Lesson 3: Building Background Knowledge: The 1960s, Part 3

Turn and Talk

Directions: Turn and talk with a partner about the following question to prepare for today’s lesson.

• What have you learned about the 1960s so far?

• Based on what you have learned about social class in the 1960s and the impact of inequality on belonging, what does the title lead you to expect the book will be about?

Part A: Explore 1960s Subcultures

Directions: Learn about youth subcultures of the 1960s by exploring the Greaser identity and connecting it to what you already know about social class and inequality. Study images or videos to understand how this group was represented, then take part in a class discussion about how subcultures reflect the social conditions of that time.

Greaser Subcultures in the 1960s

The term working class usually refers to a person’s occupation. It means that someone is not wealthy on their own or because of their family and must rely primarily on earning wages from labor, or working a job. It often references jobs that require some type of physical labor. But it can also refer to economic class or income level; some working-class jobs don’t pay high wages, and some, not all, people in the working class experience poverty. Think about our discussion of poverty in Lesson 2.

The book we will read includes characters from the working class, many of whom are part of a specific youth subculture of the 1950s and 1960s—the greaser subculture.

A subculture is a smaller group within a bigger culture that has its own unique beliefs, styles, or interests. Subcultures come in various forms: people who like a certain type of media can form a subculture, for instance. Being part of a subculture often means more than having special interests; it may affect lifestyles, beliefs, and behaviors toward others.

• What are some subcultures you can think of?

After reviewing the images and/or video clips, discuss the answers to these questions:

• What similarities do you notice between the people in the images/video?

• Based on these images/the video, what traits do you think might have been important to greasers’ identities?

Write down your responses.

Greasers were often young white men who belonged to the working class. In many cases, they were left out of economic prosperity in the 1960s United States.

Academic Talk

Learn and use the Academic Talk routine. Use the cue cards with sentence starters to help you discuss your ideas:

• Add-on talk stems:

  • “I’d like to add that . . .”

  • “I want to add some more detail to that idea . . .”

  • “I also noticed that . . .”

  • “This reminds me of . . . because . . .”

• Clarify talk stems:

  • “Can you tell me more about . . .”

  • “Can you explain why . . .”

  • “Could it also be that . . .”

Follow the Academic Talk routine by using Add-on and Clarify talk stems to answer the questions.

• Consider what you know about 1960s social tensions, poverty, and youth culture in the United States based on the texts you have already read. How do you think the greaser subculture may have been a response to what was happening in the 1960s?

• How do you think other people in the 1960s, such as older adults or wealthier people, viewed greasers? Why?

Part B: Prepare to Read: The Outsiders

Think-Pair-Share

Directions: Use Think-Pair-Share routine to answer these questions with a partner.

• What do you think the most important idea in this text is? How would you summarize it in a sentence or two?

• What does the word “outsider” mean to you? What do you think makes a person or group of people “outsiders”?

• How does the word “outsiders” connect to what you know about 1960s America?

Turn and Talk

Directions: Write your response to the question below.

• What do you most want to understand about 1960s U.S. teen culture while reading The Outsiders, and why?