Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. Read the epigraph to Salvage the Bones from Outkast’s “Da Art of Storytellin’ (Part 1)” and think about its message regarding youth and growing up. Choose a lyric from a song that encapsulates your dreams for the future. Why did you choose these lyrics?   

Teaching Suggestion: This question orients the student to the novel’s themes of Renewal and Re-Birth. The characters in Salvage the Bones share the same dreams and aspirations as any other young people, but they face extraordinary social and economic challenges that increase the danger of drug addiction, poverty, and incarceration.  

• “Da Art of Storytellin’ (A Prequel)” – This 3000-word essay by Kiese Laymon explores how certain music has helped Laymon better appreciate and understand his grandmother and Black Southern artistic expression. You may consider excerpting pieces of the essay that connect most closely to the unit’s themes, specifically Attitudes Toward Women and Renewal, Re-Birth, and Its Inevitable Pain. (Teacher-facing resource)

2. What do you know about Hurricane Katrina? How did racism and poverty exacerbate the natural disaster and the societal breakdown that followed?