Homework
Dear Parents,
In class we read the story, Molly’s Pilgrim, by Barbara Cohen. It is the story of a
little Jewish girl who is made fun of at school because of her looks and language.
Her class is assigned the project of making a pilgrim clothespin doll. The other
children make dolls that are similar to the “typical” pilgrim most people think of
around Thanksgiving, black and white clothing, the men wearing breeches, etc…
However, Molly’s doll looks like a Polish immigrant woman- her mother. Molly is then
able to teach her classmates and teacher the true meaning of the word “pilgrim”.
She tells her classmates, “Mama came to America for religious freedom, too. Mama
said she’s a pilgrim.”
Today, pilgrims still come to America for many different reasons. We talked about
many of our classmates, neighbors and their families who have come to this country
for different reasons.
In order to meet the first grade objectives of reading and responding to literature
from different cultures and traditions, as well as our social studies objective of
exploring how children in the neighborhood and around the world are unique in
language, clothing, customs, and building traditions- we are assigning our classes the
same project that Molly’s teacher assigned her class! We want each student to
make a pilgrim clothespin doll. This is an “open-ended” project. You and your child
may use ANY materials you like to dress your clothespin as a pilgrim. However, you
and your child should determine what the doll should look like.
The project is due back to school on Friday, November 16th. Please have your child
fill in the attached interview form about your family’s pilgrim and return it with the
doll. The children will show their dolls, tell what country they represent, and
explain why this is part of your family’s history.
I hope this project will give the children a better understanding of the first
Thanksgiving, and the sacrifices that people make in order to have a better life for
themselves and their families!
Thank you for your continued support,
First Grade Teachers