Middle School Students Explore Identity and Empathy Through Literature 

Middle School students concluded the semester last month by stepping into the lives of fictional characters and reflecting more deeply on their own identities through a literature unit centered on student choice, collaboration, and cultural understanding.

The instructional unit in grade 7 English classes was built around first-person novels selected by students from a curated list. Each book featured complex, dynamic young protagonists navigating real-world challenges that were both relatable and eye-opening for Middle School readers.

The unit, informally titled “Windows, Mirrors, and Sliding Doors,” draws inspiration from multicultural literary scholar Rudine Sims Bishop. The framework encourages students to see books as windows into lives different from their own, mirrors that reflect their personal experiences, and sliding doors that invite new ways of understanding the world.

“Our goal is that students get a peek into other ways of living, see themselves reflected in their books, and perhaps even step into a new way of understanding the world and their own identities in it,” said Middle School English teacher Christie McMahon.

Throughout the unit, students read their novels in partnerships, practicing interactive reading strategies such as jotting questions, making inferences, and drawing connections between the text and their own experiences. These strategies were designed to strengthen comprehension while promoting collaboration and discussion.

Students also participated in structured partner discussions examining the obstacles faced by their protagonists. Conversations addressed not only external conflicts but also systemic challenges shaping the characters’ lives. Later discussions shifted inward, asking students to analyze the emotional “backpacks” their characters carry and the identity lenses such as culture, family, and personal history through which they see the world.

The work culminated in a collaborative project: a visual and written “portrait” of each protagonist created in teams of two or three. Middle School students highlighted key traits, experiences, and perspectives, translating literary analysis into creative expression.

In a final celebration of learning, the completed portraits were displayed in the arched hallway outside the Darcy Rice Center for the Arts, facing the Middle School courtyard. The classes walked through the space transformed into a “portrait gallery,” where students interacted with the displays and “interviewed” the characters represented on each poster.