Kumler, Lori and Rina Palchick. “Integrating Government and Literature: Mock Civil and Criminal Trials Based on To Kill a Mockingbird.” (2008)

For many students, high school coursework consists of discrete subjects, each disconnected from the other. However, at the classroom level one can find many examples of integrated, interdisciplinary or cross-subject teaching, providing a broader perspective and richer classroom experience than can be provided by a single subject.

In this article, teachers Kumler and Palchick describe a series of three lessons about the justice system using To Kill a Mockingbird. These lessons were part of a year-long “Humanities Academy” which was a collaborative effort between the English and Social Studies departments. The year included presenting a student historical “Lyceum” examining politics using Watership Down, reading Antigone and then writing a modern-day tragedy based on the Presidential Elections, and undertaking community change projects in connection with Cry, the Beloved Country. In the example given, students prepared and enacted two events that did not go to trial in To Kill a Mockingbird. The novel provides a rich context for exploring numerous historical and social studies themes. In particular, students can explore the historical perspective by comparing social currents during the 1930s, to those in the time of the book’s publication in the 1960s, and then to the present day. The project aimed to enable students to experimentally link the novel to issues around government, law and the court system. Details of the content, activities and assessment are given, along with a section on difficulties and challenges that the authors encountered.