Tuesday 3/25/25 - Write a blog post reflecting on a time when you or someone you know was misunderstood because of a single story. How can limiting ourselves to one perspective be harmful? What can we do to make sure we see people and cultures more fully?

I remember when a new student moved to the middle school I went to, and because she wore a hijab, I, myself as well as others assumed she was quiet and possibly even oppressed. This single story we created in our heads, shaped by media stereotypes, completely overlooked her outgoing, funny, and independent personality. I saw firsthand how people missed out on knowing her real self because they attached to one narrow perspective. Limiting ourselves to a single story is dangerous because it creates misunderstanding and flattens people's nuances and complexities into one-dimensional characters. To truly see people and cultures more fully, we should stay curious, ask questions, and disregard preconceived notions. Everyone is more than the first impression we might have of them.

Summary: Today, we worked on a CommonLit assignment about the danger of a single story. The author describes how stereotypes and assumptions about others can create a harmful single story of various things. She gave her own experiences regarding this with how she created a single story of others in Africa in her head, and how her roommate in America had made a single story of her. It included 7 guided questions, followed by 4 multiple choice question, and one written response question.

Reflection: I learned that creating a single story of others is dangerous because you are putting them in a box without truly knowing the person/group or their situation. This can lead to tensions or misunderstandings later on.


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