2003, ISBN: 9780312367657

History 1. The background for Home of the Brave is the civil war that devastated the Sudan on and off from the 1950s to the 1990s and the ethnic war in the Darfur region of Sudan that h… More...

History 1. The background for Home of the Brave is the civil war that devastated the Sudan on and off from the 1950s to the 1990s and the ethnic war in the Darfur region of Sudan that has raged from 2003 to the present . The mere mention of the word "Darfur" in the media conjures up images of anarchy, destruction, and genocide. In order for your students to understand the plight of Kek and the millions of Sudanese people affected by the war, research and then discuss recent history of the Sudan as a whole and the Darfur region in particular. Questions to consider are: What is the ethnic make up of Sudan?Why were the wars fought?Who was fighting whom?What role did the Sudanese government play?What happened to the people?How did the world community respond?What were the consequences? Literature 2. Katherine Applegate tells us the story of Home of the Brave as a first-person narrative free verse poem. Start your study of the poetry of the novel with a question for your class: How does the poetic form of the novel help us see the world through Kek's eyes? On the very first page of the book, phrases like "flying boat," and "the helping man" not only reveal Kek's innocence and inexperience with the English language, but are also poetic. They make us see the airplane and Dave differently than if the author had used the words "airplane" and "relief worker." Poems use words carefully, each chosen for many reasons - its sound, meaning and rhythm. Ask your students to keep a list of such words and phrases that they discover as they read the novel. They should define them using conventional language, and make notes about how the words/phrases differ, even though they mean the same thing. Have your students create poetic phrases. Make a list of objects, terms, and phrases they come in contact with in their everyday lives. Then have the students redefine them in poetic terms. For example, an iPod could be "the singing box." Put the students' terms along with the ones they find that Kek uses in Home of the Brave together and create a class dictionary of poetic terms. Your students will now have a new resource to use for when they write their own poems and stories. Social Studies - Immigration 3. This America is hard work. This is one of Kek's first realizations, and it is one of the themes of the novel. Have your students discuss what Kek means by this statement. Talk with them about why it is so hard even though many people think that Americans have it too easy. How is it especially hard for newcomers to the United States? 4. There are students from all over the world in Kek's ESL class. He ponders: Of all the things I didn't know about America, this is the most amazing: I didn't know there would be so many tribes from all over the world. How could I have imagined the way they walk through world side by side without fear all free to gaze at the same sky with the same hopes? America, the land Children's & Young Adult Fiction Children's & Young Adult Fiction eBook, Feiwel & Friends<

2008, ISBN: 9780312367657

Kek comes from Africa. In America he sees snow for the first time, and feels its sting. He''s never walked on ice, and he falls. He wonders if the people in this new place will … More...

Kek comes from Africa. In America he sees snow for the first time, and feels its sting. He''s never walked on ice, and he falls. He wonders if the people in this new place will be like the winter - cold and unkind. In Africa, Kek lived with his mother, father, and brother. But only he and his mother have survived, and now she''s missing. Kek is on his own. Slowly, he makes friends: a girl who is in foster care; an old woman who owns a rundown farm, and a cow whose name means family in Kek''s native language. As Kek awaits word of his mother''s fate, he weathers the tough Minnesota winter by finding warmth in his new friendships, strength in his memories, and belief in his new country. Bestselling author Katherine Applegate presents a beautifully wrought novel about an immigrant''s journey from hardship to hope.Home of the Brave is a 2008 Bank Street - Best Children''s Book of the Year. Katherine Applegate, Books, Home Of The Brave Books, Feiwel & Friends<