The Essential Gwendolyn Brooks

The Essential Gwendolyn Brooks

Cultural Representation Reflection

One strategy to help our students discover a broader understanding of an inclusive society is for them to see what they might not have noticed before. These multi-leveled reflections encourage readers to pause and reflect on the cultural representation of characters, setting, and events in the books they read. Then they can compare, contrast, and develop a connection to their own culture while taking a deeper look at the representation of others. Each level includes spaces with default questions that you can customize to meet your learning objectives and goals.

View these templates to determine the best level for each student:

Sample: Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3

Level 1

Students consider cultural representation in the text by comparing and contrasting their own experiences with elements of the story using drawing and guided reflection.


Level 2

Students consider cultural representation in the text with Venn diagrams and guided reflection prompts that encourage them to consider the familiar and unfamiliar from their reading.


Level 3

Students consider diverse representation with guided reflection on what they see in their world and the experiences they notice in the text. This may include reflecting on concepts such as privilege, power, and/or bias that might be in the text.


Tips for distributing TeachingBooks Multi-Leveled Lessons