Blog Challenge: Day 18 "White Socks Only"

Blog Challenge: Tell about a favorite book to share or teach. Provide at least one example of an extension or cross curricular lesson.

In White Socks Only by Evelyn Coleman an African American grandmother tells her grandchild a story about a time when she faced discrimination. She drank water from a fountain which was for "whites only." She misunderstood thinking that the sign meant she must take off her shoes and be only in her white socks. This action begins changes for the town and its residents. This would be an excellent story to use during February's Black History Month. You can find it on Storyline Online. 

There are many cross curricular activities that you could do with this book from science (how long does it take to fry an egg on a sidewalk) to social studies (research an historical person and create a timeline of their life). I want to give you ideas based on Common Core Reading Anchor Standard 1 "Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text." We are also going to tie in a technology integration piece. 

After reading and discussing the book, students go back to the text to learn more about the characters. They do a character analysis and cite information from the story to support their ideas. Using VoiceThread, students add their thoughts and evidence. They also can go back and comment on their peer's ideas. Click here for an example from a session with elementary teachers. By using VoiceThread, you could also go outside your classroom walls and have others add their comments as well. You could partner with another class in this endeavor.