social aspects

Excerpts from the diary of Carrie Berry, describing her family's life in the Confederate south in 1864. Supplemented by sidebars, activities, and a timeline of the era.

Meet nine courageous young adults who have lived in the United States with a secret for much of their lives: they are not U.S. citizens. They came from Colombia, Mexico, Ghana, Independent Samoa, and Korea. They came seeking education, fleeing violence, and escaping poverty. All have heartbreaking and hopeful stories about leaving their homelands and starting a new life in America. And all are weary of living in the shadows.

Discusses the debates surrounding immigration and travel restrictions.

At age nine, Reyna crossed the Mexico-America border to seek out her lost family. She was bitterly disappointed to find, however, an indifferent mother and an alcoholic, abusive father. She takes refuge in words and becomes a voracious reader and writer. As she enters college she dreams of becoming a writer, but quickly learns that she doesn't know how to turn her dream into reality. Here, she reflects on her journey from undocumented immigrant to successful writer, and growing up feeling alienated from a culture she tries to hang on to.

"Describes the disgusting details of daily life during the U.S. Civil War"--.

Discusses the stories of the women who secretly fought in the Civil War.

Explores dirty jobs during the Civil War.

Tells the story of George Robert Twelves Hewes, a Boston shoemaker who participated in the Boston Tea Party and other events of the American Revolution; examines Hewes's memories of the rebellion as he shared them when he was in his nineties; and considers the historical value of oral testimony and memory.

Presents the argument that the Revolutionary War was more of a counter-revolution, a movement that the founding fathers fought in order to preserve their liberty to enslave others after Great Britain imposed abolition throughout the colonies.