Anne Moody (1940-2015) Civil Rights Activist and author of Coming of Age in Mississippi

Read the Article:
Author:
Kari Baker and Seraiah Lodge

Students Will

  • Analyze the article’s terminology through discussion and individual research.
  • Synthesize information to answer questions from the text in the article.
  • Explore events and information around the life of Anne Moody.
  • Create a memoir using the provided prompts.

Curricular Connections

Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for the Social Studies

Fourth Grade Social Studies Standards

4.MS.8 Analyze the Civil Rights Movement to determine the social, political, and economic impact on Mississippi. 1. Define discrimination, prejudice, segregation, integration, suffrage, and civil rights. 2. Identify important figures of the modern Civil Rights Movement including Mississippians (e.g., Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Medgar Evers, James Meredith, Fannie Lou Hamer, Charles Evers, etc.).  

Mississippi Studies  

MS.8 Evaluate the role of Mississippi in the Civil Rights Movement. 1. Analyze the significant figures, groups, and events of the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi (e.g., Emmett Till, Medgar Evers, James Meredith, Fannie Lou Hamer, etc.). 4. Evaluate the lasting impact of the Civil Rights movement on Mississippi.  

MMS.11 Examine the impact of Mississippi artists, musicians, and writers on the state, nation, and world. 1. Identify and describe the accomplishments of Mississippi artists, musicians, and writers (e.g., William Faulkner, B. B. King, Muddy Waters, Walter Anderson, Elvis Presley, etc.). 2. Analyze how Mississippi’s history and/or religious traditions have impacted the state’s artists, musicians, and writers. Identify locations in Mississippi that have artistic, musical, or literary significance (e.g., Delta Blues, Coast- Walter Anderson, Jackson-Eudora Welty, etc.).

 

Teaching Levels

8-12

Lesson

Vocabulary  

Memoir – a narrative composed from personal experience  

Labor union – an organization of workers formed for the purpose of advancing its members’ interests in respect to wages, benefits, and working conditions  

Accolades – a mark of acknowledgement  

Heroine – a woman admired and emulated for her achievements and qualities  

Tenacious – aggressively persistent in maintaining, adhering to, or seeking something valued or desired  

Seminal work – (of a work, event, moment, or figure) strongly influencing later developments

Sharecroppers – a tenant farmer especially in the southern U.S. who is provided with credit for see, tools, living quarters, and food, who works the land, and who receives an agreed share of the value of the crop minus charges

Indignities – an act or occurrence that offends against a person’s dignity or self-respect

Lynching - anyone taken outside of the law and killed by a mob. The methods of killing varied, including hanging, burning at the stake, shooting, and drowning. 

 

Comprehension Questions 

1. What historical event inspired Anne Moody to her call to activism?  

2. Why do you think Anne Moody felt called to activism by this event? 

3. In what ways did Anne Moody become active in the Civil Rights Movement? 

4. Why do you think Moody’s memoir Coming of Age in Mississippi was a success?  

5. How has Anne Moody’s work and legacy been recognized in Mississippi?  

 

Answers  

1. The murder of Emmett Till sparked Anne Moody’s call to activism.  

2. Student answers will vary but should show an understanding of the material.  

3. Student answers will vary but should include some of the following: Anne Moody joined several organizations such as the NAACP, CORE, and SNCC. She also participated in peaceful demonstrations and campus rallies.  

4. Student answers may vary but should show an understanding of the material.  

5. Student answers may vary but should show an understanding of the material. 

 

Activity 

Reflecting on Memories in a Memoir  

  • Students will read the article,” Anne Moody (1940 – 2015) Civil Rights Activist and author of Coming of Age in Mississippi,” and answer the comprehension questions.  
  • Students will write a 1 -2-page memoir on one of the following topics: 
  • Write about how your living environment shapes who you are and how you see the world. 
  • Write about a time you witnessed or experienced something unfair that happened to you or someone you know.  
  • The teacher can offer guiding questions and/or writing prompts to encourage student writing.  
  • Optional: Have students share what they have written to the class or in small groups.  

Further Reading