Only+Passing+Through+The+Story+of+Sojourner+Truth+Reinforcing+Activity

Objective: Students will explore issues of slavery, civil rights, the movement for abolition of slavery, women’s suffrage, and freedom in America through the eyes of Sojourner Truth by reading //Only Passing Through: The Story of Sojourner Truth//, discussing her life, analyzing her speech, and creating an artifact by selecting a concept from the book and expressing it from the perspective of those living at the time.

Materials: Copies of “Ain’t I A Woman” speech @http://www.famous-speeches-and-speech-topics.info/famous-speeches-by-women/sojourner-truth-speech.htm Alice Walker reads "Ain't I a Woman?" - [] Copy of //Only Passing Through: The Story of Sojourner Truth//

Procedure: 1) After reading //Only Passing Through: The Story of Sojourner Truth// by Anne Rockwell as a class, work with a partner to discuss what freedoms Sojourner Truth lacked because she was a slave. Consider how she suffered as well as the ways in which she overcame these issues.

2) As a class, discuss the following questions while taking notes on the lecture: Who was Sojourner Truth? What did she do? Why were her actions significant then? What impact have they had on the world today?

3) Following the lecture, the class will work together to define concepts such as freedom, civil rights, women’s rights, suffrage, abolition, and slavery.

4) Using knowledge from the class lecture and discussion as well as the story, spend fifteen minutes individually writing an informal response in their journals, addressing the following questions:
 * How did being a slave impact her?
 * What did she do when her freedoms were restricted?
 * What dangers did she face while fighting for her rights and freedom?
 * How did her actions support civil rights, women’s rights, and freedom?

5) Then, watch to Alice Walker recreating Sojourner Truth’s famous speech “Ain’t I A Woman?” (link below) (1851, Women’s Convention, Akron, Ohio). As needed, share the transcript of the speech to the class. Discuss how this speech contributes to her goals of gaining freedom, civil rights, and women’s rights in small groups. Compare this speech to the story told in the book and have one student record responses to the following questions:
 * Were there any issues mentioned in the book that were not a part of the speech?
 * How were the speech and the story similar? Different?
 * Why would they be told differently?

6) In the same groups, create an artifact (advertisement, news story, play script, speech, poem, poster, etc.) on a concept from the book (women’s rights, civil rights, freedom, etc.) . Complete the assignment as if you were alive during the time or through the eyes of those who lived and experienced it. Keep the following questions in mind:
 * What were people at the time fighting for?
 * Why? In what ways were they suffering?
 * How did they communicate their beliefs?
 * What opposition did they face?
 * What did they hope to accomplish?
 * Were they successful? How?

7) Present the artifact to the rest of the class. Following the presentations, the class will conclude with a discussion of what it would be like to have lived and traveled with Sojourner Truth.