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Lord of the Flies is a wild book to teach. The level of challenge is solid but it requires a good entry point to make sure students are engaged. I love kicking it off in a memorable way. To get them thinking from day 1 & engage their interest, I start my unit with some CHAOS!
Phase 1: Prepare your classroom!
I found this idea somewhere on the internet so I can’t take full credit. I’ve added my own tweaks along the way to adjust it for my students and my vibe as a teacher. On the day I start the novel, before the students come in, I turn my classroom upside down. I pile desks in the middle of the room, flip chairs over, take books off shelves, etc. Literally anything that you feel comfortable disrupting, do it.
The goal is to create a totally chaotic classroom. In my pacing, this usually falls on the first day of school after winter break. At that point in the school year, I’ve already built relationships with my students so I know they trust me. I would recommend waiting until at least a few weeks into the school year before trying this.
Phase 2: Bring the students into the chaos!
I wait to let them in until they’re all lined up outside. I have these directions projected on the screen as they come into class:
- take attendance
- choose a leader
- put the room back in order
- come up with rules
Phase 3: Observe the chaos!
At this point, I just sit back and take notes the whole time. Sometimes they will come and ask me questions and I usually just shrug. I recommend that you take good notes about what students are doing and saying. These can help you make some really good connections to the boys in the novel.
Once students have completed the steps, you can explain that they experienced a taste of Lord of the Flies. You can preview that the characters are left on an island after their plane crashed. Overall this activity lends itself so well to jumping into conversations about leadership, chaos, order, individualism and cooperation.
Other Ideas/Variations
After they’ve done the first 2 steps (attendance & leader) I’ve had donuts available but I don’t put out enough. This has gone different ways, but it’s a great way to cause some more chaos. It’s interesting to see how they deal with it (I always make sure every kid gets a donut later). I’ve also tried to incorporate a sound piece (like this one) to mimic the conch. Some groups have used it, some haven’t.
I’ve created a handout that you can access for free (click here). The resource includes the slide deck & lesson plan I use with this activity. This gives you a great starting point to connect back to as you work through the novel.
Need other activities and lesson plans as you teach Lord of the Flies? I’ve created reading questions (with answer keys), slide decks, writing prompts (with rubrics), symbol trackers and more! You can find all of these available for purchase here.
