Book

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

This novel is a “tender, honest exploration of identity” (Publishers Weekly) that distills lyrical truths about family and friendship.

Last Updated: February 16, 2023

Book

Language

English — US

Subject

English & Language Arts

Culture & Identity

By Benjamin Alir Sáenz

Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship—the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

ISBN: 9781442408937

Date of Publication: April 2014

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Mini-Lesson

This mini-lesson asks students to reflect on how education has changed during the COVID-19 pandemic and to propose changes they would like to see in schools when the pandemic ends.

Mini-Lesson

This mini-lesson asks students to start the school year by designing their ideal learning space.

Students move around the classroom in conversation with each other. One student looks directly into the camera with a smile on their face.

Mini-Lesson

This mini-lesson invites students to analyze Amanda Gorman’s poem “New Day’s Lyric” and create a class poem about hope and collective action during challenging times.

Amanda Gorman at the 2021 InStyle Awards At The Getty Center

Lesson

Through quote and poetry analysis, students will consider the ways in which our desire to fit in can impact our identities and the choices we make.

A student writes on a piece of paper in a classroom.

Lesson

Students will define key concepts and discuss the impact that labels, assumptions, and stereotypes have on their identity development.

Lesson

Students will engage in perspective-taking activities to consider what it means to belong and how experiences and interactions with others can shape our identities.

Two students working together and looking at classwork

Lesson

Students will watch a short animated film and create illustrated “pearls of wisdom” to consider why it is important to develop relationships that help us feel seen, valued, and secure.

Two female students, one with a hijab, sit in classroom.

Lesson

Students will read and analyze a poem that focuses on what it means to practice celebrating identity, both by loving who you are and by imagining who you can be.

Engaged uniformed male student engages in classroom discussion.

Assessment

Create a culminating experience for your students that helps them draw new connections between the concepts and ideas presented in this text set, themselves, and the world today.

Male student works on in-class assignment.

Text Set

Designed for students in grades 6-7, this text set includes lesson plans and multi-genre texts for a two-week unit exploring the essential question “How do we become who we want to be in the world?”

Female students engage in classroom discussion.

Activity

Students critically analyze the choices, risks, and rewards that are involved when they are called upon to be upstanders.

Activity

Students engage in meaningful discussions with their peers about a text while using text-based evidence to support their thinking and making real-life connections to what they're reading.

Two students sitting in a classroom with one student talking and gesturing

More Like This Teaching Resources Learning & Events

The resources I’m getting from my colleagues through Facing History have been just invaluable.

— Claudia Bautista, Santa Monica, Calif

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Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

At a Glance

Language

Subject

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Borrow

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Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

At a Glance

Language

Subject

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Borrow

You might also be interested in…

Reimagining School after COVID

Co-design Your Classroom with Your Students

Hardship and Hope: Teaching Amanda Gorman’s “New Day’s Lyric”

What Is “Normal”?

How Do Others See Me?

Feeling Seen: A Matter of Perspective

I Feel Seen!

Making Myself Proud

Becoming and Belonging Assessment Ideas

Becoming and Belonging

Anatomy of an Upstander

Asking Compelling Questions

Inspiration, insights, & ways to get involved