1. Discrimination Targeting specific groups

2. Brainstorm: What are some groups of people that are seen differently or made fun of in school/society?

3. “Harmless” Insults

4. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) An individual is considered to have a 'disability' if s/he: has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities seeing, hearing, speaking, walking, breathing, performing manual tasks, learning, caring for oneself, and working, has a record of such an impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment.

5. Disabilities In Of Mice and Men it will quickly become apparent that one of our characters has some sort of a disability. Read the news article & see the Special Olympics link

6. Special Olympics http://www.specialolympics.org/slides how_spirit_slideshow_nov_2010.aspx How is this group treated differently at the Special Olympics compared to the group in your news article?

7. Challenges of the Mentally Handicapped What sort of challenges do these people have to face? In what ways are they more vulnerable? How do you see society responding to them today?

8. Is it just the mentally handicapped? Are there other groups that are seen differently in society?

9. Discrimination in OMAM You will see a NUMBER of different groups discriminated in some way in OMAM. Remember, the setting of the novel is the ranch which is a microcosm for the world.

10. Dehumanization We will see the concept of dehumanization throughout several of the novels we read this year. The Things They Carried*** Slaughterhouse-Five*** Of Mice and Men To Kill a Mockingbird Night

11. Dehumanization is a psychological process whereby “opponents” view each other as less than human and thus not deserving of moral consideration. -- Leads to intense hatred and alienation.

12. Dehumanization & Tolerance We will discuss how dehumanization often occurs in history and how tolerance plays an important role in combating dehumanization when we read To Kill a Mockingbird. Sadly, dehumanization and intolerance appears in a myriad of ways throughout society.