Kristin Raper Ed 224 Biography Annotation Miss Lady Birds Wildflowers, How a First lady changed America By Kathi

Appelt Illustrated by Joy Fisher Hein 2005 Harper Collins 40 pages Summary: This biography is the story of Claudia Alta Taylor, later in life known as Lady Bird Johnson, First lady of the United States. She was born in Texas, an only child and she lost her mother by the time she was six. She describes her childhood as lonely and she found solace in the forest that surrounded her home. When her aunt came to help raise her, she taught lady bird how to plant flowers and also the names of the wild flowers that grew around their home. It inspired a love of flowers that stayed with Lady Bird her entire life. Later, as First lady, she initiated Congress to pass a beautification law that provided funding to help clean up the ditches along this nations highways and planted wild flowers. Personal Response: I am a passionate gardener; I could tell you the names of every flower in my many garden beds, just like Lady Bird. I could connect with the excitement of waiting for the first sign of flowers in the spring (hurry up! It has been such a LONG winter). I have a strong belief that we as a country have an obligation to leave this nation in a better condition that we may sometimes find it, so I could connect with Lady Birds public service initiative. I have always admired Lady Bird for her beautification projects, some may think it is silly, but I think it made a difference.

Strengths/ Weaknesses: S: This book does a good job of telling Lady Birds life story in an easy way that school children should find easy to read and understand. It provides many historical facts, such as the assignation of JFK, but does not dwell on the sorrow of the time. It also does a good job of illustrating why the beautification project became her passion. Until Lady Birds beautification program, our nations roadsides were an eyesore, something most school children are not aware of thankfully. W: I felt the book was a little long for younger students. The book also didnt list the Latin names of the flowers in the appendix of the book, for learning purposes, students should be exposed to the proper Latin and also the common names of the flowers. How this book might be used: I think this book would be a great read aloud as an introduction for science lessons. For younger students, grades 1-3, this book could be a jumping off point for having the students research and compare native wild flowers that grow in Iowa, and compare them to Texas. For older students, grades 4-6, this could be used to have the students research what Iowa does to adhere to Lady Birds beautification law, and discover what we plant along our roadsides. This book could also be used to start a discussion on conservation- for any age student, prompting to ask students what does Iowa do to conserve the natural wildflowers and prairie areas in this state, where these areas are located and what is the mission of the various conservation groups in Iowa.