What American doesn’t know about our sixteenth president, Abraham Lincoln? He is an important part of our history, with his own memorial and the penny dedicated to him! In Abraham Lincoln, Amy L. Cohn and Suzy Schmidt go through Abe’s whole life, starting all the way back from when he was “born on a cornhusk mattress one cold Kentucky morning” to where we recognize him now, “there, in the building made for him.”
The rest of the story tells of his life growing up in the country, being a lover of reading, a hard worker, and making his way all the way to the White House. It is a great story that lets students know about such a great man’s whole life, not just his main accomplishments that they are required to know. By learning about other characteristics of Lincoln’s life, students can realize that he was just a normal guy like everyone else that worked hard to have such a great, positive impact on our nation.
To add to the story, David A. Johnson does a great job on all the illustrations, which occur on each page, opposite of the text, giving the students a visual to go along with the information that they are learning about Abraham Lincoln’s life. Having drawings of Lincoln as a child and a growing boy, rather than the typical picture of him at a much older age, is another way to help children put into perspective the normal human being Lincoln was, rather than just the old glorified president that we have praised and solely recognized him for.
Curriculum Connections
Abraham Lincoln is a great story to use in the classroom to present Abraham Lincoln to students, an important figure that all students must learn about at some point in school. For Virgina teachers, learning about Abraham Lincoln, along with other great leaders like George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and George Washington Carver, is part of SOL K.1a and 1.2. This is a good story to use to cover part of that necessary learning point for students.
Additional Resources
- A detailed timeline along with a few pictures of Abraham Lincoln’s life.
- Have students make an edible log cabin or a paper log cabin just like Abraham Lincoln’s.
- A web page with more handouts and activity sheets on Abraham Lincoln.
Book: Abraham Lincoln
Author: Amy L. Cohn & Suzy Schmidt
Illustrator: David A. Johnson
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Publication Date: 2002
Pages: 40 pages
Grades: K-5
ISBN: 0590935666