TEACHING AMERICAN HISTORY 3
LESSON PLAN
TEACHER: Ms. Castagna, Mrs. Chavez-Diaz, Mrs. Padilla, Mrs. Sedano
SUBJECT: 9th Grade College Preparatory English
TITLE OF LESSON: The Great Depression
STANDARD:
OBJECTIVE:
Students will learn the historical background of To Kill a Mockingbird. They will focus on the
racial tensions in the South.
MATERIAL NEEDED:
(What primary sources are using? What maps are you using?)
Students will view photos from that time period as well as listen to a song and analyze song
lyrics about the topic.
*Rubin Stacy, lynched in Fort Lauderdale on 19th July, 1935
* Billie Holiday’s “Strange Fruit”
SPONGE ACTIVITY;
(What activity will be done when students enter the room to get them into the mindset
of the concept to be learned?)
As students enter the classroom, Billie Holiday’s “Strange Fruit” will be playing. They will be asked
to listen to the song once; they will then be given the lyrics to the song and listen to it again.
ANTICIPATORY SET ;
(List focus questions that will be used to get students thinking about the day’s lessons)
Does this song contain a metaphor?
What is the metaphor? What is the strange fruit?
What clashes are there within the lyrics?
CONTENT DELIVERY;
(What information will be delivered to the student before they begin so they can be successful
at the activity and understand its purpose?)
Prior to this class students will receive a lecture and take notes on the Great Depression. They
will focus on the South and review the hostile culture that African-Americans lived in.
ACTIVITY;
(What activity will be done to teach the concept?)
Students will complete a Photo Analysis worksheet on a photograph of the lynching of Thomas
Shipp and Abram Smith. They will connect the images to the song and the poem.
STUDENT ASSESSMENT;
(What type of homework will be assigned to students to allow them independent or group
practice with the concept?)
This assignment will connect with a bigger To Kill a Mockingbird project that will be done
throughout the reading of the novel. Students will also be required to complete a pre-reading
survey for the novel. The survey will ask questions that touch upon the ideas of racism, justice
and equality.
CLOSURE ;
(what will be said at the end of the lesson to ensure students understand the day’s objectives,
bring closure to the activity they just completed, and prepare them for the next day’s lesson?
Reading To Kill a Mockingbird can be a sensitive subject; the repeated use of the word “nigger”
is uncomfortable. This lesson helps students understand why reading that work is important to
understanding the climate of the South for an African-American person. This lesson introduces
them to the injustices, violence, and racism that they will encounter when reading the novel.
To Kill a Mockingbird-Historical Background
In 1937 Abel Meeropol, a Jewish schoolteacher from New York, saw a photograph of the
lynching of Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith. Meeropol later recalled how the photograph
"haunted me for days" and inspired the writing of the poem, Strange Fruit. Meeropol, a
member of the American Communist Party, using the pseudonym, Lewis Allan, published the
poem in the New York Teacher and later, the Marxist journal, New Masses.
After seeing Billie Holiday perform at the club, Café Society, in New York, Meeropol showed
her the poem. Holiday liked it and after working on it with Sonny White turned the poem into
the song, Strange Fruit. The record made it to No. 16 on the charts in July 1939. However, the
song
was
denounced
by
Time
Magazine as
"a
prime piece
of
musical
propaganda"
for the
National
Association
for the
Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP).
Rubin Stacy, lynched in Fort Lauderdale on 19th July, 1935
STRANGE FRUIT
Southern trees bear a strange fruit
Blood on the leaves and blood at the root
Black body swinging in the southern breeze
Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees
Pastoral scene of the gallant south
The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth
Scent of magnolia sweet and fresh
And the sudden smell of burning flesh!
Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck
For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck
For the sun to rot, for a tree to drop
Here is a strange and bitter crop.
Music and lyrics by Lewis Allan, copyright 1940
Photo Analysis Worksheet
Step 1. Observation
A.
Study the photograph for 2 minutes. Form an overall impression of the photograph and
then examine individual items. Next, divide the photo into quadrants and study each
section to see what new details become visible.
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B.
Use the chart below to list people, objects, and activities in the photograph.
People
Objects
Activities
Step 2. Inference
Based on what you have observed above, list three things you might infer from this
photograph.
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Step 3. Questions
A. What questions does this photograph raise in your mind?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
B.
Where could you find answers to them?
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Designed and developed by the
Education Staff, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC 20408.
http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/worksheets/photo.html