George Washington Carver
(Circa 1864–1943)
G
Using the Mini-Book
After introducing children to
George Washington Carver,
have them make the minibook (pages 13–14). Then
read the story together as a
class, encouraging children to
track the text with their finger.
(You might introduce any new
vocabulary before reading.)
Later, invite children to reread
their books in small groups,
with partners, or individually.
eorge Washington Carver, with his ingenuity and creativity, is a
great American to feature in August for National Inventors’ Month.
From a very young age, Carver’s ability to innovate was apparent. He
gardened and doctored ailing plants. He made his own paints and brushes
to use in his artwork. By the age of 12, Carver was living on his own, doing
jobs such as laundering, cooking, and farming to support himself and pay
for his education.
Carver was turned away from the first college that accepted him due
to his race. However, he became the first African-American student and the
first African-American faculty member at Iowa State University. His desire to
serve poor African-American farmers led Carver to become the director of
the agriculture department at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. There he taught
farmers about alternatives to growing cotton, crop rotation, how to preserve
food, new uses for their crops, and much more. Carver encouraged others
to live in racial harmony. He turned down jobs that could have made him
rich, choosing instead to help improve the lives of others. His tombstone
reads, “He could have added fortune to fame, but caring for neither, he found
happiness and honor in being helpful to the world.”
More Interesting Facts
✮✮ Carver was raised by Moses and Susan Carver after his own mother was
kidnapped and never found.
✮✮ At Tuskegee Institute, Carver was paid $125 a month for 46 years.
Related Reading
George Washington Carver
by Andy Carter (Carolrhoda
Books, 2000)
George Washington Carver
by Lynea Bowdish (Children’s
Press, 2004)
In the Garden With Dr. Carver
by Susan Grigsby (Albert
Whitman & Company, 2010)
A Man for All Seasons: The Life
of George Washington Carver
by Stephen Krensky (Amistad,
2008)
12
✮✮ He found over 300 uses for peanuts, including their use in products such
as cooking oil, ink, soap, and glue.
✮✮ Carver also found 100 uses for sweet potatoes, such as for making stains,
paints, paste, and wood fillers.
✮✮ His other interests included piano, painting, crocheting, and cooking.
Preparing for the Read-Aloud Play
Before children read the play (pages 15–18), provide an apron (for George
to wear), a real or silk plant, and a paper towel tube—or a similar object—to
serve as a microphone. Also arrange four chairs to represent seating in the
time machine.
Using the Activity Page
Explain that Carver never let anything stand in his way—not being
orphaned, not race, not money, not illness. He persevered to reach his
goals. Most of the time, his goal was to create something that helped others.
Discuss and help children understand what persevere means. Then have them
complete the activity (page 19) by filling in information about people they
know who persevere, help, and invent.
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
by
He made his own brushes and paint.
George liked to paint pictures.
The Plant Doctor
George
Washington
Carver
2
3
1
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
The Plant Doctor.
sick plants well. His friends called him
George also liked plants. He could make
brother lived with Moses and Susan Carver.
George was the son of a slave. He and his
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources • (page 14)
to use them, too.
soybeans. George showed others how
He found many ways to use peanuts and
6
4
7
5
Today, we use many things he invented.
George became famous for his inventions.
and new crops.
farmers. He talked to them about soils
and art. One of his teachers saw that he
was also good with plants.
After college, George wanted to help
In college, George was good with music
George Washington
Carver
Catching Up With Carver
Read-Aloud Play
Characters
Filmers 1 & 2
Reporters 1 & 2
Mr. Carver
Filmer 1:
We’re live in 3…2…1…Go!
Reporter 1:
Good evening! Tonight the
W-H-E-N team goes back in
time to 1908.
Reporter 2:
We’re going to meet George Washington Carver!
Reporter 1:
Step into our time machine and buckle up!
Ready? Let’s go!
All:
Sputter, bang, whir. Everything’s a blur.
Pssssssss.
Filmer 1: We’re here. Look at all the smoke!
Filmer 2:
It’s clear now! Let’s go into the lab.
Reporter 2:
Mr. Carver? George Washington Carver?
Mr. Carver:
(Talking to a plant.)
Hello, my friend. You’re looking well today!
Reporter 1:
What did you say?
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
15
Mr. Carver:
Oh, hello there!
I was just talking to my friend.
Reporter 2:
But, Mr. Carver, we’re the only ones here.
Mr. Carver:
Look again! Here’s my friend the sunflower plant.
We talk every day.
Reporter 1:
And does she talk back?
Mr. Carver:
No, but her looks tell me she’s happy.
She loves the plant food I put in her pot.
Reporter 2:
How long have you been talking to plants?
Mr. Carver:
Since I was a boy.
I had a secret garden full of plants.
Reporter 1:
Did anyone learn your secret?
Mr. Carver:
I’m not sure.
But people did bring their sick plants to me.
I always helped the plants get better.
Reporter 2:
Is that why you were called The Plant Doctor?
Mr. Carver:
I think so. I might doctor plants some,
but nature is the best teacher.
Reporter 1:
Tell us about your teaching.
Mr. Carver:
Well, sometimes the students come to my class.
And sometimes my class goes to the students.
16
Catching Up With Carver
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Reporter 2:
What do students learn in your class?
Mr. Carver:
I teach them how to make poor soil good again. Strong, healthy plants grow from good soil.
Reporter 1:
How do you make soil good?
Mr. Carver: You change the crop you grow from time to time.
This is called crop rotation.
Reporter 2:
How do you take your class to students?
Mr. Carver:
It’s easy! I just load up a wagon
and head to a farm.
Filmer 1:
Filmer 2: Excuse me, Mr. Carver.
We’d like to film you in your classroom.
And later, we’d like to show your traveling
classroom. What will we see there?
Mr. Carver: Well, we test the soil to see what it needs.
And we show farmers how to grow new crops.
Reporter 1:
Like peanuts?
Mr. Carver:
Yes! Soybeans and sweet potatoes, too!
Reporter 2:
How is that working out?
Mr. Carver:
Farmers have started to grow a lot of peanuts.
But not a lot are selling.
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Catching Up With Carver
17
Reporter 1:
What can be done about that?
Mr. Carver:
I’m trying to come up with
new ways to use peanuts.
Reporter 2:
Have you had any luck?
Mr. Carver:
Yes, I’ve used peanuts to make soap and creams.
They can also be used in paints and papers.
Reporter 1:
Wow! Who knew peanuts could be so useful?
Reporter 2:
Mr. Carver, before we go, we want
to thank you for all your inventions.
Mr. Carver:
You’re very welcome.
By the way, how did you get here?
Filmer 1:
We came in a time machine, sir.
Filmer 2:
It took us no time at all to get here!
Mr. Carver:
I wish I had invented that gizmo!
Reporter 1:
That wraps up our visit to 1908.
Reporter 2:
Good night from the W-H-E-N time machine.
See you next week!
All:
Sputter, bang, whir. Everything’s a blur.
Pssssssss.
18
The End
Catching Up With Carver
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
George Washington
Carver
Name:
Date:
Activity Page
Well-Deserved Tributes
Choose three people you know. Draw each person on one of the stamps.
Then complete the sentence about that person.
George Washington Carver never gave
up even when things got hard.
never gives up even when
(person’s name)
George Washington Carver was
helpful by teaching farmers.
(person’s name)
is helpful by
George Washington Carver found
new uses for peanuts.
(person’s name)
finds new uses for
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
19
How to Make the
Mini-Books
Materials
The mini-books require very few materials, and children can
complete them at their desk or at a learning center. To get
started, provide pre-trimmed copies of the mini-book pages—
you can use a paper cutter to cut along the dashed line on each
copy. Then demonstrate the steps below. (Or assemble the
books in advance.)
1. Cut each reproducible
page in half along the
solid line. Then fold the
front cover/page 1 along
the dotted center line.
Keep the fold to the
right side.
2. Repeat the folding
process for each of the
remaining page pairs:
pages 2/3, 4/5, and 6/7.
Stack the pages in order
with the cover on top
and all of the folds on
the right side.
@@ scissors
@@ crayons or markers
@@ stapler
3. Staple the pages
together along the
left edge.
Teaching Tips and Extensions
Creative Timing
With many of the Americans in this resource having ties to several seasonal observances, be
creative with the timing you choose for using these activities. For example, the unit on Susan B.
Anthony is suggested for use during Women’s History Month (March), but the activities are also
a perfect fit for pre-election days in October and November. The unit on Alexander Graham Bell
(July) might instead be used during National Inventors’ Month in August.
Multi-Use Mini-Books
Mix things up a bit with these suggestions for using the mini-books:
✮✮ Mask the text of a mini-book and make a copy of the pages. Then cut out the text from
another copy. Laminate all the pieces, place them in a center, and encourage children to
match the corresponding text to each page.
6
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
✮✮ Have children glue the mini-book pages, in sequence, to a strip of accordion-folded bulletin
board paper. Children can then unfold the strip, one section at a time, to read the story.
✮✮ Highlight selected words in a mini-book and place it in a literacy center. Invite children to
search other books, materials, and displays in the center to find words that match those
highlighted in the mini-book.
Play Props and Productions
After reading through a play a few times, invite children to suggest embellishments they might
add to make the production more interesting, such as an interesting prop, a musical link, or even
an announcer to provide oral credits at the conclusion of the play. By encouraging children to
contribute to the plans and preparations for the play, they will become more fully engaged.
All-in-One Activity Pages
A class set of completed activity pages makes an interesting read. For a quick way to compile
them, hole-punch the left side of the pages and put them in a slim binder. Place the book on your
classroom bookshelves for children to enjoy.
Flexible-Use
Graphic Organizers
The graphic organizers (pages
Nam
e:
9–11) can be used individually
One Special American
American Pride
Mystery
American
or with any unit in this book
to help children respond to
what they learn. After children
complete the activities on pages
USA
9 and 10, you might compile
them into a notebook, then
I wonder . . .
invite children to read and enjoy
the pages on their own. To use
the organizer on page 11, have
children fill out the page, glue
it to a 9- by 12-inch envelope, and place objects and pictures related to that famous person inside the
envelope. If desired, punch holes along the left side of the envelopes, taking care not to puncture any items
inside, and bind them in a notebook. Place the notebook in your class library to introduce a unique and
Birth Date:
interesting book format for children to enjoy.
To extend the use of any of these graphic organizers, invite children to select, research, and
complete the activity for another American with traits similar to a person featured in this book. For Home Place:
example, after filling in a graphic organizer for Abraham Lincoln, ask children to complete the same
activity for another president. Similarly, you might have them use the graphic organizers to show what they
have learned about famous Americans that can be connected to a particular national observance (such as
Women’s History Month), topic (such as explorers or inventors), or month of the year.
Name:
Date:
Graphic Organizer
Name:
Date:
Graphic Organizer
Born:
Name:
Date:
Graphic Organizer
(date)
Name:
Lived:
Ways to
describe this
American:
(where)
Birth
Born:
Best
known for:
Date:
Hom
e Pla
ce:
(city,
state)
Occupation:
(date)
Draw the person.
Draw the person.
One thing this person did:
One special thing this person
did for our country:
Another thing this person did:
Things that
made this
person special:
How this person
inspires me:
1. Choose a famous person
to learn about.
2. Read and talk about
this person.
3. Complete this page.
4. Glue this page to an
envelope.
5. Put pictures and things
inside that give clues
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
9
10
about who the person is.
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
11
7
Name:
Date:
Graphic Organizer
American Pride
Name:
Ways to
describe this
American:
Born:
(date)
Draw the person.
One thing this person did:
Another thing this person did:
I wonder . . .
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
9
Name:
Date:
Graphic Organizer
One Special American
Born:
(date)
Lived:
(where)
Occupation:
Draw the person.
USA
One special thing this person
did for our country:
10
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
How this person
inspires me:
Name:
Date:
Graphic Organizer
Mystery
American
D
Birth
Best
known fo
r:
ate:
Hom
ce:
e Pla
stat
(city,
e)
Things that
made this
person special:
1. Choose a famous person
to learn about.
2. Read and talk about
this person.
3. Complete this page.
4. Glue this page to an
envelope.
5. Put pictures and things
inside that give clues
about who the person is.
Person of the Month: Famous Americans © 2011 by Karen Shelton, Scholastic Teaching Resources
11