To Kill a Mockingbird

1. “I’d rather you shot at tin cans in the back yard, but I know you’ll go after birds. Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ‘em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” --Atticus To Kill a Mockingbird Symbolism

2. Mockingbird Free write After watching the clip where Atticus tells his children that it is “a sin to kill a mockingbird,” take a minute to free write (at least one page, handwritten) on the following questions: Beyond the obvious, what do you think Atticus is trying to tell his children? What do you think he wants them to learn from what he is saying? How do you think the mockingbird will apply to the rest of the novel?

3. Class Discussion As we go through the following PowerPoint, you will once again have the choice to either participate as discussion questions are asked or complete an alternative assignment. Remember the following guidelines before and as you participate in the discussion. • Participation should always be thoughtful and appropriate and should always be initiated by raising your hand and being called upon. • Remember that everyone has their own thoughts and opinions. You may disagree with some of your peers, but everyone deserves to have their opinions respected. • Part of appropriately participating means listening carefully to the things your peers have to say. If you choose to have side conversations as the class discussion is going on, your grade will reflect it whether or not you choose to participate. • You must participate at least once, but you can receive additional points for participating more than the required amount. • Give everyone a chance to participate. Even if you have a lot of good things to say, it can be considered disrespectful to dominate the conversation. • Participating includes sharing an answer to one of the above questions, responding to the answer of one of your peers, or sharing any additional thoughts or ideas on the topics being discussed. • If you choose not to participate, you will need to talk to Ms. Christensen after school to get instructions for the alternative assignment.

4. Notes • In addition to participating in the class discussion, you must take notes in the chart on the back of your worksheet. As we go through and discuss the topics included in your chart, you should take notes on the information presented in the slideshow as well as take notes on the comments the class makes as part of the discussion.

5. Symbolism What is a symbol? Symbols are persons, places, or things in a narrative that have significance beyond a literal understanding. The craft of storytelling depends on symbols to present ideas and point toward new meanings. Most frequently, a specific object will be used to refer to (or symbolize) a more abstract concept. The repeated appearance of an object suggests a non-literal, or figurative, meaning attached to the object. Symbols are often found in the book’s title, at the beginning and end of the story, within a profound action, or in the name or personality of a character. The life of a novel is perpetuated by generations of readers interpreting and reinterpreting the main symbols. By identifying and understanding symbols, readers can reveal new interpretations of the novel. Discussion Question: What kinds of things do you think could be considered symbols in To Kill a Mockingbird?

6. The Mockingbird Consider the following characteristics of a Mockingbird: -creates beautiful music -innocent -defenseless -a target for hunters -good Ms. Maudie said the following about a Mockingbird: “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corncribs, they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” Discussion Questions: Consider the above information. What abstract concept could the Mockingbird represent? What characters in the novel could be considered a “mockingbird”? How did you address the questions from the free write? (What do you think he wants them to learn from what he is saying? How do you think the mockingbird will apply to the rest of the novel?)

7. The Mad Dog Watch the following clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2L0WQu2fEI In the novel, Scout says the following about the mad dog: “He seemed dedicated to one course and motivated by an invisible force that was inching him toward us.” The dog is one of many instances in the novel, where the safety and innocence of the children are threatened. Discussion Questions: Taking the topics and purposes of the novel into account, what do you think the mad dog represents? What does the author seem to say about prejudice through the mad dog? Why should it be Atticus who shoots the dog? What could the gun represent?

8. Names as Symbols Atticus Scout Atticus is named for a leader from ancient Greece. Read the following account of Titus PomponiusAtticus and take note of the similar characteristics he has to Atticus Finch. Discussion Questions: What similarities does Atticus have to this leader of Acient Greece? What do you think Atticus represents? Scout is definitely a fighter. Especially at the beginning of the novel, fighting is her solution to everything: she goes after Walter Cunningham after she gets in trouble on his behalf on the first day of school, she beats up Dill when she thinks he’s not paying enough attention to her, and she kicks a member of the lynch mob when he grabs Jem. When news of Atticus’s defense of Tom Robinson percolates down to the schoolyard, it’s no wonder that she responds with her fists to the kids’ parroting of their parents’ insults. Watch the following clip of the opening credits of the movie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rP5MutuPVxk Discussion Questions: What do you think about the clip? What do you think it says or emphasizes about Scout? What do you think is the meaning behind Scout’s name? What do you think she represents in the novel?