The Witch of Blackbird Pond

It’s cold, bleak, unfriendly, and her new family doesn’t even like her. Kit is miserable living in Colonial Connecticut after leaving her home in Barbados. As she struggles between fitting in and living out her beliefs, Kit meets a local woman who the Puritan town believes to be a witch, Hannah Tupper.

When Kit is rebuked for her non-Puritan actions such as wearing bright, colorful clothes, or teaching children to act out a story as a play, or knowing how to swim, she visits Hannah at her cabin near the swampy Blackbird Pond, at the edge of a large meadow. Hannah’s cabin is shabby but filled with a welcoming, warm, caring atmosphere.

At Hannah’s cabin, Kit also develops friendships with Nat, a young sailor who often stops in to help Hannah, and Prudence, a six-year-old who escapes her mother’s abuse by visiting Hannah.

When the town decides to bring Hannah to trial for being a witch, Kit’s friendship with Hannah is tested, and she herself is put in jail. In the end, Kit, Nat, and little Prudence, help Hannah. They all stay committed to their friend Hannah and show the town that honesty, a caring attitude, and friendship that includes even those who are different, is the right way to live.

WRITING ASSIGNMENTS

Make a list of 10 things that are different in Kit’s life in Connecticut from her life in Barbados.

Describe one of the emotions that Kit must have been feeling during those first few months living with her aunt, uncle, and cousins. When did you experience that same or a similar emotion?

DISCUSSION TOPIC

When have you felt left out or different from your friends?

Have you ever had a friend that other people thought was odd, unusual, or different?

ART PROJECT

Draw a picture of Hannah’s cabin including the outdoor areas near the cabin.

BOOK INFO

The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare. Ages 10-14. Find this book in a local library or buy it here… Witch of Blackbird Pond.

Number the Stars

This Newberry Award winning book is set in Denmark during World War II. Ten-year-old Annemarie is surrounded by Nazis but thinks of them as merely an annoyance, until her friend Ellen’s family is threatened. Denmark already has an active resistance movement, but when the Nazis begin to arrest the Jews, Annemarie’s family steps in to help not only Ellen’s family but other Jewish families, too.

Annemarie learns about friendship, helping others, being brave, and making right choices even when life is difficult and you’re filled with fear. She struggles to understand how the Nazis can be so mean and cruel, even though she grew up in a kind, caring family and environment. She watches her parents stand up to prejudice and evil and learns to do the same. Later, she learns that her older sister had also stood up to hatred and evil, and had been killed for it.

Annemarie’s uncle explains to her that sometimes it’s better not to know everything; it can be safer that way. She has to trust that she’s been told just what she needs to know. As several Jewish families are leaving Denmark for the safety of Sweden, she must take a critical item to her uncle. She must run through the woods at night, face down the Nazis, and make it to the boat before it leaves. She finds an inner strength based on the trust and knowledge of her family to help her accomplish her task.

WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
-What did Annemarie’s family teach her about how to treat other people?
-What do you think Annemarie felt like when she was running to her uncle’s boat? How do you think she felt after she delivered the basked?

DISCUSSION TOPICS
-Can you think of a time when it was hard for you to make a good choice because you were so scared?
-Think about all the things Annemarie had to do to help Ellen’s family. What do you think are some of the emotions she felt?

BIBLE ACTIVITY
In the funeral scene, Anneamrie’s uncle reads part of a psalm from the Bible. Use the index or a Bible concordance and look up that psalm, and copy it down. Read it out loud. Why do you think that psalm was read as they got ready to help families escape from the Nazis?

BOOK INFORMATION
Grades 3-6. You can find this book in your local library or buy it here, Number the Stars.