Enrichment Tasks

Choose ONE task.
Unless otherwise specified, students can decide on the form of presentation.

Task 1
Lee creates a cast of vivid women characters in To Kill a Mockingbird.
• Calpurnia
• Aunt Alexandra
• Miss Maudie
• Miss Stephanie
• Mrs Dubose
Find an image (a portrait) that you feel best illustrates each character. Describe how the portrait displays the character traits of each woman. Drawing on your reading of the novel and your research into the United States of the 1930s, examine how closely each woman conforms to the norm expected of Southern women in1932.

Task 2
You are producing a 2006 movie version of To Kill a Mockingbird. You need to draw up a cast list using contemporary actors for the parts. You will provide an explanation for why you have chosen each actor and the qualities you believe they will bring to the characterisation. You will also provide notes on the interpretation, including the setting, that you will follow in this production.

Task 3
You are presenting a visual journey exhibition of To Kill a Mockingbird at an Art Gallery. As the curator of the exhibition you need to select images to illustrate key scenes of this journey. You will provide notes to help Gallery visitors understand the significance of each of the images. You may choose one medium e.g. photographs or mixed media for this exhibition.

Task 4
You are an Australian History lecturer who has been asked to lecture on the similarities and differences in To Kill a Mockingbird to Australian society in 1932 and its attitudes to racism and other issues examined in the book. Provide a synopsis of the areas you would cover in the Lecture series.

Task 5
A publisher is issuing an illustrated version of To Kill a Mockingbird and you are the graphic designer who has been asked to create a poster size map of Maycomb to accompany this new edition. The map must include annotations and descriptions and be accurate and visually appealing to help boost sales of the book.

Task 6
A publisher is issuing an illustrated version of To Kill a Mockingbird and you are the linguistic who has been asked to create a comprehensive Glossary to accompany this new edition. You are particularly instructed to highlight the language of racism in the novel as well as other "loaded" terms. Keeping in mind that this is an illustrated version you may wish to include illustrations to enhance the Glossary.

Task 7
A publisher is issuing an illustrated version of To Kill a Mockingbird and you are the graphic designer who has been asked to create a book cover and blurb for this new edition. You have also been asked to produce a promotional brochure with text and images to accompany the new edition.

Task 8
A publisher is issuing a special edition of To Kill a Mockingbird and you are the academic scholar who has been approached to write an Introduction to the novel. You need to critically appraise the novel and argue why it is regarded as a masterpiece of American literature. Your appraisal should include an analysis and commentary of key issues and characters.

Task 9
You are required to tell significant episodes from the story of To Kill a Mockingbird from Calpurnia's viewpoint. She is a highly significant in the novel but does not have her own "voice". Drawing on your close reading of the novel create an authentic "voice" to tell her story.

Task 10
You are a legal expert who has been asked to recreate the Trial of Tom Robinson in a current day setting using modern legal methodology. You will have to provide a transcript of the proceedings or stage the recreation in a dramatic enactment. You will draw on your reading of the novel and research of current practices to ensure that you cover all aspects of the trial including forensic evidence and court procedure.

Task 11
A record company is issuing a musical accompaniment to a new publication of To Kill a Mockingbird. You are the musician who has been asked to create a CD of Blues music to accompany the new publication. Drawing on your reading of the novel and your research into the way that the blues of 1932 provided an avenue for African American musicians to speak out against the conditions in which they lived, choose and record songs that reflect the themes addressed in the novel. You may, if you wish, compose your own original blues music.

Task 12
There are many dramatic incidents in the novel that could lend themselves to rewriting as news articles. Compile a newspaper including front page articles, an editorial, letters to the editor from concerned citizens discussing the trial or complaining about the Council allowing the Ewells to live in such appalling conditions, opinion and feature articles on events in the novel, and advertisements. Devise interesting headlines to accompany each of your articles. Use an appropriate software program and produce a professional edition of the Maycomb Tribune.

Task 13
Put yourself in Boo Radley's shoes and try to imagine yourself in Boo's life and mind. Then, create lyrics for a song that captures what it might be like to have experienced life as Boo Radley did. You may, if you wish, compose the music for your lyrics. For inspiration, you might listen to the song by the Beatles called "Nowhere Man". Now do the same for at least two other characters.

Task 14
In the broadest sense, a novel reflects the viewpoints of the author. The depiction of African-Americans of the 1930s in To Kill a Mockingbird, although sensitive to the rank injustices they experienced, is nevertheless a view put forth by a Caucasian who could "get inside of their skin" only vicariously, through empathy. Locate and research novels and short stories by African American authors who wrote about life in America between 1920-1940, comparing their viewpoints with those of Harper Lee.

Task 15
In the USA in particular, To Kill a Mockingbird has been challenged repeatedly by the political left and right, who have sought to remove it from libraries for its portrayal of conflict between children and adults; ungrammatical speech; references to sex, the supernatural, and witchcraft; and unfavourable presentation of African Americans. Drawing on your research into the censorship surrounding To Kill a Mockingbird and on your close reading of the novel, script or film a hearing before the Board of Education. Assume that one group petitions for the removal of To Kill a Mockingbird from a required reading list, and another group argues for its retention. Which elements of the book - if any - do you think touch on controversial issues in our contemporary culture? Did you find any of those elements especially troubling, persuasive, or insightful?