Poetry

The poem Annabel Lee by Edgar Allan Poe has been in my husband's head since he first read it in seventh grade. I think this is an appropriate grade level for children to read this poem. There is imagingry in it. There are also some words that teachers could talk about with the students relating to meanings of them. The name Annabel Lee and the sea that Poe talks about it perfect in rhyme. If I could get a child to recite this poem, what a beautiful sight my eyes would know.

Sarah Plain and Tall

This historical fiction book takes place in the late 19th century. The setting is on a midwestern farm.Sarah who is from Maine comes to meet a widowed farmer.He has two children who are looking for a mother type model.The children are intrigued by the stories Sarah tells of Maine. They also wonder whether or not Sarah will stay in the midwest or will return to Maine.Sarah eventually learns the ways of the midwest and decides to stay.
The story is fairly accurate for the time period. Sarah traveled by train and when the family went into town it was by horse and buggy.The conflicts occured when the children didn't want to trust Sarah right away and she wasn't so sure about the farm she had arrived at. This is not a difficult story for children to understand at all. The English is authentic, but not to advanced for children to not understand.
As for the theme, it becomes about trust and abandonment all at the same time.The children and the father are worried about Sarah leaving and Sarah has to learn to gain trust from the family in which she was invited to.

Rapunzel

The story starts out in a fairly realistic manner. Rapunzel's parents were just trying to start a family when the witch from next door caused trouble. I think children might start to wonder that Rapunzel is not going to grow up as a normal child when the witch enters the picture.

Rapunzel starts out in the real world, but certain things in her life change as the story progresses. The witch has a raven that does what he is told. One of the things the bird is asked to do is to carry Rapunzel to a tower far away from home. Rapunzel likes her surroundings, because she can communicate with all the creatures of the forrest. Her hair grows really, really long, and she learns she can use it as a rope when the prince arrives. The language that the author uses fits with story. It keeps children engaged while they are listening to the story.

I'm not sure if the time periods are completely realistic. For example it is suggested that the prince comes to visit Rapunzel a couple of times and then they are whisked away by the bird to Rapunzel's parents. The prince then asks for Rapunzel's hand in marriage? It seems like every fantasy has a prince in it somewhere. If there's no prince there is always a hero.