Tree Girl

I’m a dreamer. The only one in my family to go to school. My blood is Mayan. Proud. I am Gariela Flores.

I first started climbing trees in Guatemala when I was four. Ever since then, they have been my sanctuary. My home away from home. Now I am fourteen and the day of my quinceanera, the celebration of my passage into womanhood, is approaching quickly. So are the soldiers. War is on its way, and I must find a way to escape its path.

A fictional account of a Guatemalan refugee caught in the war between the government and guerillas. Like so many others, she will fight her way to the Mexican border, searching for herself…and her sister. If you find yourself teaching a unit on Latin America, please find a way to share this book with your students. Ben Mikaelsen’ s account of the savage effects of the wars in Central America on the mind of a young person is not be missed!

Mikaelson, B. (2004). Tree Girl. New York: HarperTempest.

The Wall

A Caldecott Honor Book!
(Not to be confused with that movie by Pink Floyd).

Peter Sis loved to draw. He would draw the things he saw around him. Shapes like red stars and flags…people… When he went to school they told him what to draw. He didn't mind. He drew tanks, sickles, and famous political leaders. He never questioned any of it. That is, until they started banning art, books, and music…anything that wasn’t Socialist. But it didn’t stop the West from coming in. And it didn’t stop Sis from painting in secret.



Want to know more about what Sis painted? Read The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain. Use it with your students to teach them first-hand what life is like under a Communist government. Peter’s diary of drawings is sure to drum up interest!

Sis, P. (2007). The Wall: Growing up behind the Iron Curtain. New York: Francis Foster Books.

Willa: An American Snow White

Here's a riddle you might enjoy!



What
do
you
get
when
you…




Replace Snow White

with a girl named Willa...

Make the evil stepmother

a fading Shakespearean actress...

Turn the seven dwarfs into

a traveling comedy troupe...

And change the prince

into a budding film maker?

Throw in some dramatic monologues
from Willy Shakes, and you’ve got:
Willa: An American Snow White.

A Carnegie Medal Award Winning Film!

This movie is dedicated to all you thesbians out there. Go ahead, pick your poison. There’s a little bit of everything…Cinematic photography, dramatic irony, chiaroscuro. And did I forget to mention that all of the actors were cast from the American Shakespeare theater in Washington D.C.? Teachers, fool your students with this classic fairy tale and show them how Shakespeare was meant to sound.

Warning: Graphic scenes may not be suitable for use with younger children

Davenport M. (Producer), & Davenport, T (Director). (1998). Willa: An American Snow White. Delaplane, VA: Davenport Films.

Dogsong

A Newberry Honor Book!

Want to read about an fourteen year old Eskimo who sled races across Alaska?
Russell Susskit is the boy you’re looking for! Of course, he’ll have to break in the dogs, brave the elements, and pray he doesn’t starve to death or get killed by caribou. To win this race, he’ll have to draw from the strength of his people to become a true leader….a pack leader. If for no other reason than to save the girl that fate has put onto his sled.

Gary Paulson’s done it again! His tale of bravery in the face of nature will awe any young mind. Especially your male students. There’s no better way to introduce them to literature than to get their adrenaline pumping with this story of survival!

Paulson, G. (1985). Dogsong. New York: Atheneum Books For Young Readers.

A Wreath for Emmett Till

A Coretta Scott King Award Winning Book!

In 1955, Emmett Till was found washed up in a river with the fan of a cotton gin tied around his neck. It was later found that he was hung and severely beaten by five white men from Mississippi. His crime? Some witnesses say he whistled at a white woman. Now one woman is struggling to come to grips with a tragedy that rocked the nation and the hearts of African Americans everywhere. How does one deal with the effects of racism and injustice? The answer is in this book.

The story is told through a “heroic crown” of fifteen interlinking sonnets with Italian rhyme scheme. Through poetic verse, Marilyn describes the psychological effects of social injustice on our cultural psyche. Nelson concurs that it is our responsibility to speak out against injustice (despite social repercussions), lest we become slaves to fear and suffer the murderous consequences of future tragedy. Please share this book with your students, if for no other reason than to enlighten them about how our nation's past directly affects their future.

Image borrowed from Intuitive Roots, an online blog found at:
http://blog.lib.umn.edu/mwright2/iroots/cat_a_wreath_for_emmett_till.html

Nelson, M. (2005). A wreath for Emmett Till. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Facing the Lion

My dream is to kill a lion. Then I will be the strongest warrior in my tribe. My people are nomads, meaning we make our home where the cattle graze. When the land dries up, we move with them. We belong to the Ariaal, a subgroup of the Masaai Tribe in Kenya. Come with me on my journey and I will tell you about how I become a Harvard graduate and come face to face with my first lion. In the end, you will find me bringing education to my people and educating people (such as yourself) about my culture.

This book gives the phrase “it takes a village to raise a child.” a whole new meaning. Read on to learn about the customs and traditions of a native African. Struggle with him as he tries to reconcile Western teachings with his own. Laugh as he scares the tar out of some American tourists with his own brand of tribal humor. This is the story of Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton, tribesman, teacher, human rights activist, and the most recent addition to the Parliament of Kenya. What a great book for that
7th grade geography unit on Africa!

Lekuton, J. L. (2003). Facing The lion: Growing up Maasai on the African Savannah. Washington D.C.: National Geographic Society.

Samir and Yonaton

My name is Samir. I’m a Palestinian and I live in the middle of a war-zone. I want to be like my brother Fadi…dying the death of a hero. Actually die…not fall off my stupid motorbike and land in the hospital like a coward cheating death. Never mind the fact that this is a Jewish hospital. How can it be that the only people who can save my leg are the same ones responsible for my brother’s death? How can anyone in this hospital understand me? Even if they are my age...

Samir and Yonaton is about a friendship forged from the ashes of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As each child’s story unfolds, they will discover a deep humanity that leads to the tearing down of racial walls and emotional barriers. Use this book with your students to get them personally involved in a centuries-old conflict that still effects the world today.

Harlem Hustle

Harlem Hustle.
His street name.
Earned for hustling anything and everything just to turn a dime. Of course some people, no matter how tough they appear to be, can take being caged up like an animal. Hustle learns real quick he’s one of those people after getting busted for petty theft on his seventeenth birthday. Being a high school dropout, there’s only one thing keeping him going. Rapping. Does he have what it takes to come up in the industry or will his dreams take him somewhere else?

Does this sound like a book for students? Trust me, it is. For all the students in our schools who dream of making it big. The ones who might not see a future for themselves otherwise. Give them a book about real life…maybe they can picture a place for themselves if they know what they’re capable of.

MacDonald, J. (2006). Harlem Hustle. New York: Francis Foster Books.

The Time Warp Trio Graphic Novel Series

Whatever you do….

Don’t say it.

Don’t you dare…

Mention ANYTHING about history!

Because it doesn’t stand a chance
with the Time Warp Trio around!

This series of graphic novels is adapted from the popular TV show. Travel with Sam, Fred, and Joe as they chase the Time Travel book all over different historical eras. They may wind up in all sorts of trouble, but at least they learn something in the process.

If your kids can’t get into textbooks, give them a comic book. Seriously! How can anyone resist a history lesson on India with the title “Dude, where’s my Karma?” Why not check out some of the other books in the series like “My Big Fat Greek Olympics” “You Can’t But Genkis Kahn” or “What’s So Great About Peter?” Your students will learn more than you’d think with this crazy pack of kids!

Don't forget to check out their website at http://www.timewarptrio.com. Plenty of resources for teachers and students. Games, lesson plans, good books...and let's not forget about clips from the TV show!



Scieszka, J. (2006). "Seven blunders of the world." The Time Warp Trio, vol. 2. [Adapted from the teleplay by Gary Apple]. New York: Harper Trophy.