This review was found on the Library Thing website.
Task: After reading this review of Snow Treasure in your classroom what else do you think can be accomplished with this text?
Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan is a great historical fiction piece to add to any school library. The first interesting thing about this book is that it begins with a "Did this story really happen?" right away it gets kids interested and thinking! Another interesting aspect of this story is that the chapters don't have titles. When I used this with a reading class I had them write titles for the chapters as we completed them. This got them a bit more involved with the story. Alas, anything that is historical fiction does require some background knowledge and pre-teaching, so the students are more familiar with plot action and the real events that are woven into the story. Another item about Snow Treasure that I liked is that there are lots of male and female characters, so any child can begin to connect with a character. Snow Treasure is not a fast paced plot, but it is engaging. ( )
Monday, June 14, 2010
Snow Treasure Summary
Ladies and gentlemen,
I know we all haven't read the novel, Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan (you would have if you were my sixth graders), but I though it would be an interesting task to create an alternate ending of the book. Here is a synapses of the story...
TASK: Based on the summary of the story, would be interested in reading this novel? Why or why not? explain your reasoning using points of the summary as a guide.
Set in Norway at the beginning of World War II, it is the story of the people of the small town of Riswyk near the Arctic Circle who awaken on the morning of April 8, 1940, to find their country occupied by German troops. Their main concern is to keep Norwegian gold from falling into the hands of the German invaders. Peter Lundstrom, the main character, is a twelve-year-old boy whose father is the president of the bank.
Peter's uncle Victor is a daring sea captain who invents a plan to slip the gold past the Germans and onto his fishing boat for transport to America. The children of Riswyk are divided into "teams". Each team carries the gold on their sleds, a few bars at a time, to the bay where Uncle Victor's boat is hidden. There the children bury the gold in the snow. They build snowmen over the gold so that Victor and his mate, Rolls can find the gold and transfer it to their ship. One afternoon, Peter and his team are burying gold when the soldier appears. The children have seen this soldier before spying on them, so Uncle Victor and Rolls capture the soldier immediately. He claims to be Jan Lasek, a Polish conscript who hates the Germans. He was on his way to a University in America (there, he studies languages) when his passport was stolen (along with his identity) and he was taken captive as a prisoner of war. All he wanted was his freedom and to help his country. He could no longer help his family because they had died during the German takeover.Uncle Victor locks the soldier in the hold of his ship while he decides what to do next.
When the Germans discover that Lasek has disappeared, a house-to-house search begins. Peter returns to his teammates to hide more gold for Uncle Victor and build more snowmen, when the German soldiers approach the children and ask if they've seen this man who has gone missing (aka Jan Lasek). The Commandant became angry when Lovisa (Peter's sister) refused to answer him and began kicking the very snow man that hid gold beneath its base. In order to prevent the Germans from finding the gold, Peter makes a quick decision that could cost him his life. He threw a snowball at the Commandant. From there he was taken captive in the German barracks, when suddenly he is rescued by the Polish Boy (Jan Lasek). They sneak out of the barracks just in time and arrive once again on Uncle Victor's boat. So this was it, Peter was going to America. The novel ends as Peter hears Jan Lasek in the ship's galley practicing "The Star Spangled Banner" on a borrowed trumpet.
I know we all haven't read the novel, Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan (you would have if you were my sixth graders), but I though it would be an interesting task to create an alternate ending of the book. Here is a synapses of the story...
TASK: Based on the summary of the story, would be interested in reading this novel? Why or why not? explain your reasoning using points of the summary as a guide.
Set in Norway at the beginning of World War II, it is the story of the people of the small town of Riswyk near the Arctic Circle who awaken on the morning of April 8, 1940, to find their country occupied by German troops. Their main concern is to keep Norwegian gold from falling into the hands of the German invaders. Peter Lundstrom, the main character, is a twelve-year-old boy whose father is the president of the bank.
Peter's uncle Victor is a daring sea captain who invents a plan to slip the gold past the Germans and onto his fishing boat for transport to America. The children of Riswyk are divided into "teams". Each team carries the gold on their sleds, a few bars at a time, to the bay where Uncle Victor's boat is hidden. There the children bury the gold in the snow. They build snowmen over the gold so that Victor and his mate, Rolls can find the gold and transfer it to their ship. One afternoon, Peter and his team are burying gold when the soldier appears. The children have seen this soldier before spying on them, so Uncle Victor and Rolls capture the soldier immediately. He claims to be Jan Lasek, a Polish conscript who hates the Germans. He was on his way to a University in America (there, he studies languages) when his passport was stolen (along with his identity) and he was taken captive as a prisoner of war. All he wanted was his freedom and to help his country. He could no longer help his family because they had died during the German takeover.Uncle Victor locks the soldier in the hold of his ship while he decides what to do next.
When the Germans discover that Lasek has disappeared, a house-to-house search begins. Peter returns to his teammates to hide more gold for Uncle Victor and build more snowmen, when the German soldiers approach the children and ask if they've seen this man who has gone missing (aka Jan Lasek). The Commandant became angry when Lovisa (Peter's sister) refused to answer him and began kicking the very snow man that hid gold beneath its base. In order to prevent the Germans from finding the gold, Peter makes a quick decision that could cost him his life. He threw a snowball at the Commandant. From there he was taken captive in the German barracks, when suddenly he is rescued by the Polish Boy (Jan Lasek). They sneak out of the barracks just in time and arrive once again on Uncle Victor's boat. So this was it, Peter was going to America. The novel ends as Peter hears Jan Lasek in the ship's galley practicing "The Star Spangled Banner" on a borrowed trumpet.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Star Spangled Banner
At the end of Snow Treasure, by: Marie McSwigan. Rolls (Uncle Victor's first mate) lends the polish boy his cornet and he begins practicing the Star Spangled Banner as they sail awat into the sunset.
Task: Your job is to listen/read the lyrics to the Star Spangled Banner. What does this song represent to you? Reveal your thoughts by creating a 1. Star Spangled-Rap or 2. a Star Spangled Poem.
Task: Your job is to listen/read the lyrics to the Star Spangled Banner. What does this song represent to you? Reveal your thoughts by creating a 1. Star Spangled-Rap or 2. a Star Spangled Poem.
Star Spangled Banner
Thursday, June 10, 2010
WWII: Video and song chosen for it
There are two videos present in this feed. Which do you think is more powerful and why? Choose the video that you feel represents what World War II means to you.
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