Once Upon a Time on a Plantation (Historical Fiction)

Once Upon a Time on a Plantation is a historical fiction chapter book written by Nancy Rhyne with a few illustrations by Joan Holub. It was published by Pelican Publishing Company in 1988 and is recommended for third grade.

Cart and Will are two twelve-year-old boys living on a plantation in South Carolina before the Civil War. The friendly relationship between a rich white boy and a slave boy gives readers an unlikely twist on the usual pre-Civil War stories. The boys love living on the plantation and getting into mischief. This episodic chapter book gives the reader different stories about Cart and Will's entertaining yet educational adventures.

Once Upon a Time on a Plantation is a good source of literature because it has interesting stories for children that are also informative about South Carolina's old plantations and historical events. The setting is integral to the story because it teaches children about plantation life, rice fields, the owner's mansion, and many other aspects of a typical historical plantation. Rhyne also included how an old slave woman spoke Gullah instead of English and made the little boy, Will, speak differently than Cart, signifying their diverse heritages. After reading the book, I personally feel like I know more about this era and how life was like to live on a Southern plantation back then. I would especially recommend this book to third grade teachers in South Carolina. South Carolina history couldn't be brought to life any better than this.

For this book, have the students divide into two groups. One group will explain the cons slavery, and the other group will explain the cons of segregation. (In this book, the plantation master treated the slaves nicely, and they had a decent life, whereas segregation would have put them out on their own to find their own land and food.) This will bring to their attention the differences and inevitable hardships of each era.

After this activity, have them write a story about a day on a historical plantation in pre-Civil War times. Have them include some of the events from the book and other descriptive details.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.3
Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.3
Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.