A Guide for Using The Sign of the Beaver in the Classroom


Book Description

This literature unit is used with The Sign of the Beaver, by Elizabeth George Speare. Included are sample lesson plans, biographical sketch of the author, book summary, book report ideas and more.




The Sign of the Beaver


Book Description

A 1984 Newbery Honor Book Although he faces responsibility bravely, thirteen-year-old Matt is more than a little apprehensive when his father leaves him alone to guard their new cabin in the wilderness. When a renegade white stranger steals his gun, Matt realizes he has no way to shoot game or to protect himself. When Matt meets Attean, a boy in the Beaver clan, he begins to better understand their way of life and their growing problem in adapting to the white man and the changing frontier. Elizabeth George Speare’s Newbery Honor-winning survival story is filled with wonderful detail about living in the wilderness and the relationships that formed between settlers and natives in the 1700s. Now with an introduction by Joseph Bruchac.




A Guide for Using The Witch of Blackbird Pond in the Classroom


Book Description

Presents lesson plans, curriculum connections, activities, vocabulary help, a related-reading list, and other materials for teaching The witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare.




Literature Circle Guide: the Sign of the Beaver


Book Description

A guide to using the book "The Sign of the Beaver," for literature circles in grades four through eight that includes management tips, an author biography, key reading comprehension strategies, and reproducible writing prompts and discussion questions.




Building Beavers


Book Description

Introduces the physical characteristics, habits, and natural environment of the North American beaver.







Calico Captive


Book Description

From a Newbery Medal–winning author, an “exciting novel” about a colonial girl’s experience during the French and Indian War (Saturday Review). In the year 1754, the stillness of Charlestown, New Hampshire, is shattered by the terrifying cries of an Indian raid. Young Miriam Willard, on a day that had promised new happiness, finds herself instead a captive on a forest trail, caught up in the ebb and flow of the French and Indian War. It is a harrowing march north. Miriam can only force herself to the next stopping place, the next small portion of food, the next icy stream to be crossed. At the end of the trail waits a life of hard work and, perhaps, even a life of slavery. Mingled with her thoughts of Phineas Whitney, her sweetheart on his way to Harvard, is the crying of her sister’s baby, Captive, born on the trail. Miriam and her companions finally reach Montreal, a city of shifting loyalties filled with the intrigue of war, and here, by a sudden twist of fortune, Miriam meets the prominent Du Quesne family, who introduce her to a life she has never imagined. Based on an actual narrative diary published in 1807, Calico Captive skillfully reenacts an absorbing facet of history. “Vital and vivid, this short novel based on the actual captivity of a pre-Revolutionary girl of Charlestown, New Hampshire, presents American history with force and verve.” —Kirkus Reviews







In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson


Book Description

A timeless classic that will enchant readers who love Jennifer L. Holm and Thanhhà Lại, about an immigrant girl inspired by the sport she loves to find her own home team—and to break down any barriers that stand in her way. Shirley Temple Wong sails from China to America with a heart full of dreams. Her new home is Brooklyn, New York. America is indeed a land full of wonders, but Shirley doesn't know any English, so it's hard to make friends. Then a miracle happens: baseball! It's 1947, and Jackie Robinson, star of the Brooklyn Dodgers, is a superstar. Suddenly Shirley is playing stickball with her class and following Jackie as he leads the Brooklyn Dodgers to victory after victory. With her hero smashing assumptions and records on the ball field, Shirley begins to feel that America is truly the land of opportunity—and perhaps has also become her real home.




Arrow to the Sun


Book Description

An adaptation of the Pueblo Indian myth that explains how the spirit of the Lord of the Sun was brought to the world of men.




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