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Zootopia Intro Lesson Plan

Class: Theme in Film

Grade Level: Juniors/Seniors

Unit: Personal Identity

Teacher: Justin Busch

Iowa Core State Standards (ICSS)


RL.1112.2

Determine two or more themes or central ideas of a text and analyze their development
over the course of the text, including how they interact and build on one another to
produce a complex account; provide an objective summary of the text.

21st Century Skill(s)


SS.912.PSCL.5

Essential Concept and/or Skill: Understand strategies for effective political action that
impact local, state, and national governance.
Understand the role of diversity in American life and the importance of shared
values, political beliefs, and civic beliefs in an increasingly diverse American
society.

National Standards
Students read a wide range of print and non-print texts to build an understanding of texts,
of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new
information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for
personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and
contemporary works.

Objectives
By the end class today, students will
Understand that they fit into a variety of labels that society puts on people that
have an influence on them
Know that the labels that society places on them do not define them and that
society is only able to see small pieces of a persons complete personality
Connect the issues that occur with identity formation that are reflected in the
movie Zootopia

Assessment

Class discussion about labels (every student will have to think of at least one label
that they will share with the class this will help me gauge to see if they
understand how various labels can be). Reflection about a label that has either
affected them directly or a hypothetical situation that they can think of about how
a label can affect someone.
Reflection about the in-class activity that will be handed about the differences
between how they see themselves and how others/society sees them.
Exit slip discussing what the difference is between how Judy sees herself and how
others see her as well as how the differences affect Judy directly in the first part of
the movie.

Anticipatory Set (3 min)

Describe Me
I will ask students to simply describe me in any way, shape, or form (with the
stipulation that it cant be offensive or negative). I will give them examples such
as male, college student, athletic, energetic, hardworking, etc.

Teaching: Activities (70 min)

Who am I? exercise (10 minutes)


Students will free write in their journals answering any or all of the following
questions to get them thinking about their own personality and who they are as a
person. After they do this, they will all have to share with the class one word or
label that describes them. The focus will be to write as much as they possibly can
and not get hung up on any minor details:
o Who are you?
o What are some words that describe you?
o What are some personality traits about you?
o What is your identity?
o Do you know who you are?
o What labels (son, daughter, sibling, athlete, musician, etc.) do you identify
with?
o What are the most important things in your life?
o If you had a theme song, what would it be?
o How do you think other people see you?

Who are my classmates? activity (30 minutes)


On a sheet of notebook paper, students will write their name in large print at the
top. Then these papers will get passed around and students will mimic the
Describe Me activity but do so about their classmates instead of the teacher.
The following guidelines will be on the board during this activity:
o Write a word or short phrase that you feel describes the person.
o Write one of the labels that we talked about earlier that you feel strongly
that the person fits into. (Athlete, actor, musician, singer, golfer, baseball
player, dancer, etc.)
o ***Must not be negative or offensive
After they get their own paper back, give the students a minute or two to look
over it and to compare it to how they described themselves. Ask them if they were
surprised by anything that was written about them, if there was any overlap
between what they wrote about themselves and what others wrote, if there was
anything written about them that they disagreed with.
Discuss briefly how society only gets to see certain aspects of you. Your friends
dont see you at home, your family doesnt see you at school, your teammates
dont see you when youre with a different group of friends, etc. Then have them
write about the following prompts and turn them in:
o Is there anything that surprised you that your classmates wrote about you?
Anything that you disagreed with? What were some of the things that both
you and your classmates wrote? Do you think that your classmates
understand who you are as a person?
o Describe a situation where a label has affected how you have acted in a
certain situation. (If you cant think of one, think of a hypothetical
situation where a person is affected by a label that is placed by them)

Watch Zootopia (30 minutes)


As the students watch Zootopia, give them the following questions to keep in
mind:
o Describe how Judy sees herself? What is her personality like? List some of
her strengths/weaknesses?
o How do other people see Judy? What strengths/weaknesses do they view
in her?
o How does the conflict between how Judy sees herself and how others see
her affect her life?
o How can you see societys treatment of Judy reflect in our own society?

Closure

Exit slip
Have the students answer the following questions about the movie:
o What is the difference between how Judy sees herself and how others see
her? How do those differences affect Judy directly in the first part of the
movie?

Duration

90 minutes

Differentiated Instruction

All of the various types of questions that are asked throughout the lesson follow
Blooms Taxonomy
In their journals, students are allowed to express themselves in various ways.
Some students choose to type, others decide to write, and others choose to draw or
use their artistic ability.
Students have to both think about themselves as well as others. This is
differentiated because it will reach introverts and extroverts. Introverts are better
at thinking about themselves while extroverts tend to think in terms of others.

Notes
Highlighted = formative assessment
The movie can be found on Netflix
Modified from Madeline Hunters Lesson Plan Design

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