To Kill a Mockingbird Lesson Plan

Why was race so important when the novel was published?

Kind of Activity:

whole class

Objective:

to understand the historical context of the novel’s publication

Structure:

To Kill a Mockingbird was published in 1960 as the Civil Rights Movement was growing in the United States. Racial segregation was a significant social problem in Alabama and throughout the southern United States. Help students gain a sense of the power of racism at that time by means of images, text, audio, and video from the 1950s and 1960s from the Civil Rights Movement. History teachers at your school might already have good materials on the subject. Consider using video of civil rights marches...