Students will learn about the life of North Carolina’s “first professional poet”, George Moses Horton, who was born into slavery in 1798 North Carolina. Despite the unjust society he was enslaved in, Mr. Horton resisted and tirelessly worked towards freedom, both intellectually and physically. By reading, discussing, and preparing dramatic presentations of Horton’s poetry, students will gain an understanding and appreciation of Mr. Horton’s literary contribution, even under the great adversity of enslavement.