To Kill A Mockingbird

Welcome to  To Kill A Mockingbird!  The main purpose of this webquest is to help you understand more about the author and setting of this book before starting to read in order to achieve greater understanding. The information in this webquest provides you with essential information about the social climate in the South during the 1930s, American history leading up to the social climate in the South, and Harper Lee's background and motivation for writing To Kill A Mockingbird.

Prior knowledge is an absolutely essential component of a reader's comprehension. Although the 1930s weren't all that long ago, many of you may not know or understand a whole lot about that time period. By providing you with background knowledge,  you  will be able to better understand character motivation and action, author point of view, and To Kill A Mockingbird's important message.

Another essential component of comprehension is prediction. The last question in every task asks you  to make a prediction about To Kill A Mockingbird based on what you  learned from the task. By making a prediction before reading the book,  you will have already connected with the literature and therefore  make a stronger connection while reading.

This webquest will be finished in the classroom.  You will independently complete the task for the group you have been assigned, and then each group will meet together to discuss what was learned in the particular task. Then, the class will jigsaw in order for everyone to learn a little bit about each area covered in this webquest. By participating in the jigsaw activity in the classroom, each of you  will become a teacher and a learner. This means that every student is accountable to their classmates for having the information on his/her particular task so everyone can learn.