A Lesson Before Dying
Teacher's Guide - Schedule / Lesson Plans

Introduction

Schedule/Lesson Plans

Capstone Project Ideas

Essay Topics

Additional Resources

NCTE Standards

Credits

Back to Reader's Guide

This is a suggested teaching schedule for a 10 class study of Ernest J. Gaines’ A Lesson Before Dying. Lesson plans and handouts can be downloaded individually by clicking on the name of the file in the schedule below. Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view these files.

The CD Audio Guides are available only for the communities participating in The Big Read. If your community is participating, contact the lead community organization to receive a free Audio Guide. If your community is not participating, encourage a local organization (such as a library, museum, literary center, arts council, or similar non-profit organization) to apply.

DAY ONE

FOCUS: Biography
Day One Lesson Plan [64K]
Activities: Listen to the Big Read CD. Read Reader’s Guide essays. Discuss the ways Gaines used elements of his own life to create the novel. Write about how a good novel can transcend time and place.
Homework: Chapters 1-4 (pp. 1-32).*

DAY TWO

FOCUS: Culture and History
Day Two Lesson Plan [68K]
Activities: Discuss the accuracy of Gaines’ depiction of a small Southern town. Write an essay analyzing the way Henri Pichot treats Inez and Miss Emma.
Homework: Chapters 5-9 (pp. 33-74).

DAY THREE

FOCUS: Narrative and Point of View
Day Three Lesson Plan [63K]
Activities: Explore possibilities of alternatives to first person narration. Write a brief description of the trial in either first or third person.
Homework: Chapters 10-13 (pp. 75-102).

DAY FOUR

FOCUS: Characters
Day Four Lesson Plan [54K]
Activities: Discuss Grant’s role as the novel’s protagonist, the antagonistic forces, and characters within the novel. Write a short essay on a character or situation that serves as an antagonist to Grant.
Homework: Chapters 14-17 (pp. 103-134).

DAY FIVE

FOCUS: Figurative Language
Day Five Lesson Plan [63K]
Activities: Discuss the ways Gaines uses description of the scenery to evoke different moods. Write an essay on why the symbol of the “hog” affected Miss Emma, Tante Lou, and Jefferson so deeply.
Homework: Chapters 18-21 (pp.135-167).

DAY SIX

FOCUS: Symbols
Day Six Lesson Plan [68K]
Activities: Discuss the religious symbolism in the novel. Write an essay on the symbolism of a character’s name.
Homework: Chapters 22-24 (pp.168-194).
Handout 3 [56K]

DAY SEVEN

FOCUS: Character Development
Day Seven Lesson Plan [68K]
Activities: Discuss the role of heroes in the novel and what the concept of heroism means to Grant and Jefferson. Write an essay on a female character whose actions can be considered heroic.
Homework: Chapters 25-27 (pp. 195-218).

DAY EIGHT

FOCUS: The Plot Unfolds
Day Eight Lesson Plan [54K]
Activities: Examine the major events of the novel as they pertain to Grant and Jefferson. Discuss the ways the lives of the two men are linked. Map a timeline. Write several paragraphs anticipating the novel’s end and how the actions of Grant and Jefferson might affect the community.
Homework: Chapters 28-31 (pp. 219-256).

DAY NINE

FOCUS: Themes of the Novel
Day Nine Lesson Plan [69K]
Activities: Examine the themes justice, commitment, and manhood. Ask students to identify other themes.
Homework: Prepare outlines and begin essays.

DAY TEN

FOCUS: What Makes a Great Book?
Day Ten Lesson Plan [60K]
Activities: Explore the qualities of a great novel. Discuss what A Lesson Before Dying can teach us about the pre-civil rights South.
Homework: Finish essays.

Handouts

Handout One: Sharecropping [PDF]
Handout Two: Pre-Civil Rights South [PDF]
Handout Three: Jackie Robinson and Joe Louis [PDF]

* Page numbers refer to the June 1994 first Vintage Contemporaries Edition.