Scout's Excellent Adventure:

A To Kill a Mockingbird

WebQuest

by Joyce Valenza and Anmarie Lukens
Introduction   Task   Trials/Events   Resources    Assessment  

Introduction:

Harper Lee's famous novel offers us a view of the South of the 1930s through the eyes of "Scout" Finch. Scout is our eyes, and our social conscience, as we view the trial of Tom Robinson and we observe the community of Maycomb, Alabama. But what if the setting were different? What if you were to meet Scout, become her friend, and observe with her another trial or event at another time?

Tasks:

1. Select a trial or event from the list below in which to set your characters.

2. Individually, create a scrapbook as if you were Scout Finch. Include at least ten journal entries in your scrapbook. Remember, though Harper Lee has Scout describe the experience she had as a six-year-old, it is actually the adult Scout who tells the story. This allows her to display adult insights while retaining a child-like innocence. Make sure your narrative stays true to the character. Choose another character from the novel to bring along with you to provide additional perspective. In your journal entries, integrate the reactions of your fellow book character and explore the emotional impact of the event.

Your scrapbook should:

1. Be creative--your scrapbook should look authentic and be attractive to the reader

2. Include--

3. Be appropriately documented

4. Demonstrate a thorough knowledge of the characters, novel, and event and their relationships

5. Be well-written, consistently portraying the character's voice with historical accuracy, with appropriate usage and grammar

About your skit:

With your group, prepare a skit based on your research and narrative. The skit should demonstrate to the class how Scout and her fellow character would react to the shift in time period. Stay true to the characters' personalities and world views. Include appropriate stereotypes and misunderstandings that may be argued by a second character or the contemporary people they meet. Make sure your setting and story are historically accurate. Your skit should be a minimum of ten minutes, but no longer than twenty minutes. You should be well-prepared and rehearsed. Use props, costumes, sound effects to convey your story.  

Trials/Events:

Resources:

Images for your scrapbook:

Databases Covering Historical Events:

Also use magazine indexes like

Print Resources

Web Links:

Reference Books:

Images from the National Archives and Records Administration's NAIL Database http://www.nara.gov/nara/nail.html and Picturing the Century: Post War America http://www.nara.gov/exhall/picturing_the_century/galleries/postwar.html,and from Images of American Political History http://teachpol.tcnj.edu/amer_pol_hist/

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