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4 - Origin Stories

Mr. Morrison ELA 9 - Cohorts 7 & 8

5 instructional days (blocks of 87 minutes)

Spiderverse Film Study

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Table of Contents

Overview

Key Activities

Demonstrations of Learning

Resources

Month-at-a-Glance

Unit Assessment Plan

Reflection
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Origin Stories

Overview

This unit is implemented as a way to build upon the experience provided on our TELUS

Spark field trip, where students explored an exhibit highlighting the origin story of 4 elemental

Indigenous superheroes. The film Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse is a fantastic mentor text for

origin stories as we are exposed to the stories of six unique but connected superheroes.

Origin stories is also a great path to build upon the work of personal narratives done in

the previous unit, now that students have explored their own interiority they can extrapolate that

into imagining who they might be in different parallel universes.

This unit will begin with reviewing the techniques used in films so that we can analyze

them, and then watching the film itself. To unpack the film, students will then read an article on

the importance of representation in media, specifically superhero comic books. Spiderverse is the

first feature Spider-man film to focus on Miles Morales, a Black teenager, rather than Peter

Parker. Connecting this movie to the concepts of racial diversity extends its message into real-

world issues. Using the knowledge learning in the article, students will then read “The Token

Superhero”, a short story about how a Black superhero is tokenized and what that means.

With these learnings in mind, students will draft 1) a version of themselves as a superhero

from a parallel universe and 2) a familiar superhero rebooted to be more like themselves. These

assessments will draw on their knowledge from the personal narratives unit and develop their

creative writing skills.

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Course Outcomes

1.Explore Thoughts, Ideas, Feelings and 1.2.Clarify and Extend

Experiences.

2.Comprehend and Respond Personally 2.3.Understand Forms, Elements and

and Critically to Oral, Print and Other Techniques

Media Texts.

2.4.Create Original Text

5.Respect, Support and Collaborate With 5.2.Work Within a Group

Others.

Language Arts

Reading Writing Speaking Listening Viewing Representing

✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

**Bold strands are focuses and italic & bold strands are of particular emphasis in this unit**
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Essential Questions (EQs)

What is a hero?

Why are origin stories important to heroes?

What role does race play in the identity of a hero?

Literary Learnings (LLs)

Irony: Dramatic, Situational, Verbal

Characterization: Protagonist/Antagonist, Round/Flat, Dynamic/Static

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Key Activities

Opening Developmental Culminating

Film Techniques Comic Book Genre Irony Graffiti Sheets

Superhero Diversity Chart Film Watching My Multiverse Self

Film Guide Black Superhero Exploration

Superhero Reboot

Demonstrations of Learning (Quick Look)

Formative

Film Guide

Summative

My Multiverse Self

Superhero Reboot
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Demonstrations of Learning (Detailed)

Assessment Tool Tool Description Assessment Assessment

FOR Learning OF Learning

Film Guide To help students direct their

✔
focus while viewing the film,

they can use this film guide to

make notes and collect their

thoughts on the unit focuses of

irony and characterization. This

guide will allow me to see where

students' understanding of film

techniques and the literary

learning is.

My Multiverse Self Building upon the unique

✔
versions of Spiderman that show

up within the film, students will

be asked to consider their own

origin story and what a

multiverse version of themselves

could look like.

Students will be asked to create a

‘storyboard’ with six sections

about their multiverse-sona:

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appearance, origin story,

motivation, powers, weaknesses,

and villain. Of these six, half

must be done in writing, and the

other half done in visuals.

This assessment will allow

students choice in which parts

they create in words and which

in visual, and allow them to

demonstrate their strengths in

two different language arts.

Superhero Reboot Following our class exploration

✔
of articles that highlight the role

race plays in the stories of

superheroes, students will be

asked to ‘reboot’ a hero that they

are familiar with so that it better

aligns with their own identity.

This can be through race,

gender, values, origin story, or

whatever other facet students

choose. Then, they’ll have to

explain what effect this change

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would have on the character.

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Resources

Teacher

✔ “When Blackness is a Superpower” NY Times Lesson

Student

✔ Spiderman: Into the Spiderverse

✔ “Flying While Black” NY Times Article

✔ “The Token Superhero” Short Story

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Month-at-a-Glance

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

October 16th Work Block Unit Start Film Spiderverse Reading

to Irony Techniques cont. Comp.

October 20th Charact.

Spiderverse Irony Graffiti Flex Friday

Sheets

SLOs 2.1; 2.3 2.3; 2.2 2.2; 3.3; 5.2 2.1

October 23rd My The Token “Flying Work Block Reading

to Multiverse Superhero While Black” Comp.

October 27th Self

Superhero Flex Friday

Creative
Reboot Unit End
Writing

SLOs 2.4 2.2; 2.4 1.2; 2.4 2.4; 3.1 2.1

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Unit Assessment Plan

S Assessments

L Title Superhero Irony Spiderverse My Multiverse Superhero

Diversity Graffiti Film Guide Self Reboot

O Chart Sheets

s Type Formative Formative Summative Summative Summative

Weightin N/A N/A

1.2.Clarify and
✔ ✔
Extend

2.3.Understan
✔ ✔ ✔
d Forms,

Elements and

Techniques

2.4.Create
✔ ✔
Original Text

5.2.Work
✔
Within a

Group
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Reflection