Children's Biographies 2


     "Florence Nightingale" by Sam Wellman details the life of Florence Nightingale, a woman who broke barriers and revolutionized what a hospital looked like. The book opens when she's around 7 and ends with her death, and covers all the amazing things she did in between. Florence Nightingale saw the way military hospitals, and hospitals in general, were and brought revolutionary change to the way the patients were cared for. 

    This book is considered a biography. It's non-fiction, details the true life of a real person, and offers a vivid representation of what her life was like (Galda, 2016). This book is for older elementary students, probably 4-6 grade. There are no illustrations except the cover art, but the book is written in clear, easy-to-understand phrasing and has a larger print, perfect for elementary students. 

    One way to start before reading this book is to ask the students what they know about hospitals in the time of Florence Nightingale (19th century). Another interesting point would be how Florence Nightingale defied the social expectations for women in her time. Some classroom conversations could go as follows:

Teacher: "How many of you have ever had to stay in the hospital? Can you imagine what it would be like in a 19th century hospital?'

Students: {various answers}

OR

Teacher: "We're going to go around the room now and I want you each to name one barrier Florence Nightingale broke OR one thing she helped to change."

Students: {various answers}

    I used to read these books when I was in elementary school for book reports, and I always loved them. There's a whole series written by the same author that this book is a part of, it's called "Heroes of the Faith". I work at a Christian school, so missionary and faith-based biographies are a pretty big deal!

REFERENCES:

1. Galda, L. (2016). Literature and the Child (9th ed.). Cengage Learning US. https://reader2.yuzu.com/books/9781305854987

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