Exploring Identity Through Wonder

📘 Lesson Title: Exploring Stereotypes

Lesson 2 of 10 | Duration: 45 minutes | Class Size: 10 students

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🎯 Learning Intentions

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

• Understand what a stereotype is and why it can be hurtful.
• Identify common stereotypes in Australian communities.
• Make connections between stereotypes and identity.
• Reflect on how Auggie’s experiences in Wonder highlight stereotyping and exclusion.

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🎓 Curriculum Links

Australian Curriculum – English (Year 4)

Strand: Literacy

• ACELY1682: Use comprehension strategies to build literal and inferred meaning about key events, ideas and information in texts.
• ACELY1680: Plan, rehearse and deliver presentations incorporating learned content and taking into account the particular purposes and audiences.

Strand: Language

• ACELA1496: Understand how texts vary in complexity and technicality depending on the approach to the topic, the purpose and the intended audience.

Strand: Literature

• ACELT1603: Discuss how authors and illustrators make stories exciting, moving and absorbing and hold readers’ interest by using various techniques, for example character development and plot tension.

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🧠 Prior Knowledge

Students should already be familiar with the main characters and events from Wonder by R.J. Palacio (up to Part 2 – “Via”). They should understand what identity means and how it can be shaped by personal experiences and by how others see us.

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🗂 Lesson Structure

⏰ 5 mins — Welcome & Warm-Up Discussion

Prompt students with a seated circle talk:
“What’s something that makes you, you?”

Encourage sharing of unique traits, hobbies, cultural backgrounds. Use this to emphasise that everyone has different things that make them special.

Teacher Tip: Use a ball toss or talking stick for inclusive participation in the circle.

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⏰ 7 mins — Vocabulary Brainstorm: What is a Stereotype?

On the board, define the word stereotype:

“A stereotype is a fixed idea about a group of people. It can be based on how people look, where they're from, or other things. Stereotypes are often not true, and they can be unfair.”

Have students work in pairs to brainstorm some examples they have heard in their own lives or in media (e.g., “Boys are stronger than girls,” or “People with glasses are nerdy”).

Draw a T-chart:

Stereotype	Reality
Boys don't cry	Everyone has feelings
Australians all love sport	Australians have many interests

Encourage respectful conversation. This is a safe space.

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⏰ 10 mins — Read-Aloud & Deep Dive (Wonder Text Connection)

Read a short excerpt from Wonder that highlights Auggie being judged for how he looks (e.g., pages from Chapter: “Lamb to the Slaughter” or “The Cheese Touch”).

Ask students:

• How do other students treat Auggie based on how he looks?
• Is that fair?
• What stereotype do you think they are assigning to him?
• How does it affect Auggie’s identity?

Mini Whiteboard Reflection (Pairs):
Write down one word to describe how Auggie might feel. Then share with the class using a 'gallery walk' around the room.

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⏰ 10 mins — Group Activity: Identity Collage with a Twist

Materials: Old magazines, scissors, glue sticks, A3 paper.

Task: Each group is given a persona card representing a fictional Australian (e.g., “Farmer from Western NSW”, “Young girl from Darwin”, “Boy who uses a wheelchair”, “Migrant from India”, etc.)

❓ Ask groups to:

• Create a collage that challenges stereotypes about that person.
• Include at least three things that make that character unique beyond what others might assume.

After 7 minutes, groups do a 1-minute lightning presentation:
“This is who people might think they are... but this is who they really are!”

Teacher Tip: Encourage diversity of age, gender, ability and culture in collages to reflect a broad view of Australia today.

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⏰ 8 mins — Individual Reflection: My Identity & Stereotypes

Hand out a simple reflective worksheet:

Prompt 1: “One stereotype I’ve heard is…”
Prompt 2: “I feel this is unfair because…”
Prompt 3: “One thing that makes me me is…”

Students sit quietly and write. You may turn down the lights or play soft instrumental music to foster a reflective mood.

This can later support students’ final assessment in Lesson 10 (Personal Identity Portfolio).

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⏰ 5 mins — Closing Circle: Think, Pair, Share

In pairs, students respond to:

• “What can we do to stop stereotypes in our school?”
• “What did Auggie’s story help you realise about others?”

Invite volunteers to share with the class.

Praise student insights and thank everyone for their thoughtful contributions.

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🧰 Differentiation & Adjustments

• EAL/D Support: Use visuals for key vocabulary words and pre-teach with simplified language.
• Extension Task: Advanced students can create a “Stereotype Buster Poster” during quiet time, to be added to your classroom wall.
• Support: Pair struggling readers/writers with strong peers for group activity. Provide sentence starters.

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📏 Assessment (Formative)

• Observation during discussions and group activity.
• Student contributions to brainstorming and T-chart.
• Personal reflection worksheet (collected and reviewed for understanding of the concepts).

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📚 Materials Needed

• Copies or projection of selected pages from Wonder
• Chart paper or whiteboard for T-chart
• Magazines, scissors, glue, A3 sheets
• Mini whiteboards and markers
• Printed reflection worksheets
• Persona cards (fictional Australian identities)

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🍃 Encouraging a Respectful Classroom

This lesson explores sensitive topics. Emphasise:

• Listening with empathy
• Speaking with care
• Keeping a growth mindset: we can all unlearn stereotypes.

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🔄 Looking Ahead

Next Lesson (3 of 10): “Multiple Identities”
Students will explore how individuals can have multiple identities that shape their experiences, with examples both from Wonder and their own lives.

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🧡 Teacher Reflection Prompt

At the end of the day, consider:

• Did students engage thoughtfully with the concept of stereotypes?
• Did they connect Wonder to real-world experiences?
• How can I continue fostering empathy and identity-awareness in future lessons?

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Prepared with care for curious minds! 🌟