Butterfly House (Realistic Fiction)

Butterfly House was written by Eve Bunting and illustrated by Greg Shed. It was published by Scholastic Press in 1999 and is recommended for first grade.

A young girl and her grandfather bond by saving a caterpillar from being eaten and raise it until it's a butterfly. They create a small environment for it and watch each stage the caterpillar passes through.


Butterfly House is a good source of contemporary realistic fiction because it includes the concepts of family and friend relationships along with the educational experience of the butterfly life cycle. It also introduces the concept of aging; Bunting does this by showing the butterfly life cycle and the aging of humans. The young girl at the beginning of the story is as old as her grandfather was at the end of the story. The topic is suitable for children, and the plot and characters are very realistic. The themes emerge naturally and create a warm-hearted feel to the book.


The illustrations by Greg Shed also contribute by enhancing the story. They show beautiful representations of each cycle of the butterfly. Shed used gouache on canvas to create his illustrations and they reflected the pleasant tone of the story. (No illustrations have been leaked to Google or Yahoo, so you'll have to get the book to see them.)

After reading Butterfly House to the class, discuss as a group what happened in the story and compare the life cycles of butterflies and humans as Eve Bunting did. For an activity, have the students cut out and color printouts of each part of the butterfly cycle. (I've included an example of a print-out below.) After they've finished, they should be able to retell the story of the lifecycle by using their cut-outs. You could also include a picture quiz of the life cycle where they could put the stages in order. 

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.2
Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson.

Missing May (Realistic Fiction)

Missing May was written by Cynthia Rylant and published by Scholastic Inc. in 1992. It has won many awards including a Newbery Medal, the 1992 Horn Book Award, and the Parent's Choice Award. Recommendations for this chapter book are for grade 5.




Missing May is about how a twelve-year-old girl named Summer and her Uncle Ob, the man that raised her after her mother's death, grieve the death of Summer's Aunt May.




After the death of May, the two of them don't quite know how to move on. Uncle Ob especially has a hard time and that hurts Summer even more. They eventually come to find that there are still reasons to live.




This multi-award winning chapter book is recommended by me because it is a great source of contemporary realistic fiction for children. The theme of Missing May is worth introducing to children because it is something that happens to everyone at some point in time. Children need to learn about death and how to get through it. Reading Summer's story could help a child through a similar situation.




Rylant wrote about a hard subject but kept it age appropriate for young readers. The plot and combination of diverse characters were convincing and easily relatable. I also thought that all of the usual stereotypes were avoided including the surprisingly warm-hearted elderly aunt and uncle that volunteered to take Summer in as a child. This book is one of the most well-written children's books I've read.


In Missing May, Summer and her Uncle Ob befriend a boy named Cletus. It's obvious that Cletus helps Summer and Ob stay distracted from their grief, whether it's aggravating Summer or entertaining Ob. Rylant's characters are very different, yet very similar. After the class reads this book, as a group, write a list of character traits for Summer, Ob, and Cletus showing their similarities and differences; then have each student individually write a biography as one of the characters. They should include what inferences they made about the character from the story and include descriptive details.


CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.3Compare and contrast two or more characters, settings, or events in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., how characters interact).


CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3
Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.

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.

Uncle Jed's Barbershop (Historical Fiction)

 

Uncle Jed's Barbershop was written by Margaree King Mitchell and illustrated by James Ransome. It was published by Scholastic Inc. in 1993 and is recommended for fourth grade.

A young African- American girl named Sarah Jean narrated the story of her favorite uncle, Jed. Her Uncle Jed was one of the only black barbers in their area and he dreamed of owning his own barbershop one day. Instead of buying one right away, Jed faced the hard times of the Great Depression and a few other obstacles.

Uncle Jed's Barbershop is a good source of literature because it's an inspiring story of a man that had to overcome many obstacles before reaching his dreams. It also teaches children about historical events like segregation and the Great Depression. Mitchell portrayed this time period well and avoided all contradictions with real history. After reading this book, young readers will better understand this era in history.

Ransome's watercolor illustrations also contributed by giving readers a visual of these characters' story. The pictures fit the time period and reflect the changing tones of the book.

Uncle Jed's Barbershop takes place during the Great Depression. There are many clues included in this story that reference to this time period including sharecropping, bank failures, and payments in food as opposed to money. Read this book to the class first, then as a group, make a list of things in this story that happened because of the Great Depression.

After this activity, have them get creative. Have them write a story about their life during the Great Depression if they had lived back then. They should use concepts from this story and any other information they've learned on this subject. Multiple events and descriptive details should be included as well.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.3
Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.4.3
Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.

Goin' Someplace Special (Historical Fiction)

Goin' Someplace Special was written by Patricia C. McKissack and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. It was published by Scholastic Inc. in 2001 and is recommended for third grade.

'Tricia Ann is a young African- American girl living in the South during the mid- 1900s. The South is still segregated and 'Tricia Ann has to go through her day abiding by the rules of the Jim Crow Laws. She hates having to only use the "colored people" benches, bus seats, and movie seats, but there is one place where she doesn't have to.

 

Goin' Someplace Special is a good source of literature because it educates children about the time period when we had segregation. There are sufficient references to the Jim Crow laws and obvious discrimination included to let the reader know the time period that 'Tricia Ann lives in. McKissack also included dialect from the African-American heritage that makes the story more authentic.

Pinkney's watercolor illustrations also contributed by giving readers a visual of 'Tricia Ann's day and the "whites only" signs from this time period. All of the pictures harmonized with the text and were appealing to me. This book is a great representation of historical fiction.

In this time period, 'Tricia Ann has to endure the hardships of segregation. Before segregation, there was slavery. After reading this book to the class, have students compare 'Tricia Ann's time period with the slavery in another book. (Henry's Freedom Box is a good example to use and is on my blog as well.) They should describe the differences and similarities of slavery and segregation along with examples and ideas from each story.

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.3.2
Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.

 

Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad (Historical Fiction)

Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad was written by Ellen Levine and illustrated by Kadir Nelson. It was published by Scholastic Press in 2007 and has received a Caldecott Honor Award for its illustrations. The grade level recommendation for this story is for second grade.

Henry Brown was a slave in the mid 1800s that was sold as a child to work in a factory. He married and had children that were also sold. Since he had no more family, he decided to escape to freedom using the Underground Railroad. He got white men that weren't supporters of slavery to mail him in a box to freedom. He became very famous because it worked. He was renamed: Henry Box Brown.

Henry's Freedom Box is a good source of literature because it tells a story of a real event in history. It's a great way to help children understand the Underground Railroad. The setting was definitely integral to the story because Henry traveled from Virginia, a slave state, to Washington D.C., a free state. This book sufficiently references the Underground Railroad, slavery, and Henry Box Brown.

The illustrations by Kadir Nelson also contributed highly to Henry's story. They enhanced the story by showing how slaves had to live and dress as opposed to whites, and they gave the reader a visual of Henry's story. The dark colors gave the illustrations the right tone for speaking of slavery. Nelson's use of cross-hatching also created the right "feel" for the story and gave the pictures texture. As I said before, these illustrations won a Caldecott Honor Award.

In this story, Henry goes through physical and emotional hardships before finally reaching freedom. After being read this book, students should write a response on how Henry acted, thought, and felt while he was in Virginia and how he acted, thought, and felt when he arrived in Washington D.C. They should also include why Henry's feelings changed. >> Obviously, they should answer that Henry's feelings changed because he was once a slave, and now he is free.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.2.3
Write narratives in which they recount a well-elaborated event or short sequence of events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.3
Describe the connection between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text. (Slavery to Freedom)

Lily's Crossing (Historical Fiction)

Lily's Crossing was written by Patricia Reilly Giff and published by Delacorte Press in 1997. It is a historical fiction chapter book recommended for fifth grade and has received a Newbery Honor Award.


Lily Mollahan is a young girl that lives during World War II in the United States. Her family vacations at Rockaway Beach every year, but this year is different. Her father has to leave and help with the war, and her usual best friend at Rockaway leaves to be with family because her father is helping with the war as well.


Lily doesn't care much about the war at first. She just wants her father and best friend back, but eventually a new friend comes along and he changes how Lily views everything.

Lily's Crossing is a good source of literature because it lets children read about the point of view of someone their age during World War II. It also teaches kids more about World War II without the boring lessons from a textbook. There are references to historical events like D-Day and the Holocaust. The setting and language were both authentic for the period, and Giff avoided any contradictions that could be made with real history. There were also different points of view made. Other than Lily's, Giff gave perspectives on how Albert (a Hungarian refugee), Lily's Gram, and Lily's father saw the war. I highly recommend this book.

In Lily's Crossing, Lily and Albert become best friends even though they are from very different parts of the world. Where Albert is from, people are dying and being taken to concentration camps because of their heritage, and Lily is from America. Throughout the story, Lily sees how different Albert is and how much differently the war has affected him than her. After reading the story, have the students compare and contrast Lily and Albert's heritages along with their views of war by using a Bubble graph like the one I have linked below.

http://www.studenthandouts.com/01-Web-Pages/001-Pages/venn-diagram-compare-contrast-chart-bubble-map-graphic-organizer.htm

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.3
Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.5.3
Compare and contrast two or more characters, settings, or events in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., how characters interact).