Google Lit Trips for Middle Grades

Journey to Topaz by Yoshiko Uchida

Sat, 12 May 2012 14:42:34 -0700

“Based on Yushiko Uchida's personal experiences, this is the moving story of one girl's struggle to remain brave during the Japanese internment of World War II. In a bleak and dusty prison camp, eleven-year-old Yuki and her family experience both true friendship and heart-wrenching tragedy. JOURNEY TO TOPAZ explores the consequences of prejudice and the capacities of the human spirit. First published in 1971, this book is now a much loved and widely read classic.”
~ from Google Books

About the Contributor...
Heather Palmer
Valley View Middle School
Edina, MN

I have worked with students in traditional and immersion class settings at the elementary, secondary and post-secondary levels since 1995. I hold French, German and Education degrees from Concordia College, a degree in Elementary Education from the College of St. Thomas, and a Teaching and Technology certificate from Hamline University. I spent several years studying and working in Europe, experiences which highlighted the importance of communication and understanding between cultures and inspired my career in education.
In addition to teaching, I am pursuing a Master of Library and Information Science at St. Catherine University. I attend Peace Education workshops through World Citizen and am a member of several professional organizations.
My path to peace is engaging students in the idea of community, helping students discover their personal strengths, and empowering students to apply these gifts in order to make a positive difference in each of their communities.

Blood on the River by Elisa Carbone

Fri, 6 Apr 2012 17:53:16 -0700

"Wonderful! The students have added a new level of realism to the story
of Jamestown by juxtaposing Google Earth with the historical events."
~ Elisa Carbone, author of Blood on the River

This Google Lit Trips for Blood on the River: James Town 1607 by Elisa Carbone was created entirely by the 6th grade students of Mrs. Angie Jett of Providence Middle School in Chesterfield Virginia. The students “took on the role” of main character Samuel Collier as they imagined what Samuel might have thought as he traveled from London to the New World to James Town in 1607. And when the students were finished, they actually had the opportunity to present the project to the author herself!Additional Resources
Blood on the River
BotR_Requirements.docx
BotR_Chapt_Summary.docx
BotR_Project_Planning.docx
BotR_Rubric.docx
Peer & Self_Evaluation Rubric.docx
New to Lit Trips?
GLT READ ME.pdf
Google Books Overview

Mrs. Jett has kindly shared some of the Additional resource materials she used as she integrated the Google Lit Trips project into her classroom. They can all be downloaded in the Resource area in the right hand column on this page.

About the Contributor...
Mrs. Angie Jett and her 6th Grade Class
Providence Middle School
Chesterfield, Virginia

Angie Jett is a sixth-grade language arts teacher at Providence Middle School in Chesterfield, Virginia. After reading Blood on the River by Elisa Carbone, Mrs. Jett was encouraged to pursue an end of unit project as a final assessment versus a traditional test. Once introduced to Google Lit Trips, she knew that her students would enjoy the challenge of creating a trip. Mrs. Jett was pleased with how well her students rose to the challenge and amazed at the excitement the project created. The students were privileged to meet the author, Ms. Carbone, and present their Lit Trip to her.
Angie attended Longwood College in Farmville, Virginia, where she majored in English, minored in German, and received a Secondary Education Teaching License. She taught for five years at Providence Middle School before deciding to stay home to raise her family. In 2011-12 Angie returned to Providence Middle School after eight years.
Mrs. Jett and her students wish to express their gratitude to:
• Mrs. Stephanie Stargardt, our librarian who assisted with research and author visit
• Dr. Derek Wasnock, our Principal who supported the project and advocated for the author visit
• Mrs. Tamara Howerton, Ms Jackie Gooden-Seay, and Ms Robin Edwards, our Technology Integrators who worked with Mrs. Jett from implementation to completion
• Dr. Gayle A. Hines, our Assistant Principal who co-ordinated the publication of our project on the the Google Lit Trips site.

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Hard Gold by AVI

Tue, 26 Jul 2011 05:48:05 -0700

In Hard Gold, by Avi, Early Whittcomb lives a hard life in Wiota in 1858. When his brother runs away to Cherry Creek to pan for gold after an acusation that he robbed a bank, Early finds himself lying to get on a wagon train. He is catapulted into the role of a man as he attempts to find his brother and profit from the gold at Cherry Creek.

About the Contributors...
Developed by student, Jackson M.
Submitted by his teacher, Holly Butora
5th Grade Reading Teacher
Presbyterian Day School
Memphis Tennessee

Holly Butora is a fifth-grade reading teacher at Presbyterian Day School, an all boys independent elementary school in Memphis, Tennessee.
Holly has always loved finding innovative technologies to draw her students into being active learners. After being shown Google Lit Trips by a colleague, she knew instantly that her students would love the challenge of creating their own. For their final reading project of the year, boys selected a book they had read during the year to create a Google Lit Trip. The boys rose to the challenge, going beyond Holly’s expectations and developing many great Lit Trips. The boys loved creating the Lit Trips and told Holly that she “HAD” to do this project with her classes again next year.
Holly attended the University of Alabama, where she obtained her Bachelor’s degree in both Early Childhood Education and Elementary Education as well as her Masters of Art in Elementary Education. She began her career in education sixteen years ago as a 6th grade history teacher and is currently teaching fifth grade reading at Presbyterian Day School. When not spending time with her boys at school, Holly loves to spend to time with her husband and daughter.

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Chasing Lincoln’s Killer by James L. Swanson

Mon, 13 Jun 2011 07:04:50 -0700

Chasing Lincoln’s Killer is the true story of the chase and eventual capture of John Wilkes Booth during the twelve days following the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.

About the Contributors...
Developed by student, Christopher K.
Submitted by his teacher, Holly Butora
5th Grade Reading Teacher
Presbyterian Day School
Memphis Tennessee

Holly Butora is a fifth-grade reading teacher at Presbyterian Day School, an all boys independent elementary school in Memphis, Tennessee.
Holly has always loved finding innovative technologies to draw her students into being active learners. After being shown Google Lit Trips by a colleague, she knew instantly that her students would love the challenge of creating their own. For their final reading project of the year, boys selected a book they had read during the year to create a Google Lit Trip. The boys rose to the challenge, going beyond Holly’s expectations and developing many great Lit Trips. The boys loved creating the Lit Trips and told Holly that she “HAD” to do this project with her classes again next year.
Holly attended the University of Alabama, where she obtained her Bachelor’s degree in both Early Childhood Education and Elementary Education as well as her Masters of Art in Elementary Education. She began her career in education sixteen years ago as a 6th grade history teacher and is currently teaching fifth grade reading at Presbyterian Day School. When not spending time with her boys at school, Holly loves to spend to time with her husband and daughter.

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Sugar Changed the World by Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos

Wed, 9 Feb 2011 12:25:16 -0800

“When husband-and-wife team Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos realized that both their family histories involved the sugar industry, they took it as a challenge...The story builds on what many young scholars already know and adds many details. For example, slavery in the United States is a typical school lesson, but the authors disclose that the other 96 percent of enslaved Africans worked in the sugar industry in other parts of the world.”
- 2010 Best for Teens: Sugar Changed the World, by Marc Aronson & Marina Budhos
Google Lit Trips is proud to have had the authors of Sugar Changed the World participate in the development of this Google Lit Trip.
About the Contributors...
Marc Aronson is the author of many innovative non-fiction books for young people, including the Sibert-medal-winning Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado and Witch-Hunt, Mysteries of the Salem Witch Trials. He is on the faculty of the graduate school of communications and information at Rutgers, and holds a Ph.D. in American History from NYU. See marcaronson.com, memorytrail.us and sugarchangedtheworld.com, for his recent books and projects.
Marina Budhos is an Associate Professor of Creative Writing and English at William Paterson University. She has published both fiction and nonfiction for adults and teenagers, including the award-winning Ask Me No Questions, and most recently, Tell Us We're Home.

Jerome Burg is the founder of the Google Lit Trips project. He taught high school English for 38 years. His work with Google Lit Trips has earned him international recognition including being a co-recipient of the 2008 Goldman Sachs Foundation Prize for Excellence in International Education and being named a 2010 Laureate for the Microsoft Education Award for Technology Benefitting Humanity awarded by the Tech Awards presented by The Tech Museum of Innovation.

The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis

Wed, 24 Mar 2010 10:31:13 -0700

The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963 is a humorous yet compelling tale about being a part of a family, growing up, and learning what it means to be African American in 1963. The story begins in Flint, Michigan and takes the family on a journey to Birmingham, Alabama and back to Flint. While in Birmingham, in a strange turn of events, the family finds itself intertwined in one of the most famous events of the Civil Rights Movement.

About the Contributor...
Heather McKissick
Laurel School District
New Castle, Pennsylvania

As a child, Heather always enjoyed reading and history. When she became an educator, she wanted to find a way to incorporate and convey these two passions into her classroom. Since reading The Watsons go to Birmingham- 1963 in a college literature class, Heather has been enamored by this book and the work of Christopher Paul Curtis. After a colleague mentioned Google Lit Trips, she instantly decided to create her own lit trip to use in the classroom.
Heather is currently serving as a long-term substitute at the Laurel School District in New Castle, Pennsylvania. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and Music as well as a Masters in Reading from Westminster College in New Wilmington, PA. Heather has been in the field of education for 9 years.
In her spare time, Heather loves to sing at local venues and spend time with her husband, 5 year old twins and 11 month old daughter.

The resources made available via the Google Lit Trips project website are provided free to the end user and are subject to some restrictions including but not limited to a restriction against distributing and/or redistributing Google Lit Trips files in any way other than via direct downloads from the Google Lit Trips site without written permission.

Google Lit Trips is a project developed as part of the Google Certified Teachers program. Google Lit Trips is not otherwise affiliated with or sponsored by Google Inc.

The names “Google Lit Trips” and “Lit Trips” are copyrighted ©2006.

Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 19:10:22 -0800

Walk Two Moons is a Newberry Award winning novel about the journey of 13 year old Salamanca Tree Hiddle traveling across the country with her grandparents. There are stories within stories in this fascinating story.

About the Contributor...
Lane Hakel
Sixth Grade Teacher
Kenwood Elementary School
Bowling Green City Schools
Bowling Green, Ohio

Lane is always on the lookout for new and different ways he can share his love for geography, history and reading. As soon as he saw the URL GoogleLitTrip.com on his computer screen, he knew he’d found a fascinating way to do all three. He derives the most pleasure from teaching when he can see that his students are just as excited as he is. Lane is in his 22nd year of teaching and is currently teaching Sixth grade in Bowling Green, Ohio. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in East Asian Studies and a Master’s Degree in Elementary Education both from The Ohio State University. Lane spends his remaining time helping raise his five children and darkening the stages of various community theaters in Northwest Ohio.

Marching for Freedom by Elizabeth Partridge

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 12:02:41 -0700

Marching for Freedom tells the story of how ordinary kids helped change history. Award-winning author Elizabeth Partridge explorers the events at Selma from their point of view, drawing on the vivid recollections of some of those who marched as children.

About the Contributors...
Elizabeth Partridge
Author
http://www.elizabethpartridge.com

Elizabeth Partridge is the author of more than a dozen books. Her most recent young adult biography, John Lennon: All I Want Is the Truth (Viking 2005), was a Printz honor book. This Land Was Made for You and Me: The Life and Music of Woody Guthrie (2002 Viking )was a finalist for the National Book Award, won the Golden Kite for Nonfiction and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award. Restless Spirit: The Life and Work of Dorothea Lange (Viking 1999) won a Jane Addams Honor Book Award as well as a Golden Kite Honor.

“A perfect writing day for me is when I have nothing in my day. It feels like the day stretches out in front of me, full of empty promise, just waiting to be filled up. These are, of course, very, very rare. I usually have to settle for three or four hours stretching out in front of me.”

Jerome Burg
founder, GoogleLitTrips.com

“It was such a pleasure working with Elizabeth Partridge on this GoogleLitTrip for her incredible book Marching for Freedom: Walk Together, Children, and Don’t You Grow Weary.”

We all owe such a debt of gratitude to the children who participated in the Selma to Montgomery March during the Civil Right Movement. It is a story to inspire children of today to ‘do the right thing.’ ”

Jerome Burg is a retired high school English teacher. He is a frequent conference and workshop presenter.

Jerome developed and maintains the award-winning GoogleLitTrips project as a way of sharing his passion for great literature with students and educators.

Jerome’s many contributions to educational technology include his being...
• an Apple Distinguished Educator
• a Google Certified Teacher
• a recipient of the Computer Using Educator’s Outstanding Teacher Award

Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson

Mon, 11 May 2009 15:02:13 -0700

Matilda Cook awakens one morning to hear her best friend has died. It's 1793, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the capital of the United States. Rumors spring up about a mysterious disease and people begin to leave the city in droves. What will Matilda and her family do? They depend on the business their coffee house provides.

This Google Lit Trip travels through modern day Philadelphia exploring the original sites mentioned in the story, Fever 1793. Many of the original buildings are still standing.

About the Contributor...
Mark Moran
School Based Technology Specialist
Island Creek Elementary School
Fairfax County Public Schools
Fairfax, VA  
Mark Moran is a School Based Technology Specialist (SBTS) at Island Creek Elementary School in the Fairfax County Public Schools district. Previously he taught sixth grade for nine years. He maintains a website devoted to Northern Virginia Ecology.

The Brothers’ War: Civil War Voices in Verse by Patrick J. Lewis

Fri, 13 Mar 2009 11:21:16 -0700

Patrick J. Lewis uses Civil War photography and verse to present a poignant snapshot of the emotions experienced during the Civil War: this includes poems representing the voices of Civil War nurses, Northern and Southern soldiers, slaves, and the families who experienced, fear, loss, and destruction.

About the Contributor...
Stacy Symborski
Media Specialist
D.R. Hill Middle School, Lyman, SC  Stacy’s Reading Rocks blog

Educational Background
Prior to working as a Media Specialist, Stacy taught High School English for nine years.

She holds a Master’s Degree in Library and Information Science and is Nationally Board Certified in Adolescent/Young Adult Literature.

This Google Lit Trip is my attempt to plot the locations of Civil War battles referenced in Lewis’ work and to reflect the emotional journey J. Patrick Lewis captures so eloquently in poetic verse.

By utilizing Google Earth, literature can be experienced in a format that appeals to a variety of students’ learning styles. Google Lit Trips enable each student to make cross-curricular connections, such as the comprehension and analysis of literature along with new learning in Geography and History. During the virtual field trip, students have an opportunity to be in the driver’s seat – they are engaging with the text in a vehicle that’s very familiar to them – the computer.

Remote Man by Elizabeth Honey

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 11:34:57 -0800

Remote Man is an international, internet adventure with characters from four continents working together to solve a mystery via the internet!
About the Contributor...
Rod Murray
Instructional Technology Resource Teacher  Peel District School Board
Mississauga, Ontario Rod’s blog: http://postaustraliapost.blogspot.com/ 
I am a veteran teacher in the Peel District School Board, which, geographically, includes the 3 cities immediately west of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Having been around since computers and technology were introduced to classrooms in the early 80s, I've seen a lot come and go. I recently taught in a technology rich, staff committed Middle School in the City of Mississauga, Ontario. I taught Language, Social Science and Science, as well as Math to Grades 6-8 for most of my classroom career.
I have taught in Saskatchewan (one of Canada's Western Provinces), in the City of Toronto, as well as “downunder.”
In 2007 I went on a teacher exchange to Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. I was fortunate enough to work in a prestigious independent school in Melbourne where all students had laptops. Living and working and traveling "downunder" was an amazing experience for me, as well as my family. A highly recommended professional experience! I was fortunate enough to meet children's author Elizabeth Honey while in Melbourne. Coincidentally, Ms. Honey's children attended the same school years ago.
I recently started in a new position, that of Instructional Technology Resource Teacher, in December 2008. My role involves visiting selected schools in my District and assisting elementary teachers with the integration of technology into the curriculum.

Underground to Canada by Barbara Smucker

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 09:57:40 -0700

About the Contributor...
Kevin Amboe
Elementary District Information and Media Literacy Coordinator
Curriculum and Instructional Services Centre Surrey, British Columbia Kevin’s blog: http://iamliterate.blogspot.com Kevin’s wikispace: http://iamliterate.wikispaces.com

Kevin Amboe has taught elementary and secondary positions and now is an elementary information and media literacy (IML) coordinator. He has been focused on mentoring and supporting teachers in the district for the past 8 years with a program called Teaching and Learning in an Information Technology Environment or TLITE.

In February 2007, Kevin was selected to be one of only 50 Canadian Apple Distinguished Educators. He holds a Masters in Educational Leadership. He has served as the President and conference Chair for Computer Using Educators of British Columbia and is a frequent conference presenter.

According to Kevin, "It is all about finding the right tool to motivate and engage students so they can learn to their maximum potential. If I can support them in reaching their potential, then I have done my job."

Hana’s Suitcase by Karen Levine

Sat, 10 May 2008 16:46:05 -0700

Hana’s Suitcase is the award-winning story of solving the mystery of Hana Brady. As the mystery unfolds readers discover the tragic story of Hana and her family who fell victims to the Nazi Holocaust.

About the Contributor...
Kevin Amboe
Elementary District Information and Media Literacy Coordinator
Curriculum and Instructional Services Centre Surrey, British Columbia Kevin’s blog: http://iamliterate.blogspot.com Kevin’s wikispace: http://iamliterate.wikispaces.com

Kevin Amboe has taught elementary and secondary positions and now is an elementary information and media literacy (IML) coordinator. He has been focused on mentoring and supporting teachers in the district for the past 8 years with a program called Teaching and Learning in an Information Technology Environment or TLITE.

In February 2007, Kevin was selected to be one of only 50 Canadian Apple Distinguished Educators. He holds a Masters in Educational Leadership. He has served as the President and conference Chair for Computer Using Educators of British Columbia and is a frequent conference presenter.

According to Kevin, "It is all about finding the right tool to motivate and engage students so they can learn to their maximum potential. If I can support them in reaching their potential, then I have done my job."

Kevin has published an extensive exhibit on the Hana’s Suitcase Lit Trip on the Apple Learning Exchange.

The resources made available via the Google Lit Trips project website are provided free to the end user and are subject to some restrictions including but not limited to a restriction against distributing and/or redistributing Google Lit Trips files in any way other than via direct downloads from the Google Lit Trips site without written permission.

Google Lit Trips is a project developed as part of the Google Certified Teachers program. Google Lit Trips is not otherwise affiliated with or sponsored by Google Inc.

The names “Google Lit Trips” and “Lit Trips” are copyrighted ©2006.

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Bashares

Sun, 23 Dec 2007 08:45:30 -0800

Follow the travels of a magical pair of pants...in the first of Ann Brashares’ Traveling Pants novels. This novel is a New York Times Bestseller and has been made into a motion picture.

About the Contributors...
This GoogleLitTrip was developed by seventh grade students, Jessica A. and Taneh T. of Milpitas Christian School in San Jose, California in the Fall of 2007.

The Slave Dancer by Paula Fox

Thu, 22 Nov 2007 10:25:14 -0800

An historical novel set during the terrible days of slave trading
Jesse, a 13 year old boy, gets kidnapped by slavers operating during the days of the slave trade. He faces many moral issues on his forced journey to pick up slaves in Africa.

About the Contributor...
Eva LaMar
http://www.evalamar.com/ Springfield Middle School, Springfield, Oregon

Eva Lamar is the "One-to-One Program Development Specialist" for Springfield Public Schools in Springfield, Oregon. She is the school-based staff development specialist and a seasoned grades 3-8 teacher with an emphasis in English as a Second Language and Gifted Education.
Eva’s many contributions to educational technology include her being...
• a Member of the Board of Directors of the ISTE 1to1-SIG group
• a Co-Director of The Geo-Literacy Project- (www.geolit.org)
• a Co-Chairperson of "Day in the Life of a One-to-One Learning Environment"
• a Senior Trainer- Intel Teach to the Future
• an Apple Distinguished Educator 2005
• an Educational Consultant for The George Lucas Educational Foundation and PBS
• a Macromedia/Adobe Educational Leader

My Brother Sam Is Dead by James Lincoln Collier & Christopher Collier

Sat, 14 Apr 2007 07:52:28 -0700

An historical novel, set during the American Revolution
Includes discussion questions, written by both the students and the teacher, for each chapter.

About the Contributor...
Carol LaRow
http://www.CarolLarow.com
Niskayuna, New York

Carol LaRow is a former middle school English teacher and is now a popular education consultant, workshop leader and conference speaker.
Carol is the founder of Google Historical Voyages and Events, a recognized educational site open to schools all over the world sharing projects created with Google tools.

Carol has developed and published educational technology materials for Adobe, Apple, ISTE, and NETS.
Carol has been recognized for her work by being named
• Google Apps For Education K-12 Regional Leader, Eastern States
• Google Certified Trainers
• a Smithsonian Laureate
• an Apple Distinguished Educator
• a Google Certified Teacher
• a member of NYSCATE Select Speakers'