Absalom, Absalom Lesson Plan

Reading Literature with Racial Slurs

Kind of Activity:

Classwide Discussion

Objective:

In this activity, students will read discuss the concerns surrounding reading works that have racist language or characters and write a class contract that establishes both individual and collective responsibility for discussions about this novel.

Common Core Standards:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.1

Structure:

The particulars of this classroom activity can be tweaked depending on the student makeup of the class (the conversation will necessarily be different if it is a primarily white class or a class of primarily Black and Latinx students). Emphasis on transparency and honesty will...