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FAMILY
TREE
in the Classroom
Prepared with
assistance from Marcy Canterna, Heritage Elementary School, Murrysville, PA
Discuss
the Amish with students, including maps which show areas with large Amish
settlements in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana. Display and read in
advance: An Amish Christmas, An
Amish Wedding (Ammon), Reuben and the
Blizzard, Reuben and the Fire (Good), Katie
and Her Friends (Henderson), A
Stone’s Throw from Paradise, (High) Just
Plain Fancy (Polacco).
Secrets
— All of us have secrets, things we keep to ourselves. Ask students to
discuss the secrets Jakob and Tyler have in Family
Tree. Are they good secrets or bad ones? How do these secrets
begin to come out in the open? What is the cost of keeping secrets?
Of telling secrets?
Differences
— Even before she discovers her father’s heritage, Tyler feels different
from her classmates. Why? How does it affect her? Encourage
students to imagine and describe other reasons a person might feel different
from others. What can we do about feeling different?
Shunning
— In everyday life people often include some people and exclude others.
For the Amish, however, shunning is more serious and long-lasting exclusion.
Why do the Amish use such a stern measure? Encourage students to imagine
what would happen to their lives if they were to experience shunning. How
would their lives change?
Balancing
Act — In business, people create a balance sheet, listing plus items on
one side and minus items on the other. What are the plus or positive
consequences of Tyler’s class assignment? What are the negatives?
In the end of the book, which side wins, the plus or minus side?
Making Choices — By the end of the book, Tyler’s family is no
longer hidden from her. What might happen next with Grandmother Tyler?
With the Stoudts? Who will get to help decide and what might they choose?
Language
Arts — The only way Tyler can get to know her mother is by reading her
books and journals. Encourage students to keep journals of important
events in their lives. Likewise, Tyler first makes contact with her
parents’ families by writing a letter. Have students write a letter,
introducing themselves to strangers that they might like to meet.
Social
Studies — Examine the geographical areas where communities of Amish live.
Study their customs and traditions. Why do they choose such an unusual
lifestyle in our technology-based world? Which “new” technologies are
allowed into Amish communities? How do they deal with transportation and
medical care? Explore what it would be like to live without electricity.
History
— Encourage students to investigate their own family trees and make a chart of
their ancestors. Note: Please include heartlines as well as
bloodlines for students who are adopted or who live in blended or
non-traditional families. Make video or tape recordings of family stories
told by some of the older members of your family. Examine old photographs
and family treasures, things that tie your family to the past.
Science
— Study a vacant lot or a fallow field to discover which plants are the first
to take root in rough ground. Examine the trees that grow nearby,
collecting leaves and bark, then break them into families.
Geography/Math
— Locate Grandmother Tyler’s town and the Stoudt family’s town on a map.
How far and by what means do Tyler’s relatives travel to meet her? How
long does it take her grandmother to make the trip? Her uncle?
Art
— Study photos and drawings of Amish life, and create a poster or diorama of a
farm or house; show the traditional clothing; or draw a horse and buggy.
Bring a bare tree branch indoors and have students make leaves for a tree of
favorites: favorite books, favorite characters, favorite sports, etc.
Random
House Yearling 0-440-41193-9 (paperback)
For discounted quantity purchases of Family
Tree, please call 1-800-726-0600
www.randomhouse.com/kids
Family Tree is also available in audio tape format through Recorded Books
1-800-638-1304 or www.recordedbooks.com