Name ______per. _____
To Kill A Mockingbird
by Harper Lee
Tour through the Text
Use this "tour sheet" to help you focus on and understand the book. Keeping up with this sheet will give you points and help you prepare for later major assignments.
Do all of the work for each section in your journal. Put writing entries in the journal section and vocabulary in the vocabulary section. Your work may be checked on each of the due dates at the beginning of the period. Anything not done then will be considered late.
· You must answer thoughtfully and accurately, as well as fill up the page.
· If your handwriting is big, write more than a page to be sure you’ve written enough.
· Try to explore the questions and thoughts that you actually have while reading the book. Make connections to your own life, other reading and the world.
· Each journal entry is worth 10 points of homework/quiz points for the page of writing and 10 points more for the vocabulary assignment. You’ll only get the full 10 points for thoughtful and complete work. The journal will be spot-checked. You won’t get points every day.
Ch. 1-5, pp. 3-50 Due______
1. Create a vocabulary list of 10 words from the text. Write
· the page you found the word on
· the part of speech that fits the way the word is used in the book
· dictionary definition that fits the way the word is used in the book
· an original definitive sentence for the word.
2. In your journal, choose 3 of the 5 reflection questions to answer. Explore and extend your answers. All together your answers should fill at least one full page (single-space by hand, double-space typed).
a. Describe the setting (time and place) of the book. What do you think might happen in a town like Maycomb? If you haven't read the book (or seen the movie), predict what you think will happen later. If you have, tell how you think the setting influences the people.
b. In what way are the Radleys victims of prejudice? In what way have they created their own problems?
c. What does Miss Caroline learn about the town and its people as a result of her mistakes? What do her mistakes tell you about her as a person?
d. What does Atticus mean when he says to "climb into his skin and walk around in it?" What does he want Scout to learn by doing that?
e. Do you believe that Atticus is a good father? Why or why not?
Ch. 6-8, pp. 50-74 Due ______
1. Create a vocabulary list of 10 words from the text. Write the page you found the word on, the part of speech, definition and write an original definitive sentence for the word.
2. In your journal choose 3 of the 5 questions to answer. Your answers should fill at least one full page.
a. Scout doesn’t understand why Jem goes back to get his pants. Why do you think he does this? What would you have done if you were Jem?
b. Why do you think Jem cries when he realizes that the knothole has been cemented over?
c. According to the townspeople, what crimes has Boo committed? According to Atticus, Boo put a blanket on Scout’s shoulders while she was watching the fire. How would you explain the difference between this act of kindness and the stories Scout hears about him? What kind of person do you think Boo really is? Why are there two different versions of his personality?
d. What have you learned about Scour so far? What kind of kid do you think she is? Do you like her? Why or why not?
e. What do you think about Miss Maudie’s reaction to the loss of her house? How would you react if you lost everything you owned, and how is it different from her reaction? Why do you think she reacts in this way?
Ch. 9-11, pp. 74-112 Due______
1. Look at the vocabulary list below. Try to notice these words when you see them in the reading and be aware of how they are used. You will be quizzed on them later.
a. Ingenuous, adjective- noble, honorable, straightforward
b. Wary, adjective- showing watchfulness and caution
c. Obstreperous, adjective- uncontrollably noisy or unruly
d. Vehemently, adverb- passionately, powerfully
e. Passé, adjective- behind the times, outdated
f. Umbrage, noun- personal offense, used in sentences at “to take umbrage”
g. Undulate, verb- to move in waves, fluctuate
h. Cantankerous, adjective- ill-natured, quarrelsome
2. Reflection ?’s. In your journal write at least one page about the two questions below.
a. Atticus explains that it is a sin to kill a mockingbird. Comment on this idea. There is more to this statement than simply the idea that harmless creatures shouldn’t be killed. How do you think the statement might apply to the novel so far?
b. Write two questions that you think are important to consider in these chapters. Answer your own questions with depth to fill the rest of your page.
Part Two
Ch. 12-15, pp. 115-155 Due ______
1. Create a vocabulary list of 10 words from the text. Write the page you found the word on, the word’s part of speech, definition and write an original definitive sentence for the word.
2. In your journal, choose 3 of the 5 reflection questions to answer. Your answers should fill at least one full page.
a. Lula challenges Cal for bringing the children to their church. Zeebo explains that Lula is a “troublemaker” and she has “fancy ideas an’ haughty ways.” What other explanation might there be for Lula’s reaction?
b. When Atticus returns from Montgomery, Scout asks if he brought her a book. What does Scout’s request indicate about her relationship with Atticus? Do you think she is an unusual child? Explain.
c. Aunt Alexandra believes that “gentle breeding” is a result of heredity. Some people are better than others simply because of the families they come from. Scout believes that “Fine folks were people who did the best they could with the sense they had.” Discuss your reaction to these two points of view. Is there any truth to both of them?
d. Dill explains to Scout that his mother and stepfather love him, buy him what he wants, and aren’t’ mean. But he also states that “they just wasn’t interested” in him. What point is Dill making? How can you explain his parent’s behavior and what do you think about it?
e. When he is asked whether he can get a change of venue for Tom Robinson—that is, a change in the location of the trial—the sheriff says, “Not much point in that, now is it?” What do you think the sheriff is implying?
Ch. 16-20, pp. 155-206 Due______
1. Look at the vocabulary list below. Try to notice these words when you see them in the reading and be aware of how they are used. You’ll be quizzed on them later.
a. formidable, adjective- causing fear, dread, or apprehension
b. acrimonious, adjective- biting or angry in feeling, language or manner
c. haughty, adjective- disdainfully proud, arrogant
d. mollified, verb- to pacify or ease bad feelings
e. impudent, adjective- insolent, arrogant boldness or disregard of others
f. temerity, noun- the quality of rashness, foolish boldness
2. Write two questions that you think are important to consider in these chapters. Answer your own questions thoughtfully to fill the rest of your page.
Ch. 21-24, pp. 206-237 Due______
1. Create a vocabulary list of 10 words from the text. Write the page you found the word on, the word’s part of speech, definition and write an original definitive sentence for the word.
- Write two questions that you think are important to consider in these chapters. Answer your own questions thoughtfully to fill the rest of your page.
Ch. 25-31, pp. 239-281 Due ______
1. Look at the vocabulary list below. Try to notice these words when you see them in the reading and be aware of how they are used. You’ll be quizzed on them later.
a. persecuted, verb- harassed, made to suffer because of one’s beliefs
b. notoriety, noun- the state of being widely and unfavorably known
c. irascible, adjective- marked by hot temper and easily provoked to anger, touchy, cranky
d. garishly, adverb- gaudily, flashily
e. stolidly, adverb- unemotionally
f. apprehensive, adjective- fearful, filled with anxiety
After the Book Due ______
This entry should not go in your journal. Type about two pages double-spaced on a separate document to turn in on the due date. (30 points, Homework & Quizzes)
Pretend to be Jem, Scout, or a child of Tom Robinson. It is the 1950s, and you are now in your twenties or thirties, thinking about the events from the book. Write a letter to Atticus, Calpurnia, Miss Maudie, or Helen Robinson reflecting deeply on the events of the book and how you feel about them now that you are older. Cover topics like Boo, Dill, Mrs. DuBose, Aunt Alexandra, the role of family, the trial, current world events, and anything else that intrigues you. Explain how the time described in the book, the people, and the events influenced you. You will be graded on the clarity of your communication, the depth of your perceptions and how well you express the teen voice of the character. Remember, Jem or Scout is a teen like you are but s/he is a Southern teen of the 1940s. World War II has ended, but it would have a major influence on your life. The Depression is over, but it must have shaped your view of the newly prosperous country. The Civil Rights Movement is in its infancy.
Graded holistically without a scoring guide:
· depth of ideas related to reflection
· thoughts that show accurate understanding of events from the book AND the history of the time in the book and the present (needs some research)
· appropriate voice and imaginative creation of the character
· clarity of communication
· correctness of conventions (assume all of these people are educated writers!)