In this documentary Tristan Angieri brings the reader into their body and into a narrative of trauma and healing. Tristan tells of an anger at their own body, “for being queer, for being trans,” that comes to threaten their life. Their saving of their own life comes from a body-centered healing practice in the form of a groundbreaking therapy for PTSD. From that beginning, Tristan goes on to find sources of joy and recovery in other healthy and healing risks, also centered in their body. Social media and the public chronicling of self was one of the key components of journey. They posted videos of themselves dancing to social media, not with the intention of garnering a following, but as a self-revelatory act. They discovered that those moments of honest self-portrayal in turn helped others. Clips of those videos are interspersed through this documentary. Tristan Angieri is a non-binary multi-disciplinary artist, director and actor. Their streetwear is sold on the queer and trans design label Homogoods. In 2018, they released the EP Eccolocations as half of the artpop group Hairband Hairband. As Themperor, they are currently recording their debut album. Their multi-faceted, multi-genre approach to their work infuses this film, which includes music, narration, animation, personal archical videos and photos, and social media posts. It is a unified story told with a collage of tools.

This is a fitting time for their work and for this project. The news media is focused on the theme of cultural and political division in the U.S., and the realm of social media is often viewed as the hive of that division. This film (and this lesson) lives outside of that dominant framing and lives into the truths of the authors’ life. Instead, the film reminds us that social media can also be a platform for vulnerability, for self-revelation, for providing a counter narrative to those that would tell a very different story about what our bodies mean in the world.

This lesson will challenge students to examine the dynamic between their external and internal selves and to take on one contained (yet immense) transformative journey. It is introspective work but that concludes with a public, creative work. As Tristan did, students will document their own process and craft it into a contained post or series of posts shared to a class Instagram account. The lesson concludes with a celebratory screening.

A Note on Technology and Accessibility

This lesson, as well as the others in the Otherly series, bring social media into the classroom. These lessons are designed to integrate ethical engagement on social platforms to complete the assignments. It will be important for you to check with your school or district for any regulations around classroom or in-school student social media use. In addition, this lesson entails the creation of a class Instagram account. In order to set this up, the teacher will need to set up an IG account which will be shared only to the class, with a username and password that students can all access. That said, while some of the content and theory of the lessons would be lost without the use of social media, students could complete the assignments using the photo and video tools on their phones. However! The lessons are intended to critique, engage, and potentially transform the use of social media. If possible, the lesson will be most transformative as a social media-based engagement. And with enough planning, you and your learning community can create an analogue version of this lesson with printed-out photographs, storyboards on large paper in the classroom, and using school-based technology to record and play videos in school.

A Note from Curriculum Creator, Jade Sanchez-Ventura

I believe in personal narrative. I think that to communicate the particular experience of a life and to tie it literally or intuitively to the histories--familial, cultural, societal--that have shaped us is an act of resistance that also makes for excellent storytelling. This conviction is the underpinning of my work as an educator: No matter the subject, I know that every young person has a singular, vital perspective to bring and my role is to act as a catalyst for their bursts of insight and inspiration. Sometimes (too often) my role is to help students recognize the power of their own insight and intelligence. As with all systems of our society, the classroom can also be a site of profound oppression and silencing. As one mentor told me, “You want your students to leave a classroom not thinking that you’re smart, but that they are.” Often that entails reminding myself that with every generation there are new methods of making and communication emerging; reminding myself to ask students about what is present and relevant to their daily lives.

Smartphones and apps and social media often feel like the epitome of a generational divide. Phones are banned from classrooms (including my own, generally), social media is demonized (even though we all use it), or if not demonized, trivialized--regarded as a cultural arena for entertainment and play, but not for serious study and critique. However, many of us, and certainly most young people, are daily crafting intimate narratives about their own lives on those very phones. Any minute on Instagram is one crammed with countless Stories, Posts, Live broadcasts from our lives. Yes, the celebrities and politicians and gatekeepers are there too, but one can easily ignore them and follow only the interpretations and explorations of regular folks like us.

Much has been made of the information bubbles made possible by social media. Certainly that is an important conversation to have, but for the purpose of this lesson (and it’s partner lessons featuring the Otherly documentary series), we have the chance to interrogate the vast options for self-expression and self-chronicling afforded by social media, in particular Instagram. I am enchanted by the truism that the more focused and personal a story, the more broadly it appeals. There is a magic that happens when an artist tells one small story honestly-It becomes a big truth that resonates for countless others.

Integrate.Me is one of those stories. In under nine minutes, Tristan Angieri crafts an intricate and powerful story of trauma and healing facilitated by therapeutic support, but also by the deceptively simple act of posting videos of themselves dancing on Instagram.. Through the lens of Tristan’s film, this lesson will help students explore mental health and self-care as it shows up in their own lives, and to transform that exploration into a series of posts that tells a story about a personal process of self-care. It will challenge students to consider which truths they choose to share and in the process, to celebrate the power and vitality of their own perspective.

A Note to Teachers

This is intimate work that will ask students to take a leap of trust in each other and in you. Depending on where you are in your year and with your group, this may be a first flight or one that builds on the bond in an already tight knit class. And of course, you may be applying this to a group of students who have only ever met each other on a digital platform like Zoom. Wherever you are, I encourage you to have faith in yourself and your students to make this leap! However, there are preparations that will be necessary to keep this space safe, and therefore positive, for all. Before beginning, I strongly suggest you create community agreements with your group. Even if you already have these in place, this is a good moment to review. You can also adapt your class agreements to a set specific to this project. Here is a sample list of community agreements, and there are a wealth of resources online for how to create a set of agreements with your class. In addition, given that this lesson will involve the creation and shared usage of an Instagram account, it will be essential to create a set of agreements focused on how to use the app and the related technology in a respectful, inclusive manner. Though the time spent on these agreements might seem an aside to the curriculum itself, in fact those conversations will help create a shared trust that will facilitate powerful creative and academic learning.

Subject Areas

• Health
• English
• Social Justice
• History
• Psychology
• Sociology
• Filmmaking/Visual art
• Creative Writing
• Peer support
• Gender Studies

Grade Levels: 8-12
*The following program contains mentions of childhood trauma and suicide, which some viewers may find troubling. Viewer discretion is advised. If you're looking for someone to talk to here are two resources:

@trevorproject @suicidepreventionhotline

Please take care of yourself, support is here:

The TrevorLifeline 866. 488. 7386

24/7/365 crisis intervention and suicide prevention lifeline for LGBTQ young people.

Objectives:

In this lesson, students will:

• Explore and define mental health, self-care, and healthy risk.
• Explore the ways that gender socialization impacts our ability to take risk.
  • For more in-depth work on gender socialization, see the suggested “Extension”.
• Chart a road map to meet a personal self-care challenge.
• Design a series of social media posts that shares a reflection on a self-care process.

Materials

• Film and equipment to project/screen the film.
• Physical or digital space for charting student discussions. (Whiteboards, chalkboards, poster paper, digital whiteboard, etc.)
• Note taking materials: Pen, pencils, paper, or relevant assistive technology for students who use electronic devices for note taking.
• Personal recording devices, one per student: Smartphones, laptops, tablets would all work.
• A private Instagram account created by the teacher for each class section; teacher and students share account admin capabilities through a shared username and password.
• “What We See/What We Don’t” template.
• “Transformation Map” template.

Time Needed

1-4 sixty minute sessions, depending on degree of in-class sharing.

FILM CLIPS

Integrate.Me is available in Instagram story highlights on the Otherly Instagram account page:

@otherlyseries.

A. Warm-Up: She/He/They/We are!

• If in person, class arranges themselves with the teacher into a circle. Each student “introduces” themselves to the group (even if they already know each other), by stepping into the middle of the circle, describing themselves in the third person, naming themselves, and adding a descriptor. Examples: “He is Raul, and he is a musician.” “They are Lee, and they are funny.” The class then choruses back the same line: “He is Raul and he is a musician.” This gives all participants a chance to name their pronouns and to consider one theme that informs their identity.

On a digital platform, encourage students to turn on their camera if you know that is a comfortable option for all participants. Furthermore, ask students to turn on their mics for the duration of the activity, monitoring their own background noise and turning off if their space gets too loud. Ask one student to start and spotlight each student as they speak. The choral response back will be loud and chaotic, but try to play it with it and see how it goes. Modify as is necessary for the size of your group. Ask each student to pass to the next speaker.

Optional (and fun!) expansion: Round 2, each student adds a physical motion to their lines. The group then needs to repeat their lines and the motions back to them.

Optional (and even more fun!) further expansion: Memory challenge, each student steps into the circle, or is spotlit on Zoom, and the group has to remember their lines and motions and do them for each individual.

(Resource: Theater of the Oppressed)

B. Language & image prep for film screening

• Share these terms and their definitions; give students a chance to ask about and refine. (These definitions are drawn from Merriam-Webster with minor modifications.)

Gender identity: a person's internal sense of being male, female, some combination of male and female, or neither male nor female

Trauma:
-a disordered psychic or behavioral state resulting from severe mental or emotional stress or physical injury
-an emotional upset

MDMA: 3,4-Methyl​enedioxy​methamphetamine, commonly known as ecstasy or molly, is a psychoactive drug primarily used for recreational purposes. The desired effects include altered sensations, increased energy, empathy, as well as pleasure. When taken by mouth, effects begin in 30 to 45 minutes and last 3 to 6 hours.

Self-care: care for oneself

Risk: someone or something that creates or suggests a hazard

Healthy risk: a tool to define, develop and consolidate their identity. Healthy risk-taking is a big part of growth

Heal:
1a : to make free from injury or disease : to make sound or whole heal a wound
b : to make well again : to restore tohealth heal the sick
2a : to cause (an undesirable condition) to be overcome
b : to patch up or correct (a breach or division) heal a breach between friends
3 : to restore to original purity or integrity;
- alternatively: to create a new way of being and/or a new outlook that counters previous modes of acting or thinking that caused harm to oneself

• Ask students to choose one of these terms. Once they’ve chosen one, ask them to scroll through their photo stream and post one image that speaks to that term to the class instagram account. Alternatively, if you’re on zoom students can replace their profile pic with this image or share to the chat. Remind students about the group’s community agreements. (This is where the advanced work with community agreements will come in to play; make sure to include guidelines about what is safe and respectful to post.) This will also likely be a hectic moment as it may be exciting to be able to use their phones in class rather than hide them away. In order to contain some of that energy, give students 5-8 minutes total to complete. The time constraint will also encourage students to dive in and not overthink it.

C. Screen film; “Integrate.Me”

• Allow for some supported but open-ended reflection immediately following the film. While you conduct the discussion, ask a student to chart ideas and responses where the group can view.

Useful prompts:

1. What images were repeated? Why those images?
2. What was the source of the narrator’s pain and trauma?
3. What brought them to seek treatment?
4. Were they helped? What helped them? Why did it help?
5. What did you think of the dancing? Who was the dancing for? Would you post photos of yourself moving/dancing in a similar manner? Why or why not?

D. What We See/What We Don’t

1. 1. Pass out template; see Resources. Feel free to create your own.
   2. Explain parameters; their work will be private to their own page, and they will have the choice of what to share out to the group.
   3. On the outside of the figure:
      - prompt students to write and draw what others see as their strengths and successes.
      - prompt students to write and draw what others see as their weaknesses or challenges.
   4. On the inside of the figure:
      - prompt students to write or draw what they see as their own weaknesses or challenges.
      - prompt students to write or draw what they see as their own strengths or challenges.
   5. At the top of the page, have them write and complete this line:
      People see me as ________________, but really I am ___________.
   6. Ask for any volunteers to share that line to the group. Go on as long as there are volunteers to share. This may become the whole group and the rest of the session.
   7. Finally, in a different color ink or type set, have students write activities they do that make them feel good about themselves. Allow them to write them wherever they choose.

E. Transforming Map

1. 1. Use one of the Transformation Map templates (See handouts, or create your own). Distribute one per student.
   2. Model filling one out for the group as a whole. Choose real, class appropriate challenges from your own life. Depending on the template the exact instructions will shift; but choose one end to mark a current challenge or way of being they’d like to change, and one end to mark the strength or way of being they’d like to arrive at.
   3. In the appropriate mark, ask students to write a challenge or weakness from their “What We See/What We Don’t” exercise.
   4. In the appropriate mark, ask students to write something they would do, or a feeling they would have, if they got past that challenge or weakness. In other words, what would help them shine.
   5. In the marks between, ask students to fill in relevant activities that help them feel positive about themselves.
   6. Anywhere on the page, ask students to fill in specific actions they can take that would help them reach the circle on the right.
   7. While students are working, play music without words. Allow ten minutes, but be flexible to allocating more, based on the mood of the group.
   8. When done, ask for volunteers to share. Go on as long as there are volunteers to share. This may become the whole group and the rest of the session.

F. Following our map, charting the journey, and posting about it.

1. 1. Give students a week for the concluding project.
   2. Tell students to follow their own transformation map, to the best of their ability over the next week.
   3. For every action taken, instruct them to take a photo or record a video.
   4. They are welcome to post single images or videos as the week progresses.
   5. However, at the close of the week, instruct students to review all their photos and videos and to craft into a single IG story that tells the story of that week’s self-care journey.
   6. Make sure they post in the 24 hours before the class meets, so that the Stories will still show up on the class feed.
   7. Close the week with a class screening of everyone’s IG Stories.

EXTENSIONS

1. Focus a lesson (or series of lessons) on a narrative of gender formation. Use the “What We See/What We Don’t” template to capture internal vs. external gender identity. Support this study with lessons specifically on gender theory; focusing on gender as a spectrum. Focus final project on telling the story of their own gender identity.

Helpful Sources

Film: Trip of Compassion
https://vimeo.com/ondemand/tripofcompassion
Thousands of PTSD victims live in Israel, which in recent years has been promoting an innovative treatment, namely psycho-active substances, known as psychedelic drugs.

Emma Talks
http://emmatalks.org/
EMMA is a Mini-Art Festival and Speakers Series. The core purpose of EMMA talks is to bring important stories by women* writers, activists, thinkers, storytellers, makers and doers, from the periphery to the public.

Together their stories will build a powerful and engaging collection of talks, celebrating and building on the conversations, imaginings, and hard work of so many individuals, communities and movements, which will lead to a creative cross-pollination of ideas.

*including two spirited, trans and gender non-conforming folks.

Resources

The following program contains mentions of childhood trauma and suicide, which some viewers may find troubling. Viewer discretion is advised. If you're looking for someone to talk to here are two resources:

@trevorproject @suicidepreventionhotline

Please take care of yourself, support is here:

The TrevorLifeline 866. 488. 7386

24/7/365 crisis intervention and suicide prevention lifeline for LGBTQ young people.

Otherly Documentary Series
https://mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/otherly/
Premiering on Instagram Stories, Otherly is a series of seven short documentaries about finding one’s place in the 21st century. Using universal themes like love, inclusion, and loss as entry points, seven female, non-binary, and genderqueer creators have crafted films that are at once timeless and yet by definition of their form, ephemeral.

Otherly Instagram Account
https://www.instagram.com/otherlyseries/?hl=en

Edutopia; Focus on classroom use of social media.
https://www.edutopia.org/article/using-social-media-account-your-class

Pagefreezer; Detailed overview of legal concerns for school social media use.
https://blog.pagefreezer.com/k12-schools-official-social-media-accounts-protect-student-privacy

Tristan Angieri Artist site
https://tristanangieri.com/

The Audre Lorde Project
https://alp.org/
The Audre Lorde Project (ALP) is a Community Organizing Center for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two-Spirit, Trans and Gender Non Conforming (LGBTSTGNC) People of Color Communities. Initiated as an organizing effort by a coalition of LGBTSTGNC People of Color, The Audre Lorde Project was first brought together by Advocates for Gay Men of Color (a multi-racial network of gay men of color HIV policy advocates) in 1994. The vision for ALP grew out of the expressed need for innovative and unified community strategies to address the multiple issues impacting LGBTSTGNC People of Color communities.

Wellness Resources

• Suicide Prevention Hotline
• Trans Lifeline
• National LGBT Hotline
• The Trevor Project
• Mental Health First Aid
• Sage Advocacy and Services for LGBT Elders
• National Center for Transgender Equality
• PFLAG
• GLAAD

Psychedelic Research Organizations

• Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS)
• Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelics and Consciousness
• Imperial College London
• The Heffter Research Institute
• International Center for Ethnobotanical Education Research and Service (ICEERS)
• The Beckley Foundation
• Chacruna Institute for Psychedelic Plant Medicines
  • “Bia Labate is the Founder and Executive Director. I heard her speak at the Horizons conference in NYC two years ago and she is one of the most critical and wise voices in the psychedelic renaissance right now. Highly recommend checking her out.” -from Tristan Angieri

Harm Reduction Organizations

• The Zendo Project
• Drug Policy Alliance
• National Harm Reduction Coalition
• Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP)

Learning Standards

Comprehension and Collaboration:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1
Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 11-12 topics, texts, and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1.a
Come to discussions prepared, having read and researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation by referring to evidence from texts and other research on the topic or issue to stimulate a thoughtful, well-reasoned exchange of ideas.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1.b
Work with peers to promote civil, democratic discussions and decision-making, set clear goals and deadlines, and establish individual roles as needed.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1.c
Propel conversations by posing and responding to questions that probe reasoning and evidence; ensure a hearing for a full range of positions on a topic or issue; clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and conclusions; and promote divergent and creative perspectives.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1.d
Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives; synthesize comments, claims, and evidence made on all sides of an issue; resolve contradictions when possible; and determine what additional information or research is required to deepen the investigation or complete the task.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.2
Integrate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) in order to make informed decisions and solve problems, evaluating the credibility and accuracy of each source and noting any discrepancies among the data.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.3
Evaluate a speaker's point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, assessing the stance, premises, links among ideas, word choice, points of emphasis, and tone used.

Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.4
Present information, findings, and supporting evidence, conveying a clear and distinct perspective, such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning, alternative or opposing perspectives are addressed, and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and a range of formal and informal tasks.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.5
Make strategic use of digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual, and interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings, reasoning, and evidence and to add interest.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.6
Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating a command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.

Key Ideas and Details:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.1
Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, connecting insights gained from specific details to an understanding of the text as a whole.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.2
Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary that makes clear the relationships among the key details and ideas.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.3
Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matters uncertain.

About the Artist

Tristan Angieri
Tristan Angieri is a non-binary multi-disciplinary artist, director and actor. Their directorial debut is Integrate.Me, a POV Spark Otherly short documentary made for Instagram Stories and co-produced by POV, American Documentary, and The National Film Board of Canada. Integrate.Me explores the use of an experimental therapy to treat Tristan’s PTSD, as they learn to navigate being queer and trans. Tristan’s streetwear is sold on the queer and trans design label Homogoods. In 2018 they released the EP Eccolocations as half of Hairband Hairband. As Themperor, they released the 2019 single, Drop Into It, and are currently recording their debut album.

During the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, their proudest accomplishments include learning to drive and maintain a 36’ motorhome, hitting their year mark on a twice-daily meditation practice, and cutting their teeth on underwater cinematography.

Born in NY and brought up in Minneapolis and St. Louis, Tristan studied architecture at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities College of Design (CDES) and earned their Master of Architecture at the University of California Berkeley’s College of Environmental Design (CED).

About the Author

Jade Sanchez-Ventura
Jade Sanchez-Ventura is a writer and radical educator. She works in memoir and her personal essays have been published across an array of online literary journals, and in print with Slice Magazine and Seal Press. Her work has been featured on Bitch Media’s Propaganda podcast and been awarded the Slice Literary Conference “Bridging the Gap” award; a Disquiet Literary conference fellowship; and a Hertog fellowship. She is a regular contributor to MUTHA Magazine, which champions a fiery re-imagining of parenting. As an educator, she is very good at being continually wowed by her students and their words on the page. She believes a commitment to racial equity and social justice is essential to the practice of teaching. She has spent the last decade studying and implementing this pedagogical approach to education with the Brooklyn Free School, an urban democratic free school in New York City. Though she has ties to many countries, she has always made her home in Brooklyn, New York. She’s on Instagram posting about radical parenting, teaching, race, writing, and other such matters; find her @jade_m_sv.

This resource was created, in part, with the generous support of the Open Society Foundation.