Picture Book on an Historical Topic: Child of the Civil Rights Movement by Paula Young Shelton & Raul Colon

Bibliographic information: 

Shelton, P. Y. (2013). Child of the Civil Rights Movement. Dragonfly Books.

Plot description:

Paula Young Shelton is the daughter of civil rights activists Andrew Young and Jean Childs Young. In Child of the Civil Rights Movement she reveals intimate family moments as well as sweeping political atrocities and triumphs she and her family witnessed as they worked and lived alongside Dr. King and the other social activists in the 1960s.  Shelton shares her family's call to action, when they left their relatively safe home in New York to return to the Jim Crow South to participate in the march from Selma to Montgomery.  The known historical events are juxtaposed with warm memories of  Shelton's "civil rights family" - home-cooked dinners and trips to the pool with "Uncle Martin" and other members of the movement.  The book ends with Paula's family reacting to watching President Johnson sign the Voting Rights Act of 1965 on TV, and with a solemn vow from Paula to "march on" after her parents are no longer able.

 

Quantitative reading level:

ATOS Book Level: 7
Interest Level: Ages 5-8
Lexile Measure: AD960L

 

Qualitative reading analysis: 

Child of the Civil Rights Movement is told from the perspective of the author when she was a young girl.  The pages are not text-heavy, so that young readers/listeners can spend plenty of time pouring over the beautiful, soft illustrations. The book is made of six chapters that each relate a single story from the author's childhood.    At the end of the book, the author provides short biographies of the men and women who made up her "civil rights family."

The story is linear and follows a narrative flow that is easy to follow.  Particularly young readers/listeners will need help with some of the terminology used to reference the civil rights movement, though Shelton does a wonderful job introducing the topic in a gentle, childlike way.  The sentences are quite long, though they are broken up on the page like prose.

No previous knowledge is needed to understand the story, though teachers would do well to offer students a brief introduction/recap of the civil rights movement and what brought it about. Child of the Civil Rights Movement is an ideal book to read aloud to young children, since it will doubtlessly encourage questions and discussion. 

Content area:

 

• English
• Social Science: U.S History, Civil Rights Movement

 

Content area standard:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.1.2
Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.1.3
Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to gather additional information or clarify something that is not understood.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.1.1
Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.1.2
Identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.1.3
Describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text.

  

Curriculum suggestions:  

Child of the Civil Rights Movement is an ideal companion to a unit on the Civil Rights Movement.  Shelton's narrative allows children to put themselves in her shoes so that they can experience a more personal connection to the Civil Rights Movement.  Students can reflect on the book through drawing or writing.  They might draw a memory of a time when they were treated unfairly - who did they ask for help in that situation?  These experiences can be related to the experience Shelton shares in the book, and the importance of the Civil Rights Movement and the people behind it.

 

Supporting digital content:

Classroom resources: http://www.tolerance.org/classroom-resources

Doing justice to Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in the classroom: https://www.teachingforchange.org/doing-justice-to-mlk-day

Awards:

 

• Cooperative Children’s Book Center Choices WINNER 2011
• New York Public Library 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing WINNER
• Bank Street Child Study Children’s Book Award FINALIST 

 

Other titles to consider:

 

 

Ellington was not a Street by Ntozake Shange and Kadir Nelson

 
Ron's Big Mission by Rose Blue and Corinne Naden

 

 

 

 

 

Non-fiction historical work: They Called Themselves the K.K.K. by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

 

 

Bibliographic information:

Bartoletti, S. C. (2014). They Called Themselves the K.K.K.: The Birth of an American Terrorist Group (Reprint edition). HMH Books for Young Readers.

 

Plot description:  

S.C. Bartoletti takes the reader through the beginnings of the organization that eventually went by the name of the Ku Klux Klan.  Tennessee in 1866 was a racially segregated and politically volatile state.  Six men took that toxic mix and created the country's most notorious and storied hate group.  Bartoletti has carefully and exhaustively gathered dozens of poignant historical documents that help the reader understand how the United States of America allowed, and even fostered, the growth of the K.K.K.  She uses personal stories, newspaper articles, political cartoons and governmental documents that serve to underline the powerful movement that was tearing the country apart in the years directly following the Civil War.

 

Quantitative reading level:

ATOS Book Level:7.0
Interest Level: Grades 7-10
Lexile Measure: 1180L

 

Qualitative reading analysis: 

They Called Themselves the K.K.K. starts with a Table of Contents, followed by a Note to the Reader.  Bartoletti cautions the reader that she has made no attempt to censor the language or images that she has included in the book. The book is then split into manageable chapters. Each chapter includes a narrative on a given aspect of the K.K.K.'s formation and rise, and includes reproductions of original documents and photographs.  At the end of the book, Bartoletti includes a Civil Rights Timeline, as well as her Bibliography and Source Notes. 

Bartoletti uses easily understood language that will reach many levels of readers.  Some of the language used in the original period documents might be confusing or upsetting for younger readers (middle school kids), but the author does an excellent job framing the context in which they were originally produced.  Little prior knowledge is needed in order for readers to grasp all that Bartoletti offers in this book, though less mature readers might benefit from a conversation about the time period and the attitudes of the people living in those times.

 

Content area:

Social Studies - American History

 

Content area standard:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.1
Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the information.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.2
Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.3
Analyze in detail a series of events described in a text; determine whether earlier events caused later ones or simply preceded them.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary describing political, social, or economic aspects of history/social science.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.5
Analyze how a text uses structure to emphasize key points or advance an explanation or analysis.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.7
Integrate quantitative or technical analysis (e.g., charts, research data) with qualitative analysis in print or digital text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.8
Assess the extent to which the reasoning and evidence in a text support the author's claims.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.9
Compare and contrast treatments of the same topic in several primary and secondary sources.  

 

Curriculum suggestions:  

Since Bartoletti has gathered so much media from the time period she writes about, an interesting way for students to look at the subject matter would be for them to compare and contrast documents portraying African Americans in that day and age, and current documents.  For example, how are caricatures of Barak Obama different from or similar to some of the caricatures in They Called Themselves the K.K.K.

 

Supporting digital content:

Uncovering the K.K.K. - https://www.teachervision.com/us-history/printable/46089.html
The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow - http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/index.html

 

Awards:

2011 ALA Notable Children’s Books, Older Readers
Booklist 2011 Top 10 Books for Youth, Black History
2011 NCTE Orbis Pictus Recommended 
IRA Notable Books for a Global Society 2011
Booklist 2010 Editor’s Choice, Books for Youth, Nonfiction, Older Readers
Booklist Lasting Connections of 2010, Social Studies
Horn Book Fanfare, Best Books of 2010, Nonfiction
Kirkus Reviews 2010 Best Books for Teens
Publishers Weekly Best Children’s Books 2010, Nonfiction
School Library Journal Best Books 2010: Nonfiction
YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Finalist, 2011

 

Personal thoughts:

They Called Themselves the K.K.K. is an essential title for libraries serving children in grades 7-12.  Bartoletti's unflinching look (supported by more than 100 original documents and photographs) at the formation and rise of this hate group will allow readers to understand not only those event, but current events that are shockingly similar in their intent.

Historical Fiction Novel: Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

Bibliographic information:

Wein, E. (2012). Code Name Verity (First Edition edition). New York: Disney-Hyperion.

 

Plot description:

Queenie has been captured by Nazis in occupied France after parachuting out of the plane her best friend, Maddie, was piloting.  The two were on a Allie-led secret mission when their plane was compromised, forcing Queenie to escape before Maddie and the plane (presumably) crashed into the countryside.  Queenie finds herself imprisoned in an old hotel now overrun with Gestapo, being tortured and forced into revealing her story and her country's secrets.  She cleverly weaves her tale in a way that not only satisfies, but enchants her captors, allowing Queenie to extend her life a little longer.  Meanwhile, Maddie begins her own French adventure, which ultimately leads her to the Resistance, and then back to her dear friend Queenie, for one beautiful, catastrophic moment.

 

Quantitative reading level:

ATOS Book Level: 5.6
Interest Level: Grades 9-12
Lexile Measure: 1020L

 

Qualitative reading analysis: 

The first half of the book is presented as Queenie's "confession" to the Gestapo.  She alternates between her present day reality as a prisoner of the Nazis, her life in the days before her involvement in the war as she was getting to know her best friend Maddie, and the actual events leading up to her capture in occupied France.  The second half is written from Maddie's point of view, revealing her experience after the plane crash-landing and ending with her eventual return to England.

Queenie's narrative is presented in both first and third person.  Her story line is non-linear and demands particular attention to language nuances and hints.  While the language itself is not complex, the way in which Weir plays with Queenie's narrative could be confusing for less sophisticated readers. A working knowledge of the events surrounding World War II is essential to truly grasp the plot and underlying meaning of Code Name Verity. 

This novel is only appropriate for competent, mature readers.  High school students who are avid readers and have a known interest in history will reap the significant rewards of diving into this fantastic text.  Readers who struggle with complex structure or who are weighed down by excessive detail (which requires close attention) will quickly become disinterested in this novel.

Content area:

 

• English
• Social Science: British and French History, 1939-1945.  World War, 1939-1945.  Holocaust.  Nazis.

 

Content area standard:

 

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.3
Analyze in detail a series of events described in a text; determine whether earlier events caused later ones or simply preceded them.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.4
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including vocabulary describing political, social, or economic aspects of history/social science.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.5
Analyze how a text uses structure to emphasize key points or advance an explanation or analysis.

  

Curriculum suggestions:  

The ideal classroom situation for Code Name Verity would be in an accelerated Humanities class where both the structure of the novel and the content of the text could be analyzed.  This book would be an excellent addition to curriculum surrounding World War II and the Holocaust.

 

Supporting digital content:

 

Study Guide: http://www.teachingbooks.net/media/pdf/SingleBGs/CodeNameVerity.pdf

British Air Transport Auxiliary: http://www.airtransportaux.com/

WWII memories, collected by the BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/ 

 

Awards:

 

• UK Literary Association Award Winner
• Edgar Award Winner
• Printz Honor Book
• Boston Globe/Horn Book Award Honor Book
• Shortlisted for the 2013 CILIP Carnegie Award
• Golden Kite Award Honor Book
• Shortlisted for the Scottish Children's Book Award
• Catalyst Book Award Winner (East Lanarkshire County Council, Scotland)

 

Series information:

 

Code Name Verity is part of the "Young Pilots" series, which also includes Rose Under Fire and Black Dove, White Raven.  All titles in the series are authored by Elizabeth Wein.