Author: Giovanni, Nikki
Illustrator: Collier, Bryan
Publisher and Date: Scholastic Inc., 2006
Genre: Biography
Age Range: 1st-5th grade
2006 Caldecott Honor Book
Recipient of the 2006 Coretta Scott King Award
Summary:
This is the amazing story of Mrs. Rosa Parks. This story takes place in Montgomery, Alabama in the year 1955. Rosa was a daughter, a wife, and the best seamstress in the town of Montgomery. One day, Rosa was allowed to go home early because of her hard work that day. She left the alteration department feeling excited about the surprising her husband with meat loaf for dinner. She paid a dime to ride the bus and then boarded the bus from the back as was the custom of the day for African Americans. She soon discovered that the black compartment was full, so she sat in the neutral compartment (a compartment for both whites and blacks). After a while the bus became full, and the driver, Mr. James Blake, ordered Rosa and her riding companion to vacate their seats so that white people could sit in them. Her companion moved, but Rosa did not. Even when the police were called and she was arrested, thoughts of injustice and inequality made her strong enough to stand up for something she knew was wrong. Word soon spread throughout the town that Rosa was arrested. When Jo Ann Robinson, a professor at Alabama State (the colored university) and new head of the Women’s Political Council, heard the news she exclaimed, “Not Mrs. Parks!” Dr. Robinson arranged for twenty-five women to meet in secret that night to make posters supporting Rosa’s bravery. These posters read, “No riders today; support Mrs. Parks-stay off the buses; walk on Monday.” The African American community took up the challenge and walked, and walked, and walked some more. People from all over the United States sent clothes and shoes so that these people could continue to walk for over a year. Dr. Martin Luther King spoke for all the people and said, “We will walk until justice runs down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream. On November 13, 1956, almost a year after Rosa Parks’s courageous stand the courts decided that segregated buses, like segregated schools, was illegal.
Response:
This book accurately portrays the quiet strength and heroic acts of Rosa Parks. Her bravery and willingness to take a stand fueled the civil rights movement that changed the lives of African Americans all over the United States. Rosa Parks is a great example for all of us. She shows us that we all can have an impact. She was a wife and seamstress, not a movie star or a politician. She proves to us that anyone can make a difference if you are willing to stand up for what you believe in. Giovanni does a great job of emphasizing this throughout the book.
The illustrations in this book also provide us with a great visual of the setting, the city, and Rosa Parks herself. The illustrations were done using watercolors and collage. Bryan Collier actually traveled to Montgomery to get a feel for the illustrations. He said the first thing he noticed was the heat; that’s why his illustrations have a yellow, dark hue to them. The heat was foreshadowing “an uneasy quiet before the storm.” I love what Collier says about his illustrations of Rosa: “In my paintings, Mrs. Parks looks as if a light is emanating from her. To me, she is like a radiant chandelier, an elegant light that illuminates all our many pathways.”
Rosa Parks like many other brave African Americans are heroes for us all. They do things that many of us would dare say is impossible. Rosa’s riding companion that day did not have the courage to stand up for himself. He left his seat, saying he didn’t want to start any trouble. If we did not have brave men and women like Rosa Parks who were willing to make a stand, who knows where we would be today? Rosa is a wonderful biography to share with students. She sets such a positive example for students. She uses quiet courage and determination, not screaming or force, to make her stand.
Teaching Ideas:
I would definitely use this book when talking about the civil rights movement or the inequality faced by African Americans all over the United Sates. I would love to have my student’s research and learn more about Rosa’s life and share these with the class. Here are some great examples of teaching tools to use with your class:
This is the amazing story of Mrs. Rosa Parks. This story takes place in Montgomery, Alabama in the year 1955. Rosa was a daughter, a wife, and the best seamstress in the town of Montgomery. One day, Rosa was allowed to go home early because of her hard work that day. She left the alteration department feeling excited about the surprising her husband with meat loaf for dinner. She paid a dime to ride the bus and then boarded the bus from the back as was the custom of the day for African Americans. She soon discovered that the black compartment was full, so she sat in the neutral compartment (a compartment for both whites and blacks). After a while the bus became full, and the driver, Mr. James Blake, ordered Rosa and her riding companion to vacate their seats so that white people could sit in them. Her companion moved, but Rosa did not. Even when the police were called and she was arrested, thoughts of injustice and inequality made her strong enough to stand up for something she knew was wrong. Word soon spread throughout the town that Rosa was arrested. When Jo Ann Robinson, a professor at Alabama State (the colored university) and new head of the Women’s Political Council, heard the news she exclaimed, “Not Mrs. Parks!” Dr. Robinson arranged for twenty-five women to meet in secret that night to make posters supporting Rosa’s bravery. These posters read, “No riders today; support Mrs. Parks-stay off the buses; walk on Monday.” The African American community took up the challenge and walked, and walked, and walked some more. People from all over the United States sent clothes and shoes so that these people could continue to walk for over a year. Dr. Martin Luther King spoke for all the people and said, “We will walk until justice runs down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream. On November 13, 1956, almost a year after Rosa Parks’s courageous stand the courts decided that segregated buses, like segregated schools, was illegal.
Response:
This book accurately portrays the quiet strength and heroic acts of Rosa Parks. Her bravery and willingness to take a stand fueled the civil rights movement that changed the lives of African Americans all over the United States. Rosa Parks is a great example for all of us. She shows us that we all can have an impact. She was a wife and seamstress, not a movie star or a politician. She proves to us that anyone can make a difference if you are willing to stand up for what you believe in. Giovanni does a great job of emphasizing this throughout the book.
The illustrations in this book also provide us with a great visual of the setting, the city, and Rosa Parks herself. The illustrations were done using watercolors and collage. Bryan Collier actually traveled to Montgomery to get a feel for the illustrations. He said the first thing he noticed was the heat; that’s why his illustrations have a yellow, dark hue to them. The heat was foreshadowing “an uneasy quiet before the storm.” I love what Collier says about his illustrations of Rosa: “In my paintings, Mrs. Parks looks as if a light is emanating from her. To me, she is like a radiant chandelier, an elegant light that illuminates all our many pathways.”
Rosa Parks like many other brave African Americans are heroes for us all. They do things that many of us would dare say is impossible. Rosa’s riding companion that day did not have the courage to stand up for himself. He left his seat, saying he didn’t want to start any trouble. If we did not have brave men and women like Rosa Parks who were willing to make a stand, who knows where we would be today? Rosa is a wonderful biography to share with students. She sets such a positive example for students. She uses quiet courage and determination, not screaming or force, to make her stand.
Teaching Ideas:
I would definitely use this book when talking about the civil rights movement or the inequality faced by African Americans all over the United Sates. I would love to have my student’s research and learn more about Rosa’s life and share these with the class. Here are some great examples of teaching tools to use with your class:
*PBS did a special series on the Civil Rights Movement. Their cite contains information about Rosa Parks, a quote by Jo Ann Robinson (a influential character in the book),a set of lesson plans for elementary teachers, and a video about the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
*Scholastic also has a page deciated to Rosa Parks, which gives a brief overview of her life and has a student's interview with Mrs. Parks.
*This site contains another interview with Rosa Parks and several video clips with Rosa and other influential Civil Rights individuals.
*This site contains a great biography of Rosa Parks and a timeline of her life.
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