Kelli+Jenkins+Bibliography+Fall+2014



Kelli Jenkins October 14, 2014 Bibliography = = =Topic= The topic I have selected is early American history from colonization to the creation of the Constitution. = = =Fiction= Edwards, Pamela Duncan. (2001) Boston Tea Party. G. P. Putnam’s Sons. 32. Balsz library. This book is about the tea, taxes, and eventually the Boston Tea Party. It is written in a repetitive format that appeals to children. There are small mice on each page that offer humorous puns and jokes for the readers to enjoy. It has actual facts in the story and is written in a way that will help children remember the order of events. This book will help children in reading. There is a set sequence of events. Kids could place sentence strips in order of the story. It could tie into geography as well, since it mentions where the tea comes from. The book has a picture of tea plants, and we could dive into science and talk about how plants grow and how tea is made from plant to teacup.

Osborne, Mary Pope. (2004) **Magic Tree House: Revolutionary War on Wednesday**. Random House. 96. Balsz library. Kids adore Magic Tree House books, and this one is perfect for a unit on the Revolution. It would likely be a read-aloud book, and we would cover a couple chapters a day. The story is about Annie and Jack helping George Washington make the decision to continue with his plans, despite the weather. If they don’t, they are afraid it will change history. Students will be drawn in because the characters are kids. In the book, they discuss weather, which ties into science. Students can learn about how weather effects the environment around them. They can dig deeper by learning about the water cycle. Then they can learn about cloud formation names and what they mean for the weather.

Waters, Kate. (1996) **On the Mayflower**. Scholastic Press. 40. Balsz library. This is a book about two kids who traveled across the ocean on the Mayflower. The two main characters are made up, but the events in the story are similar to what people actually went through. One child is the ship’s apprentice, and the other is a passenger. They discuss work, sickness, poor living conditions, storms, and the promise of a new land. It appeals to kids because the book is written through the eyes of a child. There are photographs of actors in time-period settings and clothing. This book lends itself to science. You can discuss how disease spreads in small, unclean spaces and how important good hygiene is. You could also discuss what is necessary for people to live, such as space, food, and water. There are a lot of words that kids may not have heard before, and there is a glossary in the back of the book. This teaches kids to use their resources as well as vocabulary. = = =Nonfiction= Adler, David A. (1990) **A Picture Book of Benjamin Franklin**. Holiday House. 32. Balsz library. This book is a biography about Benjamin Franklin. It is a picture book, so it is easy to read and keeps students interested. It talks a lot about his childhood, which will help students relate to him. It also talks about his inventions and contributions before and during the Revolution. Since Benjamin Franklin is a well-known inventor, I would tie this book into science. We could talk about what inventions are, how some modern and past inventions work, and see if the kids could imagine or even create their own inventions.

Freedman, Russell. (2000) **Give Me Liberty!.** Holiday House. 74. Balsz library. This book is about the events from the Boston Tea Party leading up to the writing of the Declaration of Independence. It covers a large part of American history that is required in the Social Studies standards for second grade. It is written in 9 sections that are between six and twelve pages each. Although the book seems long, kids could easily read a section or two a day. In sections, there are little chants and songs that are fun for kids to read or sing along to. It helps get kids excited about history. In one section of the book, it talks about the taxes the king places upon the people. This easily ties into math. It lends itself to word problems. For example, if the tax were three cents for a fifty-cent bag of tea, then how much would it cost to buy six bags of tea? How much tea could you buy with ten dollars? How much change would you have? Problems can be simple or complex, depending on the students.

Giblin, James Cross. (1992) **George Washington: A Picture Book Biography**. Scholastic Press. 47. Balsz library. This is a biography about George Washington. The pictures are paintings, and they take up whole pages, so it helps kids stay interested. It starts with his childhood, which helps kids relate and makes them realize that figures in history are real people, who grew up just like everyone else. After his childhood, it jumps into colonies in America. It talks about how George was in the military before the Revolution, his family life, his work in the military during the Revolution, his part in the Constitution, his Presidency, and his life at Mount Vernon until his death. This book could be used with geography, because it touches on the colonies and first states. It also discusses north and south. It also ties into reading. We could discuss genres of books because it is likely that kids in this age group are still unfamiliar with biographies, even kid-friendly ones like this.

Osborne, Mary Pope and Boyce, Natalie Pope. (2004) **Magic Tree House: Fact Tracker: Revolutionary War on Wednesday**. Random House. 121. Balsz library. This book partners with the Magic Tree House book in the fiction section. This helps kids decipher what was fact and what was just part of the story. It is full of pictures and side-notes, so kids stay interested. There are recipes, fun facts, biographies, and general summaries about parts of the Revolutionary War. This book covers a number of subjects. Of course it covers history, but it also includes math with measurements in the recipe. It incorporates science because it mentions natural resources. It is full of vocabulary words and their definitions.

Tunis, Edwin. (1957) **Colonial Living**. The World Publishing Company. 156. Balsz library. This book would be used as a teacher resource. It is about the colonists’ way of life. It covers the sixteenth century through the eighteenth century. It is mostly about what was available in the home and what technology existed at the time. It is also about construction and farming. It covers cooking, clothes making, schools, jobs, and industries. This could help me create accurate hands-on activities for the kids to do. It will help them see just how different life was back then compared to now. Since the book is full of inventions of the time period, I think it would be a perfect partner with science. It also pairs well with math, because we can discuss recipes and farming abilities (amount farmers could harvest then vs. now).

Venezia, Mike. (2004) **Thomas Jefferson**. Children’s Press. 32. Balsz library. This book is a biography about Thomas Jefferson. It not only talks about Thomas Jefferson, but also about life during that time period, so kids will realize how important his contributions were to the United States. It is full of copies of paintings and one-panel comics that add humor to the book as well as emphasize important points or parts that may seem confusing to children. Since Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, this book pairs well with writing. It also discusses Jefferson’s interest in studying the land and wilderness. This could be paired with writing and science.

Yero, Judith Lloyd. (2006) **The Declaration of Independence**. National Geographic. 40. Balsz library. This book is about the Declaration of Independence. It covers what the Declaration is about, why it came to be, the influence it had on history, and how it affects us today. There is a copy of the Declaration in the back, as well as the rough draft that Thomas Jefferson had written. It is full of pictures and presents the information in multiple ways. There are old paintings and copies of old documents for students to look at. This book would most easily be tied into writing. I like that it shows the rough draft and final draft. It even highlights the differences between the two. It shows kids the importance of editing, as well as the fact that even great writers had to edit their work.