Fire from the Rock

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. Who were the Little Rock Nine? Why is their story a significant moment in American history?

Teaching Suggestion: This question opens the discussion for necessary historical context, which will help students better understand the novel’s setting in place and time. It may be beneficial to tap students’ prior knowledge by referencing history or social studies classes or other works of fiction, nonfiction, or TV and cinema that they might have experience with.

• “The Little Rock Nine” via the National Museum for African American History and Culture gives a brief overview of the real-life events that unfold toward the novel’s end.
• Two articles from History.com describe the significance of the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka decision and the Little Rock Nine.
• “60 Years On, A Look Back at the Little Rock Nine” is a 3-minute video from the Associated Press featuring an interview with Ernest Green, one of the nine students.

2. What was the music of the late 1950s and early 1960s, and why was it significant to American pop culture?

Teaching Suggestion: Music and magazines provide a pop-culture backdrop in this historical novel. Music is also a vehicle that the author uses to explore themes around The Power of Representation.

• “The 50s: A Decade of Music That Changed the World” via Rolling Stone. This 3-page article is a deep dive into the history of rock and roll, including its significance, major players, and significant influences, both white and Black.
• “Fifties Pop Culture,” a 7-minute video from You Will Love History, features television footage, music, and a segment on youth culture in the 1950s. It focuses on mainstream white American culture but also points out the influence of Black artists on the music of the time.

Short Activity

Create a timeline of school integration. Include court cases that led up to Brown v. Board of Education. Begin with Plessy v. Ferguson, which established “separate but equal” as law. The center of your timeline should include important dates in the events surrounding the Little Rock Nine. Extend the timeline to the 1980s, when busing laws were set in place to help continue desegregation.

Teaching Suggestion: The purpose of this activity is to provide students with historical context and a wide view of the process of making legal changes over the course of history. Starting with Plessy v. Ferguson and ending with the 1980s busing laws might also pique student curiosity about what life was like before, during, and after the period in question. Creating a long timeline will also disabuse students of the notion that events in history are singular and finite, with no bearing on our present or future. This activity is also an opportunity to help students understand that advocacy through the US court system is one of the Different Ways of Combatting Racism.

• The United States Courts website offers an article with dates describing the court cases that led to Brown v. Board of Education.
• “What Led to Desegregation Busing—And Did It Work?” from History.com describes the desegregation busing policies mentioned in the prompt, along with important dates and more court cases.

Differentiation Suggestion: For students with minimal background knowledge, teachers might find it helpful to provide students with other important dates on the civil rights timeline to provide students with deeper context. Other world events discussed in the novel include Ghana’s independence from Britain, the debut of American Bandstand, and President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s 1957 inauguration. At the same time, it might be helpful to narrow students’ scope to K-12 education, as higher education has a much different timeline and presents a much wider scope.

Personal Connection Prompt

This prompt can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before reading the novel.

Are there political causes that you’d be willing to risk your life for? Why or why not?

Teaching Suggestion: This question is meant to prime students to consider what is at stake for the novel’s main character, Sylvia. If they are unable to conceptualize, consider defining the stakes: You could die. You could miss the rest of high school. You could be forced to live in exile for the remainder of your life, away from home and community. Bringing in this latter possibility allows students to begin to engage with the novel’s theme of Courage and Community.