Sunday, January 11, 2009

Historical Fiction Lit Circles











Ladder #1:  Individual Activists - 




fighting societal injustices


Iqbal: A novel about a true story.  This book is set in Pakistan and shares the plight of children sold into slavery.  Read more about the nonprofit, Free the Children, that was founded after reading Iqbal.

1. Go to Issues and Controversies (jackson/hole). Type in Child labor and choose the one titled “Child Labor and Sweatshops.”
2. Google Iqbal Masih: There are a lot of great websites dedicated to him.
a. Read Wikipedia article
b. There are some great links at the bottom of the article! Feel free to check them out. Children's World and Who Was Iqbal Masih?
3. Check out Free the Children
4. Go to Culture Grams (jacksonbronc/hole)– build prior knowledge about Pakistan
a. Find information about child labor, Iqbal Masih
5. Wondering what you can do? Visit the International Center on Child Labor and Education (ICCLE) site to find out more about child labor facts and myths, and explore links between child labor, education, and poverty. You'll find true stories of child workers turned advocates - like Iqbal. There is poetry and art and a lot of students - like you - who are walking their talk!
6. After reading chapter 4, check out Bukhara rugs. Consider what Iqbal's rug may have looked like.
7. Check out this activity regarding Child Labor issues today.

The Breadwinner:  This book is set in Afghanistan during the time of the Taliban.  Learn how one young woman becomes the breadwinner despite the laws against such an act.

1. Go to Issues and Controversies (jackson/hole) – search Taliban, choose the first article.
a. Consider the first picture. What would life be from this point of view?
3. Go to WorldBook Online (Teton1/schools) - Taliban
4. Go to CultureGrams (jacksonbronc/hole) – build prior knowledge of Afghanistan

5. The Taliban is now an issue in Pakistan. Check out this article from cnn.com about a Girl Poet who is taking on the Taliban TODAY. There are also many current events links on this site.

Homeless Bird: This book is about a young girl who becomes a widow in India.  Learn about what this means for her life at a 15 year old and her future.  

2. Article about widows in India by CNN.
3.  Information about Amar Bari, "My Home" - a refuge for widows in India.
4.  So much informatin - WOW - from Widows International.
5.  Another non-profit that works for marginalized women and children in India:  The Guild of Service.
6.  Link to the movie blog: The White Rainbow Project (I ordered the movie; it should be here soon!) and for more about the movie, click here. 



 Constant Communication from the White Rainbow Project (newsletter sent out regularly!)


Journey to Jo’berg:  This book is set in South Africa during the time of Apartheid.  Learn about how a brother and sister risk their lives to simply get their mother home to her sick child.  Along their journey, they learn what apartheid really means for their family and their futures.

1. Go to BrainPop (teton/tcsd): Social Studies – Apartheid
2. Go to WorldBook Online (teton1/schools) - Apartheid
3. Go to: Apartheid Museum
4. Great site to understand Apartheid better.
5. Go to CultureGrams (jacksonbronc/hole) – build prior knowledge of South Africa
a. Look at timeline for information about Apartheid
6. After reading about Grace's brother and her stories about students fighting back, watch these United Streaming Movies.


Ladder #2:  Survival stories - surviving man-made &
natural disasters.  

Read Hiroshima  and Sadako:  These are stories about the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima at the end of WWII.  They also help us to understand the deadly consequences.


The Bomb:  This is the story of a small group of islands, very isolated from the rest of the world.  The US government chose Bikini Atoll to do further testing on their nuclear bombs.  Read about how this island fights back.


Under the Blood Red Sun:  This story is set in Hawaii and takes place in 1941 as America responds to the attack on Pearl Harbor.  Experience the fear and racism of the time.

1. Go to WorldBook Online (teton1/schools) - Pearl Harbor (good pictures and videos)
2. Go to American History (jackson/hole) – search Pearl Harbor (videos)
4. For information about the internment camps of the Japanese-Americans, go to Japanese Internment Camps
a. Toward the bottom there is information about Sand Island, Hawaii.
5. Read So Far From The Sea by Eve Bunting.

The Killing Sea:  This story is set in Indonesia in 2004.  The story begins the day before the Tsunami hits.  It is a survival story that brings together two characters from very different cultures.

1. Go to BrainPop (online databases (teton/TCSD)): science – Tsunami  AND animated explanation of Tsunamis from BBC.  More to understand Tsunami/Earthquakes.
2. Go to WorldBook Online (Teton1/Schools) - Tsunami (2004), good pictures
3. Go to CultureGrams (Jacksonbronc/hole) – build prior knowledge of Indonesia
4. Go to :Tsunami Videos
7.  National Geographic video - from Mr. Wiley
8.  Japan's March 2011 Tsunami:  Before and After pictures, BBC article & videos, and more videos,
9.  A lot of great resources for Japan's earthquake and tsunami
10.  More on Japan's March 2011 earthquake and tsunami:

11.  Ways to donate.

Ladder #3:  Individuals fighting against a government.  Understanding propaganda and oppression.


Kiss the Dust:  This story is set in Iraq.  It is the story of a Kurdish family that must flee to Iran due to persecution against the Kurds in Iraq.  It tells the story of refugees in a way that will break your heart.



The Year of Impossible Goodbyes:  This story helps us to understand Korea's history from the end of WWII to the beginnings of the Korean war.  It's a story of a family that is forced to live in an occupied country for many years.  This story shows the power of propaganda.


Red Scarf Girl:  This is a memoir of a family living in China during Mao's Cultural Revolution.  It is a story of living with propaganda and conflicting beliefs.  It helps us to understand how difficult it is to live with fear. 
1. Go to WorldBook Online (teton1/schools) - Cultural Revolution
a. Check out some of the Back in Time articles
2. Check out these United Streaming movies (follow the directions telling you which movies to watch first)
3. Go to CultureGrams (jacksonbronc/hole) – build prior knowledge of China
a. Pay attention to the time line – China under Communism
4. Explore Ji-Li's company, East West Exchange, to promote cultural exchanges between the United States and China. "If I can help Americans to understand China, and the Chinese to learn about the United States, even a little, I will feel very rewarded. I will have contributed something to my country, China, and my home, America (p 271)."


~Other~

MAROO OF THE WINTER CAVES:



2. Go to BrainPop (online databases (teton/TCSD)): Science-Earth System- Ice Age
Go to ACTIVITIES-->Graphic Organizer-->Print--> Take notes on this activity sheet as you watch the movie-->Go back to movie-->Press CC button and read along --> Play the quiz-->Graded Quiz--> View your results --> OK --> Record your score --> Review answers --> If you missed more than 2, take the test again.

3. Go to BrainPop (online databases (teton/TCSD)): Science-Earth System- Avalanches
Go to ACTIVITIES-->Graphic Organizer-->Print--> Take notes on this activity sheet as you watch the movie-->Go back to movie-->Press CC button and read along --> Play the quiz-->Graded Quiz--> View your results --> OK --> Record your score --> Review answers --> If you missed more than 2, take the test again.

4. Go to WorldBook Online (Teton1/Schools).
Go to My Backpack-->Maroo and Wolf Brother--> Stone Age-->
at