In Our Mother’s House by Patricia Polacco (Picture Book)
Marmee and Meema adopted a black girl, and then 3 years later a Chinese boy named will who was 3 days old and then 3 years after Millie, a red headed girl who was 2 months old. Meema was Italian and loved to cook and sew. She was a pediatrician and short and stoudt. Marmee was tall and thin and very organized. She was a paramedic. Their mothers loved to laugh and their house was filled with music. They lived on Woolsey Street in Berkley, Cali. The brick fireplace was the heart of their home and was Millie’s favorite place to be and she was a great artist. The sunroom was filled with old Halloween costumes that they made themselves and one year they all went as wild animals. Mrs. Lockner who glared and shut the door on them. But they won the Claremont Ave costume contest. One time they were all sick with the flu and brought home two puppies named Miso and Wasabi. They built a treehouse named Thistle House where all the kids got to sleep besides the Lockners and the children didn’t know why. The kitchen was the center of everything where they measured each other and their nonno cooked gnocchi which they all helped make. The table was where everyone talked about everything and listened to opera. Marmee organized the Woolsey Street block party and when they went to invite Mrs. Locknar she glared at them. Everyone set up a game in their front yard and they set up mini golf and everyone cooked unique foods. At the end of the day, Mrs Locknar came down the street and said she didn’t appreciate who they were. The mothers said she was full with fear and she doesn’t understand and there is no love in her heart.. One time they got picked to host the mother daughter tea and they stayed up all night making dresses. First the black woman left to go to medical school and then Will left to study engineering and then Millie went to become a fashion designer and they were married next to their tree house. Everyone gathered there for birthday parties and had babies and they died within a year from each other and were buried together in a green hillside by the bay where they got married. Will moved in there and they still gather there, in their mother’s house.
Henry’s Freedom Box : A True Story from the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine (Picture Book)
Henry was a slave and didn’t know how old he was because slaves weren’t allowed to know their birthdays. Henry lived with his mother and siblings in his masters house and his mother knew things could change.His master gave him away to his son and he was torn away from his family like the leaves are torn from the trees. Henry met Nancy and got married and had children and his wife and children were sold to other masters. He asked his friend James and a white man Dr Smith to help him mail himself somewhere where there weren’t slaves. Dr Smith mailed him to William H Johnson in Philadelphia. Henry burned his finger with vitrol oil so he could stay home and not work and get shipped on a train. He was handled harshly and went on a steamboat until he arrive don March 30th 1849 which was his first day of freedom. His name was Henry Box Brown.
The Starving Time, Elizabeth’s Jamestown Colony Diary (Book #2) by Patricia Hermes (Chapter Book)
This is the second diary of Elizabeth who is 9. It is 1609 in Jamestown and she doesn’t know if she is going to survive this winter in a fort dealing with sickness and no food. It starts in October 9, She sent her first diary to her brother Caleb who is still in England on a ship whos captian was smith but will arrive in spring. 25th, Amanda Quick’s mother died and her father is hallucinating while she watches her 3 sibilings while she is only 8. 6th food is more scarce and a ship will not return until spring. There are foods in the woods but they cannot get them because the Indians will attack. 16th all of their food is gone and the Bridgers stole it because they smelled the fish but papa did not want them thrown out. 4th first snowfall and disease and built a sick house. 17th mama her and Abigail are sick and there is no food or medicine. How will they survive? Her mom eats worms and dies and so does her friend mary. Her brother finally arrives on the ship with food.
Junkyard Wonders by Patricia Polacco (Picture Book)
Trisha started school in Michigan where her Gramma and Dad lived instead of going back to Cali. She met Kay, but everyone looked at her weird when she said she was in Mrs. Peterson’s class in room 206. The teacher started reading from a dictionary and told them to define junkyard, which described them. Thom told Trisha everyone in the classroom was odd. Jody Beach had a growing disease, Gibbie McDonald had tourettes, Stuart Bean had diabetes and Thom had trouble seeing and was called Sissy Boy because he liked ballet. She was in the vanilla tribe with them along with Ravanne Salze who doesn’t talk but was good at math. Trisha was the journal keeper because she liked to draw. Everyone made fun of their class badges and Mrs. Peterson took them to a real junkyard. The tribes collected things to make into new and the vanilla tribe was going to made a plane and everyone raised money to buy a motor for it. Jody died from his disease and the class collected flowers and named the plane Junkyard Wonder. Barton Poole made fun of the class and told the principal their plan to fly the plane on the roof for the science fair . Mr. Weeks said they could launch it from the roof with the motor as long as Gibbie’s dad was there. The plane flew all the way to the moon. The end said the author admires Mrs. Peterson and everything she did for them. Thom is a director at ABT, Ravanne is a fashion person in Paris, Gibbie works at NASA and put a picture of the class in Apollo 11 to show how the class really did go to the moon.
Eleanor by Barbara Cooney (Picture Book)
Eleanor Roosevelt’s mother was disappointed in her as a baby and she always makes fun of her and her father neglects her which causes her to be quiet and serious and doesn’t have many friends. Her father took her to serve Thanksgiving dinner to homeless boys which touches her heart. After her mother died at 9, her father left and was put in Grandma Hall’s orphanage. At 14, all of the girls grow into beautiful young ladies and Eleanor is still the ‘ugly duckling’. Grandma writes to a boarding school in Europe saying she is good but unattracitive but they accepted Eleanor anyways. She meets Mlle Souvestre and she teachs her to be comfortable in her own skin and open to her eyes to the world and find passion in life. The first time she was fitted in her beautiful dress she felt ‘unlovely’ but that is was ultimately transformed her into a new woman because she actually saw herself as beautiful. When she came back to America she met her husband, Franklin D. Roosevelt and became the First Lady and fights for civil rights movements.
One Green Apple by Eve Bunting (Picture Book)
Farah rides on a hay wagon with her class on the way to pick apples on her second day of school. She is different than everyone else because she cannot speak English and wears a dupatta. Her dad has said that she might not be treated nicely because of the country she is from and some kids look at her weird and it hurts her. The teacher asks the class to pick one apple to make apple cider. Everyone else picked a red apple, but Farah picked a green one. Everyone thought it was going to ruin it but they all helped squeeze the juice out, including Farah, and they realized it tasted great and blended in with the other apples. Farah thinks that like her apple, she will blend in with the other kids not only in her class but throughout her new country. At the end, she says the word apple.
Doll Baby by Eve Bunting (Picture Book)
Ellie is a little girl who loves to take care of her doll, Daisy. Now she is 15 and has a real baby, Angelica. She remembers her trip to the clinic for the first time and confronting the baby’s father who said are you sure its mine. She tells her mother and step father and how her classmates stared at her body changes and remembers when she had her. Her mom babysits while shes at school and takes a night job while her father has more responsibilities on his shoulder. She cries at night and hugs her Daisy wondering if she made the right choice but she realized a baby is not like a doll. Its hard work.
Black and white people were not allowed to be friends and everywhere you went in the 60's were seperate things for black and whites. Schools, restaurants and neighborhoods were all seperate. In 1960, Ruby went to an all black school but there was an all white school named William Frantz Elementary that was closer to her house. The government said that Ruby could go to that school finally. So in 1961 when Ruby was in 1st grade, she went to William Frantz along with her mother and police. The white students and parents protested outside and parents took their kids out of the school. Ruby was left alone with her teacher, Mrs. Henry who taught her math and how to read. Months past until kids finally started showing up again and Ruby had friends. Everyone wrote about her and how brave she was, including John Steinbeck. 1st Lady Eleanor Roosevelt sent her a letter and Norman Rockwell painted a famous picture of her. Because of Ruby, black and white kids can now go to the same school. She speaks at schools now about her story and how black and white children can be friends and they should all be kind to one another.
There are good and bad things about being President. Good things is that you live in a big house with a swimming pool, bowling alley, and movie theater. A bad thing is that you always have to be dressed up, be polite and has a lot of homework. It would help if your name was James because 6 presidents were named that. 8 Presidents were born in log cabins. Teddy Roosevelt was the youngest and Reagan was the oldest president. Presidents come in different personalities and looks. Every president had siblings and some were rich and some were poor. All kinds of pets lived in the white house and most had a sport they liked. It doesnt matter what the president did or looked, their first priority has always been the people and country their served. At the end of the book there is a timeline of the presidents and facts about each.
Heather has two mommies. Her mom's decide to put her in a play group with other children for the day. When she arrives, she starts to notice how other children's families have daddys and she doesnt. She starts to cry until her teacher pulls her aside and tells her that all families are different. The teacher tells everyone to draw a picture of their families. Each child shows their picture and Heather notices that some families have two daddies, some have no mommy or daddy or one mommy or one daddy. Some have siblinings, some do not. It doesnt matter who is in your family, the most important thing is that you love each other.
I Love My Hair By Natasha Tarpley
Keyana, an african american girl, and her mother have a nightly ritual of combing Keyana's hair. She cries because her mom hurts her when she tries to comb it. Her mother tells her she is so lucky to have such beautiful hair. She then tells her all the good things she can do with her hair.
This books talks about all kinds of boats from steamboats to boats in bottles to cargoships and boats that can break ice. Great book to plan a unit around.
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