Teacher's Note

Dear Readers,

This curriculum is personal. Teaching is personal.  It took 25 years to develop this content, and I feel that it is important to share during this threatening age of misinformation, banning books, and erasure of the teaching of certain history. In fact, that is the purpose of this curriculum! To never forget!

I actually didn't like history when I was a student and always struggled to remember dates and pass social studies tests. But, when teaching this literature, I discovered that the author's voices were so engaging that I couldn't help but remember 1933 and other eras and events. The tradition of man's inhumanity to man jumps off the pages of these books, and such stories and history must be preserved.

Unfortunately, the themes of prejudice based on race, class, religion, and sex prevail, and acts of defiance against the laws that promote these injustices also continue. So, by publishing this curriculum, I hope to engage in my own act of defiance and make a small difference in these struggles. I know that I try to in my daily life, and, after reading or teaching this content, I hope that you will be inspired to do so too.

I want to give a special thanks to Mildred Taylor who is my absolute hero! Her books -- the saga of the Logan family -- were her stories, and her bravery to share them inspires me.  I always told my students to "tell a story worth telling," and that is what Taylor has done. Beautifully. (Yes, I tried many  times to reach her, but she is private, and I respected that.)

John Steinbeck's storytelling and imagery, Anne Frank's revealing personal and historical content, and Anne Hesse's historical allusions are also gut-wrenching and awe-inspiring, and I sincerely hope that I encourage just a few of you to read -- or teach -- these novels in the order that they are presented: The Pearl; Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry; The Diary of a Young Girl: The Definitive Edition; and Witness. The chronology is important as each epiphany scaffolds onto the next.

With gratitude, I wish you all peace, justice and happiness.

Sincerely,

"Ms. Claussen"