Harper Lee's classic coming of age novel is the anchor text for a current 8th grade ELA unit. ELA teachers Bridget Lesage and Eriko Antos have integrated lessons from Facing History and Ourselves' Teaching Mockingbird project into a unit where students apply reading and writing skills to explore the literary themes and characters of Lee's novel.
The text offers rich characters like Scout, Jem and Atticus and presents readers with important questions about race, social status, and justice. Early lessons are designed to help students understand the historical context of Lee's novel. A scavenger hunt activity introduces students to the history of Jim Crow laws and the impact of the Great Depression on American society.
Here are some of the "big ideas" students are exploring in their study:
Here are some of the "big ideas" students are exploring in their study:
- How do people find the courage to fight injustice and persecution? When, if ever, should someone rebel against the norm of society?
- How and why do humans dehumanize others?
- How are humans vulnerable to lies, manipulation, and intimidation?
- Where does a person’s conscience come from? How does a person’s conscience drive his/her behavior?
- How does geography shape American consciousness?
- What is the importance of innocence? How is innocence lost?
- Are people born evil or do they become evil as a product of their circumstances?
- How and why are people unjustly treated in present-day America?
- What are the characteristics of an American hero?
Using strategies like close reading (students consider the meaning and writing of specific passages in the text), written response and group reflection, teachers are building students' skills in responding to and creating meaning from a literary text.
