Afghanistan:
Count Your Way Through Afghanistan by Jim Haskins and Kathleen Benson
Learn to count in Pashto, one of the languages spoken in Afghanistan, as you read about some of the important aspects of this beautiful country.
Learn to count in Pashto, one of the languages spoken in Afghanistan, as you read about some of the important aspects of this beautiful country.
Waiting for the Owl's Call by Gloria Whelan
Three young girls in a family, ages eight, ten, and sixteen, sit side-by-side day after day weaving a rug that will take months to complete before being sold. This story is told from the perspective of the eight year old, who diligently works with her hands at the loom, weaving the patterns that her mother and grandmother wove before her, yet whose mind almost as diligently daydreams of her own unique pattern, filled with the colors of all she sees around her as she waits for the owl's call to signal that another day of weaving has come to an end. Information in the back of the book tells more about the carpet industry and organizations working to end illegal child labor and offer educational opportunities for children in Southern Asia.
Three young girls in a family, ages eight, ten, and sixteen, sit side-by-side day after day weaving a rug that will take months to complete before being sold. This story is told from the perspective of the eight year old, who diligently works with her hands at the loom, weaving the patterns that her mother and grandmother wove before her, yet whose mind almost as diligently daydreams of her own unique pattern, filled with the colors of all she sees around her as she waits for the owl's call to signal that another day of weaving has come to an end. Information in the back of the book tells more about the carpet industry and organizations working to end illegal child labor and offer educational opportunities for children in Southern Asia.
Four Feet, Two Sandals by Karen Lynn Williams and Khadra Mohammad
In this story we meet two Afghan girls in a refugee camp in Pakistan who become friends when they decide to share the sandals that they found, each wearing them on alternate days. "Four feet, two sandals." Their friendship develops and deepens over the rest of the season as they pass the time (and the sandals) together while doing their daily chores. In the end of the story, memories of their time together must sustain the girls as they are separated, one bound for America with her grandmother, the other left to wait in hope that her name will one day be on the list, and that the sandals can once again be joined in a pair.
In this story we meet two Afghan girls in a refugee camp in Pakistan who become friends when they decide to share the sandals that they found, each wearing them on alternate days. "Four feet, two sandals." Their friendship develops and deepens over the rest of the season as they pass the time (and the sandals) together while doing their daily chores. In the end of the story, memories of their time together must sustain the girls as they are separated, one bound for America with her grandmother, the other left to wait in hope that her name will one day be on the list, and that the sandals can once again be joined in a pair.
Nasreen's Secret School: A True Story from Afghanistan by Jeanette Winter
This sad but true story is of a young girl who hasn't spoken since her parents died. Her grandmother hopes that by sending her to a secret school for girls that Nasreen will open up, and it turns out that over time it does. This quiet story portrays the heartbreaking reality that so many people, that so many girls, face in a country that's been racked with war for decades. Education is a privilege that holds hope and a future for this next generation.
This sad but true story is of a young girl who hasn't spoken since her parents died. Her grandmother hopes that by sending her to a secret school for girls that Nasreen will open up, and it turns out that over time it does. This quiet story portrays the heartbreaking reality that so many people, that so many girls, face in a country that's been racked with war for decades. Education is a privilege that holds hope and a future for this next generation.
