To Kill A Mockingbird

Background and Questions for

EFL Students

Background

• Based on a novel, To Kill a Mockingbird is set in the South during the period of segregation.– In other words, during

this time Blacks and Whites had to live very seperately.

Main Characters

• Scout, a tomboy• Jem, her older brother• Atticus, their father• Dill, their friend• Tom Robinson, the

man Atticus defends in court

• Calpernia, housekeeper

Questions

• After watching the beginning of the film discuss the following:– How do the children spend their time?

Describe childhood in this town.– How does childhood here compare?– If you were going to make a movie about your

childhood, what are 3 or 4 activities you’d show the children doing?

About the Characters

• What are 3 adjectives you’d use to describe Scout, Jem and Atticus? What about Dill?

• What kind of father is Atticus?

• What are some of the things the children believe about Boo?– What is the basis of these beliefs?