Written By: Katie Smith Milway
Illustrated By: Eugenie Fernandes
Publisher: Kids Can Press
Copyright: 2008
Number of Pages: 34
Genre: International
The illustrator does a good job of bringing out color through it's pictures, and portraying the main thoughts of the story. One thing I noticed was that there was not always a set of pictures to show each event going on, but since the book has a lot of content, I think it wold be about impossible to illustrate every detail that was talked about or to paint a picture for every event happening as seen in many other children's books (or else it would be a much longer book). All in all though, the pictures help you connect with the culture that is being portrayed and help to connect readers to the story.
Grade: 2nd
Content Area: English Language Arts
Standard 28: Recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.
One way to connect this book to a classroom would be to tie it in with English language arts standards. The one I chose is standard 28 which talks about recalling information from a source to answer a question. I thought that this could be applied by having the students do a graphic organizer about the cause and affect features of the story. This could be done about several parts of the story. For example: "What happened in result of Kojo buying one hen?". Students could then fill out what the cause was and what the result was. The teacher could also prompt the students to think of ways to invest in their own future by asking a question like "Similar to how Kojo changed his future by purchasing a hen, what is one way you might could invest in your future?" .
This is a great book that could be used for many content areas. It could be used to teach many moral or character values, and also applied to subject matter. The little boy (Kojo) uses some loaned money to buy one hen that in return lay eggs and provides money to pay back the loan and buy more hens, which lay more eggs. Eventually Kojo is able to save enough money to go school, continue to further his education by going to college, and eventually own the biggest chicken farm in the area. Kojo's hard work, determination, and willingness to reach for bigger things can be an inspiration to all children.
I like that "One Hen: How One Small Loan Made A Big Difference" tells of a story about overcoming obstacles and seeking a better life. I had never heard of this book, but it seems like a great international book to include in a classroom!
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