These self-portrait ideas were part of a short project that went really with my middle school ESL class so I thought I’d share them with you. My students were able to come up with three products in one activity: a mind map, a self-portrait and an essay. The unit topic was about “Identity” or “Personality” but I guess this will work for general descriptive adjectives lesson as well.
Objectives
- To teach students about adjectives describing themselves
- Encourage students to think about their talents, abilities and what they like about themselves
- Help students write a short essay centered on the topic “Who Am I?”
Materials
- A3 paper
- coloring pens
- notebook (for writing their draft)
Mind Map: Identity Bubbles
First, I asked my students to create an Identity Mind Map by reflecting on the question “What makes you “you”? Mind maps are used to present related pieces of information, such as appearance and personality, in organized and visually-appealing ways. By creating a web of their identity, students had a road map for the succeeding activities.
We started with a topic in the middle called “My Identity” and then proceeded with keywords that branch off the main idea such as appearance, personality, interests, beliefs, culture and so on. Students then come up with more words that branch off the subtopics, e.g., appearance –> black hair, tall, round face; personality –> cheerful, outgoing, hardworking.
Identity bubble could look something like this:



Self-Portrait Ideas
In this part of the project, students drew themselves using symbols, icons or illustration that represent themselves. I encourage them to glean from their Identity Mind Map for inspiration. By doing this, students were able to express who they are in a creative way.

I understand that not everybody can draw well so I gave students different options to achieve the same end. Some students used technology to create their self-portrait while others cut out words and images from magazine and newspaper!


“Who AM I?”
The last part of the project was to write an essay revolving the topic “Who Am I?” Needless to say, the mind map and self-portrait helped students a lot in writing their essay! Students did not find this part difficult at all nor did they have a writer’s block because they already had ideas on what to write about!
The final output with all the three elements together looked like this:


You can download my simple Self-Portrait Ideas PowerPoint presentation and project rubric here or on TES. It’s free!
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Hamid Bouadou
October 19, 2018 8:15 pmI find the idea very inspiring thanks so much for sharing
Ms wi2n
February 25, 2019 2:54 amWow… I like this. I got new best preactise teaching. Thx
Diana
February 26, 2019 7:15 pmVery inspiring idea! Thank you so much for sharing it! It is just wonderful!
Anonymous
February 27, 2019 2:08 amAmazing work, I loved it, thanks a lot for sharing it!!!
Jaslyn Davies
March 10, 2019 6:30 pmAmazing activity to honor students identity and culture; while still incorporating standards. LOVE IT!
Vicky Papageorgiou
April 16, 2019 1:48 pmHi! I love your work. Do you give us permission to publish your lesson plan in ELTA Serbia newsletter? Thank you (Of course, crediting you!!)
Mariano Garcia
May 11, 2019 2:39 pmA very well-developed and creative activity for students to encourage them to express themselves artistically while practising language skills. I really liked it. Regards.
Nadir
May 11, 2019 2:43 pmQuite interesting ideas to work with students’ self-steem and personality! Love the final products! I am sure it is something they won’t forget.
Romina
May 11, 2019 2:46 pmThe activities are very creative and they are organized according to the objective of the class.
Melchor Bernardo
August 21, 2019 2:50 amThank you! This activity really helps students show their inner creative genius and at the same time help them learn the language!
Melchor Bernardo
August 21, 2019 2:53 amThanks Mariano! I really love this lesson as well. I think my students discover more about their identity!
Melchor Bernardo
August 21, 2019 2:53 amThe final product is also great as a classroom display! Really grabs attention!
Melchor Bernardo
August 21, 2019 2:54 amHi, sure! Feel free to use the photos as well. Thanks
Melchor Bernardo
August 21, 2019 2:57 amThank you! The goal is to celebrate individuality and at the same time teach vocabulary words and essay writing. This project does it all ?
Melchor Bernardo
August 21, 2019 2:57 amYou’re welcome!
Melchor Bernardo
August 21, 2019 2:59 amHi, thank you for your kinds words! Glad to help 🙂
Melchor Bernardo
October 2, 2019 6:02 amYou’re welcome! 🙂
Melchor Bernardo
October 2, 2019 6:03 amIt’s my pleasure Hamid! 🙂