TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD PRE-READING QUESTIONS

NAME:

1. Describe a “normal” family. What percentage of families would you say actually fit this role?

2. What kinds of issues do you believe in strongly enough to risk your reputation or security by supporting them? What if you were the only one in the school who believed in the issue?

3. What do you think the title of the book means? What clues does the title give you about the story?

4. What are the best ways to understand another person’s point of view or behavior?

5. What do you think are the strengths and weaknesses of the American trial system?

6. What do you know about the Southern United States in the 1930s? What images do you have of this time and place?

7. What were you like in first grade? What were your likes/dislikes?

NOTE TO THE TEACHER

SAMPLE LESSON PLAN

My favorite way to use these pre-reading questions is as follows:

Distribute the questions to the students OR put them on a screen for students to read.

Give students ten minutes to answer the questions (extend the time if students seem to

need it after eight minutes).

Have students gather into groups of 3-4 and go around in a circle sharing their responses to

the questions. Let them know they will be sharing with the entire class later. This should take

about ten minutes.

Instruct students place a star next to the answer they would most like to share with the

class.

Spend approximately ten minutes discussing student responses as an entire class.

I like to start To Kill a Mockingbird immediately following this discussion. I tell students all of these

questions relate to the novel. I start the book as a read aloud before releasing students to

independent reading.

*Thank you to Clipart Panda www.clipartpanda.com for the images.