Websites: The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Website: The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Creator: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Link: http://www.ushmm.org/
Genre: Website
Discovery of Link: Suggestion of Librarian

Summary: The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum website is a place where anyone can learn about the atrocities associated with the Holocaust. This resource allows viewers to explore the museum, educational topics, research, history, remembrance and genocide topics related to The Holocaust. The website breaks down topics for adults and students, allowing them to scroll through pictures and text describing one of the most horrific time periods in the world's history.

Personal Connection: Viewing the Holocaust Museum website is a thrilling and powerful experience, regardless of your age. One of the best features of the website is that students can explore the various pages on their own, being introduced to various topics about pre- World War II, during World War II, and post World War II. The website also offers students the opportunity to participate in Online Activities or explore Online Exhibitions. One of the best online activities asks the students to interpret the pictures that are presented to them and derive their own opinions of what is occurring. This challenge enables students to think deeply about evidence in order to form their own arguments to support their opinions.

Evaluation/Analysis: The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum website is accessible and readable for many late emergent readers. Students may find it difficult to understand some of the words or concepts written on the website, as many of the words could potentially be unfamiliar. However, the website does a fantastic job of supplementing their written information with pictures that tell it all.

This website would be an excellent way to finish off a unit study on the Holocaust. Students would be able to use this website to gather final information about the Holocaust, considering the website is immersed in primary sources, eye-witness accounts, and pictures that show the horror that occurred. Furthermore, students could use the website to help determine their definition of the word "holocaust." Students would be able to look at the events of a time period that had been called a holocaust by historians. Using the information on the website, students would be able to determine the criteria of a holocaust, coming up with a working definition. This definition could be used to judge other human atrocities throughout society, in order to determine if they are holocausts, as well.

Graphic Novels: Persepolis

Title: Persepolis
Author: Marjane Satrapi
Publisher: Pantheon
Genre: Graphic Novel
Number of Pages: 153 pages
Discovery of Book:
Reading Level: Lexile Level- 380
Awards: Booklist, Kliatt starred, Library Journal starred, New York Times, Publishers Weekly starred, School Library Journal, Voices of Youth Advocates, Wilson's Senior High School

Summary: A young girl, Marji, from Tehran, Iraq, tells of her life and country's struggles during the 1980's as Iran entered the Islamic Revloution. Through the use of mininamlist comic book pictures, Marji leads the reader through government overthrow, totalitarianism, strict clothing restrictions, and the war between Iran and Iraq. Eventually the contry's politics become so tumultuous Marji is sent by her parents to live in Europe to escape the violence that blanketed her precious home country.

Personal Connection: The Islamic Revolution is a time period that seems to be left out of high school history. Persepolis is a humourous take on life, yet looks seriously at government, belief system, and oppression. Marji does an excellent job of showing the destruction of life that occured in Iran during the '80's. She describes her maid telling her family about a key that her poverty stricken son was given at school. The students were told that the key was their entrance ticket to heaven if they went to war for their country. It shocks me that during such a modern time, children were being sent to war. I know that it has happened throughout history and is still currently a practice in many countries around the world; but how could anyone strip the childhood inocence of a helpless young boy or girl? This question certainly lingered in my mind as I finished reading about the various other obstacles Marji and her people faced during the Islamic Revolution.

Evaluation/Analysis: At a lexile level of 380, Persepolis could be easily read by many elementary school students. However, because of its dark content and mature topics, this story would be best suited for mature middle school students or even high schoolers. The use of a comic book structure makes it appealing to your adiment non-readers. They learn a plethora of information by reading the book, yet feel a sense of accomplishment when they realized they read 150 pages in a short period of time.

In the classroom, Persepolis would be best used to allow students to gain an understanding about Iran, it's culture, and the events that occured during and after the Islamic Revolution. Students would be able to take the various attrocities that occured, record them in their journal, and use their newly learned information to help them determine if during the 1980's, Iran suffered a holocaust.

Historical Fiction: Sunrise Over Fallujah

Title: Sunrise Over Fallujah
Author: Walter Dean Myers
Publisher: Scholatic Press
Genre: Historical Fiction
Number of Pages: 290 pages
Discovery of Book: Charlotte Huck's Childhood Literature
Reading Level: Lexile Level: 780
Awards: Booklist, Horn Book starred, Kirkus Reviewed starred, Library Media Connection starred, Publishers Weekly starred, School Library Journal starred, Wilson's Junior High School, Wilson's Senior High School

Summary: Sunrise Over Fallujah is a powerful interpretation of the life of an 18 year old American solider in Iraq during the height of combat in 2003. Robin "Birdy" Perry felt that it was his civilian duty to join the United States Army after the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001. After completing basic training, Birdy entered Iraq not too sure of what to expect. Over time he learns that war is brutal, unfair, and filled to the brim with unpleasantries. He watches as his comrades die, his fellow country men kill innocent civilians, and the United States taints their name as a reputable nation.

Personal Connection: Any wartime book can be difficult to read. Sunrise Over Fallujah was no exception. Each page leaves the reader feeling a deep internal struggle about the value of war, freedom, and human life. At one point during the story, Birdy is visiting a woman in a particular village. The men and boys of her town had just boarded a van to follow the Ba'athists, or Nationalist Mob run by the Saddam party, to Baghdad to get their orders. As the van was pulling away, an American fighter plane zeroed in on the van, shot a missile, destroying the truck and the men in it on impact. The women and children proudly watching their husbands, fathers, and sons ride into town to report for duty soon found themselves in despair as there was nothing left of the van or men in it. This piece of text truly struck me, causing me to deeply question what was our true purpose for occupying Iraq?

Evaluation/Analysis: Sunrise Over Fallujah allows students from the fourth grade and beyond to become immersed in a story that could be currently affecting many of their families. This brilliant historical fiction invites students to understand what is happening in their current world as they wake up in their warm beds, go to school, and come home safely each night. Sunrise Over Fallujah would be a great way to supplement research about the War on Terror to help students determine if this time period is truly a holocaust. Students will also be able to form their own opinions about war, its importance, and its influence on society as a whole.

Biography: Mao Zedong: The Rebel Who Led A Revolution

Title: Mao Zeodong: The Rebel Who Led A Revolution
Author: Flora Geyer
Publisher: National Geographic
Genre: Biography
Number of Pages: 64 pages
Discovery of Book: Library Catalog
Reading Level:
Awards: Horn Book, School Library Journal

Summary: Mao Zeodong: The Rebel Who Led A Revolution is a powerful biography about the life of Mao Zeodong, a strong political leader who brought communism to China in 1949. This picture filled, information packed book leads readers through the early life of a rebellious child, turned political rebel, and eventual harsh leader of a crumbling nation. Mao Zeodong gives readers insights into this man's feelings, actions, and thoughts that many may have never known.

Personal Connection: Reading Mao Zeodong: The Rebel Who Led A Revolution allowed me to truly see the inner most thoughts of this powerful man. Many facts in this book shocked me, such as the fact that Mao married multiple times, leaving many of his wives to die at the hands of his political enemies. Furthermore, my knowledge of "The Great Leap Forward" was thoroughly enhanced. Mao wanted to modernize China so desperately he sacrificed the lives and health of his citizens. 38 million Chinese men, women, and children died during this time period, leaving Mao and his country in utter chaos.

Evaluation/Analysis: Often times Mao Zeodong's Great Leap Forward is not focused on in curriculum. Mao Zeodong: The Rebel Who Led A Revolution introduces middle schoolers to a man and a world that they may never have heard of before. The late emergent reader level of this biography allows seventh and eighth grade students to fully immerse themselves into China during a time of political uncertainty. This book helps students see a leader who had great intentions to improve his country, yet did it in a horrific way. Students would be able to gather research information about this wretched time period, leading them to question "Was "The Great Leap Forward" a holocaust?"

Biography: Anne Frank: The Young Writer Who Told The World Her Story

Title: Anne Frank: The Young Writer Who Told The World Her Story
Author: Ann Kramer
Publisher: National Geographic
Genre: Biography
Number of Pages: 64 pages
Discovery of Book: Library Catalog
Reading Level:
Awards: Horn Book, School Library Journal

Summary: The biography Anne Frank: The Young Writer Who Told The World Her Story is about the famous Jewish Holocaust journal keeper, Anne Frank. This book takes readers through the beginning of Anne's life, the rise of Hitler and Nazi Germany, The Frank's family struggle to stay hidden within a small room, to Anne's unfortunate and untimely death in Aushwitz concentration camp. Each page is intact with striking photographs of the time period and enticing information about the life and death of a powerful young girl.

Personal Connection: Having read The Diary of Anne Frank, I had some significant background about the life of this extraordinary girl. However, this biography about Anne Frank has allowed me to gain a deeper understanding about the trials and tribulations of a girl who was once living a content life. Reading about her discovery and deportation brought tears to the eyes, despite this book being non-fiction. Knowing that she was ripped apart from her family and friends, had her hair shaved off, and was left to wonder when she would be sent to the gas chambers was an intense, yet informative read.

Evaluation/Analysis: Anne Frank is an excellent book to introduce middle school students to this brave young journaler. The readability is about a 6th grade level, allowing most students to understand the powerful words on the page. This book would be a fantastic way to show students the true life of Anne before reading the play, Diary of Anne Frank. Students would be able to gain important background knowledge that could lead them to a better comprehension of the play and enable them to gain a deeper understanding of the events of the Holocaust. This book would certainly help to facilitate students ability to critically analyze if the Holocaust could truly be considered a holocaust.

Non-Fiction: Rwanda: Fierce Clashes in Central Africa

Title: Rwanda: Fierce Clashes in Central Africa
Author: Text by Keith Greenberg/ Photos by John Issac
Publisher:Blackbirch Press
Genre: Non-Fiction
Number of Pages: 30 pages
Discovery of Book: Library Catalog
Reading Level: Lexile Level- 800
Awards: Kirkus Review, L.A. Recommended Foreign Language, Multicultural Review, School Library Journal

Summary: A United Nations photographer recaps his journey through the war torn country of Rwanda during the early '90's struggle between the Hutus and the Tutsis. He tells through his pictures and descriptions about the fighting, the filth, and the loss of lives that has occurred. John tells the story of a young boy names Innocence who is living in squalor after escaping to Zaire. He has lost his family to the violence in Rwanda and is fighting to survive; as are all of the refuges that have escaped the viciousness of the country of Rwanda.

Personal Connection: Rwanda has the ability to pull at any person's heart strings. The pictures of this book tell the story of the struggle that Rwandians have faced over the past few years. Seeing the pictures of the children, starving in their poverty stricken homes made from sticks and broken pieces of cloth is truly heart-wrenching. John's interaction with Innocence throughout his trip helps to make the book. When John describes how Innocence's family is ambushed in their home during the middle of the night, as he hid behind a kitchen stove, my want to help the children of Rwanda increased greatly.

Evaluation/Analysis: Rwanda would be a great visual introduction for middle school students to experience the trying time this impoverished country has faced in the relatively recent past. This would be an excellent read-aloud where the teacher could show the pictures of what happened between the Hutus and Tutsis, and what the aftermath looks like. Students would be able to describe the pictures that stand out the most to them, citing details from each that could help the student determine if the fighting between the Hutus and Tutsis was a holocaust.

Non-Fiction: Auschwitz

Title: Auschwitz
Author: Clive A. Lawton
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Genre: Non-Fiction
Number of Pages: 48 pages
Discovery of Book: Library Catalog
Reading Level:
Awards: Booklist, Bulletin of the center of Children's Books, Horn Book, Kirkus Review, School Library Journal starred, Voice of Youth Advocates

Summary: Auschwitz is a beautifully laid out book where each paid is covered in pictures that are accompanied with descriptions. The book shows the various parts of Auschwitz, the selection process for getting placed into work camps or gas chambers, and the liberation of the camps once the war was over. Aushwitz ends with the author showcasing how we know that the Holocaust and actions at Aushwitz actually existed and were not fabricated by Jews to gain sympathy.

Personal Connection: This book could easily have been told by pictures alone. Obviously the words help to explain the true events in each picture, but looking at them could cause tears to drip from your eyes. Each time I read about the Holocaust, the feeling of sadness rushes over me. After reading Auschwitz I felt much of the same. However, these feelings were magnified by the ending of the book, which describes why the Holocaust actually happened. It blows my mind that people can be so close-minded and naive to believe that the Holocaust is all a lie. The pictures, first hand accounts, and various legal documents prove time and time again that this wretched time period existed; and that human beings could truly be that inhuman to others of their kind.

Evaluation/Analysis: Auschwitz would be a perfect book for Middle Schooler's trying to decide if the Holocaust, was truly a holocaust, as per the definition. Students would be able to not only read about the events that occurred at Auschwitz, they would also be able to see pictures that accompany the multitude of explanations. The teacher could teach students how to do research with this story using primary sources. Another great teaching tool with this book would be to have students make collages of various time periods throughout history to help tell the story behind that specific event, just like Clive Lawton does in Auschwitz.

Non-Fiction: Japanese American Interment Camps

Title: Japanese American Internment Camps
Author: Gail Sakurai
Publisher: Children's Press
Genre: Non-Fiction
Number of Pages: 48 pages
Discovery of Book: Library Catalog
Reading Level: Lexile Level- 980
Awards: Library Media Connection

Summary: Japanese American Internment Camps is a non-fiction book that recaps the start of Japanese American prejudice by Americans with the bombing of Pearl Harbor. It then moves on to explain how Japanese Americans were moved to internment camps, despite their patriotism and innocence. The book finishes up by recapping how the Japanese were released back into society and how the United States began to pay retribution to surviving family members for the strife placed on Japanese American families during World War II.

Personal Connection: Whenever I read something about Japanese American Internment Camps it blows my mind that the United States committed this type of crime against its own citizens. You read about the travesty of the concentration camps in Europe around this time and think about the atrocities that occurred to human life. It amazes me that we did almost the same thing to our citizens, minus the torturous death. We took people from their homes and forced them to live in unpleasant conditions. We then released them back into society without providing them any assistance while being rude and prejudice against them.

Evaluation/Analysis: Japanese American Internment Camps is an excellent resource for Middle Schoolers who need truthful, non-bias information about a time in United States history that is rarely studied in school. This book would be great for a teacher to use to teach research strategies. Students could use this book to skim and scan, looking for important information. Furthermore, students could take notes on important facts that they find, helping to build their case as to whether or not the use of Japanese Internment Camps could be considered a holocaust.

Non-Fiction: First They Killed My Father

Title: First They Killed My Father
Author: Loung Ung
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Genre: Non-Fiction
Number of Pages: 238 pages
Discovery of Book: Library Catalog
Reading Level: Lexile Level-920
Awards: None

Summary: First They Killed My Father is a gripping memoir about a young girl, Ung, and her family's struggle to survive during Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge reign in Cambodia from 1975-1979. Ung lived in Phnom Pehn until her family was forced to flee. Ung's father was a government agent, which posed an eimminent threat to the family. Her father taught the family to act like illiterate peasants to help them survive this trying time. The family moved from town to town and eventually from work camp to work camp. Eventually Ung's father, mother, and two siblings are killed by the Khmer Rouge army. Ung describes her struggle as she escapes to Thailand and eventually to the United States, which ultimately allows us to hear this powerful story.

Personal Connection: Reading this memoir was heart wrenching. Each turn of the page warrants putting the book down because of the horror that is occurring, yet something tells you to keep reading. Seeing how terrible Pol Pot's army treated the Cambodians leaves a retching pit in your stomach. Ung describes how the family had to steal food to survive, yet when her brother is caught one day, he is brutally beaten, almost to death. As her family slowly falls apart, she finds herself and some of her siblings living under a tree, with nothing to eat, carrying but a few measly personal items. I wanted nothing more than to jump inside this story to help this physically and mentally beaten family, along with the thousand other Cambodians, escape to a new life.

Evaluation/Analysis: First They Killed My Father would be a powerful read for a Middle School student. Many of the events are difficult to swallow in terms of their brutality. This would be an excellent class read-aloud, allowing the teacher to do the reading and the students to do the listening. As the students listen, they should write down specific examples of brutality that might help peg the Pol Pot regime as a holocaust. The teacher could elicit discussion about the real-life pictures that are located in the center of the book, asking students how the incorporation of these photos may help them decide if the 1970's in Cambodia was truly a time worthy of being deemed a holocaust.

Contemporary Realistic Fiction: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Title: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
Author: Sherman Alexie
Publisher: Little, Brown
Genre: Contemporary Realistic Fiction
Number of Pages: 229 pages
Discovery of Book: Graduate Level Class Syllabus
Reading Level:
Awards: American Indian Literature Award, National Book Award, Horn Book/Boston Globe Book Award for Fiction and Poetry

Summary: Junior, an up and coming cartoonist lives on the Spokane Indian Reservation with his parents and sister. His whole world is filled with drunk , casinos, and trying to survive depression. Junior's teacher believes that he has a lot to offer the world and suggests that he try going to school at an all white school located many miles from his home. Junior's parents agree and he soon begins living the life of an Indian who is seen as a traitor amongst his people and a complete outsider amongst his new classmates.

Personal Connection: This fantastic story shows the true life of American Indians seen from a Native American's point of view. This is one of the first books I have ever read that has such insight into this culture. Junior's cartoons and story telling ability makes the story hilarious, yet eye-opening. I think this book shows how hard life truly is for Native Americans. They are told to never betray their tribe, yet if they stay on the reservation their only options of life are to work at the casino, become a drunk, and live an impoverished life. I love how Junior shows that you can get out of the place that holds you down most as you creat a better life for yourself.

Evaluation/Analysis: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is a phenomenial read for a middle school student. It contains both words and pictures, which can be very appealing to non-readers. In terms of in class work, this novel could be used to show the aftermath of the United States efforts to rid Native Americans from their land. Students could look deeply at this story using a historical lense, seeing the outcome of the Indian Removal Act. Looking at the life of Junior and his tribe members, students should be able to begin to determine if the removal of indians was a time period that could be deemed a holocaust.

Poetry: Holocaust Poetry

Title: Holocaust Poetry
Author: Compiled and Introduced by: Hilda Schiff
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Genre: Poetry
Number of Pages: 234 pages
Discovery of Book: Library Catalog
Reading Level:
Awards: None

Summary: This powerful compilation of prose consists of a variety of voices telling their experiences of The Holocaust. The book is broken up into various poems ranging from the initial alientation of Jews during this horrific time to the destruction of humans lives to the aftermath of The Holocaust. The poems are gripping and heart-wrenching, showing the true pain, terror, and ghastliness of human beings living through this horrific time period.

Personal Connection: Reading the poems will bring tears to anyones eyes.Hilda Schiff has done a phenomenial job choosing poems that are poetically sound yet touching. One of the most powerful poems was 5.8.1942, a poem written in memory of Janusz Korczak a medical practitioner who founded an orphanage in Warsaw, Poland. A footnote underneath the poem states that Dr. Korczak refused to escape his homeland during the rise of Hitler, not wanting to leave behind the children. The poem itself questions the Doctor as to why he stayed and what he said to his 200 orphaned children that were marched to Treblinka and immediately gassed. This powerful piece of poetry immediately made me think of these poor helpless children, being frightened as they are lead by their fearless leader. The never ending question that this time period ellicits is "How could anybody allow this to happen?"

Evaluation/Analysis: The typical reader of Holocaust Poetry would be a middle school to adult reader who has reached the ____________ stage. The author mentions in her introduction that she assumes that the reader of this book has general knowledge of The Holocaust to help assist them in their reading of the prose.

Holocaust Poetry would be excellent to use in the classroom, as it provides a first person point of view of the atrocities that occured during this trying time of history. Students studying the definition of a holocaust, trying to get certain time periods fit into this definition, would be able to use these poems to learn about specific events that occured in real people's lives. Some of these horrific occurences do not always appear in other literature. Students could use these first person accounts to see if the criteria of the definition meet the travesties that are described in the poems.

Poetry: Miss Crandall's School for Young Ladies & Little Misses of Color

Title: Miss Crandall's School for Young Ladies & Little Misses of Color
Author: Elizabeth Alexander & Marilyn Nelson
Publisher: Wordsong
Genre: Poetry
Number of Pages: 47 page
Discovery of Book: Library Catalog
Reading Level:
Awards: Book Links (A.L.A.), Book Links starred, Booklist starred, Horn Book, Horn Book starred, Kirkus Reviewed starred, School Library Journal, Wilson's Junior High School

Summary: Miss Crandall's School for Young Ladies & Little Misses of Color is a beautifully written book of prose that describes the events of a small school in Conneticut during the mid-1830's. Canterbury, Conneticut asked Miss Prudence Crandall to begin a school to teach their white daughters all they would need to know to become well educated members of society. Soon after, a few African American girls began to ask Miss Crandall to join her school. The white families became increasingly angry that their daughters were mixing with black girls. The book tells the story of the struggles Miss Crandell and her African American girls faced through the use of poetry. The poems depict the outrage, the violence, and the hatred toward these innocent children for their want to learn.

Personal Connection: Reading the poems of Miss Crandall's School for Young Ladies & Little Misses of Color was a powerful experience. Each poem describes how, as the author's describe it, "change always faces resistance, and progress is made in fits and starts." The story shows how white families arrested Miss Crandall, poisoned the school's well, set fire to the structure, and broke over ninety window pains. This book brings up the idea that despite the North's view of abolition, racism still ran rampent.

Evaluation/Analysis: This book of poetry would be great to use in a middle school classroom that is studying the Civil War, slavery, and racism. Students could read the poems, even before reading the descriptive introduction, using them to piece together the atrocities whites performed on blacks. These poems could help students shed light onto the devastating times of slavery. Students would be able to use the ideas of poisoning wells with animal dung and setting homes on fire to help determine if slavery was a point in history that could be deemed a holocaust.

Fantasy: Terrible Things

Title: Terrible Things
Author: Eve Bunting
Publisher: Jewish Publication Society
Genre: Fantasy
Number of Pages: Unpaged
Book Discovery: University Professor Recommendation
Reading Level: 2.5 Follett Library Resources
Awards: Literary Prizes- Booklist:

Summary: Terrible Things is an allegory about the Holocaust. The premise of the story focuses around creatures of the forest live in harmony until one day the "Terrible Things" arrive, clearing out all of the animals that had feathers. Each time the "Terrible Things" returned, they took away other animals because their characteristics did not fit into what “the perfect animal” should look like. Many varieties of animals were scooped up in nets and never seen again. Eventually, the remaining animals team up to fight against the forces that be, the "Terrible Things", despite the frightening situation at hand.

Personal Connection: A gripping book, Terrible Things, does an amazing job of showing human atrocity in the animal world. As the animals began to disappear from the forest, the remaining creatures began to have an intense internal conflict. This part of the book made me think deeply about how some Germans were able to destroy fellow humans while others risked their lives to hide their fellow citizens. Books such as this, truly allows the human concious to mull over the question, "How can anyone kill another human being?"

Evaluation/Analysis: This story, made for elementary readers, would be an excellent way to discuss allegory with middle school students. Eve Bunting does a wonderful job of showing the horror of the Holocaust by personifying the animals of the forest. Teachers would be able to show students how author's use events in history to create captivating stories. Furthermore, the students would gain further knowledge of the Holocaust while being able to add to their inquiry, "Do the events of the Holocaust fit the definition of a true "holocaust?"

Traditional Literature: The People Could Fly

Title: The People Could Fly
Author: Virginia Hamilton
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Genre: Traditional Literature
Discovery of Book: Library Catalog
Number of Pages: 34 pages
Reading Level: Lexile 480
Awards: Coretta Scott King Honor Book, Notable/Best Books (ALA), Wilson's Children

Summary: The People Could Fly is about a slave, Toby, who taught the other slaves around him to fly. Story has it that many slaves had wings when they were brought from their homeland. Many of their abilities to fly were suppressed do to the horrible conditions on both the boat and in their new homes. Toby helped the slaves at his plantation re-learn how to use their wings in order to escape the whipping Overseer.

Personal Connection: This African-American Folktale brings about many realizations of slavery. It's pictures are are detailed and powerful, showing the terror and pain on the slaves faces as the Overseers whip blows reigned down on them. The words of the story show the desperation of the slaves to escape their unintended destiny. Reading this book, anyone could easily get the sense that the time of slavery was nothing but hardship and injustice that was forced upon innocent human lives.

Evaluation/Analysis: The People Could Fly is an easy read for Middle Schooler's. This book could be used as a Literature Circle group read-aloud. Students could work with their team members to read through the story, looking for parts that showed injustice to others. The Literature Circle group could take notes about the content of the book which could help them determine, in the long run, if the time of slavery was a holocaust.

Traditional Literature: The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks

Title: The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks
Author: Katherine Paterson
Publisher: Lodestar Books
Genre: Traditional Tales
Number of Pages: 34 pages
Discovery of Book: Charlotte Huck's Children's Literature
Reading Level: Lexile: 930
Awards: Booklist, Booklist starred, Elementary School Library Collection, Horn Book Starred, Publishers Weekly, Wilson's Children

Summary: The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks is about a lord who constantly looked for beautiful items that could decorate his home. One day he saw a beautiful mandarin duck, in all its plumage, and insisted on taking it back to his manor. The duck soon became limp and almost lifeless because it missed its mate whowas alone, sitting on their eggs at their nest. One day the kitchen maid, Yasuko, secretly took the duck back to it's nest, feeling sympathy for the poor creature. The lord became furious that his duck was missing and accused his house servant, Shozo of stealing the drake. Soon both Yasuko and Shozo were sentenced to death when it became known of what had happened. Luckily the night of their imposed death, messengers came to the mansion requesting that any priosoners being put to death must be sent to the Imperial Court. As the two prisoners marched through the forest to the court, two messengers emerged from the forest, giving Yasuko and Shozo a place to sleep and food to eat. The next morning when the two servants woke, they saw the drake and his mate in the field who soon flew away. The servents lived happily ever after away from the lord, being protected by the mandarin ducks.

Personal Connection: I loved this book because it shows that doing the right thing in situations may at first cause you grief, but eventually reward you for your efforts. When I read The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks I was enamored with how both Yasuko and Shozo stood up for a creature in need. The two homly servants risked their lives to save a duck! Showing that Yasuko and Shozo were saved by the ducks at the end of the story helps to shed light on the phrase, "What comes around goes around." Since the servants helped the trapped drake, the drake returned the favor by saving the servants lives.

Evaluation/Analysis: This folktale would be great as a read aloud in the Middle School Classroom. Despite the fact that the reading level is between 3rd and 6th grade, the book still offers a plethora of vocabulary words that students could learn from. Furthermore, the story provides an excellent lesson about doing for others that you would like have done to you. Many middle schoolers need this lesson.

The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks would fit perfectly into a unit about holocausts. The moral of the story is to help others in need and you will be repaid for your actions. This idea would be a great way to begin instruction in the class. By asking students if they feel that they could support a friend in need or if they would help a stranger if they were in trouble. A discussion on this matter could lead to asking students to pretend that they were Germans during the Holocaust, would they help hid a Jew? Students could be posed this question using any time period, such as, "If you were a Southerner during the slavery era, would you help slaves escape via The Runaway Railroad?" All together, this book could help students evaluate how they would act during a trying time period.

Picture Books: Dia's Story Cloth

Title: Dia's Story Cloth: The Hmong People's Journey of Freedom
Author: Dia Cha
Publisher: Lee & Low Books Inc.
Genre: Non-Fiction
Number of Pages: 21
Discovery of Book: Searching the bookshelves
Reading Level: Lexile Level- 1050
Awards: Book's Link, Booklist, Bulletin of the Center for Children's books. Elementary School Library Collection, Horn Book, Publisher's Weekly, School's Library Journal, Wilson's Children

Summary: Dia's Story Cloth is the story of the emigration and immigration of the Hmong People over time. A long time ago, the Hmong people were chased from China when the government wanted them to change the way they lived. The Hmong moved throughout southeast Asia; many to Laos. Eventually Loas became filled with warfare, causing the killing of many Hmong people. Overtime the Hmong escaped to America, where they started their lives over once again. All of their history is kept on quilts, as Hmong women are gifted in needlepoint. The ancestors of the Hmong are able to have a constant reminder of the trials and tribulations their people have suffered every time they look down at one of the beautiful quilts covering their beds.

Personal Connection: This story stood out to me in numerous ways. One of the most powerful ideas that struck me was keeping a time line of history on a quilt. The book does a great job of giving a plethora of information about the Hmong and its craft, stating that girls as young as four begin watching their mothers quilt. By the time they are 10, the girls know elaborate stitches that help them create these time capsules. I found this idea of history keeping to be extremely powerful because not only is it written down, but it would most likely need to be retold orally in order to get the gist of each of the symbols on the quilt. This could lead to a long concrete and oral history for the Hmong people.

Classroom Usage: Dia's Story Cloth is at a third grade reading level, allowing most middle schoolers to be able to comprehend this book by themselves. Considering the story of the Hmong people is not often told, Dia's Story Cloth would be a great introduction of showing the struggle these people went through. On top of using this book to learn about another time period and classifying the Hmongs struggle as a holocaust, the students could learn a lot about family story telling traditions. The teacher could begin the discussion that the Hmong people use quilt making to retell their family's history. How do each of their families retell stories? After a brief discussions about traditions, the teacher could use this time to have students write an informative essay about how to retell a family story the best way. Furthermore, as a final project for the "What is a "holocaust"?" unit, the students could make a story quilt of the events of the time period they researched. Thusly, the students would be able to use a tradition from a specific culture to explain what happened during the potential holocaust they studied.

Picture Books: The Lotus Seed

Title: The Lotus Seed
Author: Sherry Garland
Publisher: Harcourt Brace & Company
Genre: Fiction
Number of Pages: 32
Discovery of Book: Suggestion by Professor
Reading Level: Lexile 880L
Awards: Booklist, Booklist starred, Horn Book, Publisher's Weekly, School Library Journal, Teacher Librarian

Summary: The Lotus Seed is a touching story about a woman who saw the last emperor of Vietnam cry as he lost his throne. To remember him, the young lady removed some lotus seeds from nearby. She carried these lotus seeds with her as further internal turmoil occurred in Vietnam. Eventually she fled to the United States, still clinging on to her lotus seeds. One day her grandson stole the lotus seeds and planted them, not remembering where he had placed them in the soil. The woman cried endlessly until one day the lotus seeds blossomed, bringing her a sense of joy and remembrance of her home country, Vietnam.

Personal Connection: Reading The Lotus Seed made me immediately think about my grandmother's wooden shoe that she had been given by her mother long ago. My grandma's mom came from Germany around the time of the rise of Hitler. When she left her country, she brought along a wooden shoe that she had owned since she was a little girl to help remember where she had grown up. Over time, my great-grandmother passed the shoe along to my grandmother, her first child, telling her the story of her journey to a new world. My grandmother still houses the shoe, waiting to pass it along to her children one day.

The wooden shoe story connected to The Lotus Seed because in each, a story of struggle and rebirth was told. My great-grandmother left a country where the government was becoming overpowering and war was on the lips of everyone. She made it to America, starting a new and brilliant life. In The Lotus Seed, the main character was able to do the same, escape a warring country and start anew, but always being able to keep Vietnam in her heart.

Classroom Usage:

The book The Lotus Seed is at a Kindergarten to Third Grade reading level. Do to this fact, students at the Middle School Level would be able to easily read this independently. Even struggling readers could decode and comprehend this story with the assistance of a teacher.

In the classroom, The Lotus Seed would be an excellent way to begin the students study of Vietnam. The teacher may want to initiate discussion by asking the students if there is anything that they would take with them if they were forced to leave America. If any students in the classroom were ELL or had moved from a different country, or even state, the teacher should ask them to share their experiences about moving. This story could lead the students into writing an expressive essay about which item they would choose to take with them if they were ever forced to flee the country. Eventually, the discussion could move towards talking about the Vietnam War, touching upon the idea of internal struggle of a country, while linking the United States to the military action that occurred. Eventually, through further research, the students could question if the Vietnam war could be considered a holocaust.

Picture Books: Shin's Tricycle

Title: Shin's Tricycle
Author: Tatsuharu Kodama
Publisher: Walker and Company
Genre: Picture Book/Historical Fiction
Number of Pages: 32
Discovery of Book: Search word "Hiroshima" in the library catalog
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Awards: Book Links, Booklist starred, Bulletin for the Center for Children's Books, Elementary School Library Collection, Kirkus Review

Summary: Shin's Tricycle is a somber story about the struggle of a father to get over the death of his three children during the bombing of Hiroshima. The father tells the reader about his son Shin, 3 years old, and his two daughters, Michiko and Yoko. Shin desperately wants a tricycle for his fourth birthday; however the war is bringing hard times on all families of Japan. Luckily one day Shin's uncle gives him the tricycle he had been longing for just before his uncle left for active duty. Shin rides the tricycle endlessly until the morning of August 6, 1945 when a huge flash shocks the town of Hiroshima. After the blast, the father describes his endless search for his three children, finding his two daughters dead and Shin barely holding on to life. Eventually Shin passes and the father and his wife bury their three children and the tricycle. The story ends years later as the father accidentally digs up the tricycle, along with mounds of emotions.

Personal Connection: This story is extremely heart-wrenching, especially since it is told from the point of view of a father who helplessly watches his three children die during the bombing of Hiroshima. Shin's Tricycle touched me deeply as someone who helped raise their younger brother and sister. The thought of watching them pass on while not being able to help them is devastating to think about. When the father in the story exclaimed, "I spotted the edges of two little dresses trapped beneath the roof... With all my strength, I tried to lift the roof beams, but couldn't...Suddenly, the beam on top of Michiko and Yoko burst into flames (Kodama,1992,p. 16)," my heart sank to the floor. Hearing the struggle and pain in the father's voice brought tears to my eyes and a feeling of wanting to jump into the book to help him save his little girls!

Classroom Usage: Shin's Tricycle would be an excellent story to introduce middle school students to the travesty of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Through teacher read-aloud or by Literature Circle, Shin's Tricycle allows students to gain knowledge about an intense time period. The students would be able to discuss whether or not the use of the atomic bomb was truly necessary and why. Furthermore, the students could pull out ideas from the story that could help support whether or not this time period was a holocaust. Students would be able to think critically about how the events of Hiroshima fall into the definition of a holocaust while learning multicultural history that they might not yet been taught.

Picture Books: The Middle Passage

Title: The Middle Passage

Author: Tom Feelings

Publisher: Dial Books

Genre: Picture Book

Number of Pages: 80

Discovery of Book: Found while searching the library shelves

Reading Level: 4th grade- Adult

Awards: Book Links (A.L.A.), Books for the Teen Age, Corretta Scott King Award/Honor, Horned Book starred, Noteable/Best Books (A.L.A.), School Library Journal, Wilson's Junior High School, Wilson's Senior High School

Summary: The Middle Passage is a powerful picture book that depicts, through paintings, the slave trade of African Americans. After a brief introduction describing the triangular trade system, the pictures shows the struggles and atrocities faced by African Americans who were stolen from their father land and brought to America against their will. Some paintings show slaves on board ships being beaten, tortured or shot. Others show the slaves internal struggle of being separated from their loved ones, while being forced toendlessly work. The Middle Passage leaves the reader with a true sense of sorrow, pain, and agony about a trying time in American History.

Personal Connection: After flipping the pages of The Middle Passage any reader, young or old, would be awestruck by the powerful depiction of slavery. Each picture tells a story, whether it be of how the triangular trade system worked, or the difficulty in the lives of African Americans. For example, one picture in particular, on pages 46-47, shows how the stolen men of Africa were bound with shackles around their feet and ropes around their neck to keep them from trying to escape off the boat. To make matters worse, the slaves were crammed into tiny spaces filled with other men. Just looking at the picture could make anyone have the feeling of a sore back! The misery on the mens' faces is heart wrenching and moving. This book truly allows the topic of abuse against humans to come to the fore front of any conversation.

Classroom Usage: The beginning pages of The Middle Passage gives a fantastic overview of the slave trade. An independent reader in the higher elementary grades would most likely be somewhat successful in handling the introduction by themselves. Even then, support by the teacher may be needed due to the use of technical language. In the middle school classroom, reading the introduction whole class would be a fantastic way to initiate a discussion about The Middle Passage. The students would then work in groups of 4-5 to browse the pictures, carefully studying the faces, emotions, and actions of each illustration. The students could then write down examples and reasons of why they believe that The Middle Passage was or was not a holocaust using details from the book.

Picture Books: Flowers from Mariko

Title: Flowers from Mariko
Author: Rick Noguchi & Deneen Jenks
Publisher: Lee & Low Books, Inc.
Genre: Picture Book/Fiction
Number of Pages: 28
Location of Book: Found via http://www.cynthialeitichsmith.com/lit_resources/diversity/asian_am/japanese_am/nihon_WWII.html
Reading Level:
Award: Booklist, Bulletin of the Center of Children's Books, Multicultural Review, Publisher's Weekly

Summary: Flowers from Mariko is about a Japanese-American family's transition back into society after being detained in an internment camp for a few years during World War II. The story shows a struggle of a girl named Mariko, her father, once a gardener before their detainment, and the rest of Mariko's family. When the family is given back their rights to return to their homes, Mariko's father finds his gardening business in ruins. Many people were treating the Japanese with disdain and hatred, causing Mariko's father not to be able to find a job. One day Mariko's dad finds some flowers and tells his daughter to plant them. Mariko tends to the blossoms until they grow full. These new flowers give Mariko's father hope, until he eventually finds a job; getting his family back on their feet. This story shows the struggle of the Japanese-Americans after their own country performed an act of indecency against them.

Personal Connection: This story, Flowers from Mariko, is an excellent example of the struggle that the Japanese-Americans felt after their return to society following World War II. The authors detail how rude Americans were to their fellow citizens. One of the most powerful quotes of the story was when Mariko says, "Just because I look like the enemy doesn't mean I am (Noguchi et. al.,2001, p.3)." This statement shows that many people felt that because the Japanese were one of the factors that lead the United States into World War II, all Japanese, including those who were U.S. born citizens, were out to end the United States. This fear that was harvested by many in America during World War II, directly resembles the type of terror many Americans harbored towards Muslims after September 11th. I think it is amazing how we as a society talk about learning about history so that it does not repeat itself, yet we always seem to revert back to old habits despite our good advice.

Classroom Usage: Flowers from Mariko is a perfect story for a read-aloud in a middle school classroom. Many students have never been introduced to the idea of Japanese Internment Camps before the 8th grade year. Reading Flowers from Mariko would be an excellent way to establish some background knowledge for students in terms of this time period. Students would be able to start to make some connections about parts of history that had previously not been taught to them. An excellent follow up to this story would be to have the students read, as a Literature Circle, "Camp Harmony" by Monica Sone. This great short piece of literature would allow students to gain further knowledge about how the Japanese were treated inside of the camps during their detainment. Flowers by Mariko would be the perfect introductory book do to its simplistic language, while "Camp Harmony" would be an excellent follow up as it enables students to read on grade level; both giving students the opportunity to expand their idea of "What is a holocaust?"

Books To Begin On: The Predator

Title: The Predator
Author: Norma L. Gentner
Publisher: Wright Group Publishing, Inc.
Genre: Books to Begin On
Number of Pages: 16
Location of Book: Leveled Readers
Reading Level: Level 15 in Leveled Readers Series
Awards: None

Summary: The Predator assists students in learning how a snake operates in the wild. The book describes how it slithers and slides, while sneaking up on its prey. The Predator highlights how the snake continues to hunt day and night, eventually eating its prey whole.

Relation to "What is a holocaust?": The easy reader, The Predator, showcases how a snake quietly sneaks up on its prey, eventually attacks, and then swallows it whole, with no remorse. This story is metaphoric in terms of how many governments treat their citizens during times of turmoil. They sneak up quietly on their people and then attack, leaving no tracks behind.

Personal Connection: Immediately upon reading The Predator I began to relate the slithering, sneaky snake to the Nazi's during World War II. This military force would sneak quietly, at first, into towns "searching night and day" looking for Jewish Families and other outcasts in society. This "wary prey" desperately hid, trying to fight for survival. Eventually, the predator, the Nazi's, would swallow the Jews whole by quickly ending their life by shooting or gassing them. The bodies would then be rapidly buried in mass graves or burned in a crematory; leaving no sign that any human being had recently lived in that location. Just like the snake's prey, the Jews were "swallowed whole" never to be seen from again (Gentner, 1995).

Classroom Use: Since The Predator is a leveled reader, many elementary students who are early fluent readers may find this book quite enjoyable. These students would view the story strictly on a literal basis; snakes need to be sly while catching their prey in order to eat. On a more advanced level, students at the Middle School level should be able to make the metaphorical connection between the snake and cruel governments throughout history.

The Predator would be a great tool for introducing powerful governments within the classroom. The teacher would read the story to his/her class. The students would then discuss how the snake finds, stalks, and devours its prey. The teacher could then lead the students into a discussion about how the snake relates to governments throughout history. This book could launch the classes discussion on how people in our world can be predators, on the hunt for prey of its own. The teacher could mention briefly the idea of The Nazi's during World War II, Pol Pot in Cambodia, and The United States Government vs. Native Americans. The Predator would be an excellent story to launch the "What is a "holocaust?" unit!

Books To Begin On: Yuck Soup

Title: Yuck Soup
Author: Joy Cowley
Publisher: Wright Group Publishing, Inc.
Genre: Books to Begin On
Number of Pages: 8
Location of Book: Found in Leveled Readers
Reading Level: Level 5 in Leveled Readers Series

Summary: Yuck Soup is about two strange looking creatures who are making soup. On each page they put in another disgusting or strange material, making it "Yuck Soup!"

Relation to "What is a holocaust?": Yuck Soup would be an excellent way to introduce the idea of starvation when discussing holocausts. Since the soup the creatures make is disgusting, a discussion about not having food or being forced to eat what you are given could ensue.

Personal Connection: While reading Yuck Soup, I immediately became aware of all of the weird items the two main characters of the story was putting into the soup; such as thistles, toothbrushes, and socks. As the creatures put these items into their stew, I drew a connection to the horrible food that people in Europe, especially the Jewish, were forced to eat during The Holocaust. During this time period, food was scarce and people needed to find whatever they could to satisfy their starving stomachs. In the internment camps that social outcasts were forced to live in, the Nazi's gave them soup, which many describe as tasting like dirty bath water. Looking at the final product in Yuck Soup made me immediately think about what a prisoner during The Holocaust must have been thinking when it came time to eat.

Classroom Use: This easy reader would obviously be most interesting to early emergent readers, who are attempting to learn to read. However, I truly believe that middle schoolers would enjoy the humor and foulness that is created in Yuck Soup. Middle schoolers would love the fact that this would be a quick and relatively painless read, yet its content could easily help the teacher spring board into a rich discussion. For example, after reading Yuck Soup, the educator could pose the following questions to the class, "Describe a time that you had to eat something "yucky." Describe how that made you feel." "Pretend you had not eaten for days, would you have taken a bite of "Yuck Soup?" Why or why not? What else would you attempt to eat if there were little to no options?" These types of questions would lead into a discussion about The Holocaust and how many families were forced to eat despicable items or eat little, to nothing at all. Furthermore, the discussion could be broadened to include a multitude of time periods where humans were mistreated and starved to death.

This beginner reader would certainly be a great way to launch a discussion about the mistreatment of human beings during The Holocaust and other time periods throughout the world. Yuck Soup provides a simplistic look at a serious topic.

Personal Profile

Since the beginning of time I have had a passion for reading. As a young child, my mother enrolled in a book of the month club through Parents magazine. I would anxiously await for the brown cardboard box to arrive, rip it open, and delve deeply into the words that flowed across the page. Some of my early favorites were Henry's Awful Mistake by Robert Quackenbush, Sherlock Chick and the Peekaboo Mystery by Robert Quackenbush, and No More Elephants by Jerry Smath. I remember trying to find the ant in every picture of Henry's Awful Mistake, as the illustrator made the small insect be a pest to Henry, and hard to find in the illustration! These three books truly exemplify where my love for reading began.

As I grew older, my passion for reading became inflamed when my school began Book It, a reading program that incorporated using the incentive of a free personal pan pizza whenever you read a specific amount of books. Furthermore, I spent my summer's gathering small trinkets out of the library's treasure box for reading my specific number of books! Over time, I began reading without getting rewards, simply for personal pleasure. I can safely say I read every single book I was ever assigned in school, and a multitude on my own, as well.

Today, I find myself reading Young Adult Literature often, as I am a 7th and 8th grade Language Arts teacher. At the end of the 8th grade year, my students immerse themselves into a research project that asks them to answer the question, "What is a holocaust?" After modeling a myriad of books about the Holocaust, Japanese Internment Camps, and the Native American Removal Act, the students begin researching a specific time period in order to determine whether their chosen event could be considered a holocaust. This blog should be used to assist students in enhancing their research and their knowledge on violence and discrimination in our world.

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