Another Look at the Downfall of Once Classic Book Little House on the Prairie (A Response to my own Must NOT Read List post)

In my post from Saturday, November 29th, titled Must NOT Read List For Elementary School, I discussed a few books that have lost their cultural relevance in the United States. I scratched the surface, and the ensuing discussions that took place, both within my own page and on other pages, showed that people still have very passionate opinions about these classic books. I respect those opinions, because reading preference is, after all, a matter of opinion, and was pleased to see multiple levels of discourse occurring over what I wrote (I am a teacher after all).

Another level of this critique could take me into suggestions of other books, a suggestion I received in comments, and I do plan on moving in that direction too, but I wanted to further the discussion from that post by offering a deeper criticism.

In my first year as a classroom teacher, I inherited a large book library full of class sets that belonged to the school (a library that has since been absorbed by a "book room" open to all teachers). One of the titles on this shelf was The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare. I had a sub one day when I was out sick, and upon my return the next day, he was still in the building. This substitute teacher was a member of a Native American tribe from the northern part of the country. He told me that Speare's book is pretty much blatantly racist, and just thought I should know.

I looked a little deeper into this by researching it and reading the book. I found out that this books treatment of Native Americans was in fact not appropriate. It stereotyped Native Americans, reminded everyone of hateful attitudes towards "Indians," and presented a racially superior world view (whites as superior).

Now it's one thing to say that this book reflected the ideals of the time when it was written. OK, fair enough, I couldn't really argue with that. There's one problem here. The Sign of the Beaver was written in 1984, so explain it now. It's not a historical criticism, to argue that basically means that you haven't read the book and are just arguing for arguments sake.

This same argument is equally valid for Little House on the Prairie, a book that claims that "The only good indian is a dead indian," a book that presents a story told from the perspective of power, the white group settling west.

To choose to keep this book in the classroom, you must deal with the above argument, it's right there in front of you. When confronted with the fact that The Sign of the Beaver was a blatantly racist book, I removed it, because there is no argument to keep it there. If you say you are keeping Little House around because it offers children a chance to critique racism historically, think again, especially when some of the comments I received talked about reading it to 6 and 7-year-old kids. These children don't yet have that capacity (I don't care how advanced they are, they DO NOT have that capacity yet).

It's one thing to pull out these books in an AP English class in 12th grade, or in college, and critique it, but for children, they are not going to see that far beneath the surface, even with help from the teacher/parent.

The Watsons Go To Birmingham - 1963

The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963, by Christopher Paul Curtis, has been growing in popularity, not to mention banned book lists, since it was first published in 1995. This book is a great Civil Rights era story. It's the story of Kenny and the Watson family, and their experience living in Flint, Michigan in 1963. They're a fairly normal family, with problems common of the times, and that even parallel our lives today in many ways. Eventually they head off to Birmingham, Alabama, to return to the home of Kenny's mother.

They are in Birmingham when the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing took place on September 15, 1963 that killed four girls and injured many others. The great thing about this book is that it does what textbooks and worksheets can't, it injects emotion, a real story into the civil rights movement, and this means so much to pre-teen and teenage students alike. Pat R. Scales, author of Teaching Banned Books: 12 Guides for Young Readers, said:

Students may learn about the Civil Rights Movement in social studies, but they experience the horror, the fear, and the devastation of this terrible time with the Watson family in The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963. Textbooks omit emotions. Novels don't. Knowing the facts is important, but making an emotional connection is the only way to truly walk in the shoes of others.

So, if you're looking for a great Civil Rights book that will leave a lasting impression on your students, this book is great. If you're interested in knowing why it has been challenged in the past and has ended up on banned book lists, it's basically because the book falls in line with a lot of pre-teen tales. The story is candid, words like 'hell' and 'ass' are said a few times, and the bombing of the church is definitely difficult to read. But shying kids away from stuff like this isn't doing them any favors, censorship in the case of this book is unnecessary and wrong, this book should be read, and I hope that if you're considering a unit on it, to consider it.

Night, by Elie Wiesel: A Book Review

Night, by Elie Wiesel, is one brutal book to read. Wiesel is the critically acclaimed author of various stories centered around Jewish issues and the Holocaust. Wiesel is himself a survivor of both Auschwitz-Birkenau and Buckenweld concentration camps, and is the 1986 winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Night is only about 120 pages long, and that's in hard back. The book is short, but packs a big punch. When I read this book, I could really feel Wiesel's sense of despair, confusion, and fear as his family was torn apart, and as he watched his father waste away. He presents the reader with an intimate look at what evil is, how it tears individuals to shreds, and the lingering effects of such horrible events.

This book can be used in the classroom, even in the younger grade levels. If you have a progressive principal, and/or are dedicated to showing your students a true perspective of the Holocaust (forget all that textbook nonsense), then this is a great book to read. Bear in mind that classically this book is used in high school, but it has been on my bookshelf this school year and has been read twice, and has led those two students to find more books on the Holocaust and learn more, so I've seen this book open doors to learning.

I recommend this book for kids and adults alike, I have this book at home, and am currently writing a research paper comparing this book to the graphical elements in Art Spiegelman's Mausand in the movie The Pianist. It is powerful, it will stay with you, and is a lifetime learning opportunity for your students, whether they're 11 years old or 18.

Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History, by Art Spiegelman

Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History has had a reputation since the late 1970's as being one of the hardest hitting graphic novels ever written. Art Spiegelman wrote Maus as a biography of his father, Vladek Spiegelman, and did it through very straightforward but well drawn and written metaphor.

The metaphors I'm talking about are Spiegelman's portrayal of the Jewish as mice, the Nazi's as dangerous looking cats, of Russians as noble looking dogs, and of the Polish as pigs. Spiegelman himself described this metaphor as stupid but necessary, which you can see by watching the 1 minute and 5 second clip at the end of this review.

You have to be cautious when teaching this book in class, cautious to make sure you approach it correctly. Right now, I am using this book in my 5th grade class, and feel that my students are getting quite a lot out of it. We're using the book as a discussion on the holocaust, something that we studied in depth a little over a month ago, and we're also using it as a discussion on literary and visual devices, and how they work together to make a graphic novel. Students are working on their own autobiographical graphic novel as well, attempting to use the same visual cell types and word play used in Maus.

Graphic novels are still considered fringe in terms of their value in the classroom. Many teachers, parents, and literacy experts argue that graphic novels do nothing more than give students something they want (comic books) other than something they need (a valuable, learning literacy experience). I have found graphic novels to be valuable, when considering that, on top of the words on the page, students have to understand the immediate connection between words and pictures.

Maus is a great story, it's one of my all-time favorite reads, and considering that I didn't read it for the first time until earlier this year, that means that, as an adult, it's one of my favorite reads. I am currently doing research on the book, and am teaching it in my class. I will provide updates on both of those things as they move along over the next few weeks. But for now, I would consider reading Maus I (and II), and seeing if you think it would be a valuable classroom experience.

Teaching a Unit on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

First off, let's get one thing pretty straight. Teaching your students about Martin Luther King Jr. is more than something you do in January when his birthday is near. Of course, it's a great thing that we have a day set aside to commemorate the life of Dr. King, but he's more than just a day of coloring pages and a quick read aloud.

Many of us spend weeks and weeks teaching about presidents, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Thomas Jefferson. Marting Luther King Jr. is easily one of the most important figures in American history that we can teach our students. The man stood for so many good things, he stood for pride, peace, justice, equality, and respect for everyone.

I actually teach a civil rights unit, with the impetus of the entire thing being the life and teachings of Dr. King. There are many ways to approach such a unit, so I'll simply provide the example of what I do, and some of the resources I use when teaching about King, and hopefully some of it will be helpful for you. Just remember, making the decision to focus an extended period of teaching on men of integrity like King is the right decision, don't question it.

I always start my civil rights unit with a letter home to parents asking them for permission to teach their students through visual means. What I mean by this is that I do show them images of the struggle of civil rights, they hear and read accounts of the struggle, of the blood, the humiliation, and the death. It's important not to shock students, but to make the reality shine clearly. Civil rights was not simply a list of non-violent struggles to help African Americans gain equal rights, it was a bloody time. They were humiliated, beaten, and killed, and while we must be careful with what we show our students, we must also focus on the truth and the reality.

My school always shows the one-hour-long cartoon Our Friend, Martinright before the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday in January. This video is appropriate for kindergartners to watch, but even the older students, as old as 8th or 9th grade, sit and watch this video and always seem to retain quite a bit of what is presented, the life and historical importance of Reverend King. I recommend this video as an introduction to your unit if you can get ahold of it.

From there, we move into some literature on King, and begin the unit itself. First, let me explain some of the activities, and then I'll end by providing a list of some good picture, chapter, and reference books about Dr. King.

One overall activity that I have my students do is a biography of King. Each student is responsible for making a timeline of his life, and a list of the important events of his life. We do a bulletin board in the hallway with the letters KING in the middle, with short blurbs about King's life and importance around the name on the bulletin board. The students make the short blurbs from their biographies.

Obviously there are many approaches to the unit, I just gave a brief overview of a quick idea how to begin. You could also have your class make a video, which is something I'm doing right now with my class. Students will each record a 2 minute video where they discuss why King is important to them, and then, by mixing their clips with pictures, audio, and clips of King, make a video to show to the school. These are just a few ideas, now for the literature:

Here are some great picture books to use in your unit:

• My Dream of Martin Luther King (Dragonfly Books),by Faith Ringgold - Ringgold tells the events of a dream she had about King. This book shows children the struggles that King faced, as well as how truly remarkable his life really was.
• I've Seen the Promised Land: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.by Walter Dean Myers - This is a good introduction to the life of King. It's very timeline oriented, with great visuals. Many students would benefit from reading this book early on in your unit.
• . . . If You Lived at the Time of Martin Luther Kingby Ellen Levine - The question and answer format of this book makes it absolutely perfect for read aloud. I used this book just last week and the class had a very deep and appropriate discussion about King during the reading of the book.

And here's some great chapter books and reference style books to add to your library or read with your class:

• King: A Comics Biography of Martin Luther King, Jr. (The Complete Edition), by Ho Che Anderson - This 228 page graphic comic book is a masterpiece among masterpieces. It's a stunning visual and written account of the life of King. I don't know that I could recommend this book for students younger than say 7th or 8th grade, but as far as books about Dr. King goes, this one is stunning in every way.
• Children of the Dream: Our Own Stories Growing Up Black in America by Laurel Holliday - This 450 page book presents individual stories, diary excerpts, and essays of African Americans during and after King's "I Have A Dream" speech. It's a good book, you can definitely use bits and pieces of it, although probably not the whole thing.
• My Life with Martin Luther King, Jr. by Coretta Scott King - This book is unique because it's partly a retelling of King's own autobiography, but also shows you the extraordinary life of Dr. King's wife.

Teaching A Unit on Slavery: Part 2 (Literature Selections)

I hope the first part of my discussion on teaching a slavery unit in school was helpful. CLICK HERE TO GO DIRECTLY TO THAT POST. As I previously stated, the biggest mistake a lot of teachers make is following the text book that their school or school district has given them, it just doesn't tell the whole story and move students in the direction of anti-slavery teachings.

Now that I've talked a little about how to get started and have given a few picture book selections in that first post, I wanted to focus on some literature you can read with your students, have them read in groups, or whatever you decide to do with them. Let's get started:

• My Jim: A Novelby Nancy Rawles: Feel free to go back to my post on this book by clicking HERE. It's definitely one of the better books I've read on the issue of slavery. It's a re-telling of the story of Jim, the runaway slave of Huckleberry Finn fame, told from the perspective of his wife. It's a book of heartache, terror, more heartache, and of the total shame that came with being a slave. It does have scenes that involve sex, but is done in a way that it's not inappropriate, but it is themed more towards older students, possibly 7th grade and beyond.
• Day of Tearsby Julius Lester: A powerful short novel in dialogue that begins with the largest slave auction in United States history in 1859. The book follows a some of the people involved, both slaves, slave traders, buyers, and their families. It's told more like a dialogue, in a play format, and does take some getting used to. Wow though, it's a very strong book, a good read aloud, or a good book to have students read in small groups.
• Elijah Of Buxton, by Christopher Paul Curtis: I recently got this book through the Scholastic Book Clubs, and found it to be a very insightful, powerful book that would be appropriate for my 5th graders. It's the story of Elijah, the first freeborn child in Buxton, Canada. His family, who is free, living north of the slavery line, is saving money to free family in the south, until they are robbed of the money. Elijah embarks on a journey behind slavery lines to free his family, and sees firsthand the horrors of slavery. What makes this book so powerful is the way the mind of a child tries to come to grips with such a sobering reality. It's a long book (352 pages), so it could be a read aloud, or something a few of your students read together.

I realize that I'm starting small here, I'm trying to focus more on what I've found to be great books. There's obviously many more out there, I've thought a few times about adding to the picture book post, but decided to leave it as is. Hopefully in time, through comments and other things, these lists can grow larger. Part 3 of the unit on slavery will discuss a few activities you can do with your students.

Teaching a Unit on Slavery in Intermediate or Middle School (Part 1: Picture Books)

If you want to teach a unit on slavery, my first and only no-no is a textbook, stay away from the stupid things. The conventional social studies textbook will give you a few token pages about the history of slavery, might even show a pair of shackles, talk about Nat Turner and Frederick Douglas, then mention how not all slaves were treated very bad. Well, that's not what students need to know, so stay away from that.

Like when planning any unit, you want to have the end results in mind. What do you want to teach your students with this unit? If you want them to work on reading skills and get through the next chapter in the book, then by all means, use the social studies textbook. If you want them to learn about the horrors of slavery, why it happened, how it stopped, and the reality of slave life, then forget the textbook, it's only a resource at this point.

I like to start each unit in social studies with a video that shows a lot of pictures, facts, and video clips of the unit. What I tell my students is that the things they see on the video are things that they will know all about by the time we're done, then I show it. I show the video again as the last thing we do in that unit. So unless you're skilled at pre-planning and with some form of video making software, either Microsoft Movie Maker or ProShow or something like that, I wouldn't go this route.

The hard part about teaching slavery is, if you teach social studies in a chronological manner the way I do, you can't do the unit in one shot. You'll probably want to start out talking about the slave ships and routes that began back in the 1500's when talking about the rest of the 1500's and even into the late 1400's. It brings an edge of controversy to the discussions about the travels to the West Indies and places like that.

As you get to the main part of the unit, you'll be talking about slaves in the United States, probably mainly during the 1700's and 1800's. I have a picture book that I read to my 5th grade students called From Slave Ship to Freedom Road, by Julius Lester and Rod Brown, which is an honest look at slavery, its brutality, and the Underground Railroad.



Some other great PICTURE BOOKS ABOUT SLAVERY include:

• Under the Quilt of Nightby Deborah Hopkinson: This book is actually appropriate for any grade level, but was received well by my 10-12 year old students. It's the story of a young runaway slave girl and her family on the Underground Railroad. You hear the horrors of slavery and the dangers runaways faced through the eyes of a child. The pictures are beautiful as well, this is a great book.
• To Be A Slaveby Julius Lester: This book takes you inside what it feels like to be a slave. It's a picture book more appropriate for kids ages 9 and up, but very very telling with strong images.
• Almost to Freedom (Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Book), by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson: This book could be appropriate for even primary grades, but it's a good one to include. It's the story of a young girl on the Underground Railroad and her rag doll. The story is told by the rag doll, and is an excellent tale.

Vacaciones

Today is Friday, and I've been on spring break this past week, and will be heading back to work on Monday. It's been a nice break, a nice chance to relax, catch up on some reading, and go places with my kids. I'm currently reading the book My Jim, by Nancy Rawles. It's the story of Sadie, a black woman slave near the end of slavery in the mid 1800's. She was married to Jim, the same Jim from Huckleberry Finn fame (and of course, it's fiction).

It is an interesting book, I've always had some difficulty reading books written in the incantatory voice of the slaves, but it is sad to actually feel their treatment from up close. I'm going to sit down this weekend and think of some good stories to read and things to do when teaching slavery. I did my slavery unit back in November, I try to, in 5th grade social studies, start with pre-Colombian native tribes, and move all the way up through the present. It's an ambitious task that I only pulled off for the first time last year. I put the finishing touches on a World War II / Holocaust unit right as the break hit, so I'm hoping 8 weeks will be long enough to get up to the present.

I'll post very soon with some ideas and resources for teaching slavery.

Teaching the Holocaust

If you teach anything beyond 4th grade (and especially if you teach Social Studies), there's a good chance that at some point, you come across World War II. One of the major events of that period was definitely the Jewish Holocaust of 1939-1945. But how do you approach these events in a way that is appropriate for the age level of students that you have? If you teach high school, this isn't as much of an issue, your students are capable and ready for a more 'head on' approach.

If you teach in an Elementary of Middle School, it's not so easy. Many teachers don't teach the Holocaust out of fear that it will be inappropriate or that someone will complain.

Yes, it was a terrible series of events, and many people don't want to say that horrible word in their classroom: Hitler. But there are ways to do this and do it appropriately for even pre-teens.

Let's start with some great Holocaust literature and discuss its merit in your classroom:

The Book Thiefby, Markus Zusak: This book is ideal for your advanced 5th graders and beyond (Amazon recommends it for grades 9 and up, but trust me from personal experience, it will work with younger kids), even up to adult age groups. It's narrated by Death, and follows an orphaned German girl during the Nazi time period and the Jewish Holocaust. It's a great book that sets the stage for the pain and suffering of the Jewish peoples, but is told from a German perspective. It's imaginative, engaging, and will keep them reading. It's long though, so it might not be appropriate as a read aloud.

The Broken Mirrorby, Kirk Douglas: The story of a Jewish boy who is the only one in his family left alive at the end of the war. He tries to hide his true Jewish identity and tells everyone he is a gypsy, but is faced with an identity conflict. It's short (under 100 pages), is appropriate for grades 4 and up, and yes, it is written by the Kirk Douglas. It's a good book, very appropriate.

Nightby, Elie Wiesel: This story has been around for some time, but recently gained notoriety when Oprah put it in her book club. It's a heart-breaking story of survival in a concentration camp. This book brings into the open questions of the evil that lies in the human heart, the questions of the existence of God in the face of horrible events, and personal anguish. It's appropriate for middle school (probably grades 7 and up), but is more common in high school. It isn't the easiest read, in fact it's brutal and almost icy in its presentation.

Maus I & Maus II by, Art Spiegelman: These now classic graphic novels depicting the horrors of the Holocaust, specifically Auschwitz-Birkenau, have an extremely unique angle, the characters are animals. The metaphor is powerful, the images are very real, and the story doesn't hold anything back. I did read the first Maus with my 5th grade class, and felt like I was walking on egg shells. However, in the end, it was an extremely rewarding experience, and many of the students who read it said it was the most powerful literary experience they've ever had. This is one book that you need to experience for yourself before throwing it to your students, because some will find it appropriate, and some won't.

The Devil's Arithmeticby, Jane Yolen: This book is more or less, as I originally saw it described on the Amazon.com website, 'Schindler's List for kids.' It really is that biting. It's the story of a young girl living in the late '80s who is transported back to 1942 as a Jewish girl in a concentration camp. Be prepared for a difficult journey, and a lot of questions from your students. This book is, however, appropriate for 5th grade and beyond.

Obviously there are many many more books out there for you to use. I left out Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girlbecause it is an obvious choice. What I would do with this book is read something shorter with your class, either a picture book or a shortened version, and watch a documentary or movie about Anne Frank, as the entire diary is quite long. It would be more appropriate to read it with an older age set, but it's up to you, I've seen students as young as 4th grade love this story.

What we as educators need to remember is that the Holocaust is a very important world event that shouldn't be ignored. There are many examples of prejudice and racism out there, but this is one that obviously stands out as an example of what happens when racism is allowed to run free. Ignoring it will do no good, and from a standpoint of the critical pedagogist, it must be taught head on.