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Mother/Daughter Relationships:
Expectations and Actions
By Lynn Lemmon Overview This lesson plan is for Esmeralda Santiago's, Almost a Woman. You may use it while students are viewing or after they view the film. Ideal
for teenagers of all ages, this lesson explores the relationship between Santiago and her mother. Specifically, it analyzes Mami's expectations of her daughter as compared and contrasted to her own behavior. Students
will then apply the insights they developed from exploring this relationship to the relationships they have with their own mothers. Objectives
Students will:
- Use comparison/contrast processes to analyze character.
- Analyze their own personal relationships.
- Understand the natures of hypocrisy and self-awareness.
- Synthesize new understandings of self and others into well-organized, well-written definitions of the "ideal" parent.
Skills Attained To complete this lesson, students will learn how or be able to:
- Analyze character in literature.
- Compare and contrast character traits.
- Apply what they learned to their personal lives.
- Synthesize information.
- Write a well-organized, clear, and cogent definition essay.
Lesson Outline I. Anticipatory Set1. Discuss the meaning of "hypocrisy" with students, making sure you:
2. Ask students to brainstorm a list of ways people are routinely hypocritical, including the following situations in which they:
- cheat on federal tax returns.
- "borrow" office and other supplies from one's place of work.
- advocate racial equality but do no want to have people of other colors as neighbors and/or relatives.
- curse fellow drivers for mistakes they make in their own driving.
- criticize someone for "talking about" others.
3. In a class discussion, help students synthesize the information in 1. and 2. into an operative definition of the word, "hypocrite." Then, help students to see that all human beings are somewhat hypocritical, and
that, while hypocrisy is a negative character trait, it does not necessarily make the person a "bad" person. II. The Lesson 1. Relate anticipatory set to the lesson by pointing out that Mami does
not always teach by her own example. Ask students if they have heard the axiom, "Do as I say, not as I do." Briefly relate the saying to Mami's behavior. Then, from the memoir, pick out selections showing that her
actions and teachings do not always match. 2. Review the concept of a Venn diagram by illustrating on the board. Explain that students will be comparing and contrasting Mami's actions to the behaviors she expects from
Esmeralda. 3. Divide students into four "brainstorming" groups. Instruct each group to draw a single Venn diagram, labeling one circle, "actions," and the other, "expectations." Then, give groups about 20
minutes to discuss Mami's character in the film and complete the Venn diagram accordingly. Possible answers include the following:
Mami's expectation |
Mami's action |
Does not believe in becoming attached to belongings |
Does not have an attachment to belongings |
Is wary of men who will seduce girls |
Became involved with two men who seduced her but were unwilling to marry her |
Expects Esmeralda to have a chaperone when with a boy |
Became involved with two men who seduced her but were unwilling to marry her |
Considers education important |
Takes Esmeralda out of school to apply for welfare |
Expects Esmeralda to remain 100% Puerto Rican |
Brought family to America |
Will not tolerate "talking back" |
Does not "talk back" |
Does not allow makeup or American-style clothing |
Does not wear makeup or American-style clothing |
Requires Esmeralda to have a white wedding |
Has never married, although she has many children and lives with men outside of marriage |
Wants Esmeralda to become an "artista" |
Is often on welfare due to pregnancies |
Wants Esmeralda to become rich and famous |
Is angry that Esmeralda is reaching beyond her station in life by attending a school for the arts
|
Believes a mother should sacrifice all for her children |
Sacrifices all for her children |
Fears Esmeralda will be taken advantage of by young men |
Takes her to clubs to dance and party |
Believes men only want one thing |
Allows herself to be betrayed by Don Carlos |
Thinks birth control pills give girls license to have sex outside of marriage |
Routinely has sex outside of marriage |
4. Have the entire class share each group's ideas and develop a unified Venn diagram of Mami's
actions and expectations on the board. 5. Debriefing
: At this stage, remind students that Mami's inconsistencies are not intentional. Discuss reasons why her actions and her expectations of Esmeralda might be different. Expand the discussion
to include people in students' lives, including teachers, friends, and parents. (In this discussion, prohibit students from using specific names.)6. Essay
: Instruct each student to plan and write a five-paragraph essay, combining their personal experiences with those of Esmeralda, on what they consider to be the "ideal" parent. Remind them that
"ideal" does not necessarily mean "attainable." Rather, it is the goal toward which a person works, even though he or she may never fully reach it. Have students write their essays either in class or as a
homework assignment. III. Assessment Grade the essays according to the following rubric:
Essay Criteria |
Points out of Total Score of 100 |
Follows the format for a five paragraph essay |
20 |
Fully develops three important character traits |
20 |
Cites specific examples of each |
20 |
Is mechanically correct |
20 |
Is clear and concise |
20 |
Suggested Related Works
Novels dealing with expectations, hypocrisy, and parent child relationships:Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter
Tan, Amy. The Joy Luck Club
Short Stories: Wolfe, Thomas. "The Child by Tiger."
Walker, Alice. "Everyday Use."
Orwell, George. "Shooting an Elephant."
Glaspell, Susan. "A Jury of Her Peers."
Jackson, Shirley. "The Lottery."
Interdisciplinary Links
Foreign language: Explore meanings of Spanish words in text/ also, read Spanish edition of text.
History / political science: Examine hypocrisy in world leaders.
Art: Create advertising posters for the "ideal" parent.
World cultures: Compare Puerto Rican culture to that of America.
Lynn Lemmon is a teacher at Palm Harbor University High School in Florida. |
