Students in eighth grade English are working on a unit on courtroom justice, featuring the historical fiction play “Inherit the Wind,” written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee. The book, which focuses on the Scopes Trial of 1925, looks at the timeless conflict of teaching evolution or creation. Students are also reading books that focus on famous and fictional trials, including the Salem Witch Trial, cases involving police brutality, juvenile crimes, freed slaves, and rebellion by a Hitler Youth. The various cases show students continued conflicts between individual freedoms and societal norms, and give students a chance to examine more deeply the role of bias in the justice system. The unit will culminate with a mock trial based on a short story by Ray Bradbury.
Order in the Court
