Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird is a wonderful coming-of-age novel that is as relevant today as when it was published. The following activities are to be completed as the novel is read. This resource is intended for teacher use as it includes ideas on differentiation.
Activity One-Twitter and Characterization
Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, the will be illustrating comprehension of the novel through various social networking sites. The students will have to tweet after each chapter and respond to one another through Twitter. This will demonstrate understanding of the characters and their interactions with one another. Jem would respond to Scout (his sister) in a very different way than he respond to his father, Atticus. Throughout the novel, students will respond in character to other tweets. Additionally, the the follows the character gives must be based on the novel. (Example: Jem would follow football teams, Miss Caroline would follow teaching tips, Atticus would follow lawyers, etc).
Procedure:
Assign a character to each student in the class (This document breaks the characters into groups for differentiation)
Students are to create a Twitter account for their specific character.
The characters from Maycomb are to follow one another.
Requirements:
Procedure:
Assign a character to each student in the class (This document breaks the characters into groups for differentiation)
Students are to create a Twitter account for their specific character.
The characters from Maycomb are to follow one another.
Requirements:
- At least two tweets per chapter that your character is mentioned
- Stay in character-only respond how your assigned character would respond
- Keep all follows character based and appropriate (when in doubt, ask!)
- Follow the characters set up by your classmates
- Picture of your character (can use creative commons image based upon description in the novel)
- Respond to two of your classmates’ tweets every chapter (in character)
Here are screenshots of an example account I set up from the novel:
Activity Two-Wordpress to Analyze and Discuss Theme
This activity will be done in conjunction with the Twitter activity. Every chapter, one group of students will be given a discussion chapter based on the reading. The individuals in that group will post on his or her Wordpress site. The rest of the class is responsible for offering meaningful comments on at least two other posts each chapter. The teacher must also comment and engage in dialogue in order to create a more meaningful discussion. Also, teacher interaction continues to model the skills required to participate in meaningful social networking. Students groups can be differentiated in order to assign questions suited for the needs of each student.
This activity allows discussions to continue outside of the class period. Students will continue thinking about the important class discussions long after the bell.
This activity allows discussions to continue outside of the class period. Students will continue thinking about the important class discussions long after the bell.
Here are a few screenshots of the my teacher blog:
Activity Three-Padlet and Characterization
This activity is to be completed after chapter four of To Kill a Mockingbird. Students will discussion characteriztion of Jem, Atticus, Scout, and Calpurnia in the first four chapters of the novel. They can use examples of direct or indirect characterization. This activity illustrates understanding of characters and how to support claims using textual evidence. Students can demonstrate mastery while working together to come up with a solid understanding of the characters in the beginning of the novel. This will be especially important as the reader traces the development of Jem and Scout throughout the novel.
In order to differentiate, the teacher can assign a student a specific character (like Scout) that will have more accessible textual evidence available.
In order to differentiate, the teacher can assign a student a specific character (like Scout) that will have more accessible textual evidence available.
Here are a few screenshots of the Padlet: