An Apple for Harriet Tubman

In class last Wednesday, we were asked to chose a story, read it with a partner and find elements within the story that were teachable and engaging. The cool part was that I discovered things I never knew about Harriet Tubman; like how she has an apple orchard in Auburn New York, which is a small city not far way from Syracuse. We also  had the opportunity to share our thoughts and create more ways that the story could be used for different teaching purposes.

This story gently describes the story of Harriet Tubman's life, without sugar coating some of the hardship she had to face. Growing up in a family of slaves, Harriet had a never ending chore list and a few big dreams. She believed in treating people fairly and working hard towards your goals. Harriet was out in the orchard picking apples one day, and though she was told never to eat the apples and to pick the best for her slave owners, she decided to take a bite anyways. When she was caught she was treated the same way most other slaves were treated when they "misbehaved", and from that point on Harriet was determined to find freedom and fairness. The rest of the story talks about her work in the Underground Railroad and her travels from the South and the North, and how she eventually achieved her dreams by helping to free family and friends from the hardships of slavery. She also went on to make her own apple orchard, and she shared her apples with whomever desired them. The book was written wonderfully by Glenette Tilly Turner, and she has also written several other stories involving the Underground Railroad. Turner beyond a great author is a well-known and well-honored Historian and Educator.

This book was beautifully illustrated by Susan Keeter, who is actually a Syracuse University graduate (woo hoo!), and though maybe one or two illustrations could be considered somewhat graphic, I think that it allows the reader to really understand the cruelty and truth in the hardships of slavery.  For a pre-activity, students could simply do a picture walk and make predictions about the elements involved in the story. After reading the story, they could pair off with another student and share their thoughts after writing about the feelings that the book evoked upon them in a journal or a notebook. Barnes and Noble thought that this book was fit for 7-9 year olds, but I think the book could be used at any Elementary grade level from 1st grade to 6th. Some of the main themes that could be discussed from reading this picture book include bravery, heroism, freedom, equality, hard work ethic and responsibility.



(The HistoryMakers website, Amazon.com)