Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson

With a 5th grade class, they should be able to read it on their own. You can use this book with as young as 3rd grade but I would use it as a read aloud in that grade. This book is a little long but is really good for teaching about slavery. Discuss how different students used the different scraps. The maps should show the students route to school.Ģ.) Have the students write a short story about their own imaginary journey through the fields and across the Ohio River to the Underground Railroad.ģ.) Ask the students to create a map of the classroom using scraps of fabric that you bring in and then share the maps with the class. I think it would make a great introduction book for a unit on the Underground railroad.ġ.) Ask the students to draw their own maps and keys using crayons, colored pencils, and markers.

Clara then uses her sewing skills to make a quilt that maps out how to get to the Ohio River and the Underground Railroad so they can get to freedom. At this other plantation Clara is sent to be field hand but a nice older slave woman helps her get in to the Big House as a seamstress. This book is about a young slave girl named Clara who is taken from her mother and sent to another plantation. Clara got help from people to stitch together a map in the form of a quilt, and she then used the quilt to help people find freedom, which demonstrates that helping others and having hope will help you reach your goals.

I liked the big idea of this story, which is to help those around you and to have hope. It was encouraging to ultimately use her developed skill to help people escape slavery. “She wasn’t my for-real blood aunt, but she did her best to care for me.” Although this book is based on historical events, readers may find Clara to be a relatable character, since when she first tried something new (sewing), she was not very good at it, but she continuously got better with practice. Themes of the importance of family and friends were present in the book, such as Clara’s relationship with Aunt Rachel. It has a really good plot, which is about a girl who uses her skills to escape slavery and find freedom in the North. Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt is a historical fiction book about a young girl named Clara who was a slave.

Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson