INTRODUCTION
This, the first revised curriculum unit for eighth grade, takes To Kill a
Mockingbird, a challenging text, and attempts to make it accessible for all readers.
Several of its features are new and will achieve optimal results if they are used with
students prior to engaging in this unit.
As curriculum traditionally does, this unit provides student goals for reading,
writing, and thinking. Underlying its premises, however, is another goal—this one for
teachers—to deliver instruction in a way that honors students’ first reading of a novel, a
novel that we hope they will return to repeatedly over their lifetimes. In order to achieve
this goal, audio books will be provided to teachers so that those teachers who prefer not
to read aloud have the option of using the CD and students who are not ready to make
visual meaning from the text have a listening aid.
Other new features of this curricular unit include:
1.
a reliance on the Understanding by Design model (Wiggins, McTighe). Thus,
its design is “backwards”; that is, the goal is for students to make meaning in
their Literacy Notebooks, which will be assessed. Additional, optional,
performance assessments are also provided so that teachers may differentiate
based on the strengths and needs of their students. Essential Questions are
provided, along with lists of what students will know, will be able to do, and
those Habits of Mind students will practice as they engage in the process of
reading. Perhaps most useful is the suggested sequence for helping students
engage in reading and thinking about the novel.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
1
2.
similar reliance on the principles of Reading Workshop (Santman,
Ehrenworth). Throughout, terms associated with reading workshop—terms
such as Read Aloud, Minilesson, and Literacy Notebook—are used. These are
explained in a Glossary, but teachers unfamiliar with them should seek
counsel from colleagues who have worked at Columbia Teachers College
Reading Institute or the Language Arts Supervisor in situations where
clarification is needed.
3.
an interdisciplinary component strongly linked with District Objectives. The
unit opens with a WebQuest that allows students to explore, via the Internet,
images and sounds that will lead them to draw conclusions about the world
they are about to enter in the novel. Students are asked to use the given
documents to write an essay based on a Document Based Question (DBQ), a
process they will know from their Social Studies classes. Repetition of this
process from one discipline area to another not only sends the message that
we expect to base their thinking and responses in text, it also provides
powerful knowledge prior to reading.
Finally, if we expect our students and teachers to engage in process-oriented
reading, thinking, and response, documents such as these must be considered “in
process,” as well. Thus, I eagerly await feedback from those using this unit—teachers and
students alike—so that adjustments may be made that will allow instruction to move ever
forward.
Chrystena Hahn
Supervisor of Reading, Language Arts, and English
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
2
Enduring Understanding: Characters, images, and issues from great literature linger with
us long after we have finished reading and impact the way we view the world.
Essential Questions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
What issues are embedded in To Kill a Mockingbird?
How do characters develop and change through their interactions with other
characters?
How may the setting of a novel enhance readers’ understanding of character?
In what ways to societal expectations affect characters in To Kill a
Mockingbird?
At the conclusion of this unit,
Students will know…
how to form and defend an opinion based
on images and audio.
how to reflect on their own and their peers’
work.
how to listen carefully to text.
the value of a reading plan.
how to apply the skills necessary for
textual analysis.
how to decipher vocabulary.
the value of words.
how to engage in text-related dialogue with
their peers and teacher.
the necessary contents of a Literacy
Notebook.
how to engage in narrative analysis and use
issues embedded in text.
how to interpret text.
how to extrapolate issues from film and
text.
Students will be able to…
use primary sources to complete a DBQ
essay. [3.1.E1, G15, H1, H2; 3.2.A3, A4,
A5, B4, C6, D1, D6, D10, D11, D12;
3.3.A1; 3.4.A1; 3.5.A1, A2]
speak and write critically. [3.3.A2; 3.4.A1]
choose details appropriate to a given focus
while listening. [3.4.A2, B1, B2]
create a reading plan that meets
expectations.
place post-its to respond to text and to
demonstrate understanding of minilessons.
[3.1.D2, D3, G7, G9, G10]
apply decoding strategies. [3.1.C3]
choose words they want to hold onto.
[3.1.F1]
engage in Book Club discussions and
conferences with teacher. [3.3.A3, A4, B1,
B2, B3; 3.4.A3]
keep a Literacy Notebook.
create graphic representations of their
thinking. [3.1.E2; 3.3.D1, D2]
write poems or free-writes in response to
text. [3.1.G16; 3.2.B1, D3, D13; 3.4.B2]
create webs of issues embedded in text.
[3.1.G5; 3.4.B2; 3.5.C2]
The numbers in blue represent applications of the NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards, which may be
accessed fully at www.state.nj.us/njded/cccs.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
3
At the conclusion of the unit, students will have practiced the following Habits of Mind
(Kallick and Costa):
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
Students will have persisted in reading a difficult text.
Students will need to manage impulsivity in the workshop setting.
Students will have listened with understanding and empathy during Read
Alouds and within their Book Groups.
Students will have engaged in flexible thinking as they trace a character or
characters through the novel.
Students will strive for accuracy in their written work.
Students will have thought about thinking as they reflect on their own and
their peers’ work.
Students will have questioned the text in terms of character development,
setting, and embedded issues.
Students will apply past knowledge to a new situation as they move from the
DBQ essay into the novel.
Students will think and communicate with clarity and precision as they pairshare, create post-its, and work in their Book Groups.
Students will gather data through all the senses as they engage in the
WebQuest.
Students will create, imagine, and innovate as they create timelines and webs.
At least in their vocabulary choices, students will respond to the text with
wonderment and awe.
Students will take responsible risks as they work to make meaning of the
novel.
Students will think interdependently as they work in their Book Clubs.
Assessments:
MANDATORY:
DBQ Essay (Rubric attached to WebQuest)
Literacy Notebook for the novel (assessed twice)
 Notes from Read Aloud sessions and Minilessons
 Post-its with reflections
 Poems or free-writes about the novel
Group work on newsprint (Rubric to follow, if needed.)
RUBRIC FOR SCORING LITERACY NOTEBOOKS
CRITERIA
NOTES FROM
READ ALOUD
AND
MINILESSONS
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
MEETS
STANDARD
Notes are
complete and
reflect
appropriate
organization
APPROACHES
STANDARD
A few notes
may be missing
or some lapses
in organization
might exist
EXCEEDS
STANDARD
Complete notes
contain
reflections and
are effectively
organized
AREA OF
CONCERN
Notes from
more than one
lesson are
missing; lack of
organization
4
POST-ITS
REFLECTING
LEARNING
Comments on
post-its link
directly to
lessons
Link between
comment on
post-its and
lessons
somewhat
tangential
POEMS AND/OR
FREE-WRITES
Poem or freewrite responds
to the novel
accurately
Poem or freewrite indicates
some confusion
on the part of
the reader
Comments on
post-its not
only link to
lessons but
demonstrate
that the student
is thinking
across the novel
Poem or freewrite responds
to the novel not
only accurately
but also with
clarity and
precision
Multiple
indicators
suggest the
student is not
linking lessons
with
class/homework
Poem or freewrite
demonstrates
inadequate
understanding
of the novel
OPTIONAL:
(Group assignment): Re-try Tom Robinson. Present the trial to the class.
(Partner assignment): Consider the question: What does it mean to be an adult?
Create an answer.
Collect evidence that supports your answer from sources such as
periodicals and newspapers, literature, and history.
Choose a mode for presentation, such as PowerPoint, scrapbook, or
dossier.
(Individual assignment):
Choose an issue from the novel you believe is compelling.
Find a piece of art (photograph, painting, musical piece, or
poem) that illustrates the issue of your choice.
Choose a mode for presentation—either oral or written—
explaining why the art is fine representation of the
issue.
(Individual assignment):
Choose two scenes from the novel and represent it as
graphic text.
NOTE: Rubrics will need to be developed for all optional assignments.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
5
SUGGESTED SEQUENCE
To Kill a Mockingbird
Day 1:
Day 2:
Day 3:
Day 4:
Day 5:
WebQuest DBQ
due
READ ALOUD
(either teacher or
use audiotape) pp
1-6. As students
listen, they are
asked to consider
who is in the story
and what do we
know about them?
Teacher chooses
various points at
which to stop and
have pair-shares,
followed by
responses.
MINILESSON:
Review how to
create a reading
plan. Book groups
make plans.
HW: Students
continue reading in
the novel, placing
post-its that answer
the above
questions, that
indicate confusion
(?) about either
content or
vocabulary.
MINILESSON:
How to deal with
difficult
vocabulary, using
pp 1-6 again.
(Students engage in
note-taking during
minilessons.)
Students continue
reading, adding
post-its to their
novels in places
where they
consider who is in
the story and what
do we know about
them?AND in
places where
vocabulary
interferes with
meaning or where
they would like to
own the word,
including the
strategy they use
when attempting to
understand the new
word OR the group
discusses and
works together on
similar topics.
The teacher
conferences with
individual students,
looking, especially,
for post-its
indicating
confusion.
HW: Continue
with reading plan,
placing post-it
notes based on
minilessons
MINILESSON:
How does Scout
see the world?
Need to find an
appropriate passage
for this.
Students continue
reading, adding
post-its to their
novels in places
where they
consider who is in
the story and what
do we know about
them? in places
where they locate
new vocabulary,
including the
strategy they use
when attempting to
understand the new
word, AND in
places where they
understand how
Scout sees the
world OR the
group discusses and
works together on
similar topics.
The teacher
conferences with
individual students,
looking, especially,
for post-its
indicating
confusion.
HW: Continue
with reading plan,
placing post-it
notes based on
minilessons
MINILESSON:
Review
expectations for
Literacy Notebooks
and allow time for
transfer of first
week’s post-its.
Reveal schedule for
collection.
Students continue
reading, adding
post-its to their
novels in places
where they
consider who is in
the story and what
do we know about
them? in places
where they locate
new vocabulary,
including the
strategy they use
when attempting to
understand the new
word, AND in
places where they
understand how
Scout sees the
world OR the
group discusses and
works together on
similar topics.
The teacher
conferences with
individual students,
looking, especially,
for post-its
indicating
confusion.
HW: Continue
with reading plan,
placing post-it
notes based on
minilessons
In Book Clubs:
--Write a selfreflection
explaining why
the paragraph
you chose is the
best.
--Share aloud
best paragraphs.
--Each group
member writes a
second
reflection on
his/her peers’
work in relation
to their own: “It
made me
think…”
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
6
SUGGESTED SEQUENCE (continued)
Day 6:
Day 7:
Day 8:
Day 9:
Day 10:
MINILESSON:
How do Scout and
Atticus deal with
social norms and
adversity?
Need to find an
appropriate passage
for this.
Students continue
reading, adding
post-its to their
novels in places
where they consider
who is in the story
and what do we
know about them?
In places where
they locate new
vocabulary,
including the
strategy they use
when attempting to
understand the new
word, in places
where they
understand how
Scout sees the
world, AND in
places where they
notice characters
facing internal or
external challenges
OR the group
discusses and
works on similar
topics.
The teacher
conferences with
individual students,
looking, especially,
for post-its
indicating
confusion.
HW: Continue
with reading plan,
placing post-it
notes based on
minilessons
1/5 of Literacy
Notebooks
collected and
assessed.
MINILESSON:
Narrative Analysis
Timeline
Students use
newsprint to create
narrative timelines
focused on one or
more of the
following
characters: Scout,
Boo,
Tom Robinson,
Bob Ewell
Time permitting,
students continue
reading OR the
group discusses and
works together on
similar topics.
HW: Continue
with reading plan,
placing post-it
notes based on
minilessons
1/5 of Literacy
Notebooks
collected and
assessed.
MINILESSON:
What kind of
person is Bob
Ewell?
Need to find an
appropriate passage
for this.
Students continue
reading, adding
post-its to their
novels in places
where they consider
who is in the story
and what do we
know about them?
In places where
they locate new
vocabulary,
including the
strategy they use
when attempting to
understand the new
word, in places
where they
understand how
Scout sees the
world, AND in
places where they
notice characters
facing internal or
external challenges
OR the group
discusses and
works together on
similar topics.
The teacher
conferences with
individual students,
looking, especially,
for post-its
indicating
confusion.
HW: Continue
with reading plan,
placing post-it
notes based on
minilessons
1/5 of Literacy
Notebooks
collected and
assessed.
READ ALOUD
Need to find an
appropriate
passage for this.
As students listen,
they are asked to
consider how
various aspects of
the setting
contribute to their
understanding of
character. Teacher
chooses various
points at which to
stop and have pairshares, followed
by responses.
Students continue
reading, adding
post-its to their
novels in places
where they note
setting
contributing to
their
understanding of
character OR the
group discusses
and works together
on similar topics.
HW: Continue
with reading plan,
placing post-it
notes based on
minilessons
1/5 of Literacy
Notebooks
collected and
assessed.
Allow time for
transfer of
second week’s
post-its.
Students choose
to either write a
poem that is
inspired by the
story or in the
voice of a
character OR to
free-write a
response to the
text, including
what it makes
you think or feel,
what it reminds
you of, how it
disturbs or
comforts you.
Allow some time
for sharing.
Time permitting,
students
continue reading
OR the group
discusses and
works together
on similar topics.
HW: Continue
with reading
plan, placing
post-it notes
based on
minilessons
1/5 of Literacy
Notebooks
collected and
assessed.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
7
SUGGESTED SEQUENCE (continued)
Day 11:
Day 12:
Day 13:
Day 14:
Day 15:
MINILESSON:
How I am like Scout
or aspects of her
character I wish to
emulate.
Students continue
reading, adding postits to their novels in
places where they
consider who is in
the story and what
do we know about
them? in places
where they locate
new vocabulary,
including the
strategy they use
when attempting to
understand the new
word, in places
where they
understand how
Scout sees the world,
in places where they
notice characters
facing internal or
external challenges
or where setting
contributes to
character, AND in
places where they
notice aspects of a
character they relate
to or wish to emulate
OR the group
discusses and works
on similar topics.
HW: Continue with
reading plan, placing
post-it notes based
on minilessons
VIEW film clip
Need to find an
appropriate
passage for this.
As students watch,
they are asked to
consider one or
more issues
embedded in the
text through film..
Teacher chooses
various points at
which to stop and
have pair-shares,
followed by
responses.
Students continue
reading, adding
post-its to their
novels in places
where they note
issues embedded
in the text OR
the group
discusses and
works on a similar
topic.
HW: Continue
with reading plan,
placing post-it
notes based on
minilessons
Students use
newsprint to create
webs of issues
embedded in the
text, including
details from the
text that reveal
those issues.
Time permitting,
students continue
reading OR the
group discusses
and works on a
similar topic.
HW: Continue
with reading plan,
placing post-it
notes based on
minilessons
Students use
newsprint to
expand narrative
timelines focused
on one or more of
the following
characters: Scout,
Boo,
Tom Robinson,
Bob Ewell
Time permitting,
students continue
reading OR the
group discusses
and works on
similar topics.
HW: Continue
with reading plan,
placing post-it
notes based on
minilessons
Allow time for
transfer of third
week’s post-its.
Students choose
to either write a
poem OR to freewrite about how a
character of their
choice responds
to an issue of their
choice.
Literacy
Notebooks
collected, as per
schedule, the
week following.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
8
GLOSSARY
(Terms are in order of appearance, rather than alphabetical)
WebQuest
DBQ
Read Aloud
Book Group
Minilesson
Post-its
Conferencing
Literacy Notebook
Narrative Analysis Timelines
Issues
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
A process in which students explore teacher-designated
websites in order to accomplish a given task
Document-based question. In this unit, the DBQ represents the
task students will perform at the end of their WebQuest.
A process in which the teacher reads aloud from text (or plays
an audiotape of specific text) so that students hear the cadence
of text. In this process, students are given a focus for listening,
and the teacher stops periodically so that students may pairshare ideas and, perhaps respond as a full class.
Typically, a group of students who read at roughly the same
level and who have chosen to read a specific book. Optimally,
Book Groups will form no later than February so that students
are familiar with the process and each other before they take on
Mockingbird. After each minilesson or read aloud, the book
groups gather to either continue reading and placing post-its or
to discuss how what they have read so far connects with the
lesson. Teachers need to monitor that groups are balancing
these behaviors.
A 10-minute lesson designed to model ONE specific reading
behavior. It is immediately followed with students trying out
the modeled behavior.
At least two sizes of post-its should be available to students. On
1” squares, students might write symbols, such as ? for
confusion, ! for surprise, and  for things they like or relate to.
On 3-4” squares, students write responses to the questions
modeled in minilessons.
As students work, the teacher circulates, stopping to look at the
post-its individual students are placing in their books, taking
time to answer questions or to push the student’s thinking.
See Assessments for components
A series of three parallel lines:
On the top line, students write significant moments in the text,
in this case, focused on character.
Below that, students write the character’s emotions at the time
of each designated moment. (Encourage sophisticated
vocabulary by asking students to consider synonyms for their
initial responses.)
Below that, readers write their emotional responses. (Again,
sophisticated vocabulary should be encouraged.)
As students expand their timelines, they may add additional
lines representing other characters’ responses to the same
moments. (See illustration in Tools for Teaching)
The “big ideas” in a text, often implicit, rather than explicit.
Such ideas include race, gender, and class, but also move into
more thematically based ideas, such as loss of innocence.
9
TOOLS FOR TEACHING
To Kill A Mockingbird
Web Quest and D.B.Q.
Your Task :
Visit the websites listed below.
Explore the information provided at each site to learn what life
was like in a small, Southern town during the 1930's.
Think carefully about each site. What can you learn about life in
the 1930's from these sites?
Based upon the documents provided decide:
What important issue dominated Southern life in
the 1930's?
Write an essay that describes that issue. Your essay must
incorporate specific support from the primary sources provided.
Please be sure to include appropriate references and a sources
cited page. You may use parenthetical citations or embedded
references in your piece.
Email your essay to your teacher.
mailto:(sdziob@paramus.k12.nj.us ( ex. sdziob@paramus.k12.nj.us)
Print a copy of your essay. Choose the best paragraph from
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
10
your essay to share with your reading group.
1. http://library.thinkquest.org/12111/girl.html- Growing up
White
2. http://library.advanced.org/12111/mculley.html -Growing up
African American
3.http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/scottsboro/scottsb.
htm - Scottsboro Trial
4. http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/list/085_disc.html- Photographs from
the 1930's
5.http://memory.loc.gov/cgibin/query/r?ammem/fsaall:@field(SUBJ%2B@band(United%2BStates-Alabama--Dallas%2BCounty-Selma%2B))%2B@FIELD(COLLID%2Bfsa)) - Photographs of
Alabama
6. http://www.pbs.org/theblues/classroom/cd.html#when - Audio
Clip #8 "I Wonder When I'll Get
to Be Called a Man"
7. http://www.harptab.com/lyrics/ly2592.shtml Lyrics to "I Wonder
When I Get to Be Called a Man"
8. http://www.harptab.com/lyrics/ly2568.shtml - Lyrics to "Black,
Brown, and White" by Bill Broonzy
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
11
Grading Rubric for T.K.M. - DBQ
Score
Meets Expectations
Exceeds Expectation


Identifies
Issue

Main issue is
identified
issue is
explained in
detail


Provides
Support

support is
provided from
many sources
interpretations
and relevance of
support is
discussed




Identifies
Source of
Support
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
Most information
accurately cited,
but with some
minor errors
The author delves
deeply into the
issue portrayed in
the documents
and presents
insightful
connections
between the
different types of
information
found in the
primary sources
as well as his/her
own knowledge
support from
many varied
sources is
provided
interpretation and
connections
between sources
is discussed
support is woven
seamlessly into
presentation
Source of all
information
clearly and
accurately stated
through use of
embedded
references or
parenthetical
citations
Not
Meeting
Expectations







Area of Concern
Issue is
identified.
The author
attempts to
explain the
complexity of
the issue,
explanation is
superficial.
some support
from primary
sources is
provided
there is little
interpretation
of support
most
information is
retold/copied
directly from
source

main issue is
not identifie
or author
focuses on
many issues
instead of on

little, if any,
support from
primary
sources
provided
irrelevant
information
included as
support


Vague
reference to
source of
informa-tion
12
does not
identify the
sources used
in the essay



Clearly
Organized


Accurate
Grammar
&
Spelling
Essay has
identifiable
organizational
pattern
transitions are
used
appropriately
between
paragraphs and
within paragraphs
some paragraphs
are choppy
some errors in
grammar or
spelling that do
not interfere with
meaning





Essay has clearly
identifiable and
logical
organizational
pattern
ideas flow
smoothly
transitions are
used
appropriately
reader has clear
sense of author's
"journey"
organizational
pattern is unusual
or demonstrates a
risk
1 or 2 minor
spelling or
grammatical
errors




Essay has
identifiable
organiza-tional
pattern
use of
transitions is
minimal
gaps or flaws
in logic exist
Does it look like a word I know? Can I break this down into smaller parts?
Do I see anything in the sentence that gives me a clue?
Is there another word that comes after it that means the same thing? (appositives)
Can I keep reading and still make sense of the piece?
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006



Consistent
pattern of
errors that do
not interfere
with meaning
Some Word Attack Strategies for Minilesson, Day 3:





13
essay lacks
recognizable
pattern of
organization
transitions a
not used
serious gaps
or flaws in
logic exist
many errors
in grammar
or spelling
that interfer
with
meaning
Five Critical Moments in Ch. 3
Illustration of a Narrative Analysis Timeline (based on Chapter 3 of the novel; words in
blue indicate places where the reader might think of synonyms):
1
2
3
4
5
Scout beats
Walter
Cunningham
because
she thinks he is
the
reason she got
off to
a poor start in
second
grade.
Jem brings
Walter home to
dinner, where
he is treated
with hospitality.
Calpurnia
disciplines
Scout for being
rude to their
guest; Scout
complains to
Atticus; Atticus
takes
Calpurnia’s
side.
Miss Caroline’s
afternoon with
her second
graders is no
better than the
morning was
when she finds
“cooties” (lice)
in Little Chuck’s
hair.
Atticus and
Scout
compromise
about her
reading with
him, a practice
her teacher has
told her she
must stop.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
14
Characters’ Emotional Responses to
the Events
My Personal Response
to the Events
Scout feels the
pleasure that
comes with
blaming
someone else
for her
problems.
Jem
sympathizes
with Walter
because he
knows that
Walter is
hungry and
imagines that he
feels shame
because a girl
was beating on
him.
I feel like
laughing
because Scout
won’t let
anyone get the
better of her.
I feel a quiet
respect for Jem.
He is like his
father in this
scene.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Summer 2006
Calpurnia is
appalled at
Scout’s
manners and
intends to
correct them.
Atticus feels
the same way.
Scout feels
restricted—the
way most
children do
when adults
discipline them.
I’m angry at
Scout for being
so head-strong.
Doesn’t she
know how
much Calpurnia
loves her?
Miss Caroline
must feel like
she’s on another
planet because
she shows no
understanding of
the children she
teaches.
Scout is
relieved that her
father is able to
work through a
situation that
confused and
upset her.
I loathe and
detest teachers
like Miss
Caroline. I feel
like she’s
haughty and
deserves the
students’ poor
behavior.
I feel secure
about Scout and
Atticus. He is
the perfect
father figure.
15