I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“Blackout Poetry: The Sound of Silence”

In this activity, students will play with sound and silence by creating their own “blackout” poetry inspired by the life and work of Maya Angelou.

One of Angelou’s core traumas causes her to stop speaking for five years as self-inflicted punishment for her supposed “sins,” literally silencing her.

Of course, Angelou would eventually find her voice again, becoming one of the most celebrated authors of all time. After her passing in 2014, Angelou left behind an incredible legacy and a vast and diverse body of work, ranging from prose to experimental free verse.

In this activity, you will create your own blackout poem, taking inspiration from Angelou’s silence and sound. Blackout poetry is a type of poetry that brings new meaning to old texts by blacking out, or “silencing,” most of the words, leaving visible only the words that form your new poem, thus giving them a new “voice” or “sound.”

Steps to completing your blackout poem:

1. Scan the page for words and phrases that catch your attention.

2. Refine your words and phrases until your poem makes sense.

3. Draw a box around the words and phrases you want to keep.

4. Read your poem aloud and make any final refinements.

5. Use a black marker to black out the rest of the text on the page, leaving only the words of your new poem.

Then, read your poem to the class. As a class, discuss how it felt to use silence and sound to create something beautiful. What did you learn about the Power of Words?

Teaching Suggestion: Commonly, blackout poetry is performed on newspapers, essays, or books, giving plenty of options to students. It may be helpful to review examples of blackout poetry beforehand to give students a visual of the concept, as well as to review common literary and poetic devices. Providing students with black markers for the blackout process is also recommended. Building upon the book’s theme around the Power of Words, be sure to advise students that in poetry, each word is imbued with deep meaning. Encourage them to choose their words carefully as they decide what they want to write.

• “How to Blackout Poetry” – This article from Arapahoe Libraries offers a concise overview of blackout poetry with some basic examples.
• This 2-minute video from Austin Kleon, regarded as the poet who made blackout poetry popular, shows a time-lapse of his process of creating blackout poetry from newspaper articles.

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Religious fundamentalism, central to Angelou’s life in Stamps, is an invisible yet constant presence in Momma Henderson’s home.

• How does religion shape Angelou’s worldview in her formative years? (topic sentence)
• To what extent is religion reflected in Angelou’s personality? Discuss based on textual details in at least three points.
• In your concluding sentences, explore how religion only underscores Angelou’s Identity as being “different” in Stamps as she quests for a Sense of Belonging.

2. Angelou uses several authorial techniques in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings that are more common to fiction than autobiography.

• What overall effect does Angelou’s use of these fiction techniques have on the book? (topic sentence)
• What are some specific examples of moments when Angelou uses this technique?
• In your conclusion, describe how using techniques more common to fiction might underscore Angelou’s commitment to Literacy in general, as we see her reading many classic works of literature throughout the autobiography.

3. Momma Henderson, Mrs. Bertha Flowers, and Miss Kirwin are the many female role models who help Angelou shape her self-awareness.

• How does Angelou respond to each woman’s influence? (topic sentence)
• Compare and contrast the three women. Which of them affect Angelou’s development the most dramatically?
• In your conclusion, explore how Angelou’s relationship with each of these women helps Angelou find her Identity and a Sense of Belonging.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by textual details, and a conclusion.

1. The structure of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is thematic rather than chronological. What effect does this have on the book? How does this structure make it stand out among other coming-of-age autobiographies? Using specific examples from the text, explain how and why Angelou utilizes the non-chronological narrative. Consider how playing with structure form might be a simultaneous commentary on the Power of Words and an assertion of Angelou’s unique Identity.

2. Throughout the memoir, Angelou finds herself in different settings, from the rural South to St. Louis, San Francisco, and Mexico. These settings often change, as if mirroring the book’s opening lines, “I didn’t come to stay” (1). How does Angelou manage to thrive in these different locations? How does Race and Racism affect the locations where she feels most at home? Decide if Angelou finds a permanent and solid place to “stay” at the end of the autobiography.

3. Compare Angelou’s depiction of racial relations, poverty, and Christian fundamentalism in the American South in the 1930s with a white male author from the same period. How do their perspectives differ? How do they coincide? How does the story of Race and Racism in the South differ when told by a white male? In your conclusion, identify what, if any, special insights Angelou may have had given her experience growing up, and point out any potential “blind spots” the white male author may have had in his depiction.

Multiple Choice and Long Answer questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. Angelou observes Black cotton pickers looking disappointed and exhausted after working long, hard days. What does this observation cause Angelou to speak out against later in life?

A) The stereotype that cotton pickers are completely emotionless

B) The stereotype that Black men in Stamps do not work hard

C) The stereotype of cheerful singing cotton pickers

D) The stereotype that cotton pickers find their work emotionally satisfying

2. Aside from a source of income, which of the following best describes what the Store represents to Angelou and her family?

A) An antidote to their family’s social vulnerability

B) A stressor that makes them worry endlessly about their financial sustainability

C) An asset that arouses much toxic jealousy in the people of Stamps

D) A monotonous space where the family feels trapped by their daily routines

3. When a group of little white girls heckles Momma just outside the Store, what does Momma do to soothe herself to get through the ordeal?

A) She touches a small golden cross hidden in her pocket.

B) She closes her eyes and takes four deep breaths.

C) She looks at the trees in the distance and silently says a prayer.

D) She softly hums a Christian hymn.

4. Which of the following best represents Momma’s guiding principles when teaching Angelou and Bailey about tactics to deal with the white population of Stamps?

A) Submission and deference

B) Avoidance and nonconfrontation

C) Aggressive and forceful

D) Uncompromising and proud

5. In St. Louis, Angelou and Bailey live with Grandmother Baxter, who was raised by a German family in what state?

A) Illinois

B) Michigan

C) Ohio

D) Kansas

6. When Angelou returns to Stamps, which of the following demonstrates how she struggles to cope with the trauma of her sexual assault?

A) She used to remember all the Store’s customers, but now she struggles to recall their names and the details of their orders.

B)  She begins self-harming with sewing needles.

C)  She cries every night before she goes to sleep, which Momma hears through the thin walls of their home.

D)  She immerses herself in Christianity, spending hours each day reciting the rosary.

7. Mrs. Flowers gives Angelou a few books to take home and encourages her to do what with them?

A) Hide them from her family.

B) Take copious notes in their margins.

C) Put them on a shelf and look at them anytime she feels lonely.

D) Read them aloud.

8. Angelou’s decision to get a job as a maid testifies to what personal quality of hers?

A) Her independence

B) Her submissiveness

C) Her fortitude

D) Her greed

9. What moment does Angelou share with Louise Kendricks that shows that the two girls will become close friends?

A) They do a potato sack race together and come in first place.

B) They read the poems of Robert Frost together.

C) They cry together out of fear, worried about their futures.

D) They look at the sky and feel like they’re falling into it.

10. Angelou and her fellow eighth-grade classmates know something is amiss when, at their graduation ceremony, they are not allowed to sing what song?

A) “The Star-Spangled Banner”

B) “You’re a Grand Old Flag”

C) “I’ll Keep a Warm Spot in My Heart for You”

D) “Lift Every Voice and Sing”

11. What task does Bailey help with that traumatizes him and leaves him questioning why white people hate Black people?

A) He helps re-paint a storefront of a Black business that was vandalized.

B) He helps find a little girl abducted by a white smuggler.

C) He helps remove the body of a dead Black man from a pond.

D) He helps a Black neighbor recover his glasses, which white teens have thrown into the woods.

12. Which aphorism does Angelou use to justify a Black person’s misbehavior?

A) “Twenty-twenty hindsight”

B) “Life demands a balance.”

C) “Actions speak louder than words.”

D) “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.”

13. What is the most important lesson Angelou learns living in the junkyard?

A) She learns the power of community.

B) She learns how to be frugal.

C) She learns how to hotwire a car.

D) She learns how to be grateful for the things she has.

14. Which of the following best describes the difference between Momma and Vivian compared to Dolores?

A) Dolores is co-dependent with Bailey; Momma and Vivian are independent.

B) Dolores is emotionally unstable; Momma and Vivian are measured.

C) Dolores is overbearing; Momma and Vivian are relaxed.

D) Dolores is irreverent; Momma and Vivian are pious.

15. Where is Bailey when Angelou informs him that she is pregnant?

A) He is in Idaho on a potato farm.

B) He is at sea with the merchant marines.

C) He is riding trains with his friend Duff.

D) He is in Mexico with Vivian.

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating textual details to support your response.

1. How does Angelou’s family treat her after her sexual assault? What larger effect does this have on Angelou’s personality?

2. The book ends with a scene between Angelou and her three-week-old son. What does this moment represent in terms of Angelou’s larger evolution?