Historical Fiction Unit Plan

1. Flight for Freedom: The Wetzel Family’s Daring Escape from East Germany by Kristen Fulton

1.1. Peter was born on the east side of Germany, the side that wasn't free. He watches news programs rather than cartoons, and wears scratchy uniforms instead of blue jeans. His family endures long lines and early curfews. But Peter knows it won't always be this way. Peter and his family have a secret. Late at night in their attic, they are piecing together a hot air balloon—and a plan. Can Peter and his family fly their way to freedom?

2. Ruth and the Green Book by Calvin Alexander Ramsey

2.1. Ruth was so excited to take a trip in her family 's new car! In the early 1950s, few African Ameri cans could afford to buy c ars, so this would be an ad venture. But she soon found out that Black trav elers weren't treated very well in some towns. Many hotels and gas stations refused service to Black people. Daddy was ups et about something cal led Jim Crow laws . . . Finally, a friendly at tendant at a gas station sh owed Ruth's family The Green Book. It listed all o f the places that would w elcome Black travelers. W ith this guidebook―and the kindness of strangers―Ruth could finally make a safe journey from Chicago to her grandma's house in Alabama.

3. The Hallelujah Flight by Phil Bildner

3.1. During the Great Depres sion, the ace black pilot James Banning decided to fly from coast to co ast to serve as an inspi ration to people every where. So with a little ingenuity and a whol e lot of heart, he fixe d up the dilapidated OXX6 Eagle Rock plane with his co-pilot and mechanic, Tho mas Allen, earning them the derisive nickname, “Th e Flying Hobos.” But with the help of friends an d family along the way wh o signed their names on th e wings of the plane in exchange for food, fuel a nd supplies, Banning and A llen made it through t reacherous weather and overcame ruthless prejudice to receive a heroes’ welcome upon landing in New York on October 9, 1932.

4. The Freedom Machine by Paul Mason

4.1. Alice Dawson and her father get the opportunity to experience using one of the first automobiles. Throughout the story Mr. Dawson's perspective shifts as he sees the problems and solutions presented by this new technology. Alice appreciates the freedom offered by the ability to travel great distances in a fraction of the time possible before.

4.1.1. Vocabulary lesson for Chapters 1&2- using context clues to find the meaning of new or multiple meaning words.

4.1.2. Vocabulary lesson for Chapters 3&4 - using context clues to find the meanings of new and multiple meaning words.

4.1.3. Comprehension Lesson for chapters 1-4 - Identifying setting, characters, plot points, conflict, and resolution

4.1.4. Comprehension Lesson for chapters 1-4 - Summarizing the story using information gathered in the previous lesson.

4.1.5. Writing lesson - Students will read one of 6 historical fiction texts relating to travel or transportation and compare and contrast it to The Freedom Machine.

5. Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson

5.1. Clara, a slave and sea mstress on Home Pla ntation, dreams of freedom—not just for he rself, but for her fa mily and friends. When sh e overhears a conversation about the U nderground Railroad, she h as a flash of i nspiration. Using scraps of cloth from her work in the Big House and scraps of information gathered from other slaves, she fashions a map that the master would never even recognize.

6. Wagon Wheels by Barbara Brenner

6.1. Formerly enslaved Ed Muldie and his family travel to Kansas in 1878 to claim land under the Homestead Act. Mother dies on the journey from Kentucky. The family joins a free Black community in Nicodemus, Kansas. They survive a difficult winter thanks to help from the Osage Native community. But in spring Daddy must leave the boys to find better land for farming. The two older boys, eleven and eight, take care of their three-year-old brother in these difficult times. Then a letter arrives via Pony Express. Daddy has settled and gives the boys a map to follow. The three boys must begin their own journey. They must care for one another as they travel 150 miles on foot to join him in their new home.

7. Ruby's Hope: A Story of How the Famous “Migrant Mother” Photograph Became the Face of the Great Depression by Monica Kulling

7.1. Dust storms and dismal farming conditions force young Ruby’s family to leave their home in Oklahoma and travel to California to find work. As they move from camp to camp, Ruby sometimes finds it hard to hold on to hope. But on one fateful day, Dorothea Lange arrives with her camera and takes six photographs of the young family. When one of the photographs appears in the newspaper, it opens the country’s eyes to the reality of the migrant workers’ plight and inspires an outpouring of much needed support.