Take Me Back To The Sixties ~ Bring on the Music

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Happy New Year, students, and welcome back to school!

From the futuristic, dystopian life in Panem in The Hunger Games, we are headed back to the simple life of the sixties for The Outsiders. In preparation for the reading of this great story, I would like to know what you know, or would like to know about the sixties.

While this story focuses on the mid-sixties, 1964-67, the sixties as a whole was a decade that brought about the most change our world has ever come to know.

When I think of the sixties, I think of the Beatles and the British invasion that followed which changed the course of music forever.

This concert was at Shea Stadium, New York 1965. Can you imagine singing to that crowd? They wore no earphones piping in the music, that technology wasn’t around yet.

And oh, just so you know, I was sitting on the roof of my aunt’s house with some friends listening to the concert. It was the best seat in the house. 🙂

What do you know about the sixties or want to know more about?

Classic Supremes

The Dave Clark 5

Peace, Love, and Flower Power Too

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Many historians describe the sixties as the decade that resulted in the most significant changes in our history. During this week, we are going to explore the sixties era, so that you have a better understanding of what was happening during that time, and hopefully, will appreciate more the context under which The Outsiders was written. You all should have some knowledge of this time period already having read The Wednesday Wars this summer. Please take some time and visit the links below. There is a wealth of information gathered there for you to research, which will take you a few days to explore, certainly more than one night. I encourage you to click on the links within these web pages for further information. I will start classes off this week by showing you an amazing video I found on the sixties which I’m sure will spark many interesting discussions, which I look forward to having!

Once you have had your fill of all things sixties, please respond to my following questions: What defines the sixties for you? (When someone mentions the sixties what do you think of?) What do you feel was the most significant event? What was the most important contribution? If you could time travel and go back to the sixties, where would you go and what would you do? Finally, what did you learn from your readings that you didn’t know before? As always, I am looking for detailed responses and specifics. Because of the wealth of information here, you will have an extra day to respond, Thursday. If you would like to post a blog prompt of your own in regards to the sixties, please do so after Wednesday.

“The thing the sixties did was to show us the possibilities and the responsibility that we all had. It wasn’t the answer. It just gave us a glimpse of the possibility.” John Lennon

The Year 1967

American Cultural History

The Sixties Official Site

The Sixties Dance Craze

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