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Reading List

Critical engagement with a wide variety of literature is an indispensable factor in the development of a well educated child. Moses, Daniel and Paul studied both the traditions of their fathers and the writings of Egypt, Babylon, and Rome, preparing them to minister the Word of God to believers and unbelievers alike (Acts 17). In addition, studies indicate that the more literature an individual is exposed to the greater his or her capacity to understand and empathize with others will be. Following these examples, TCA requires students to read and wrestle with a multitude of texts which seek to engender in students a deeper capacity for interaction with the world. Critical readers are also better prepared to unpack the depths of Scriptural truth, enabled by their understanding of the “theology of grammar” to be shepherds, pastors, and teachers in the church of God (Ephesians 4:11).

2nd Grade

Children’s Classics
  • Little House in the Big Woods, Laura Ingalls Wilder
    • Synopsis : This is the story of a young  girl, Laura Ingalls and her family. The book chronicles their life as pioneers, living in a homestead in the woods of  Wisconsin, in 1871.  Pioneer life isn’t easy for the Ingalls family, since they must grow or catch all their own food as they get ready for the cold winter. But they make the best of every tough situation. This primary source captures the everyday life and adventure of the Ingalls family over the course of the seasons.
    • Biblical Perspective: This book studies the character qualities of perseverance, obedience, love, stewardship and courage of early American pioneers. It highlights the relationships of this family and how they work together to build a life during the Westward expansion of the United States. Go to the ant, O sluggard.  Observe her ways and be wise . . . the ants are a people not strong, but they prepare their food in the summer. Proverbs 6:6 and 30:25
    • Cross-Discipline  Connections: Early American Colonists and  Pioneers in History. Plan mapping activities for westward expansion and mapping the state of Wisconsin. Art activity of using watercolors to paint map and Log Cabin Project for chapter analysis. Creative writing assignments included writing a letter to Peter Rabbit and Beatrix Potter, creating a poem.  Different genre of Literature from student Abeka readers: Fairytales-Pinocchio, Fables-Aesop, Folk Tales- Johnny Appleseed, Biographies- George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, Nonfiction – No Longer a Nobody, and poetry.
    • Teaching Guide: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Little-House-in-the-Big-Woods-Study-Guide-1129041
  • Sarah, Plain and Tall, Patricia MacLachlan  (Amazon has a teaching guide A Guide for Using Sarah, Plain and Tall and Journey in the Classroom (Literature Units) Paperback – November 2, 2004)
    • Synopsis: Anna, Caleb, and their father live out on the prairie in the days of horses and wagons, with a big barn, pastures, fields, cows, and sheep. Anna has to cook and help her father raise her younger brother, Caleb, who helps with the farm chores. But each of the family members feels a deep loss. And that’s why Anna and Caleb are happy when their father tells them that he has put an advertisement in the papers for a woman to come be his wife and their mother.  When Sarah, the woman arrives, they all love her very much, but she misses the sea near her home in Maine. Will Sarah stay and love them?
    • Biblical Perspective: This book highlights family love, endurance, and honesty. Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth each one of you with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.Ephesians 4:25
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: 19th-century farm life
    • Teaching Guide:https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Sarah-Plain-and-Tall-Novel-Study-Common-Core-Unit-319259*
  • The Boxcar Children, Gertrude Chandler Warner
    • Synopsis: The Boxcar Children tells the story of four orphaned children, Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny. They create a home for themselves in an abandoned boxcar in the forest. They eventually meet their grandfather, who is a wealthy and kind man (although the children had believed him to be cruel). The children decide to live with their grandfather, who moves the beloved boxcar to his backyard so the children can use it as a playhouse.
    • Biblical Perspective: This book teaches rest on the Sabbath, love for family, and providing for one’s family. But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. I Timothy 5:8
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Inventions in science
    • Teaching Guide:https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Boxcar-Children-Literature-Guide-Common-Core-Aligned-1037915*
  • The Adventures of Chatterer the Red Squirrel, Thornton Burgess
    • Synopsis: Burgess chronicles the escapades of Chatterer the Red Squirrel, who’s known throughout the Green Forest as a mischief maker. Narrowly escaping the clutches of Shadow the Weasel and Redtail the Hawk, the bushy-tailed little fellow decides to leave the forest for a new home, only to learn that curiosity, carelessness, and mistrust can lead to a heap of troubles.
    • Biblical Perspective: This book teaches about the consequences of thoughtless or foolish behavior. “But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out.” Numbers 32:23.
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Ecosystems of the forest
    • Teaching Guide: http://burgessbooklessons.com/2016/05/19/adventures-chatterer-red-squirrel/

3rd Grade

Animals
  • Charlotte’s Web, E. B. White
    • Synopsis: Young Fern Arable stops her father from killing a pig named Wilbur, the runt of his litter. When Wilbur grows up, he’s sent to live on the Zuckerman farm, where he spends his days eating and sleeping to fight off loneliness. Eventually, he meets Charlotte, a gray spider.  Charlotte and Wilbur become fast friends. Charlotte finds Wilbur’s innocence and enthusiasm charming, and she’s amused when he ties a string around his tail and pretends that he can weave his own web. One day, the farm animals learn that Wilbur is being fattened for slaughter. Charlotte comes up with a plan to save Wilbur: she writes the words “some pig” in her web. People are astonished, and Mr. Zuckerman enters Wilbur in a competition at the County Fair.  At the County Fair, Charlotte writes the word “humble” in her web. Soon after, she lays a sac of over five hundred eggs—her final act before dying. When the eggs hatch, Wilbur is surprised to see Charlotte’s children drifting away on the breeze. Three of them stay behind to be Wilbur’s friends.
    • Biblical Perspective: Through the characters of Fern, Charlotte, and Wilbur, children see a variety of ways to make significant effort for someone else’s good. “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.”  John 15:13
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Farm life, county and state fairs
    • Teaching Guide:https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Charlottes-Web-Literacy-Bundle-129502
  • Stuart Little, E. B. White
    • Synopsis:When the Littles go to an orphanage to adopt a new family member, a charming young mouse named Stuart is chosen. While George is initially unwelcoming to his new brother, the family cat, Snowbell, is even less enthusiastic about having a mouse as his “master” and plots to get rid of him. Against these difficulties, Stuart resolves to face them with as much pluck, love and courage as he can muster. In doing so, he shows his beloved new family that great things can truly come in small packages.
    • Biblical Perspective:Stuart is brave in the face of many challenges, and is kind to his “enemy,” the family cat, no matter what.  His attitudes teach children to be courageous and to love their enemies. “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”  Joshua 1:9   “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you . . .” Matthew 5:44
    • Cross-Discipline Connections:Inventions
    • Teaching Guide: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Stuart-Little-Book-Companion-Pack-1287314
  • Little House on the Prairie, Laura Ingalls Wilder
    • Synopsis:The adventures continue for Laura Ingalls and her family as they leave their little house in the Big Woods of Wisconsin and set out for Kansas.  They travel for many days in their covered wagon until they find the best spot to build their little house on the prairie. Soon they are planting and plowing, hunting wild ducks and turkeys, and gathering grass for their cows.  Sometimes pioneer life is hard, but Laura and her folks are always busy and happy in their new little house.
    • Biblical Perspective:This book studies the character qualities of perseverance, obedience, love, stewardship and courage of early American pioneers. This is a story that highlights the relationships of this family and how they work together to build a life during the Westward expansion of the United States.Go to the ant, O sluggard.  Observe her ways and be wise . . . the ants are a people not strong, but they prepare their food in the summer.Proverbs 6:6 and 30:25
    • Cross-Discipline Connections:Westward expansion, 19th-century transportation, agriculture
    • Teaching Guide: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Little-House-on-the-Prairie-Literature-Unit-119796
  • Mr. Popper’s Penguins, Margaret Atwater
    • Synopsis:Mr. Popper’s Penguins is the story of a house painter named Mr. Popper who is gifted a penguin from a South Pole explorer. One penguin turns into twelve penguins, and Mr. Popper and his family put on a stage show with the penguins to help pay for their upkeep.  Many adventures ensue.
    • Biblical Perspective:this book emphasizes ingenuity, care for family, and care for Creation.  “A righteous man has regard for the life of hisanimal, but even the compassion of the wicked is cruel.” Proverbs 12:10“Are nottwo sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.” Matthew  10:29
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Arctic animals, Polar explorers, variety shows
    • Teaching Guide: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Mr-Poppers-Penguins-959063

 

  • The Cricket in Times Square, George Selden
      • Synopsis:Tucker is a streetwise city mouse who thought he’d seen it all. But he’s never met a cricket before, because, along with his friend Harry Cat, Tucker lives in the very heart of New York City―the Times Square subway station. Chester Cricket never intended to leave his Connecticut meadow. He’d be there still if he hadn’t followed the entrancing aroma of liverwurst right into someone’s picnic basket. Now, like any tourist in the city, he wants to look around. And he could not have found two better guides―and friends―than Tucker and Harry. The trio have many adventurers. Chester makes a third friend, too. It is a boy, Mario, who rescues Chester from a dusty corner of the subway station and brings him to live in the safety of his parents’ newsstand. He hopes at first to keep Chester as a pet, but Mario soon understands that the cricket is more than that. Because Chester has a hidden talent and no one―not even Chester himself―realizes that the little country cricket may just be able to teach even the toughest New Yorkers a thing or two.
      • Biblical Perspective: The characters in this book display friendship, love, sacrifice, and loyalty. A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity. Proverbs 17: 17
      • Cross-Discipline Connections:New York City, East Coast geography, immigration and tourism, music
      • Teaching Guide: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Cricket-in-Times-Square-Book-Unit-270053

4th Grade

Historical Fiction
  • Stone Fox, John Reynolds Gardiner  (TCA has 20 copies–maybe more)
    • Synopsis: Grandfather is sick in bed and it is up to Willy to try to save their farm. Willy hatches a scheme to win money in a dogsled race. To do it, Willy and his dog Searchlight will have to be faster than Stone Fox, who has never ever lost a race.
    • Biblical Perspective: This story teaches a positive attitude despite adversity, as well as doing whatever it takes to care for your family.  “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” I Timothy 5:8
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Farming, sled dog races, Indigenous Americans and reservations
    • Teaching Guide: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/2/search?q=stone%20fox.  One additional needed for second classroom.*

 

  • Farmer Boy, Laura Ingalls Wilder  (TCA has 36 copies)
    • Synopsis: While Laura Ingalls grows up in a little house on the western prairie, Almanzo Wilder is living on a big farm in New York State.  Here Almanzo and his brother and sisters help with the summer planting and fall harvest. In winter there is wood to be chopped and great slabs of ice to be cut from the river and stored.  Time for fun comes when the jolly tin peddler visits, or best of all, when the fair comes to town.
    • Biblical Perspective: This book studies the character qualities of perseverance, obedience, love, stewardship and courage of American farmers. This is a story that highlights the relationships of this family and how they work together to build a life on the land. Go to the ant, O sluggard.  Observe her ways and be wise . . . the ants are a people not strong, but they prepare their food in the summer.  Proverbs 6:6 and 30:25
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Farming and animal care
    • Teaching Guide: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/2/search?q=farmer%20boy. One additional needed for second classroom.*

 

  • The Winter of Red Snow, Kristiana Gregory -9
    • Synopsis: What was it like to be a soldier at Valley Forge during the winter of 1777-78? What was it like to be an eleven-year-old girl living in Valley Forge at the time and watch the ragtag American soldiers stain the snow red with their shoeless, bloody feet as they marched by your cabin to set up camp in the fields down the road? In The Winter of Red Snow, author Kristiana Gregory takes young readers into the homes of the Valley Forge farmers, into the headquarters of George Washington and his officers, and into the tents of the soldiers. Through the diary entries of Abigail Jane Stewart, that bitter winter comes alive as Gregory lets youngsters see that reading historical fiction can be both enjoyable and educational at the same time.
    • Biblical Perspective: Students will read about the difficulties of war and also about a young girl’s commitment to hope and love in the midst of it all.  “A time to love and a time to hate; a time for war and a time for peace.“ Ecclesiastes 3:8
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Colonial life, the Revolutionary War
    • Teaching Guide: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Winter-of-Red-Snow-Novel-Study-1515473

5th Grade

Survival
  • The Magician’s Nephew, C.S. Lewis  
    • Synopsis: When Digory and Polly are tricked by Digory’s peculiar Uncle Andrew into becoming part of an experiment, they set off on the adventure of a lifetime. What happens to the children when they touch Uncle Andrew’s magic rings is far beyond anything even the old magician could have imagined.  Hurtled into the Wood between the Worlds, the children soon find that they can enter many worlds through the mysterious pools there. In one world they encounter the evil Queen Jadis, who wreaks havoc in the streets of London when she is accidentally brought back with them. When they finally manage to pull her out of London, unintentionally taking along Uncle Andrew and a coachman with his horse, they find themselves in what will come to be known as the land of Narnia
    • Biblical Perspective: The major theme of The Magician’s Nephew is “rules have a purpose.” Several characters in the book believe themselves to be “above the law,” and each one pays a price. The Lord Jesus (in the form of Aslan) is presented as the all-powerful Creator/Artist of the world and as a loving, kindly Lawmaker. Other themes include the importance of exercising power responsibly, the joy and freedom of obedience, and the foolishness of trusting our limited perspective. “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and turn away from evil.” Proverbs 3:5-7
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Turn-of-the-century English history, Creation stories from other traditions
    • Teaching Guide: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Magicians-Nephew-Novel-Study-Book-Unit-84906
  • The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis  
    • Synopsis: When the Pevensie children, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy are sent out of London during World War II, they have no idea of the magical journey they are beginning. In the darkness of the old country house where they are sent, the children stumble through an old wardrobe to the land of Narnia, where animals talk and magic exists. This is the first story of Narnia written by C.S. Lewis and it tells the story of how these four children with the help of Aslan, the Great Lion, help defeat the White Witch who holds Narnia.
    • Biblical Perspective: This book teaches the danger of gluttony, the power of Satan, humankind’s redemption through Christ’s sacrifice, and death and resurrection.  For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) . . . For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16).
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: World War II England, seasons, holidays, mythological creatures in other cultures
    • Teaching Guide: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Lion-the-Witch-and-the-Wardrobe-Novel-Study-Book-Unit-84905
  • Island of the Blue Dolphins, Scott O’Dell
    • Synopsis: Karana’s tribe lives on the Island of the Blue Dolphins. At times they are bothered by Aleuts who come to take otter from the island.  As the story begins, the Aleuts, with a Russian captain, return. They agree to pay the islanders for being allowed to take more otter. But, when it is time to leave, there is a disagreement and a fight. Many of the men on the island are killed. A ship comes to take the tribe to the mainland. At the last moment, as the ship is departing, Karana sees her brother, Ramo, still on shore, jumps into the water and swims for shore. Ramo is soon killed by wild dogs on the island. Karana realizes that she will be on the island indefinitely and builds a permanent shelter. Several years later the ship returns and rescues her.
    • Biblical Perspective: This book teaches courage, forgiveness and trust, the importance of fellowship, development of and adherence to moral codes, the created world, and attitudes towards death.  But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.  Matthew 5:44
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: The true story of Juana Maria, symbiosis and ecosystems, marine life
    • Teaching Guide: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Island-of-the-Blue-Dolphins-Reed-Novel-Studies-45322
  •  The Sign of the Beaver, Elizabeth George Speare
    • Synopsis: Although he faces responsibility bravely, thirteen-year-old Matt is more than a little apprehensive when his father leaves him alone to guard their new cabin in the wilderness. When a renegade white stranger steals his gun, Matt realizes he has no way to shoot game or to protect himself. When Matt meets Attean, a boy in the Beaver clan, he begins to better understand their way of life and their growing problem in adapting to the white man and the changing frontier.
    • Biblical Perspective: This story teaches perseverance, hope and faith, hard work, maturity, respect and care for Creation, empathy for others, and self-control,. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.  Joshua 1:9
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Relationships between indigenous Americans and white Americans in the 1700’s, hunting, trapping, and fishing
    • Teaching Guide: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Depth-and-Complexity-Critical-Thinking-Resource-for-Sign-of-the-Beaver-660086

 

  •  Number the Stars, Lois Lowry
    • Synopsis: As the German troops begin their campaign to “relocate” all the Jews of Denmark, Annemarie Johansen’s family takes in Annemarie’s best friend, Ellen Rosen, and conceals her as part of the family.  Through the eyes of ten-year-old Annemarie, we watch as the Danish Resistance smuggles almost the entire Jewish population of Denmark, nearly seven thousand people, across the sea to Sweden. The heroism of an entire nation reminds us that there was pride and human decency in the world even during a time of terror and war.
    • Biblical Perspective: this book highlights compassion for others, unity amongst the children of God, and God’s omniscient care for His people. “The Lord builds up Jerusalem; He gathers the outcasts of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He counts the number of the stars; He gives names to all of them.” Psalm 147:2-4
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: World War II
    • Teaching Guide: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Number-the-Stars-269785

6th Grade

  • Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, Mildred D. Taylor
    • Synopsis:  Set in Mississippi at the height of the Depression, this is the story of one family’s struggle to maintain their integrity, pride, and independence in the face of racism and social injustice. It is also Cassie’s story-Cassie Logan, an independent girl who discovers over the course of an important year why having land of their own is so crucial to the Logan family, even as she learns to draw strength from her own sense of dignity and self-respect.
    • Biblical Perspective:  This book personifies resilience and trusting in the Lord when going through trials.  Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:2-4
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Depression Era, Civil War Era, and Martin Luther King, Jr. and the 1960’s.
    • Teaching Guide: Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry (Exploring Literature Teaching Unit) by Mildred Taylor and Camela Kruser

 

  • My Friend Flicka, Mary  O’Hara
    • Synopsis: The first time that Ken McLaughlin sees Flicka galloping past him on his family’s Wyoming horse ranch, he knows she’s the yearling he’s been longing for. But Flicka comes from a long line of wild horses, and training her will take more than Ken could ever have imagined. Soon Ken is faced with an impossible choice: give up on his beautiful horse, or risk his life to fight for her.
    • Biblical Perspective: This book teaches about responsibility, patience and second chances. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. Colossians 3:23-24
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Wyoming state history and geography, horse ranching, boarding school option for ranch families, Science: horse anatomy/physiology.
    • Teaching Guide: Teaching Guide:  My Friend Flicka Novel Unit Paperback – August 9, 2015 by Loreli of Middle School Novel Units Inc. (Author)https://www.amazon.com/My-Friend-Flicka-Novel-Unit/dp/1516818199/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1502238960&sr=1-1&keywords=Novel+Units+My+friend+flicka
  • The Secret Garden, Frances Burnett
    • Synopsis: Mary Lennox, a sullen, spoiled child, comes to live with her English uncle after the death of her parents. Implanted in Misselthwaite Manor on the baleful moors of the English north country, she meets a hearty Yorkshire housekeeper and her spirited brother, a dour gardener, a cheerful robin and Master Colin, her willful, mysterious, cousin. The robin helps Mary find the door to the secret garden, and from there the story takes the reader on a spell-binding journey.
    • Biblical Perspective: This book teaches about redemption and how faith restores health and serves as a metaphor for the miraculous recovery of an invalid boy.  I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, and how deep his love is. Ephesians 3:16-18
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Science-The world and life cycles of insects, birds, plants and flowers.
    • Teaching Guide:The Secret Garden Reader’s Guide (Penguin Random House), PBS Nature/Secret Garden article, (3/29/1998) www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/secret-garden-introduction/3043      https//www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/, The-Secret-Garden by Reed Novel    Studies
  • The Swiss Family Robinson, Johann David Wyss
    • Synopsis: This novel opens with the family in the hold of a sailing ship, weathering a great storm. The ship’s passengers evacuate without them and William and Elizabeth and their four children are left to survive alone. As the ship tosses about the father, William, prays that God will spare them.
    • Biblical Perspective:  This book teaches to trust in the Lord at all times and in all situations. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. James 1:6
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Geography, mapping, History of Sailing, survival, Science: Sustainable Living-Farm to Table.
    • Teaching Guide:   The Swiss Family Robinson (Reed Novel Studies)
  • In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson, Bette Bao Lord
    • Synopsis: Shirley Temple Wong leaves a secure life within her clan in China following World War ll. She begins a new life in America because her father has taken a job as an engineer in the united States. Many Chinese customs and traditions are discussed along with importance to Wong and her family. Shirley’s family does not give up their cultural traditions, but they do adopt many American customs to adapt to the American way of life. It takes Shirley a while to learn her new language, presenting her with many difficult, and sometimes hilarious, outcomes. The novel’s high point is Shirley’s meeting with her American hero, the black baseball player Jackie Robinson. Many parallels are drawn between them and their “fitting in”.
    • Biblical Perspective: Students can identify with Shirley wanting to be accepted and hoping to form friendships.  Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart, and the pleasantness of a friend springs from their heartfelt advice. Proverbs 27:9   Do to others as you would have them do to you. Luke 6:31
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: History:Post World War ll, Cultures of China and the United States, Biographical study of Jackie Robinson
    • Teaching Guide: www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/IN-THE-YEAR-OF-THE-BOAR-JACKIE-ROBINSON-LITERATURE-UNIT-38020?

7th Grade

Perseverance
  • The Giver, Lois Lowry  (TCA has enough of these already.)  
    • Synopsis: The Giver is set in a society which at first appears to be utopian but is revealed to be dystopian as the story progresses. Jonas is selected to inherit the position of Receiver of Memory, the person who stores all the past memories of the time before Sameness, as there are may be times where one must draw upon the wisdom gained from history to aid the community’s decisions making. Jonas struggles with concepts of all the new emotions and things introduced to him: whether they are inherently good, evil or in between and whether it is even possible to have one without the other.
    • Biblical Perspective: This book illuminates sameness vs. uniqueness. For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalm 139:13&14  Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. I Corinthians 12:12
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Social Studies: Communism, psychology/science: development of the brain
    • Teaching Guide: Novel Units, Teacher Guide and Student Packet  
  • Children of the Storm  (This is a BJU reader, focusing on the underground church in the Soviet Union)
    • Synopsis: Natasha Vins’ father is a leader in the underground church of the Soviet Union before the end of the Cold War. When her father, Georgi is forced to spend time in hiding and in prison, Natasha looks to her beloved grandmother Babushka for guidance. In her teen years she begins to see that doors close to those who remain faithful to Christ. She is faced with the decision to embrace communistic ideals and deny the existence of God. Will she follow Christ into a life of poverty and hardship or will she renounce her parents’ Christ for the opportunities which higher education has to offer?
    • Biblical Perspective: This autobiography deals with following Christ at all costs. Keep your lives from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” So we say in confidence, “ The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?” Hebrews 13:5
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: History: The Cold War, Geography
    • Teaching Guide: Study Guide from BJU Press   * we have this one.
  • Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
    • Synopsis: Jim Hawkins has led an ordinary life as an innkeeper’s son until the day he inadvertently discovers a treasure map in a trunk belonging to an old sea captain, and thus, suddenly, his ordinary life turns into the extraordinary adventure of a lifetime. Jim and his companions decide to follow the map to the coast of South America to find their fortune, but their plans run awry when they discover that the ship’s crew is comprised primarily of pirates–out to claim the treasure as their own!
    • Biblical Perspective: Jim wants to bring home something of great value and to gain his own moral adulthood, which is a treasure in itself. However, greed is all around him. Greed and trickery abound in the former crew members of Captain Flint who convinced Squire Trelawney into hiring them to help sail to Treasure Island. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Luke 12:34
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: History: 18th century Sailing,  Science and math: Physics, ship building
    • Teaching Guide: Nelson, Brittany. “Treasure Island Study Guide”. GradeSaver, 24 July 2000 Web. 7 August 2017, Christianbook.com

 

  • The Old Man and the Sea,  Ernest Hemingway (16 at Mrs. Cassio’s house)
    • Synopsis: Santiago is an old man fishing, and he hooks a marlin on his line–much too large for his line or his boat. As he tries to tire the marlin out, he thinks on his life, his age, and he talks to the fish.
    • Biblical Perspective: This text shows the value of Tenacity and Perseverance for the Christian in his walk. Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead,  I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Geography—Cuba, Florida, West Africa; Latin American culture and phrases; baseball and fishing.
    • Teacher’s Guide: Novel Units The Old Man and the Sea, Teaching Guide

 

  • The Pearl, John Steinbeck
    • Synopsis:When Coyotito, an infant, is stung by a scorpion, Kino, his father, must find away to pay the town doctor to treat him. The doctor denies Kino, an indigenous fisherman, out of racism, which enrages him. Shortly thereafter, Kino discovers an enormous, lucid pearl  which he is ready to sell to pay the doctor.
    • Biblical perspective:  The doctor in the town is a symbol of greed and prejudice. Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions. Luke 12:15
    • Cross-discipline Connections:  Bible: Parables, Science: How a pearl is formed. Geography: Where are pearls found?
    • Teaching Guide:  https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Pearl-Study-Guide-1849132

8th Grade

  • Johnny Tremain, Esther Forbes
    • Synopsis: The story begins on July 23, 1773, in the Boston silversmith shop of elderly Ephraim Lapham, where Johnny is a promising 14-year-old apprentice.  Johnny’s hand is badly burned when Dove, an older apprentice resentful of Johnny, deliberately hands him a cracked crucible that leaks molten silver.  Johnny’s hand is crippled beyond repair.
    • Teaching Guide: need Progeny Press Study Guide/Christianbook.com
    • Biblical Perspective: When someone hurts you intentionally what will be your reaction? When life doesn’t go the way you plan, what is the next step? Bitterness, defeat, despair? For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Biographies of Paul Revere, John Hancock   Historical Boston, Massachusetts.   Revolutionary War, History of Silversmithing
    • Teaching Guide: need Progeny Press Study Guide/Christianbook.com  (TCA)

 

  • The Witch of Blackbird Pond, Elizabeth George Speare
    • Synopsis: Orphaned Kit Tyler knows, as she gazes for the first time at the cold, bleak shores of Connecticut Colony, that her new home will never be like the shimmering Caribbean island she left behind. In her relatives’ stern Puritan community, she feels like a tropical bird that has flown to the wrong part of the world, a bird that is now caged and lonely. The only place where Kit feels completely free is in the meadows, where she enjoys the company of the old Quaker woman known as the Witch of Blackbird Pond, and on occasion, her young sailor friend Nat. But when Kit’s friendship with the “witch” is discovered, Kit is faced with suspicion, fear, and anger. She herself is accused of witchcraft!
    • Biblical Perspective: This book exemplifies what happens when people begin judging others and condemning them if they are different. Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Luke 6:37
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Colonial Days in Connecticut, Untruths, such as, if a woman can swim she is a witch. Geography of Barbados. Compare/contrast colonial Connecticut and Barbados.
    • Teacher’s Guide: need Christianbook.com Progeny Press Study guide$15.89

 

  • Summer of My German Soldier, Bette Greene
    • Synopsis: When her small town in Arkansas becomes the site of a camp housing German prisoners during World War ll, 12-year-old Patty Bergen learns what it means to open her heart. Although she’s Jewish, she begins to see a prison escapee, Anton, not as a Nazi-but as a lonely, frightened young man with feelings not unlike her own, who understands and appreciates her in a way her parents never will. And Patty is willing to risk losing family, friends-even her freedom-for what has quickly become the most important part of her life.
    • Biblical Perspective: This book is brimming with courage and compassion, kindness understanding, and acceptance. A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. John 13:34
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: History: German prison camps in Arkansas, Arkansas geography and mapping skills.
    • Teacher’s Guide: need   Christianbook.com, The Summer of My German Soldier, Novel Units Teacher’s Guide $6.49 By Bette Greene

 

  • Robinson Crusoe, Daniel De Foe
    • Synopsis: Shipwrecked and fleeing from Pirates, Robinson Crusoe is swept ashore in a storm possessing only a knife, a box of tobacco, a pipe and the will to survive. His is the saga of a man who overcomes self-pity and despair to reconstruct his life; who painstakingly teaches himself how to fashion a pot, bake bread, build a canoe; and who, after twenty-four agonizing years of solitude, discovers a human footprint in the sand…
    • Biblical Perspective: This book teaches about honoring your father and mother, choices, consequences, forgiveness and tenacity and thankfulness. And my God will supply all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Ship trade and routes, survival training, Concepts such as being prepared.
    • Teacher’s Guide: need   teacherspayteachers.com Robin Crusoe (Reed Novel Studies) $8.50

 

  • Out of the Dust, Karen Hesse
    • Synopsis: Out of the Dust ia Billie Jo Kelby’s first person narration of her life near Joyce City, Oklahoma from January 1934 through December 1935 when she was 14 and 15 years old. Billie Jo is an only child, her mother is pregnant, her family is poor, and the crops won’t grow. It’s the Depression and dust covers  and fills everything. Billie Jo finds joy and solace in her piano playing, but even that fails when unthinkable tragedy strikes her family.
    • Biblical Perspective: Calamity strikes this family. Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1Thessalonians 5:18 The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and they are safe. Proverbs 18:10
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: History:The Great Depression, What are the causes of the Dust Bowl? Oklahoma State history and geography.
    • Teacher’s Guide: need   A Guide For Using Out of the Dust in the Classroom, Christianbook.com $7.19

9th Grade

Discernment and Tenacity

 

  • Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury
    • Synopsis: Guy Montag is a “fireman” in a futuristic society which bans and burns books. An encounter with a thoughtful teenager causes Guy to question his work, and he begins reading the very books he is meant to burn.
    • Biblical Perspective:  This text teaches the significance of the knowledge of Truth, and seeking wisdom to look past the voices of the World for True understanding. We look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. II Corinthians 4:18
    • Cross-Discipline Connections:  Censorship
    • Teacher’s Guide: Novel Units Student Packet and Teaching Guide

 

  • Lord of the Flies, William Golding
    • Synopsis: A group of schoolboys is stranded on a deserted island, alone with no adults. Simon, Piggy, Jack, and Ralph struggle to establish a social structure and maintain order among the boys. Despite their efforts, the boys grow more and more wild during their time on the island waiting for rescue.
    • Biblical Perspective: This text teaches the struggle of Good and Evil moral values in the World. It demonstrates Man’s capacity for Evil, as well as God’s capacity for Good. That which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. Romans 1:19-20
    • Cross-Discipline Connections:  war and its effects
    • Teacher’s Guide: Novel Units Student Packet and Teaching Guide

 

  • A Separate Peace, John Knowles —-21
    • Synopsis: Gene and Finny are best friends at secondary school at the start of World War II. During the summer while they are playing, Gene makes a terrible mistake that hurts Finny greatly and changes the course of their friendship.
    • Biblical Perspective: This text teaches the immeasurable value of true friendship and love. It shows what happens in relationships when our actions damage our friendship bonds and the lasting power of friendship despite our actions. Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. I Corinthians 13:4-7
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: World War II
    • Teacher’s Guide:  Novel Units Student Packet and Teaching Guide PDF E-MAILED TO MRS. CASSIO
  • Animal Farm, George Orwell —20
    • Synopsis: In this allegorical tale of the Russian Revolution, barnyard animals drive the farmer away from the farm and dream of working together to make their farm prosper. However, the barnyard is taken over by Napoleon, the charismatic pig, who gains total and unopposed political control and kills those animals who stand in his way. As time passes, the animals become more and more like the humans they hate.
    • Biblical Perspective: This text shows a contrast between Ignorance and Wisdom. It shows the Ignorant who follow the ways of the World to their deaths, and the Wise. For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh,  for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. II Corinthians 10:3-5
    • Cross-Discipline Connections:  Russian Revolution, Marxism, Communism
    • Teacher’s Guide:  Novel Units Student Packet and Teaching Guide
  • Travels with Charley: In Search of America, John Steinbeck
    • Synopsis:  Travels with Charley: In Search of America tells the story of a 1960 road trip around the United States made by Steinbeck, in the company of his standard poodle, Charley. Steinbeck wrote that he was moved by a desire to see his country on a personal level, since he made his living writing about it. He wrote of having many questions going into his journey, the main one being, “What are Americans like today?” His travels start in Long Island, New York, and roughly follow the outer border of the United States, from Maine to the Pacific Northwest, down into his native Salinas Valley in California, across to Texas, up through the Deep South, and then back to New York. Such a trip encompasses nearly 10,000 miles.
    • Biblical Perspective: Steinbeck’s naturalist worldview struggles with the question of what it means to be a human being and of what is the value of human relationships.  Students will read this novel with a Christian worldview and answer these questions that the author does not find in his point of view. As Christians, we understand that to “Fear God and keep his commandments” is the duty of humanity.  The value of truth, God-ordained knowledge, and human responsibility are illuminated in this book.
    • Cross-Discipline Connections:  United States geography
    • Teacher’s Guide:  Travels with Charley: In Search of America Lesson Plans By BookRags
  • Night, Elie Wiesel
    • Synopsis: Elie Wiesel looks back on his experiences as a 15-year-old Jewish boy and narrates his horrifying experiences in the Nazi death camps.  Wiesel’s intention in writing this memoir is to warn the world against such terrible genocide.  Questions of faith and the capacity for human evil and goodness are explored.
    • Biblical Perspective: he text allows the author and the readers to ask the question that Jesus Himself asked, “My God, My God! Why have you forsaken me?”  Why does God allow evil in the world?  How can people of God offer support and hope in the world, in the midst of suffering?    If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer.  Our hope for you is unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort. 2 Corinthians 1:6-7
    • Cross-Discipline Connections:  World War II, Nazi Germany, Persecution of Jews, Jewish traditions, Nazi Death Camps, Biblical questions of evil and good
    • Teacher’s Guide:  Novel Units Student Packet and Teaching Guide

10th Grade

Justice and Mercy
  • Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë
    • Synopsis: Jane Eyre is an orphan whose way in the world is made through work as a governess. She travels to Thornfield Hall to care for the daughter of Mr. Rochester, an emotionally stormy man. She falls in love with Mr. Rochester and learns how to be true to herself and her beliefs.
    • Biblical Perspective: This text shows the value of Faith that is proven and tested, and lived authentically. The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil. Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: poverty and wealth in 19th century England, orphanages
    • Teacher’s Guide:  Novel Units Student Packet and Teaching Guide

 

  • To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee –10
    • Synopsis: This book is set in Jim-Crow era, segregated Southern America. Scout and her brother Jem are growing up and going to school, cared for by their father Atticus and housekeeper Calpurnia. Atticus must defend a black man, Tom Robinson, who is accused of a terrible crime, and Scout and her brother watch the trial and see the racial divisions in their own town and home.
    • Biblical Perspective: This text teaches the message of Justice and Equality for all Men as taught by Christ in the Gospels. It shows the Evil of racial inequality, and the value of Love and Justice in overcoming injustices. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.  For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:26-28
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Early 20th century America, racism in Southern America
    • Teacher’s Guide:   Novel Units Student Packet and Teaching Guide PDF E-MAILED TO MRS CASSIO

 

  • Death of Ivan Ilych, Leo Tolstoy—13
    • Synopsis: Ivan Ilych is working in his home and falls off a ladder. Later he realizes that he sustained a mortal injury. Slowly, he dies and thinks back over his life and beliefs. He realizes his attachment to the material things of the world, and lets go of them, instead holding on to the lasting things of God.
    • Biblical Perspective: This text teaches the danger of attachment to the Material and things of the World. It shows the evil of Hypocrisy, and instead offers the value of True Life in God. Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed. I Timothy 6:17-19
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Russian geography, history, and culture
    • Teacher’s Guide:  The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy Unit  By Teacher Time-Out

 

  •  Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe
    • Synopsis: This book is set in pre-Civil War, slavery era Southern America. Eliza and Uncle Tom are slaves owned by a kind master. When their master encounters debts he cannot repay, he is forced to sell Uncle Tom and Eliza’s son, Harry. Horrified, Eliza and Harry run away, seeking refuge in the North, but Uncle Tom is sold. Eliza and Harry are captured, and Uncle Tom and Eliza are owned by various masters, both kind and evil. Uncle Tom’s faith and hope bring courage and love to the other slaves who are with him and help them to endure.
    • Biblical Perspective: This text shows the power of Faith, Love, and Hope to bring strength to the Christian and those around him. It shows that Faith and Hope can give power to endure Evil. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love. I Corinthians 13:12-13
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: Emancipation Proclamation, Fugitive Slave Act, Plantations, 19th Century America, Slavery
    • Teacher’s Guide:  Novel Units Student Packet and Teaching Guide
  • Gilead, Marilynne Robinson
    • Synopsis: Gilead is an epistolary novel—it’s one long letter from an old, dying father to his son. That means it doesn’t follow a step-by-step plot structure. John Ames, the old guy writing the letter, will begin a story one day, touch on it later, and maybe conclude it eventually.  Knowing that his heart is failing, the 76-year-old man is anxious to pass on a legacy of faith to his only son—a legacy his son is too young to receive—Ames begins to “write his begats” and to recount lessons learned from a life in ministry.
    • Biblical Perspective: This text shows the value of understanding and passing on stories of faith and of walking with God.  Human regret and imperfection, sin, and redemption—these common Christian experiences are chronicled, along with the question of God’s grace. Does God still have grace for His people when we sin?  How does he respond to our legacy of sinful habits? For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy.  Titus 3:3-5
    • Cross-Discipline Connections: US History, ministry life
    • Teacher’s Guide: Gilead Lesson Plans By BookRags