Abe Lincoln at Last!

Publication Year: 2011

Author: Mary Pope Osborne

Genre: Narrative Non-Fiction, Adventure

Grade Level: Grade 2 to Grade 6

Theme: Government, Lincoln History

Skill Taught: How to read and fill-out a ballot, structure of democracy

Summary: Jack and Annie travel back in time to reverse the cast spell placed on Merlin.  They need to collect four items, two of which have been collected prior to the story beginning   Jack and Annie are in the year 1861 on the front lawn of the White House and meet Tad and Willie, the President's sons.  After making a wish to meet the President, they transport further back in time and meet a boy named Sam.  Soon after Sam gives them a feather pen he made, they are pulled back to the White House lawn.  Jack and Annie find the President walking around outside, and he tells them a story about when he was younger, how he met the two and played a trick on them by having them think his name was Sam.  They reassure to Lincoln the Civil War will end and freedom will come; he gives them the final item.  Jack and Annie have collected all four items and go back to the Magic Tree House, returning to the present, and then head off to school.

About the Author: Mary Pope Osborne was brought up by a father who was in the military.  At a young age, Mary traveled the world with her father, and after graduating from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,  she continued her love of traveling.  As an author of children's literature, she turns her day dreams into stories for children to enjoy.  Mary was an established author for over ten years before she began the Magic Tree House series with her husband and one of her best friends.  (http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/contributor/mary-pope-osborne-0)  

For the Classroom

Pre-Reading Activity: Using construction paper, scissors, glue, and markers, students would construct a timeline highlighting the key moments in Abraham Lincoln's life.  The class would be instructed to find the year he was born, elected as president, signed the Emancipation Proclamation, assassinated, and other events the student found interesting.  I would check their timelines before they could begin gluing the events.   

Post-Reading Activity: I would connect the book to this year's presidential election and introduce students to vocabulary such as conservative, liberal, republican, democrat, and the meaning of democracy.  Students would receive a map of the United States and color each state either red or blue depending on which candidate won the particular state.  I would begin a class discussion about the electoral college and that a candidate may not win even if they received the popular vote.  I would get my hands on a ballot and give students the opportunity to see what one looks like, but also contribute to a mock vote to see who would become President if it were up to our class.

Reflection: Our book club chose Abe Lincoln at Last! because it tells an adventurous story while at the same time, providing the reader with insights of Abraham Lincoln and the year 1861.  The back of the book includes factual information about important events that took place and why Abraham Lincoln was considered one of the best presidents of all time.  The Magic Tree House series is a great set of books to have in any classroom, and with the common core standards, these books are helpful to incorporate reading and writing with other subjects.  With each Magic Tree House book, there is a Fact Tracker book that goes along with the story book, supplying students with more educational information on the particular topic.

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Strega Nona

Year Published: 1975

Author: Tomie dePaola

Genre: Fairy Tale

Grade Level: Kindergarten to Grade 3

Theme: Responsibility, resourcefulness

Skill Taught: Italian culture

Summary: This book is about a helpful grandmother witch named Strega Nona, and her magic pasta pot.  One day, Strega Nona leaves town and employs Big Anthony to watch over her house and garden, and tells him not to touch the pot while she is away.  Big Anthony can't resist and begins singing to the pot, making enough pasta to fill up the house, as well as the town.  He doesn't know to blow kisses to the pot in order to stop it from making any more pasta.  Fortunately, Strega Nona returns and stops to the pot from making more pasta.  She hands Big Anthony a fork and makes him eat all of the pasta he made.  

About the Author: Tomie dePaola was born in Meriden, Connecticut on September 15, 1934, and developed at an early age a love for reading.  Throughout his school years, he enjoyed drawing and dancing. After graduating from high school, he went to Pratt Institute and practiced drawing everything.  His first job was to illustrate for a science book titled Sound.  About a year later, he wrote and illustrated his first book, The Wonderful Dragon of Timlin.  Over the past 40 years, Tomie has written over 100 stories and illustrated over 250 books.  (http://www.tomie.com/about_tomie/bio.html)

For the Classroom

Pre-Reading Activity: I would have a K-W-L handout for the students, informing them the "K" stands for what students know, the "W" stands for what students want to learn, and the "L" stands for what students have learned.  Before reading the book, students would write any information they know and want to know about Italy.  I would walk around the room to make sure students were filling the cart out correctly.

Post-Reading Activity: After reading the book, we would explore Calabria by first locating Italy on a world map.  I would project pictures of Calabria's geography and inform the students briefly about the Italian culture, including a visual of the Italian flag, popular food, and a few Italian word (Strega: Witch, Nona: Grandma, Si: Yes, Grazia: Thank you, Libro: Book, Per Favore: Please).  The lesson would finish by students filling the last column of their K-W-L chart and sharing to the class something new they learned.

Reflection: Being Italian, I found this book enjoyable and a great way to incorporate culture into a book.  Depending how much time a teacher would like to spend with this book will determine how much they can teach students about the Italian culture as well as what makes all cultures unique.  The book teaches the lesson to be responsible, and gets the point across in a funny way.

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