HomeAction Guide, Suggested Activities

Please download these free audio public service announcements and help spread the word about Banned Books Week! Support OIF by purchasing your Banned Books Week materials here!

If you have any ideas for Suggested Activities for Banned Books Week, please send them to Nanette Perez. For Other Ways to Help Get the Word Out and Other Ideas on How to Celebrate Your Freedom to Read, visit Aye, mateys . . . celebrate your freedom t' read! and How to Celebrate Banned Books Week 2007.

On this Web site are Display Ideas, a Selected Annotated Bibliography of First Amendment Resources, a Selected List of Concerned National Organizations, Suggestions for Dealing with Concerns about Library Resources, Banned Books Abroad, Clip Art, as well as Books Challenged or Banned in 2000–2001, Notable First Amendment Court Cases, and Quotes on the First Amendment.

ORGANIZE A SOCRATIC SEMINAR OR OTHER CIVICS-RELATED ACTIVITY. "Moderated discussions of current civic issues in school increase students' critical thinking, communication skills, interest in politics, and even their discussion of current events outside school."—Carnegie Corp. and Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning & Engagement (2003) The Civic Mission of Schools.

Discuss

Since the 2005-06 U.S. National Debate Topic will relate to civil liberties, organize a year-long series of student-led public discussions to which parents will be invited. Modify Ladwig's (2005) online resources for Socratic Seminars and use the debate resources (Beard, 2005) to teach students to use a common discussion format during these evening programs in the library.

Invite your teachers to suggest topics from their classroom curriculum which you will help students relate to their own civil liberties. To kick things off, this fall ask 6th graders to interview local librarians in public and private schools and the public library to determine the level of information access students their age have in the community. Based upon the resources found at "Libraries and the First Amendment" (Abilock, 2004) help students develop uniform questions to ask all libraries about their selection and acceptable use policies, how Internet access is handled for 6th graders, which commonly banned books are not purchased and why, and what procedure the library uses for challenged resources.

During Banned Books Week organize the school's first evening Socratic Seminar in which students discuss how the First Amendment is lived in their community - specifically, how much access to information 6th grade students have locally.

Resources

Abilock, Debbie (2004). "21st Century Literacies: Tools for Reading the World" contains "You are Shocked" and "Libraries and the First Amendment" under "Political Literacy and News Media Literacy"

Beard, Carla (25 July 2005). "Debate in the Classroom and the National High School Debate Topic" Web English Teacher.

Ladewig, Brian. Socratic Seminars.

VISIT our Web site at http://www.ala.org/bbooks/.

PROCLAIM Banned Books Week at your library or bookstore with this Banned Books Week Proclamation.

PRINT the message of Banned Books Week on bags to use during the week. The Camden County (New Jersey) College Library Learning Resource Center and the  Merrick (New York) Library used the bag to enclose all materials checked out that week.

DEDICATE part of one day's programming on your National Public Radio (NPR) station to Banned Books Week.  For example, "Today's programming on [the name of the radio station] is made possible in part by [your name], who is celebrating this Banned Books Week by re-reading I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings [or another favorite banned or challenged book] or by accomplishing some other activity related to the week.

ORGANIZE a reading and discussion series. Your series could focus on books banned in the past year, or it might examine banned books throughout history or by topic (religion, politics, sex, etc.).

ASSIGN a research paper for students, such as: “Censorship and the Democratic Society”; “Banned Authors”; “The Various Forms of Censorship.” Make arrangements for the local or school newspaper to print the best paper.

STICK a “Book Banning Burns Me Up!” notice on your car. These bright red and yellow stickers (13“ x 3 3/4“) sell for $1 each from H. P. Kopplemann, Inc., Paperback Book Service, POB 145, Hartford, CT 06141; (800) 243-7724; Fax (860) 293-0279.

ASK the student or community newspaper to devote an issue to Banned Books Week. Suggest editorials on the importance of the Bill of Rights, the Constitution, and students’ rights.

ILLUSTRATE flyers, posters, newsletters, and booklets with the clip art in the latest edition of the BBW Resource Book. This clip art can be enlarged, reduced, or duplicated. Local print shops can assist you with printing specifications. There are essentially two kinds of printers: instant printers and commercial printers. Instant printers, usually able to do a job in a few days, are best used for simple, small jobs. Ask to see paper samples and, to save money, try to use what is in stock. Show the printer a sample of a comparable finished piece showing the quality you’re looking for. The larger the quantity of your order, the more economical it may be to use a commercial printer. To find a good commercial printer, ask local businesses whose printed pieces you admire which printer they use. Call the recommended printers and ask for a representative to call. Again, show them samples of comparable finished products and give them a budget range. The representatives will be able to advise you on paper stock, size, and color. Commercial printers require more lead time, so plan ahead.

HOLD a First Amendment Film Festival depicting censorship. NOTE: Libraries must have a public performance site license to show movies. This link provides appropriate information.

STAGE a mock trial or moot court. Put a banned book on trial and have students argue for and against the book. Select a jury that has not read the book. For mock trial materials and technical assistance, contact the following organizations: 

1. The Constitutional Rights Foundation (601 South Kingsley Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90005; [800] 488-4CRF; Fax [213-386-0459]) has packets of mock trial material available for $4.95 each, and will send you a free catalog on request.
2. Street Law Inc.  (918 16 Street, Suite 602, N.W., Washington, DC 20006-2902; [202] 293-0088; Fax [202-293-0089]) has many mock trial scenarios compiled into case packets; they are available free from their Web site http://www.streetlaw.org/mockt2.html. Note that the mock trials they have are not on censorship, but can be used as examples.
3. The Center for Civic Education (5146 Douglas Fir Road, Calabasas, CA 91302; [800] 350-4223) develops curriculum materials to teach about the Constitution in upper elementary grades, and will send a catalog of items free upon request.

MARCH in a community parade. Staff at the Parlin-Ingersoll Library in Canton, Illinois, celebrated Banned Books Week by marching in the Friendship Festival parade dressed as famous banned books; Dawn Ward is pictured in the 2001 BBW Resource Book as Charlotte’s Web. Other Banned Books Week activities included the creation of a Banned Book Club, book discussions for children, and the distribution of an annotated list of banned books with the “hot books” logo.

GIVE away gags imprinted with the titles of banned books. The gags also could be worn as arm-bands as in mourning; for example, “Censorship = the death of ideas.”

WEAR “I Read Banned Books,” this bright red button sold by the American Society of Journalists and Authors, 1501 Broadway, Suite 302, New York, NY 10036; (212) 997-0947; Fax (212) 768-7414. ASAJ also sells First Amendment T-shirts. They are $16 each (as of August 2001).

SCREEN a banned film. Encourage your local television station or plan your own program using Banned Films: Movies, Censors, and the First Amendment, by Edward de Grazia and Roger K. Newman. This book will provide you with 122 examples of American and foreign films banned in the U.S. including Birth of the Nation, Salt of the Earth, The Exorcist , and Carnal Knowledge.

SPONSOR a poster contest for children illustrating the concept of free speech. Display the posters in your bookstore or library during Banned Books Week—Celebrating the Freedom to Read.

CREATE radio spots. Improve the spot with music! Ask the radio station’s technician/engineer/disc jockey to help you select music and dub it into the radio spot. For example, one library used the theme from Dragnet for an effective attention-grabbing spot.

WEAR a T-shirt with a clever anti-censorship message. The Washington Coalition Against Censorship has developed five different designs available in various colors and sizes. All profits support public education efforts by the Coalition.

REENACT the signing of the Constitution. Follow with a discussion of the First Amendment and the rights it ensures.

PRINT annotated “Freedom to Read” bookmarks. The Serra Cooperative Library System in California and the San Diego Booksellers Association printed bookmarks that included a short summary of banned books with a history of censorship efforts against them.

CO-SPONSOR an essay contest with the state library association, local school, or community group. Possible topics include “What the First Amendment means to me” or “What does freedom to read mean?” Contestants can include eighth-graders, junior or senior high students. Use local newspaper editors/journalists or university faculty as judges and award banned books as prizes.

USE readership surveys to point out the hazards of censorship. A serendipitous combination of promotions for a week-long literacy celebration at the Carroll County Public Library, Maryland, and Banned Books Week resulted in an unprompted editorial in the local newspaper. As part of the literacy celebration, the library surveyed prominent citizens in the community on books that influenced their lives. When the list was published in the newspaper, it coincided with publicity on Banned Books Week from the People for the American Way. The editor noted that many of the “influential” books also were on the banned books list. His editorial “Literature’s Worst Obscenity Is Banning, Burning Books” gave the library an added P.R. effort.

SPONSOR a contest. Possibilities include matching quotes and titles of the banned books; matching titles and authors; selecting banned authors or titles from lists or displays of books. Make sure your selections reflect the literary quality of the works and inspire contestants to read them. Award banned books to the winners.

BLOW UP Banned Books Week balloons. Print your message on helium strength balloons. Use for decoration and/or distribute at schools, shopping areas, programs, etc.

COMMISSION a local storyteller or theater group to prepare a dramatic rendition of banned or challenged books. Provide printed lists of appropriate material (books, videotapes, etc.) and take the show on the road—to schools, libraries, and community centers.

PRINT the easily removable camera-ready clip art to promote Banned Books Week. Ask local newspaper and magazine editors to use the public service advertisements as fillers whenever space is available. Community newsletters and staff newsletters also are good places to run the ads. You may want to duplicate the ads for distribution to several sources. Be sure the duplication process (use photostats or print on heavy, enamel paper) produces good camera-ready art.

SCHEDULE provocative speakers to focus on intellectual freedom issues. The Merrick Library, New York, scheduled the Honorable James Buchanan, former chairman of People for the American Way, to speak during Banned Books Week. Also during the week, a librarian from a nearby community spoke on her experience with the Secret Service. The ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom can provide suggestions for speakers: (800) 545-2433, ext. 4223; or oif@ala.org.

SPONSOR a day at the state capitol for students, teachers, community leaders, seniors, or other people to learn about the democratic process—work with organizations such as the League of Women Voters.

INCLUDE study on banned books in your school’s curriculum. Ruth Bauerle, Assistant Professor of English at Ohio Wesleyan University, planned a fall semester seminar on “Banned Books: From Judy Blume to Molly Bloom.” The coursework consisted of six reading units and several individual and/or group projects. The six-week seminar began with a background lecture on laws (Constitution, court cases) governing “censorship,” and case histories of book withdrawals from libraries.

The reading units were followed by class discussion of the controversial elements in each book, the positive or negative merits in each work, and whether each book met the court test of having social value. Role-playing was used in the first reading unit with students assuming the roles of a parent complaining about the book, a parent defending the right to read, the high school librarian, the high school English teacher, school board members, and high school students for and against the book.

The unit “themes” and titles were:

1. Young adult fiction—Judy Blume’s Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret; Deenie, and Tiger Eyes, and J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye.
2. Studs Terkel’s Working was the second unit. As part of the study of this work, students were asked to “test” the common complaint of many dictionaries—including (or excluding) “bad” language. Students listed dirty, profane, and obscene expressions and then looked the words up in a variety of dictionaries.
3. National security censorship readings included: Victor Marchetti and John D. Marks, The CIA and the Cult of Intelligence; Philip Agee, Inside the Company: CIA Diary; and Frank Snepp, Decent Interval.
4. The fourth reading unit was on censored black writers. Bauerle explains this somewhat “illogical” grouping—the books were challenged or banned due to their content, not the color of the author—stating that the books provide realistic portrayals of the black experience and may have been censored because of the sordidness of that experience. Readings included Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man; Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings; Richard Wright, Native Son; and Gordon Park, The Learning Tree.
5. The class examined school texts (elementary–high school) for slanting, factual completeness, omissions in science and social science, e.g., creationism vs. evolution; controversial topics—women, minorities, Vietnam War, Watergate.
6. “Literary classics” that have been banned was the final unit and James Joyce’s Ulysses was used. Group projects included interviewing librarians, county school superintendents, curriculum supervisors, and principals to see what censorship problems or complaints they’ve encountered and how the complaint was handled.

Individual projects included: researching a particular author or book (What has been the writer’s experience with censorship? What was the writer’s reaction? How many times has the book been challenged? Why was the book banned?). Students also could study a single censorship incident; for example, the Island Trees case, the Louisiana creationism case, the Scopes trial, and the Kanawha County, West Virginia, controversy. In addition, students could examine positions taken by particular advocacy groups—People for the American Way, the ACLU, the American Family Association, the American Library Association, the Family Research Council, the American Booksellers Association, the Association of American Publishers, etc.

CONTACT the Constitutional Rights Foundation (601 South Kingsley Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90005; [213] 487-5590; Fax [213-386-0459]) for a catalog of materials on the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights.

PIN your commitment to your lapel. The Alaska Library Association sells pins proclaiming “’I Read Banned Books.” The pin costs $5.00 which includes shipping and can be ordered from the Alaska Library Association, P.O. Box 81084, Fairbanks, AK 99708; e-mail: akla@akla.org. Proceeds benefit Alaska library-oriented organizations.

COMBINE the message of Banned Books Week with your bookstore catalog. The Carleton College Alumni Bookstore (Minn.) added interesting reading to its catalog by including “Faculty Favorites,” a list of five most meaningful or most highly treasured books in the lives of the faculty. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was one of the top ten and the clip art from the 1988 Resource Book was used as the cover of the catalog.

ENCOURAGE your governor, city council, and/or mayor to proclaim “Banned Books Week—Celebrating the Freedom to Read” in your state or community. For example, the state of Ohio and city of St. Louis did for the purpose of “informing our citizens as to the nature and magnitude of the threat censorship poses to our First Amendment rights of freedom of speech and press, the cornerstone of American liberty.”

CREATE an interesting photo for publicity. The North Salem Free Library in North Salem, New York, dressed three library employees in “prison garb” borrowed from the local barbershop chorus. The “prisoners” were shown reading banned books.

SPONSOR a readout. The American Society of Authors and Journalists supported a spirited public rally on the steps of the New York Public Library. Members of the Society dramatized the dangers of book censorship by reading selections from banned books. The American Center of Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists and Novelists, or P.E.N., sponsored a “Forbidden Books” evening where well-known writers and actors read sections from banned books. In Virginia Beach, the public library led a storytelling and audience discussion program about banned children’s books. In planning these programs, determine your audience, select a well-known place and time for the readout, provide some musical link between the readings, and make it visually interesting by, for instance, enlarging the jackets of banned books.

PARTICIPATE—Big Banned Books was the name of the Missoula Public Library’s float, as Banned Books Week coincided with the University of Montana’s homecoming parade, “The Big Band Era.” The anti-censorship float featured library staff and friends dressed as characters from books that have been banned.

HOLD—At the Ossining (New York) Public Library, actor Alan Arkin and author Sol Stein participated in an evening of celebrity readings. Arkin read from Catch 22 to a crowd of 250. At the Merrick (New York) Public Library patrons were invited to speak out against censorship by writing their own comments on sheets of newsprint beneath some famous quotes about censorship.

ORGANIZE a slide show that introduces Banned Books Week. Collect slides that help teach and explain the meaning of freedom. The slides can show books written by or about persons who valued intellectual freedom. Examples could include: Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Maya Angelou, John Peter Zenger, Henry Thoreau, Judy Blume, James Baldwin, and Susan B. Anthony. Slides also could include clip art and book jackets. A short slide show can easily be shown during a class or at a library. These shows are especially effective for large group presentations.

SPONSOR a community forum. The forums serve both educational and participatory purposes. They allow the public to examine various aspects of the Constitution, its evolution, the underlying values involved, and its significance in contemporary society and to the individual citizen. By encouraging the audience to speak out on the constitutional issues, these sessions emphasize the citizen’s role in the continuing development of the law. Organizers may choose from several different model formats, for example, mock legislative hearing, town hall meeting (Socratic discussion), mock trial, and debate. For planning assistance use Speaking & Writing Truth: Community Forums on the First Amendment by Robert S. Peck and Mary Manemann, published by the American Bar Association. The guide contains information on planning mock legislative hearings, mock trials or debates and provides detailed suggestions on getting started and six First Amendment issues with scripts and legal memoranda.

GIVE away a banned book! Parents and students from the Goochland High School in Goochland, Virginia, were offered free copies of Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot after the school board banned it. The bookstore, Volume I, created a front window display featuring Salem’s Lot and twenty other banned books. The Richmond Times-Dispatch published a photograph of the display and interviewed the bookstore owner. In the first week, twenty-two copies were given away.

EXAMINE the role of the free press in contemporary society by hosting a community discussion. The Society of Professional Journalists’ Project Sunshine will help with suggestions on topics and speakers for your area. For more information, contact Society of Professional Journalists’ Project Sunshine, 16 South Jackson Street, Greencastle, IN 46135-1514; (765) 653-3333 is their phone number; Fax: (765) 653-4631; e-mail: spj@linkzooo.net.

JOIN the Freedom to Read Foundation. The Foundation is dedicated to the legal and financial defense of intellectual freedom, especially in libraries. Since its establishment in 1969, the Foundation has stood at the forefront of nearly all major battles to defend the right to read. Your contribution will help the Freedom to Read Foundation preserve First Amendment freedoms by challenging those who would remove or ban materials from library collections, and establishing, through the courts, legal precedents on behalf of intellectual freedom principles. For more information, contact the Freedom to Read Foundation, 50 East Huron Street, Chicago, IL 60611; phone: (800) 545-2433, ext. 4226; e-mail: ftrf@ala.org.

GO FOR THE “BURN” and kick off Banned Books Week with a fun run in your community. Print “Banned Books Week—The Censorship Challenge” race T-shirts for participants, volunteers and for sale to spectators. Keep the race distance short (under 3 miles) to involve as many people as possible. Check with your local running club on how to promote and organize the event. Or pick up a copy of the Road Runners Club of America Handbook, available for $30 (postage included) from RRCA, 510 North Washington, Alexandria, VA 22314; (703) 836-0558; Fax: (703) 836-4430.

HOLD—Brown and Clark Booksellers in Mashpee, Massachusetts, held a “Whodunit/Duzzit” forum on censorship and book banning. Four local authors made presentations on self-censorship by authors, the role of “bestseller” lists and chain stores, and the future of electronic books. Coffee and snacks, e.g., Chocolate War Brownies and Uncensored Salsa, were served after the program. The bookstore had both in-store and window displays profiling banned books.

JOIN ARTICLE 19, a human rights group working to identify and oppose censorship throughout the world. The London-based organization is named after Article 19 of the United Nation’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights (“everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions, without interference and to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media regardless of frontiers.”) Dues are $25; and members receive their Bulletin three times a year. Additional information can be obtained from ARTICLE 19, International Centre Against Censorship, 33 Islington High Street, London, N1 9LH, U.K.: (44 20) 7278 9292; Fax: (44 20) 7713 1356; www.article19.org.

HOLD a book discussion group with teenagers and their parents. Select banned titles that deal realistically with teens’ issues. Have several people read each book. At the book discussion, have the teens discuss the book, followed by parents’ reactions to the books and discussion by the teens. End the sessions with a brief description of the book selection policies and procedures for teens, stressing the importance of free access for young adults.

PETITION your neighbors and politicians to challenge censorship and cooperate with all persons or groups that resist abridgment of free expression and free access to ideas. In Connecticut, several hundred signatures were obtained on a petition protesting censorship, which was then sent to the governor, state representatives, and members of the U.S. Congress.

DISTRIBUTE and place table tent cards that promote the freedom to read in cafeterias, reading rooms and study halls in schools and libraries. The cards could even be personalized with a statement or story.

CREATE a year-long public awareness campaign like the one developed at the After-Words new and used bookstore in Chicago. A shelf of banned books is on permanent display in a prominent area. In each of these books—and in many other banned books throughout the store—are custom-made bookmarks with the author and title of the book, reasons why the book was banned, and in what year. These citations are referenced from the Banned Books Week Resource Book. According to the owner, Beverly Dvorkin, by including these bookmarks, these “banned books” sell very, very well.

SELECT a video. The Video Sourcebook, Eighteenth Edition, features programs currently available on video and lists twelve videotapes on censorship. Those videos are: Bags: Books Under Fire; Censorship in a Free Society; Censorship or Selection: Choosing Books for Public Schools; Free Press, Fair Trial: Inside the Anonymous Source; Is It Easy to Be Young?; It’s Only Rock and Roll; Legacy of the Hollywood Blacklist; Life and Liberty . . . .For All Who Believe; See Evil; and What Johnny Can’t Read. The Sourcebook gives complete ordering information, program description, release date, and other information.

PURCHASE a variety of promotional materials (mugs, T-shirts, bumper stickers, tote bags, and buttons) from the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression and speak your mind every time you use them. Contact the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, 828 South Broadway, Tarrytown, NY 10591; (914) 591-2665, ext. 289; Fax (914) 591-2716.

CONTACT your college public relations department. Let them know about your Banned Books Week activities. Their media contacts are well-established and usually will result in better coverage.

PUBLICIZE the Bill of Rights with camera-ready art available from the Newspaper Association of America Foundation. Representing the winners in their 1991 college-level graphics competition, the ad packets are available for $10 from the Newspaper Association of America Foundation, NAA, P.O. Box 2527, Kearneysville, WV 25430; (800) 651-4622, Fax: (800) 525-5562, Order Fulfillment Department, Item # 80079.

REWARD patrons who check out banned books during the week. The staff at the Dallas, Texas, Public Library gave library patrons gift certificates redeemable at a local bookstore each time a banned book was checked out.

ENLIST the help of a local business that has an electronic bulletin board on its property. The Algona, Iowa Public Library asked the Iowa State Bank to run a weeklong info-notice about Banned Books Week, and it agreed.

HUNT for banned books throughout the business community. The Bernardsville, New Jersey, Public Library worked with local retail businesses of all kinds to develop a “treasure” hunt of banned books, hiding the titles in plain sight in the display windows and areas of the stores. Patrons were invited to make the rounds of the stores and list all titles they discovered. Participating businesses included flower shops, paint stores, jewelry stores, travel agencies, and many others.

WORK with the local arts council to develop a proposal for Banned Books Week (BBW). Present the proposal well in advance of BBW to potential supporting agencies that might provide some funds for BBW programs and activities, especially if BBW is community-wide in focus, and multi-disciplinary in nature. The Hartland Art Council in Michigan successfully combined an “Authors Live at the Library” program with a banned books theme.

RUN a raffle that can be entered only by visiting your Banned Books display. The Honolulu, Hawaii, Community College bookstore donated a backpack for the raffle; students checked out the display and entered the contest.

WORK with other libraries in your area to develop a “united front” for Banned Books Week; have each library responsible for one event, and schedule them to complement each other. A letter to the editor from four or five libraries, especially representing different constituencies, will be more effective than your library going it alone. Develop information packets that are available at all participating libraries, and say so in your press releases.

USE the public address system in your school or library to communicate about Banned Books Week. A First Amendment quote at the beginning of the day, or at peak times, would certainly give your patrons something to think about. This idea was submitted by Shannon Van Kirk who successfully used a public address announcement at the St. Cecilia Academy in Nashville, Tenn.

PRINT a Banned Books Week calendar. The Merrick (New York) Library observed Banned Books Week by printing a calendar showing activities in the library, as well as holidays, events, etc. Each month of the calendar was illustrated with a quotation by a prominent artist, poet, philosopher, scientist, or statesman on the importance of the freedom to read. This Resource Book is a good source for quotations and clip art for your calendar.

DISTRIBUTE materials to high school students. The Paulsboro, New Jersey, High School librarian complied a list of challenged and banned books that the students would recognize. These were distributed to English, History, and Civics classes along with a copy of the First Amendment and the editorial from the Banned Books Week kit.

SUPPORT the legal battle of the Little Sisters Bookstore and other gay and lesbian Canadian stores. Since the 1980s, the stores have been waging an expensive legal battle with the Canadian government for seizing and confiscating books at the Canadian borders. To raise funds, they have published Forbidden Passages: Writings Banned in Canada, excerpts from a number of the confiscated materials. In the United States, the book can be obtained from Cleis Press, P.O. Box 14684, San Francisco, CA 94114; (800) 780-2279; (415) 575-4700; Fax: (415) 575-4705.

PLAN a quiz. In Bound Brook, N.J., middle school and high school librarian Lillian Keating planned a contest to commemorate the week—a daily quiz from a list of books that have been challenged or removed from libraries. The winner of the quiz received a gift certificate to a local bookstore.

The high school questions were:

Monday
What is a popular book in many high school English classes by Harper Lee that has been banned or challenged? (To Kill a Mockingbird)

Tuesday
What is the part of the Bill of Rights that guarantees the freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition? (First Amendment)

Wednesday
Who is the author of The Chocolate War, a novel about peer pressure which was banned and challenged? (Robert Cormier)

Thursday
What was one of the most challenged titles in 1995? The Adventures . . . . (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn)

Friday
John _____________, one of America’s most famous novelists, has had many titles, banned and challenged, and continues to be challenged frequently. (John Steinbeck)

The middle school questions were:

Monday
What was S. E. Hinton’s famous novel? The . . . . (The Outsiders)

Tuesday
A Light in the Attic and Where the Sidewalk Ends are frequently challenged. Who is the author? (Shel Silverstein)

Wednesday
Who wrote Matilda, a book found offensive for its disrespect for adults? (Roald Dahl)

Thursday
What is the title of a spooky series that is often challenged? You may have read the stories when you were younger. (Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark)

Friday
Who is the popular author of novels for young adults, such as Forever and Deenie? (Judy Blume)

CONDUCT a poll. The Goosebumps series, by R. L. Stine, are among the top 25 most challenged books in the United States today, according to the The 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books. Conduct a poll of twenty-five adults asking them if and why they feel scary stories are harmful to children and teenagers. Then, poll twenty-five teenagers, asking them the same question. Make a visual contrasting the results of each poll.

PREPARE a speech. Many parents believe that Halloween promotes “evil” and should not be celebrated in schools. Research the origin of Halloween and prepare a persuasive speech about why it should or should not be celebrated by children.

USE a periodical index to locate as many articles as possible regarding book challenges in schools in the United States in the past five years. Draw a map of the United States and color in the states where you found challenges. Which state has the most challenges? How have each of the cases been resolved?

WRITE a ballad or a legend. Ballads and legends are often written about heroic people. For example, research John Peter Zenger’s historic fight for First Amendment rights or select your favorite First Amendment advocate and write a ballad or a legend about him.

FORM a banned books book club. The Malverne, N.Y. Public Library celebrated Banned Books Week by starting a Banned Books Book Club. Patrons were asked to discuss books from around the world that have been banned in the author’s country of origin. The reading list included: One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitzyn for Russia; This Earth of Mankind by Ananta Pramoedya Toer for Indonesia; Spycatcher by Peter Wright for England; Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert for France; Brave New World by Aldous Huxley for England; The Sorrows of Young Werther by Goethe for Germany; Blood Wedding by Federico Garcia Lorca for Spain; and Ulysses by James Joyce for Ireland.

TEACH a Banned Books Course. Rebecca Godin, Alternative Community School, Ithaca, N.Y., uses First Amendment rights as a centerpiece for a course called “Banned Books.” Each student under eighteen takes home a parent permission slip along with a syllabus describing course expectations, a list of books recommended for independent reading, assignments, and discussion topics. Although the course focuses on books banned in public schools, First Amendment issues in the arts and in society at large are explored.

Can citizens always exercise their First Amendment rights in our country today? Can students always exercise their First Amendment rights? Can these rights be taken too far? Should pornography be outlawed? Should violence and sex be limited on television or in the movies? Should rock music be censored? Should we allow advertisements for all products, even those that are harmful? Discussing these questions helps students find their own voices and sharpen their critical inquiry.

Some of the works discussed are Howl by Allen Ginsberg, The Catcher in the Rye, some of Whitman’s Leaves of Grass, Soul on Ice by Eldridge Cleaver, Alice Walker’s The Color Purple, and excerpts from the Bible. From the list of books banned in public schools and elsewhere, students choose one book to read independently for their position paper. They write a synopsis, then an analysis of why the book was banned, using the 1957 Supreme Court Roth-decision (Lady Chatterley’s Lover) triple test for prurient interest: (1) What is its effect on the average person? (2) Does it appeal to prurient or lustful interests? (3) Does it offend in the light of community standards?

The best approaches for teaching sexually explicit literature are the same ones used in any good teaching: critical thinking, enthusiasm, humor, and trust for each student’s intelligence.

WRITE an editorial for your local newspaper. Pat Scales, then library media specialist at the Greenville Middle School in Greenville, S.C., now director of library services at the South Carolina Governor’s School of The Arts & Humanities, and author of Teaching Banned Books (2001), wrote “Protect Our Freedom of Speech, Teach It?”

CREATE—The Censorship War Memorial, an exhibit prepared for Banned Books Week by Jill Sekula, a student in Education at Bowling Green State University, Ohio, lists books challenged or banned. The bottom of the “wall” reads “Dedicated to those wounded or killed in the war against Free Speech in the United States, which has been taking place since our country was born and will continue until we stop the madness.”

For information on Banned Books Week: Celebrate Your Freedom to Read, please contact the American Library Association/Office for Intellectual Freedom call OIF at 1-800-545-2433, ext. 4220, or at oif@ala.org.

Links to non-ALA sites have been provided because these sites may have information of interest. Neither the American Library Association nor the Office for Intellectual Freedom necessarily endorses the views expressed or the facts presented on these sites; and furthermore, ALA and OIF do not endorse any commercial products that may be advertised or available on these sites.