History Book Shelf

Literature Review

Chapter Books for a content integrated read aloud, book groups, or just to recommend to kids who are particularly engaged with the content.

Lucy & Andy Neanderthal by Jeffrey Brown is a fun graphic novel series about a sister and brother who live in the Stone Age. Clever, readable, and integrated with prehistoric information, this would be great book to use if you are integrating your history unit with the Time Travel story or with writing a Graphic Novel.

 

Salt: A Story of Friendship in a Time of War by Helen Frost is a novel in verse that takes place in Indiana in the lead up to the War of 1812. Anikwa, a member of the Miami nation, and James, the son of a trader who depends upon the local U.S. soldiers, are friends who struggle with questions of loyalty, honesty, and how to do what is right in the face of war. Perfect for integrating poetry, perspective, economics, and geography into a history unit. Can serve as a powerful mentor text if your students will be writing aStory in Verse as part of your history unit.

The Left Behinds: The iPhone that Saved George Washington by David Potter is the first of a fun time travel series, in which Mel, Bev, and Brandon use an app to travel back in time–and find themselves in the middle of the American Revolution. The sequel puts the same characters in the midst of the Civil War. High interest and fun, these are great companions to your student of either war. They provide lots of context and conversation about the issues of the time and serve as a great way to get kids thinking about the features of Time Travel stories.

Hard Gold by Avi is the story of Early Whitcomb, a 14 year old, who heads west on a wagon train in 1859 to search for the gold to save his family’s farm and solve a family mystery. The first person narrator, photos, maps, sketches, and integrated historical understandings of the period make this a great book to use if your class is doing Wagon Train or a Character Scrap Book during your history unit.

Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis is the Coretta Scott King winning novel of Elijah, of Buxton, Canada. In a town of people who have escaped from slavery, Elijah is the first child born free. When the opportunity to right a wrong and change his reputation from fragile to hero presents itself, Elijah has to summon his courage. Like Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963, the author balances weighty and tragic historical fact with the everyday-ness of a great kiddo, humor, and adventure.

The Witch of Blackberry Pond by Elizabeth Speare is a Newbery winner about Kit, who has grown up with independence and extravagant wealth in Barbados, but who must move to pre-Revolutionary War Connecticut after the death of her beloved grandfather. Adapting to the Puritanism of her family and community is a challenge for the free-spirited and spoiled Kit, who finds comfort and friendship of a local Quaker woman named Hannah. Kit is challenged to find the places where she must grow and change (the evils of slavery, her self-indulgence) and the places where she refuses to change (her independence, her love of learning). This is a good book to give students some context of life in colonial New England, the strengths and pitfalls of the Puritanism of the colonists, the events and discussions that led to the American Revolution, and the darkness of religious intolerance as manifested in the accusations of witchcraft. This is one of my childhood favorites.

Picture Books to support content learning as a read aloud or as part of an integrated content library, or to function as mentor texts to inspire students to share their learning in a similar format.

A Street Through Time by Anne Millard is a fascinating book that illustrates the way a single street changes over time from prehistoric to modern times. Study each scene carefully to find the time traveler and support children as they draw conclusions about changes over time and sequencing. A great complement to studying time lines!

 

Stone Age Boy by Satoshi Kitamora is a gorgeous picture book, that tells the story of a boy who time travels into the Stone Age, where he meets a girl and her family who help him and with whom he learns about the every day lives and challenges of prehistoric peoples. This is a great launch for a history unit and for thinking about what would live would be like before everything that is familiar about our modern lives.

The First Drawing by Mordicai Gerstein is a lovely book for guiding students to understand what prehistory is and why people might have been inspired to begin recording things in drawings. Another great one for introducing kids to imagining life during prehistoric times.

 

Good Times Travel Agency: Adventures in the Ice Age by Linda Bailey is one of a series of time travel picture books into ancient times and places, featuring the Binkerton siblings. There’s some good historical information woven into this time travel story with a playful graphic novel/journal format.

 

You Wouldn’t Want to Be a Mammoth Hunter! by John Malam is another in the series of You Wouldn’t Want to… books. Funny, allowing the reader to imagine themselves as being in the book, with cartoonish illustrations and fun sidebar information, these books are a lighthearted look at some of the dangers of prehistoric times. High interest and engaging.

Hiawatha and the Peacemaker by Robbie Robertson is the story of the Mohawk leader, Hiawatha, and his guide, the Peacemaker, who lead the five warring nations of the Iroquois to peace and to a new model for governing–one that later inspired the authors of the U.S. Constitution. A thought provoking story, with beautiful art, that adds richness and complexity to our understanding of Native American history.

Unite or Die: How Thirteen States Became a Nation by Jacqueline Jules is framed and illustrated as a class play about the Constitutional Convention and the history of the Constitution. It’s cutesy and fun, but it’s also filled with relevant and interesting facts and context about the founding of our nation. An engaging read that will certainly enrich student understanding and may inspire some acting!

George vs George: The American Revolution as Seen from Both Sides by Rosalyn Schanzer is the beautifully illustrated and complex tale of the American Revolution through the eyes of George Washington and those of King George III. This is an excellent resource for teaching the Revolutionary War and for teaching the difficult concept that every event has multiple perspectives, or–in the words of Winston Churchill–“History is written by the victors.”

The Dreadful Smelly Colonies by Elizabeth Raum is an engaging read for those kiddos who are interested in the grosser things in life. A nonfiction book that teaches kids about some of the less pleasant aspects of life in the American colonies, it’s sure to provide good information and a hook for thinking about the ways life has changed.

 

Gingerbread for Liberty by Mara Rockliffe is the true story of a German American baker who supported the Revolutionary War effort, despite being told he was too old and overweight to be a soldier. With charming art, fun, accessible text, and a warm, everyday hero entry point, this is a great text to support discussions about the American Revolution.

 

Aurora Means Dawn by Scott Russell Sanders is an historical fiction story about a pioneer family headed from the East to settle in Ohio in the 1800s. A sweet story about new beginnings, hope, and communities that help each other, this is a great way to talk about the westward expansion that led to the settlement of Ohio.

The Floating House by Scott Russell Sanders is an historical fiction story of the McClure family as the travel to settle in the new territory of Ohio, floating down the Ohio River by flatboat with all of their material possessions and farm animals. A charming tale about a different kind of journeying pioneers.

Warm as Wool by Scott Russell Sanders is based on the true story of Betsy Ward, a pioneer during the early 1800s, who came to Ohio and started a sheep farm. Rich descriptions of the life of a new settler to Ohio before statehood and lovely illustrations!

 

Brick by Brick by Charles R. Smith, Jr. is the true story of the history of the White House. The famous home of the President of the United States was build by many–including slaves. Powerful pictures and words remind us of the terrible legacy of slavery and its part in our nation’s past.

 

Henry’s Freedom Box by Ellen Levine tells the true story of Henry Brown, a child, enslaved and separated from his mother, who mails himself to freedom. A tragic story–Henry is separated from his mother, his wife, and his children–but also a story of hope and fierce longing for freedom. Gorgeous illustrations and a powerful tale of the impact of slavery and the importance of the Underground Railroad.

Freedom Over Me by Ashley Bryan is both a Newbery and Coretta Scott King Honor book. Inspired by documents from a slave auction, Bryan imagined the stories of the real enslaved people whose stories have been lost to the institutions of slavery, painting portraits as he imagined them and writing poetry, celebrating the people they may have been and lamenting the deep wrongs perpetrated upon them. Powerful and rich text–accessible and essential to help children understand the evils of slavery.

The Price of Freedom: How One Town Stood Up to Slavery by Dennis Brindell Fradin is my most treasured picture book for studying Ohio history. Based on the true story of John Price, who escaped from slavery in Kentucky and settled in Oberlin, Ohio–only to be captured by slave hunters who intended to return him to slavery in accordance with the Fugitive Slave Act. When the citizens of Oberlin discovered what had happened, they intervened to free John Price, and twenty of the participants were ultimately jailed. The powerful story of how much people were willing to risk to stand up for what is right and of the critical role Ohio played in the Underground Railroad movement and of the events that ultimately led to the Civil War, this book is essential reading for 4th grade history in Ohio.

Steamboat School by Deborah Hopkinson is the story of James, who had to be dragged to school, until his school is shut down because it is illegal to teach African Americans. Inspired by the true story of Reverend John Berry Meachum who builds a new school–on a steamboat to avoid the laws of Missouri. Powerful, moving, and a tribute to strength of spirit.