During a 6-week unit on identity, Spanish for Native Speakers students explored and reflected on the following resources:

• Spoken-word poem Unforgettable by Pages Matam, Elizabeth Acevedo, and G. Yamazawa
• Chapter Mi nombre from the book La Casa en Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
• Spoken-word poem My Spanish by Melissa Lozada-Oliva
• Poem Me gritaron negra by Afro-Latina Victoria Santa Cruz
• Short story Nombres by Julia Álvarez

As a culminating assignment, students had to use these resources as inspiration and give advice to someone struggling to have pride in their identity.

Students received one of the following three prompts:

1. Your friend Marisol struggles with her Spanish and doesn't feel accepted in Mexico.
2. Your friend John is a teacher who wants to find a nickname for a student whose name is "too complicated."
3. Your neighbor Octavio is ashamed of his name and claim he doesn't want to be Latino.

Students were given a clear structure for their writing and a rubric to reference.