what they believe constitutes "good" hair, why they believe certain hair is good, and the industry of hair in the United States. If possible, I will have students rearrange the desks into a large circle so they can have a conversation with each other while I listen, take notes, address unanswered questions, and prompt quiet students for their opinions. I will not contribute opinions or participate in the discussion until it starts to slow down. At that point, I will read over some of the notes that I took and prompt a new discussion on stereotypes that are applied to different hairstyles and people with certain types of hair, making reference to the picture and video clip from the previous class. I will again remain an observer of the discussion. If there is time, students will have a final discussion about the benefits of mutual grooming and hair rituals. The Exit Pass will be a question asking students to think about why they think the things they do about hair and "good" hair. For homework, students will read the final essay assignment and be prepared with questions, if any, about the assignment. The essay assignment guidelines can be found in the appendix. They will also write a paragraph explaining the theme of the day's lesson.

Plan #2: Comparing and Contrasting Theme

Objectives:

Students will be able to cite textual evidence to support analysis of the text and make inferences based on an author's beliefs about a subject; analyze U.S. documents of historical and literary significance, including related themes and concepts; independently and proficiently read and comprehend literary non-fiction text; determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development; write explanatory texts to examine complex ideas and information clearly and accurately; organize ideas, concepts, and information to make important connections; use transitions to link the major sections of the text; and provide a concluding statement.

Materials:

For this plan, I will need the song "Hair" and the corresponding lyrics, the CNN video clip and article, copies of "Bernice Bobs Her Hair," images from "Wigs," copies of "Hairs," the video clip of A Girl Like Me, copies of The Autobiography of Malcolm X, compare-and-contrast charts, the Sesame Street video clip, a reading quiz, Good Hair, and an assortment of articles.

Learning Plan (4-5 day lesson):

Day 1

Students will listen to the song "Hair" from the musical Hair for their Do Now. ⁵¹ I will provide lyrics for their reference. As they listen, students will assess the tone and mood of the song, explain the theme of the song, and explain how the theme does or does not fit in with the universal theme that we selected for homework. The class will watch a video clip about the growing industry of hair salons and reflect on similarities and differences between their thoughts and the news report ⁵². I will provide the text article for reference and a compare and contrast table, and students will individually write a 3-paragraph compare and contrast essay. The aim of the activity is to get students in the habit of writing compare-and-contrast essays in preparation for their final assessment. For their Exit Pass, students will review the reading journal format. I will distribute copies of "Bernice Bobs Her Hair" that students will need to read and take notes on for homework.

Day 2

For the Do Now, students will select a wig or hairpiece from a series of images from the Lorna Simpson art show "Wigs" and write the outline of a narrative about the kind of person they think would wear the wig or hairpiece. ⁵³ Students will read the chapter titled "Hairs" from House on Mango Street and watch A Girl Like Me. ⁵⁴ We will analyze tone and mood as a class, and then students will individually write a three-paragraph essay comparing the tone and mood of "Hairs" with the tone and mood of A Girl Like Me. For their Exit Pass, students will write a couple of sentences explaining the overarching theme that links all of the materials we have used for this unit. I will distribute copies of The Autobiography of Malcolm X that students will need to read and take notes on for homework.

Day 3

For the Do Now, students will complete a compare-and-contrast chart for the theme and tone of the Sesame Street clip, "Hairs," and The Autobiography of Malcolm X. Students will individually complete a reading quiz on The Autobiography of Malcolm X and "Bernice Bobs Her Hair." The class will then watch a series of short clips from Good Hair and, in collaborative groups, read an article from a selection about Olympian Gabby Douglas, Rastafarian students, or a Native American student. The groups will then work together to analyze the universal themes in Good Hair and the articles. The articles are located in the annotated bibliography. As an Exit Pass, students will reevaluate their ideas about the universal theme for this unit's lessons. For homework, students will complete a compare-and-contrast chart for universal theme in The Autobiography of Malcolm X and "Bernice Bobs Her Hair."

Day 4

The remaining days of the unit will be focused on writing and revising their essays. An alternative cumulative assignment can be completed in conjunction with math teachers. The math classes will address ratios and proportions and the English classes will work on research. Students will be given some statistics and numbers for the beauty industry and will find some of their own. They will then interview local salon owners and work in math class to create ratios and analyze the data. English class will focus on writing a research paper using citations.