Walking down the first floor hallway, I came across a colorful and informative class project. The eighth grade Hippo Team had posters displayed, which are surrounded by caution tape. Looking closely at the collage, I realized it was the final project of the Hippos’ Language Arts class, which focused on banned/challenged books.
Mrs. Russell informed me that at the end of 7th grade, students learned about the Constitution. During the start of the 8th grade year, students learning more about how these rights look in the real world, especially our 1st Amendment. The goal of the assignment was to reinforce that if one of us has freedoms, we all need to have the same freedoms, even if we disagree with one another.
With parental permission, students chose their own banned or challenged book. Through research, they had to find a specific time, place, when, and where their chosen book was actually challenged or banned. Students needed to provide details and the outcome of the case. They also had to pull an excerpt from the book, be open-minded as to how it may be offensive to someone else, and explain that in their own words.
The students also had to take a stand on how they feel about banning and challenging books, for or against, keeping in mind their 1st Amendment rights. They had to support their reasons as to why they are for, or against the challenge and then find a quote that reflected what they feel.
Students discussed their project with other students during a banned book literature, circle in which Mrs. Russell asked them more questions about their experience. Students talked about theme, their views and excerpts, as well as terms such as: censorship, intellectual freedom and choice.