The hidden girl: A true story of the Holocaust

Thank you Julissa Sargent, for a biography reflection.

Kaufman, L., & Metzger, L. (2008). The hidden girl: A true story of the Holocaust. New York: Scholastic.

On September 17,1939 when Russian soldiers entered a small hometown of a young girl named Lola when she was only five years old.  Before she reached her 10th birthday, she lost her father, then her mother one right after the other as well as watched extended family and friends disappear. Yet Lola was one of the few “lucky” children because so many did not survive the devastation of Hitler’s regime that wiped out six million Jews living in Europe in 1939.  The book talks about how Lola’s grandmother entrusted Lola to a Ukrainian woman who hid her in a back room until the Nazi threat came too close. It then goes on to explain how Lola fled again to the home of another brave family, where she spent nine months buried in a dark hole beneath the family barn.  Throughout this time in hiding, Lola wore a hand embroidered dress that her mother made for her.   After her escape she and some extended family immigrated to America to start a new life.  It wasn’t until years later that she was able to share her haunting testimony with others.  This book is a heart wrenching journey that will allow older children and adults to understand one of the most tragic events in history.  According to the book, you will now find the hand embroidered dress that Lola wore in the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C.

Literary Terms:
            This book is a biography, which means it was written by someone about another person’s life.  The really neat thing about this book however, is that the author used actual first hand stories and quotes from the person whom she was writing about.  The theme of this book has a huge significance in the history of our world.  It tells the story first hand of what it was like to survive the Holocaust, which was something very few were able to do.  This book is definitely worthy of attention from readers of all ages.  The imagery in the book will keep you coming back to read more, the author uses words that portray how things looked, smelled, and sounded for Lola during this miraculous journey.

Curriculum Connections:
RI.5.1. Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
RI.5.9. Integrate information from several texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably.
After reading this book and having conversations about the events of the Holocaust in a class for upper elementary students, I think it would be great for the students to do more research on the events of the Holocaust.  They can use the internet, journals, other books, and possibly even interviews of any known survivors.  I then think the students could make a podcast to deliver a summary of their findings.  Students learn best when applying given content knowledge and teaching others, this would be a great activity to do so as well as incorporate technology too!

Big Questions:
How would you create a new life after so much suffering?
  Could you imagine living in fear for your life?

LeBron James: The rise of a star

Thanks, Krystalynn Wilson, for a refreshing look at a book!

Morgan, D. L. (2003). LeBron James: The rise of a star. Cleveland, OH: Gray & Co.

   

 This informational chapter book begins with the baby King James entering the world. Born to a 16 year old, immature mother, his life was sure to see its ups and downs. The only stability in his early life was his grandmother, who at about age three died of a massive heart attack while his mother was out partying. This lack of stability in his life resulted in absolute turmoil, moving in and out of people's homes for several years. LeBron recalls moving seven times in one year, and missing 89 days of the school year. It is hard to believe that a little boy who experienced what he did growing up developed into such a talented, hard-working athlete. 

 The author's style is quite informal. He refers to LeBron's mother, Gloria, as "belligerent" and "immature", and claims she was simply not ready for the task of raising a child. He does, however, make it clear through interviews and information from others that although she was struggling, her love for LeBron was never wavering. She was true to him the best she could be. 

 The organization of the biography was a struggle for me. It moves through time until present day (which was actually 2003- the date of the book bothers me because it doesn't reach "The Decision" of 2010, which is a pivotal time in LeBron's life). The focus, however, is how he became a star. Rather than just sequentially traveling through events in his life, it divides the chapters into themed ideas. For example, one chapter was dedicated to moving around; another was dedicated to the game in high school where he managed to gain fame. Although I think that all of the details the author shares are very important, I would rather the book been divided  into ages and travel more sequentially through his life. At times it was difficult to jump back and forth between him being a baby, then talking about fifth grade, then going back again. 

 Overall, I really enjoyed this book. LeBron James is one of the most controversially disputed players in NBA history. My husband and I argue about him frequently; I am in love with him, and my husband hates his guts. I think that rather or not you really like him, it's beneficial to see where he came from. Biographies always have a way of making me love a person, or at least having some empathy for him or her. A man who has won two championships in a row, a man who is frequently referred to as "King" or "The Chosen One" used to play street ball in a milk crate attached to a pole. What person can't find some interest in that?

Laura Ingalls Wilder

Nice biography reflection, thanks to Laura Lee Samples.

Stone, T.L. (2009). Laura Ingalls Wilder. New York, NY:  DK Publishing.

Age Level:  8 and up (grade 3 and up)

Genre:  This is a biography because it gives factual information about the life of an actual person, including her experiences, influences, accomplishments, and legacies.  It is part of a biography series and it falls in the broad genre of non-fiction because the information is factual.

Summary:  Laura Ingalls Wilder is about the life of a beloved author of the well known Little House children's book series, describing America's pioneer days.  The book is organized into fifteen chapters depicting the chronological order of Wilder's existence, from the a little girl in the Big Woods, to a wife and mother, to an award-winning author.

Reflection:  This biography provides information on the life of an actual living being.  It is information in the fact that this book, like most biographies, is structured in the form of a sequence.  Stone organized the information to be presented in a chronological order of Wilder's life.  A variety of graphic elements, such as vocabulary, illustrations, photographs, captions, a timeline, and index, are incorporated into the text to make it more interesting for readers.  The text boxes provide additional facts from this time in history ("The Railroad," page 47) and the vocabulary identified in the form of a fact box defines specific words on the same page ("surveyor," on page 47).

(pages 46-47)

This book would be a wonderful addition to further understanding of a well-known children's author.  I can remember being enthralled with pioneer life after having read and had read to me the Little House chapter books by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  Although I knew the books were written as a display of Wilder's childhood days, I had no idea the details into her life that have piqued my interest today, following my reading of her biography.  

If it were feasible from a school in the state of Kentucky, I would love to take my students to Walnut Grove, Minnesota to visit the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum.  However, that may not exactly be within a school budget.  Instead, there are wonderful enrichment opportunities via the world wide web.  To select a few...

Children's printables provided by the Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Home and Museum in Mansfield, Missouri.  Click here for a closer look.

To incorporate an economic look into the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder, check out this insightful lesson plan with assessments for young and old.  Click here to explore the city of De Smet, South Dakota where Wilder resided as an adult.

A resourceful tool for developing map skills connected to the journeys of the Ingalls family is through the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum website.  To access this technological connection, click here.  In addition, the www.lauraingallswilderhome.com provides this travel map:

Finally, the greatest resource of all, in my opinion, is this amazing site loaded with discussion questions, activities, fun sites, and author sites in correlation with Little House on the Prairie! To be amazed yourself, click here.

Additional texts into the life of Laura Ingalls Wilder include:

Laura Ingalls Wilder:  A Biography by William Anderson

Little House, Long Shadow:  Laura Ingalls Wilder's Impact on American Culture by Anita Clair Fellman

Laura Ingalls Wilder:  A Writer's Life by Pamela Smith Hill

Becoming Laura Ingalls Wilder:  The Woman behind the Legend by John E. Miller

Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little Town:  Where History and Literature Meet by John E. Miller

On the Way Home:  The Diary of a Trip from South Dakota to Mansfield, Missouri, in 1894 by Laura Ingalls Wilder

A Little House Traveler:  Writings from Laura Ingalls Wilder's Journeys Across America by Laura Ingalls Wilder