Brown Girl Dreaming

Brown Girl Dreaming

Written by Jacqueline Woodson

Nancy Paulsen Books 2014

Awards: National Book Award for Young People’s Literature (2014), Newbery Honor (2015), Sibert Honor (2015), Coretta Scott King Award for Author (2015), Claudia Lewis Award for Older Readers (2015)

Summary:

Jacqueline Woodson shares her memories of what it was like growing up in both the North and the South during the Civil Rights era. Brown Girl Dreaming is a unique collection of poems that portrays a young girls view of different movements and activists, along with the story of her life and family. She sometimes compares herself to her other siblings because she hasn’t yet found who she really is. After awhile, Jacqueline finds her outlet and is able to find her voice through writing.

Moving. Innocent. Historical. Family. Patience.

Grade Level: 5-9

Lexile Measure: 990

Description: Nonfiction, Autobiography

Suggested Delivery: Independent

Key Vocabulary:

·      Emancipate- to set somebody free

·      Overcome- conquer an obstacle

·      Injustice- unfair

·      Generation- all of the people born and living at the same time

·      Switch- thick rod or cane; beating

·      Eternity vs. Infinite

Electronic Resources:

http://www.jacquelinewoodson.com

This link will bring you to Jacqueline Woodson’s own website where you can read more about her and see other books she has written. There are even separate sections for readers, teachers, and caregivers.

http://www.readingrockets.org/books/interviews/woodson

This is a video interview with Jacqueline. She talks about her writing and where she gets her ideas. “Ideas are in the air.”

Teaching Suggestions:

This page from Read Write Thing gives a great lesson on exploring perspectives using Brown Girl Dreaming.

http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/exploring-perspectives-desegregation-using-31133.html

Before: Discuss the Civil Rights Era and important figures in it. Jacqueline Woodson uses many names and events and students should either be reminded or taught about this era before starting the book. This way they can make the connections easier throughout the reading.

During: Students can create a timeline of important events as they read through the book. The timeline can include anything that the student feel is important to Jacqueline’s story or any big events/changes in the book.

After: Students can each individually complete an exit slip explaining their thoughts about the book. They can describe things they liked, didn’t, like, didn’t agree with, or anything else they want to talk about. Specific questions can be given to the students to answer. For example, why do you think Jacqueline Woodson wrote this book as a collection of poems instead of just a story? Students should also be encouraged to ask any questions that they want to discuss or add thoughts and comments.

Writing Activity: Students can write their own poem about where they came from and who they are today. The poem should describe a piece of the student and can use descriptive and figurative language.