Title: Desmond and the Very Mean Word (.pdf lesson plan)
Author: Archbishop Desmond Tutu & Douglas Carlton Abrams
Grade Level: 3-5
Standards*
- Common Core: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.1, 3.2, & 3.3; CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.1, 4.2, & 4.3; CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.1, 5.2, & 5.3
- Virginia Standards of Learning: 3.6; 4.6; 5.6
Overarching Theme(s): Apartheid, Fairness, Point of View, Empathy, Inferencing
Timeframe: (45-60 minutes)
Summary
This story is about Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s experience with racism when he was growing up in South Africa during Apartheid. A White kid from his neighborhood calls him what we can assume is a racial slur (most likely Kaffir, which, in South Africa, is equivalent to the N-word in America) and the story is about how Bishop Tutu handles the aftermath of it, including his response and his desire to forgive.
Lesson Goals
- Identify feelings and motivations of characters
- Determine the utility of forgiveness