36. Aunt Harriet’s Underground Railroad in the Sky by Faith Ringgold

 

36. Aunt Harriet’s Underground Railroad in the Sky by Faith Ringgold


Ringgold, F. (1992). Aunt Harriet’s Underground Railroad in the sky. NY: Crown.

One night, while flying among the stars, Cassie and her brother, Be Be, encounter Harriet Tubman and learn about slavery. The story begins with the children flying through the sky and seeing the train and Harriet Tubman.  Be Be runs to get on the train and leaves Cassie behind.  Cassie follows Aunt Harriet’s instructions and boards the Underground Railroad.  She learns that it is not an actual railroad, but safe places for runaway slaves to hide and rest on their way north to Canada.  Cassie goes from station to station, finding clues of Be Be along her way.  In the end, Cassie makes it to Canada and finds Be Be again. That day there was a celebration commemorating the one hundredth anniversary of Harriet Tubman’s first flight to freedom. 

This is a simple story of historical fiction, told in a child’s perspective.  Slavery is a difficult subject to teach-even to older students.  This story is good for younger children to help them understand a bit about what slavery and the Underground Railroad was.  There is also a great biography about Harriet Tubman after the story.  The artwork helps to capture the student’s interest.  I found several teaching ideas for this book.  One activity is to have students draw their perception of the Underground Railroad as a pre-discussion activity.  Then after reading the story and discussion, they draw on the other side of the paper their new perception of the Underground Railroad. 

http://www.nku.edu/~undergroundrr/lessonplans/files/1/UGRRInTheSky.doc

 







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