Teaching Martin Buber's I and Thou in High School: Lesson Ideas and Materials

Martin Buber's slim book I and Thou (1923) is one of the most influential texts in the philosophy of religion, and it is almost unavoidable in a high school anthropology or ethics course. Yet many teachers hesitate to begin, because Buber's language is dense and unfamiliar. This in-depth guide shows how to make dialogical thinking accessible: the core idea in plain language, five field-tested hooks, a full lesson sequence, extensions to Levinas and the image of God, plus notes on differentiation and assessment. At the end you will find the ready-to-teach unit.

Why Buber belongs in high school

The anthropological question Who am I, and what makes me human? becomes surprisingly concrete with Buber. Adolescents are in the middle of forming their identity, so the question of how the self even comes to be speaks to them directly. Buber's answer is as simple as it is profound: a person does not become an I from within, but through a Thou. Identity arises in relationship. This idea links religious studies with ethics, philosophy, and psychology, and it plays out in digital life, friendship, recognition, and loneliness.

The two basic words explained

Buber's key distinction is the two basic words. A basic word is spoken not with the mouth but with one's whole being; it names a stance:

• I-Thou: the immediate, mutual encounter. I do not make the other a means, I do not merely observe them, I meet them. This meeting happens; it is present and not at my disposal.
• I-It: to experience, use, order, and describe. The other becomes an object among objects. This stance is essential for science, technology, and organization, but it is not a meeting.

Buber's point matters: without the It a person cannot live, but whoever lives only in the It is not fully human. This ambivalence keeps the material discussion-worthy and prevents a naive black-and-white reading.

Common misconceptions to clear up

• I-It is not evil. Measuring, planning, checking out at a store: all necessary. The problem is making the It absolute, not its existence.
• I-Thou cannot be forced. You cannot manufacture encounter, but you can foster its conditions (attention, presence, time).
• The same situation can flip. A conversation begins as I-Thou and becomes I-It the moment I only use my counterpart.

Five field-tested hooks

1. Five I-am sentences. Each student writes five self-descriptions. Debrief: how many work without other people? This creates the cognitive conflict Buber lives on.
2. Image prompt. Two people in conversation versus a person at a machine: gather guesses, develop the terms.
3. Freeze frame. Small groups stage an I-Thou and an I-It scene; the class interprets.
4. Ad or music. A commercial that treats people as an audience is examined for the I-It stance.
5. The gaze thought experiment. A stranger on the subway, a brief moment of eye contact, as a bridge to Levinas and responsibility for the Other.

A possible lesson sequence (4 periods)

• Period 1: Who am I, who are you? Identity as relationship.
• Period 2: Buber's basic words; comparison table, sort everyday scenes.
• Period 3: The face of the Other; Levinas in a jigsaw.
• Period 4: The image of God and the eternal Thou; a judgment task on digital life.

Extension: Levinas and the image of God

To deepen Buber, add Emmanuel Levinas. In the face of the Other I meet a claim that precedes my freedom: do not kill me. Responsibility is not the result of a decision but comes before it. The biblical idea of the image of God (Gen 1:27) grounds human dignity: it is not assigned but given. Buber reads every genuine I-Thou encounter as a trace of the eternal Thou, so the dignity of the Other is doubly grounded, philosophically and theologically.

Differentiation and assessment

Offer source texts in a core and a challenge version; mark extension prompts with a star. A running portfolio documents the learning path and supports grading. Watch academic language: key terms (basic word, relation, face, transcendence) belong on a word wall and in a glossary.

The ready-to-teach unit

So you do not start from scratch, the complete unit is available as a download, with a teacher guide, slide deck, student workbook, a jigsaw on Levinas, and an answer key, as a print-ready PDF and fully editable:

• Unit 1: I & Thou: Discovering the Other (Buber & Levinas)
• Save with the Ethics & Religious Studies bundle (12 periods)

Frequently asked questions

What grade level fits Buber? Grades 11-12 in the anthropology strand; with differentiation it works from grade 10.

How many periods does the unit take? Four periods, modular and shortenable.

Do students need prior philosophy? No. The hooks are experience-based, and terms are introduced step by step.

How do you assess learning? Through a portfolio and a judgment task, for example on genuine encounter in digital space.

Does this fit an ethics or philosophy course? Yes, dialogical anthropology and the ethics of the Other are ethics and philosophy topics too.

How can Buber connect to current issues? Through digital life, AI (can a machine be a Thou?), loneliness, and recognition on social media.