2010-2011 Museum Box Project- The Secret Life of Bees Mrs. Chausse

The Morgan School Mission Statement :The Morgan School cultivates intellect and character in partnership with families and the community. Students learn in a rigorous academic and student-centered environment that prepares them to become resourceful, productive, healthy citizens in a global society.

Step one: Closely read To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Step two: Watch The Secret Life of Bees

Step three: Decide what you will compare in your project

Step four: Create a venn diagram for your topic. Review your notes on the movie and the text of To Kill a Mockingbird. Gather a minimum of six quotes that will help you in your comparison.

Step five: Explore The Museum Box creator (http://museumbox.e2bn.org/creator/) Decide how many cubes you will need for your project. You should have a cube to introduce your project and another cube for the conclusion for your project. Additional cubes should be used for each important point. Plan out the topic covered in each cube.

Step six: Find and create appropriate materials to place in your boxes. Your boxes must include appropriate images and documents (writing, including appropriate quotes from To Kill a Mockingbird), links, videos and sound).

Step Seven: Create your museum box.

Possible Topics

· Both the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, and the movie, The Secret Life of Bees, portray the treatment of African Americans in the South. To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in Alabama in the 1930’s. The Secret Life of Bees takes place in Virginia and North Carolina in the 1960’s. Is the treatment of the African Americans any different after thirty years? How would you characterize the treatment of African Americans in both stories? How would you compare the treatment of African Americans today to each of these stories?

· In The Secret Life of Bees, August Boatwright, teaches the main character valuable life lessons. In To Kill a Mockingbird ,Atticus teaches Scout valuable life lessons. Compare the lessons each of these adults imparts on the young lady in his or her care.

· Boo Radley and May Boatwright were unable to function normally in society. Yet both teach the young ladies who live near or with them valuable lessons. Compare the lessons each imparts on the young lady.

· Both To Kill a Mockingbird and The Secret Life of Bees are coming of age stories. Each girl must face difficult truths. What lessons does each girl learn as she realizes the harsh realities of the world?

· Abusive fathers raise both Mayella in To Kill a Mockingbird and Lily in The Secret Life of Bees. What abuse does each character endure? How do they deal with the abuse?

· Both Zac Taylor of The Secret Life of Bees and Jem Finch of To Kill a Mockingbird are young men with dreams for the future. Each boy learns important lessons. What lessons does each boy learn that will help him as he becomes a man?

· Compare the father of Mayella Ewell, Bob Ewell, to the father of Lily, T-Ray. How are these two men similar? How are they different? Can you excuse either of these two men for the abuse he inflicts on his daughter?