Historical Fiction

 Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by: Deborah Hopkinson

 

 

Summary:

This book is about a young girl who was raised into slavery, away from her mother. She is a field hand, and her "aunt" teaches her how to sew so she can get out of the field and become a seamstress. Over the years she works on sewing a quilt. The quilt symbolizes freedom, and helps others to gain the courage to free themselves from slavery.

Evaluation:

This is historical fiction as it a fictional story based on true events that have actually happened in the past, it refers to the underground railroad. The characters behave as they would have in that setting versus how people would act in in the present, with actions that were common for that time period, for this book it was working in the field and being a seamstess.

The illustrations in the book use representational art to depict the characters in a realistic manner. The illustrations utilize the elements of color and texture to bring the culture of the story to life.

 

Activities:

Children could get different fabrics or old clothes from around their house and use the fabric to make a tie quilt with the help of their teachers, and tell the class about what the different fabrics and the quilt mean to them.

Older children could compare this story to a nonfictional story about the underground railroad and compare and contrast the two.

 

Personal Thoughts:

I enjoyed this story. I feel like it helps to give some insight into some of the struggles that other cultures faced in the past. It lets children see a little bit of the past, and can help them to open their minds to learning more history.  

Are children ever too young to learn about bad/ sad events that have happened in the past; slavery, war, etc.. ? 

What are your thoughts on using historical fiction as a gateway to introducing children to these types of events?

Personally, I think is good for children to learn about these things at a fairly young age, and I think using historical fiction is a good way to introduce it. These stories can give a softer version of the harsh realities that people in these times suffered. Giving children the knowledge of the past, without the gory details.

 

Reference:

Hopkinson, D. (2003). Sweet Clara and the freedom quilt. New York, NY: Knopf.