Course info

Sign up for this course to learn history in an engaging, enjoyable format. 

You will learn about World War II history through the protagonist of our story and share that knowledge with a fun project of your choice.

Living History through Literature: Enemy Brothers

How to get the most out of this course:

• Have a notebook ready and available for class notes during each live session.
• Read the assigned chapters for each week.
• Watch the class recording if you need to revisit information from our live session.
• Take the quiz on the assigned reading.
• Work on your Final Project.

Total Classes: 6

Duration: 45 minutes

Prerequisite: No class prerequisite. Your student will need PowerPoint or Google Slides to work on the Final Project. 

Suggested Grade Level: 5th to 9th grade

Suggested Credit: 1/2 semester History or Literature

Instructor: Jackie de Laveaga, BA, M.Ed.

Instructor Email: hsc@delaveaga.app 

Course Description: Living History Through Literature is a project-based course series offered to 5th through 8th grade students. These courses will weave the study of literature into a meaningful and engaging encounter with a specific era of history. In LHTL: American History 4, we meet British airman Dym Ingleford during World War II, who is convinced that the young German prisoner, Max Eckermann, is his brother Anthony who was kidnapped years before. Raised in the Nazi ideology, Tony has by chance tumbled into British hands. Dym has brought him back, at least temporarily, to the family he neither remembers nor will acknowledge as his own.

Students will explore the characteristics of a great hero while learning about America’s history. Students will study the historical context of the novel and participate in engaging literature discussions. In this project-based course, students will engage in short quizzes and in projects of their choice. Project options will include fiction writing, preparing period-specific food and/or costumes, creating lap books, recreating scenes from the novel (Legos, clay, K’nex, digital drawing, hand-drawing, etc.), building a timeline, mapping, and more.

Course Outline:

• Class 1: Overview of Historical Context and Novel Introduction

• Class 2: Literature Discussion; Project Introduction

• Class 3: Literature Discussion; Cultural Overview

• Class 4: Literature Discussion; Creative Writing Tips

• Class 5: Literature Discussion; Final Project Instructions

• Class 6 Literature Analysis and Historical Connections; Student Project Showcase

Course Materials: Enemy Brothers by Constance Savery, ISBN# 9781883937508 or  ISBN-10# 1883937507. Purchase new from BethlehemBooks.com or used at BookFinder.com. Your student will need Word 2007 or later version or the ability to convert a document to a Word-compatible document.

Homework: Weekly quizzes and reading assignments. Each week, students will work on one project-based assignment that will culminate in a final novel project submission (due at the end of week 6). Homework (including novel reading) will take 1.5-3 hours per week. Parents are encouraged to support younger students by reading texts aloud and helping with project planning and execution.