The librarian of Basra : a true story from Iraq by: Jeanette Winter

Title: The librarian of Basra : a true story from Iraq 

Author: Jeanette Winter

Lexile Level: 640 Adult-directed text

Recommended for:

Age: 4 - 7 years

Grade: Kindergarten – 3rd Grade

Summary

The book titled Title: The Librarian of Basra: a true story from Iraq by Jeanette Winter focuses on the depiction of the story of the Librarian of Basra named Alia Muhammad Baker, who took action to save the books of the library, which was located in a port city in Iraq.

The text depicts how the Librarian of Basra risked her life and took action by hiding books at her home. Initially, she asks permission to safely store the books elsewhere, due to her worries of the war causing the destruction of these invaluable reduces including “ancient” books.

Text

I believe that the pace of the story is well-paced. The text allows readers to become engaged with its story, in order to find out what happens next. The colorful illustrations match well with the text.

Illustrations

The illustrations in this text display colorful illustrations in the folk style, through this informative text.

Learning Standards

“1.  Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.”

“3. Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect”.

“6. Distinguish their own point of view from that of the author of a text. ” 

(Reading Standards for Informational Text K–5: Grade 3 students)

“1.1.2  Use prior and background knowledge as context for new learning.”

“2.3.1  Connect understanding to the real world.”

 (AASL Standards for the 21st-Century Learner)

Learning Objectives

·      Students will identify the overall structure of a story through its story elements in the text. (Cognitive)

·      Students will apply prior knowledge about books and libraries to their own lives. (Cognitive)

·      Students will apply the knowledge they obtained about books and libraries in this lesson to their own lives. (Cognitive)

·      Students will conduct research famous ancient libraries, such as the Library of Alexandria. (Cognitive)

·      Students will describe that their chosen library's basic features and compare it to their local library in the community, in a class discussion. (Cognitive)

·      Students will create their own book about their local library to show its importance. (Psychomotor and Affective)

Learning Activity

This learning activity will include the following three components:

·      Students learning what their local public library possesses, through a class visit, to learn how its presence in the community has a positive influence.

·      Students will utilize online and print resources to research famous ancient libraries and compare them to libraries in his/her community. 

·      Students will create their own book about libraries, to depict their own viewpoint on how their local library influences their own lives.

·      This activity connects the reading of this book into an activity that supports the English Language Arts-Literacy Learning Standards and the AASL Standards.

Learning Outcome

Students will be assessed by their level of creativity utilized to create their book about their local library. Their own point of view tells a story of how access to information is valuable and impacts society. The learning activity is tied to the book titled The Librarian of Basra by: Jeanette Winter, because through the protagonist’s words and actions how important it was to save the books in the library within the war-torn nation of Iraq.

Selling Tool: 

Poster

References

AASL. (2017, May 12). Standards for the 21st-Century Learner. Retrieved October 10, 2017,  from http://www.ala.org/aasl/standards/learning

Lesson Plan for The Librarian of Basra By Shari Lossou-Lossavi (n.d.). Retrieved October 10, 2017, from https://cmes.arizona.edu/sites/cmes.arizona.edu/files/The%20Librarian%20of%20Basra.pdf

Lexile Levels Made Easy. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2017, from http://www.scholastic.com/parents/resources/article/book-selection-tips/lexile-levels-made-easy

Mid-Hudson Library System –The Librarian of Basra: A True Story from Iraq/ Jeanette Winter. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2017, from https://search.midhudsonlibraries.org/iii/encore/record/C__Rb1667712__Slibrarian%20of%20basra__Orightresult__U__X7?lang=eng&suite=cobalt

New York State P-12 Common Core Learning Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy. (n.d.). Retrieved October 9, 2017, from https://www.engageny.org/resource/new-york-state-p-12-common-core-learning-standards-for-english-language-arts-and-literacy

The Librarian of Basra: A True Story from ... (n.d.). Retrieved October 09, 2017, from https://fab.lexile.com/book/details/9780152054458/