Freewater

By Amina Luqman-Dawson.

Published in 2022 by Little Brown Books for Young Readers.

Thrilling, Fantastic, Eye-opening, Complex, Imaginative.

Summary

Our story begins with Homer and his little sister Ada running away from a slave plantation into the jungle. “Tree people,” who turn out to be patrollers of a free Black community called Freewater, take in the youngsters and expose them to a wonderful life of joy, friendship, and freedom. While grateful for his escape, Homer is wracked with guilt because his Mama and his friend Anna did not successfully escape from the plantation. Meanwhile, the members of Freewater become increasingly on edge as tree cutters and slave hunters wander closer and closer to their hidden community. Will Homer ever be reunited with his Mama, and will the Freewater residents be able to protect their home from dangerous outsiders?

CCSS Standard

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.6.6
Explain how an author develops the point of view of the narrator or speaker in a text.

Recommended Delivery

Small Groups

Why assign this book in small groups?

Considering the challenging story elements, such as the various amount of characters, multiple storylines, and complex themes regarding enslavement, race, and freedom, students will benefit from reading in groups and collectively working to increase their comprehension of the text.

Comprehension Strategies

Before

Build schema and connect to prior knowledge.

After reading the provided book summary, students will fill in the first two sections of a KWL chart. They will jot down what they know and want to know about enslavement, plantations, and maroon communities in the context of the novel.

Next, students will watch this Tedx video by Hasan Kwame Jeffries, titled "Why we must confront the painful parts of US history." Students will discuss in small groups:

What surprised you or made you uneasy while watching this video?
What did you learn about enslavement in the North?
How might this video be related to the lives of the enslaved children and the white masters in Freewater?

During

Note-taking with graphic organizers.

Use a one sheet book as a graphic organizer to takes notes on the important characters in the novel. Students should be sure to include the characters who tell the story from their point of view.

Some helpful tips to keep track of the character names and traits:

Be sure to write down if a character has more than one name.
Write about how each character is connected to one another, like by family or community ties.
Write down the page number of events or dialogue that you think might be important, or you want to reread later.
Flag any actions or dialogue that confuse you. Return to these questions after reading.
Note any differences in how two characters describe or experience the same event.

After

Discussion: ask and answer questions.

First, students will participate in a guided Socratic Seminar intended to increase literal and inferential comprehension of the text. Students are encouraged to bring their own questions, but will also be provided with the following questions:

How does growing up under enslavement impact Homer and Billy's thoughts and actions?
How does growing up in a free community impact Sanzi and Juna's thoughts and actions?
How would the story be different if it were only told from one character's point of view?
What is unique about Nora's point of view, as the daughter of the plantation owner?
How do all of the points of view come together to tell a more complete story?

Lastly, students will complete and submit their KWL chart.

Key Vocabulary

Darkies: this is a racial slur used by the plantation owners to refer to Black enslaved people.
- A racial slur is an insulting, degrading, or shaming remark about somebody's race.
Swamp: a landscape that is muddy and filled with lots of trees, bushes, vines, rivers, and wildlife.
Plantation: during the 1600s to the 1800s, white, landowning people ran plantations based on slave labor. The enslaved people on the plantations were forced to do many kinds of unpaid work, like farming, cooking, and cleaning.
Freedom: in the context of slavery, freedom means not being owned or enslaved by anyone. Many slaves tried to run away because they wanted freedom. Other slaves worked their whole lives to try and buy their freedom.
Militiamen: these are men who belong to the militia. This is a military service, like the army. In this book, the militiamen are hired to find the runaway slaves.
Quarters: another word for a living space. Living quarters for enslaved people could have been cabins or tents. They were separate from the white people’s living quarters.

Writing Prompt

Pick a character and write three journal entries from their point of view. Be sure to write in the first person and base your journal entry on events that actually happened in the text.

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