To+Kill+a+Mockingbird

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=Unit Points = Blog posts (x3) x 50 points each = 150 Blog comments (x2) x 10 points each = 20 Quizzes (x5) x 5 points each = 25 Packet completion = 25 Open discussion = 15 Total unit points = 235 =Unit Assignments =

Pacing Our Reading: Quizzes & Discussion
 We will read the book in six sections.  For each section, we will have a quiz. You will be asked to write as much as you remember about the required section in five minutes. This is to verify that you are keeping up with the assigned reading. The quiz also helps you review the section prior to class discussion. You will want to prepare for the quizzes by reviewing your reading the night before discussion day. You absolutely must have your book with you on quiz/discussion days.
 * 1) Chapters 1-7
 * 2) Chapters 8-11
 * 3) Chapters 12-15
 * 4) Chapters 16-20
 * 5) Chapters 21-24
 * 6) Chapters 25-31

**Discussion roles:**

 * 1) You will be asked to present a passage from the novel and comment on it.
 * 2) You will respond to a comment in several ways: agree and give your reasons (text based); disagree and give your reasons (text based); extend the ideas by adding another view, a different way to see it (text based); relate the ideas to real life, to your own experience (non-text based).

Blog Posts
The purpose of this assignment is for you to practice your literary analysis and interpretation skills. For this assignment, you must use formal, academic writing. Therefore, it must be written in the third person. When writing your paragraphs, consider your audience. Although not everyone reading your blog will have read //To Kill a Mockingbird//, they still do not want to merely read a summary or retelling of it. However, most of your readers will have read the novel. They are interested in what you think. As always, remember to back up your opinions with evidence from the text (quotes, paraphrase). Your responses need to be at least 350 words in length but no longer than 500 words. Each response needs to be published as a post, under the "TKAM" category.


Characterization is the process by which the author reveals information about a character in the text. The author uses a variety of methods to create believable characters including a character's speech, actions, effect on others and physical appearance. For this assignment, you will analyze a character using evidence from the text to support your claim. Please select one of the prompts below to guide you in writing an analysis paragraph on characterization that you will publish on your blog. Use one of the suggested thesis statements (T) or come up with your own. Thesis Ideas for tomorrow: Combine three and four: The children (Scout, Jem and Dill) learn fright from wrong through many events in the novel, but Atticus teaches them specifically equality about through his words and actions at the trail.
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">A **dynamic character** is one who changes by the end of the story, learning something that changes him or her in a permanent way.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Analyze how Jem develops as a character because of what he learns from Mrs. Dubose. T: **Jem's interaction with Mrs. Dubose teaches him what real courage is.**
 * 3) Show how Scout changes her view of what it means to be a lady. This one would be very difficult to do unless one had finished the novel. T:
 * 4) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">**Mayella Ewell** is a complicated character. Her actions lead to Tom Robinson's death, and it is difficult to condone her lies. However, she can also be seen as a sympathetic character. Discuss how readers may feel sorry for her. <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">**T: Even though Mayella Ewell lies on the witness stand, she is still a sympathetic character.**
 * 5) <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Several characters serve as **moral compasses** in the novel. Their words and actions help teach the children about what is right and true. Choose one of the following characters and show how his or her words and actions teach the children. T: The children learn right from wrong through many events in the novel, but (character name) teaches them specifically about _.
 * 6) <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Miss Maudie
 * 7) <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Mr. Dolphus Raymond
 * 8) <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Atticus
 * 9) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Authors often reveal the personality and beliefs of a character indirectly, meaning that they create characters through their speech, thoughts, actions, effects on others and looks (STEAL). Analyze the qualitites of **Atticus Finch** by investigating his speech and interactions with others. Be sure you make a statement about the kind of man he is. You can narrow your focus to his qualities as a father, qualities as a lawyer, or qualities as a citizen of Maycomb. T: Atticus Finch is a role model for other fathers (or lawyers, or citizens).

Something about Tom losing hope and risking his life for freedom even though he was doomed to fail. I'm thinking I would have a hard time writing a whole paragraph about this. Is there something else about Tom? Mr Gilmer says sarcastically, "You're a mighty good fella it seems (197)." Show how Tom Robinson actually is a good person.

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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Theme is the underlying idea or insight the author is trying to express to the reader. Often times the writer is making a statement about the world through human experiences or by examining society as a whole. For this assignment you will be investigating one of the central themes of //To Kill a Mockingbird// using evidence from the text to support your claim. Please select one of the following questions to guide you in writing a paragraph about theme that you will publish as a post on your blog:
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Growing up is hard when children lose their innocence
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Racism makes people act cruelly towards others
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Ordinary people can act in courageous ways, especially in hard times
 * 4) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Kindness and compassion are the true measure of a person's worth (give more than one example)
 * 5) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Loneliness is one of the main themes in the novel. Choose the character you think ismost lonely, and explain the factors that contribute to his/her loneliness.

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**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Blog Post #3: Letter to the Editor **
For your last assigned blog post, choose one of the following characters and write a letter to the editor of the //Maycomb Tribune// (Mr. Underwood) in your character's voice. You'd need to choose an event from the novel that prompts you to write. Most people write letters to the editor when they have a problem with an issue that affects the community or when they want to praise the efforts of a community member. Letters to the editor express the writer's opinion. While you do not need to cite the text in the same way you do for a literary analysis (using quotation marks, page numbers, etc.). for this post, you will need to make reference to events as if they actually happened. To best view the events of the novel from your character's point of view, take Atticus's advice and "consider things from his point of view. . . . and climb inside of his skin and walk around in it" (page). After you choose your character, it is up to you to determine what he or she would most want to say? Remember, the letters are public for the citizens of Maycomb.


 * Character list:**
 * Boo Radley
 * Maudie Atkinson
 * Bob Ewell
 * Helen Robinson
 * Tom Robinson
 * Scout
 * Jem
 * Dill
 * Reverend Sykes
 * Calpurnia


 * Possible Topics:**
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Why the town’s treatment of Tom Robinson is not fair.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Why no one in the town is willing to stand up against that treatment, even though they may think it is wrong.
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Why the town is unhappy with Atticus for defending Tom.
 * 4) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Your reaction to Scout, Jem and Dill’s interaction with the lynch mob.
 * 5) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">The mystery of Boo Radley
 * 6) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Comment on one of the many themes of the book:
 * 7) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Loss of innocence
 * 8) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Racial injustice
 * 9) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Courage to stand up for one's own beliefs
 * 10) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Gender roles
 * 11) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Education, especially Scout in school
 * 12) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Choose any significant event/theme from the novel.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Blog Comments
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">The purpose of the comments is to give another point of view, thus creating online discussions about the text. You need to make two comments, during the unit, on another student's TKAM post. In order to do this adequetly, you need to:
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">State if you agree or disagree with the statement made by the writer.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Use another quote from the text to support your opinion.
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Do NOT make comments on the author's convention errors, simply say you like or dislike their post, say the author's post does not make any sense

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Symbolism **
The mockingbird is a symbol in the novel. The idea is that it is a sin to kill a mockinbird because they don't do anything to bother us. They only sing sweetly. So to shoot one is to destroy goodness and innocence. There are several characters listed below. Each one can be said to have been "destroyed" for no reason. The symbol of the mockingbird reinforces this theme of lost innocence. Choose only one character and show exactly how he or she was hurt (or might have have been hurt) for no reason. Cite the text in support. Please select one of the following characters for an analysis paragraph that you will post on your blog.
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Tom Robinson
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Mayella Ewell
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Boo Radley
 * 4) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Dill

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Movie **
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">This response needs to be published as a page, not a post. Please assign the page name "TKAM." <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">What scenes in the film do you think are the most important to understanding the movie as a whole?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">What scenes in the book do you think are the most important to understanding the text as a whole?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Are these scenes different? Why or Why not?
 * 4) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Are there parts of the book that you think are not portrayed adequately in the movie? Why?
 * 5) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Are there parts of the movie you think became more important than they are in the book? Why?

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Publishing **
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Assign the title Character’s Journal, in which you put your character’s name in the title. At the beginning of the journal entry give the date The body of the journal should be a response to one of the topic listed below Conclude the journal with your characters name so that readers will know who is writing the journal This post should be placed under “TKAM” category.