Ages 11-15 Summer of the Bear Revised

8/9/2019 Ages 11-15 Summer of the Bear Revised

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History for Ages Eleven to FifteenThe Award-Winning Summer of the Bear

The Summer of the Bear

targets the 8th-grade social studies

curri-culum, but is appropriate for

ages 11-15, for either social

studies or reading arts. Teachers

and parents will find that Summer

makes the history come alive for

their children. It is a story about

modern teenagers, and the

choices they face, while retracing

the steps of their Euro-American

andNative American forefathers. The book makes an excellent read-aloud

for sixth- graders and an exciting read for any teen, who loves

adventure and mystery. Summer of the Bear, the first volume in a

series of historical fictions for young,received the Michigan State

History Award for Literature for Children and Young Adults in 2007.

How to Teach This Book to your Child

If you are wondering how to present this book to your child so that she

learns the facts she needs to know, it may help you have her put the

following questions to the text. All of the historical facts are indexed in

the back of the book. Remember, every child is going to wonder: whydo we have to read this? What does it teach us? Why did the author

write it? How do we know what the author meant by what she wrote?

(Hint: the characters, images, symbols, extra-textual references, etc.,

are all at the service of the authors purpose).


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Purposes of the Book: Every book is written for a reason, and, as

obvious as that may seem, your child needs to learn to recognize the

purpose for which the book was written. Only then can she understand

how every detail of the book points toward the authors goals. This is

also a great way to prepare her to write her own papers and books, be

they fiction or nonfiction. Purpose is the most important organizational

principle in writing.

The first purpose ofSummer of the Bearis to teach readers about

the histories, economies, and customs of the both the Indians and the

Canadian fur traders, the voyageurs, the coureurs de bois, the commis,

and the big American fur trading companies.

The boys in the story sing the

voyageurs songs while they are

paddling up the Pigeon River.

Authentic music appears in the

text. The reader learns a certain

amount of French, which istranslated in the text, and, again,

at the back of the book. The

reader also learns about Native

American history, especially

Ojibwe history, from pre-contact

times to the present. Along with

this, he acquires a number of

Anishinaa-bemowin (Ojibwe

language) terms.

Seeking to fulfill his core democratic value of liberty, the hero

discovers the responsibilities that go hand-in-hand with freedom. The


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core democratic values are of paramount importance for the eighth-

grade curriculum.

Jean-Baptiste and Kevin discuss the difference between

traditional or survival economies (like that of the Anishinabeg) and

command economies (the European economy, which was geared to

profit). (Pp.45-46)

The teens in the story become involved with an Ojibwe

bearwalker. In processing what happens to them, the boys discuss the

California missions, the Esselen Indians, and how some bearwalkers

can be good, while others are criminals. They talk about California

because one of them, Brock, has read a mysterious, scary novel about

Esselen bearwalkers. What kinds of bearwalkers do the boys

themselves turn out to be?

Finally, two of the boys visit Michilimackinac, Mill Creek, and

Mackinac Island in Michigan, where they see an Algonquian lodge, the

wealthy trader and peace-maker, Ezekiel Solomons house, and learn

how Mill Creek was founded to supply lumber for the construction of

the fort on Mackinac Island. Kevin, the narrator, tells his friend, Brock,

who is a very minor expert on Vernors Ginger Ale, about PreMarquette.

The second purpose of this book is to serve as a text for reading

arts. It is a lively, adventure-packed, coming-of-age story about Kevin

Murphy and his best friend, Brock Tomlinson. Kevin, the narrator, looks

back on his 14th summer, the year that he became a responsible

citizen.


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The boys set out to spend the

summer at the Tomlinson cabin in

the Pigeon River Country State

Forest, Michigan. The French

Canadian teen next door, Jean-

Baptiste Vaillant, takes the boys

on a canoe trip they will never

forget. They become witnesses to

a mysterious murder, committed

by a bad bearwalker, and

eventually encounter a real bear.

Everything inthe story tests their courage and their loyalty to each other, as well as

the values that their parents and teachers have been trying to instill. In

spite of themselves, they are inexorably pushed across the threshold

from boyhood into the adult world.

The third purpose of the book is to help youngsters learn solid

values

they will carry into adulthood. The main thrust of the story is unity in

diversity: teamwork and the invaluable contribution each individual is

able to make to the group. They must also learn to be considerate and

wise, in addition to being courageous and unselfish. Both Kevin and

Brock become men on this trip precisely because they eventually

learn all of these lessons, including the virtue of protecting family

honor by behaving in exemplary fashion.

The Issues Raised in the Book, which You Can Discuss with

Your Child:

One of the very first issues raised in the book is the meaning ofCore

Democratic Values for kids. Do kids get any of these rights? Why?


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Why not? When the Constitution tells us were FREE, does that mean

we can do and say anything we want, or are there bounds to our

liberty?

And personal liberty, Miss Frolich droned on, is the right to think, to

act, and to be an individual without governmental control or protest . . .

What a joke. If I wanted to do something, my father would decide

whether or not I could do it. If he could have controlled my mind, he would

have. I guessed you got to enjoy all those freedoms Miss Frolich had been

teaching us when you grew up and moved out of your parents house. This

really ex citing plan I had hatched for that summer is a perfect example of

what I mean. It was harmless, but it would allow me the freedom to be thereal me. I doubted my father would go for it. (Pp.2-3)

Thats very nice. I mean you should have the freedom to be the

person you were born to be, my father yelled, but what about me? I feed

you, clothe you, put a roof over your head, and I love you. Dont I have any

rights? And what about your mother? Didnt it ever occur to you that she

might be worried? Having the right to liberty doesnt mean you can do

anything you want any time you want. The right to liberty brings with it

tremendous responsibility. You have to think about other people. You have

to think about whats fair for them as well as for yourself. (P.98)

Conservation and the Proper Uses of Wealth.

Conservation and sharing for the Native American constituted a way of

life, whereas the Euro-American wastes enormous quantities of natural

resources and only gives for a tax write-off. He may worry about the

obvious end of the world, but, when it comes to making money, he

thinks only of the here and now. Native Americans always gave thanks

for everything they took, and they took exactly what they needed from

the Earth.


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Wild rice (manomin) is said to be generous to those who ask permission

from the spirits to take it. They must pick only as much as they need and no more.

This is so that there will always be plenty for everybody. (Pp.16-17)

We Anishinabeg are the original conservationists. The Creator gave useverything we needed.

During the pre-contact period the time before the Europeans came, Jean-

Baptiste interrupted, they could get what they needed from their environment. They

asked the spirits permission for everything they took; they never took any more than

they needed. Why would they want something extra, when they had more than

enough? It is their way to share with family and needy neighbors. Their way of

showing wealth is to give it away, not to display possessions. (Pp.44-45).

What is the Best Kind of Economy? Survival Economies Versus

Economies Geared to Profit.

. . . The Anishinabeg only wanted to

survive. The Indians eventually made

themselves trouble because they killed

all their fur-bearing animals to satisfy

European demands. Then the fur trade

died. If they had preserved the animals,

the way their customs taught them to do,

they would never have run out of fur for

warmth or meat to eat. (P.45)

For the Indian, Nature Is Not Only Good, but It Is an Integral

Part of the Creation. For the White Man, Nature is Evil and is

Put at Mans Disposal. He Therefore Destroys it, with Little

Thought for the Future.

In this novel, Kevin is fearful of the forest and hostile nature.


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That night I couldnt sleep, worrying about

what would happen when Brocks father came up

for the weekend, and we werent there. Then I

worried about what would happen if we got lost or

found a bear. What if we drowned? (Pp.22-23)

His friend, Jean-Baptiste, angers a mother bear, which forces Kevin

to kill it. Then Jean-Baptiste takes only the bears hide, leaving themeat to rot. By contrast, the Indian sees the bear as a positive force:

Kuo-Haya, he said to his boy. I have come to take you home. The bears

have taught me a lesson. I shall treat you as a father should treat his son. Then

he promised that he would always be kind to the bears, because they had taught

the boy that we must always be kind to one another. (P.52)

When Jean-Baptiste sees that Kevin and Brock are horrified at

eating the muskrat he has just killed, he says,

MyAnishinabe Friend, Ed, taught me that one only kills what one needs to

survive. One offers tobacco and asks the animals forgiveness so that he will lead

more muskrat, or deer, or whatever it is, to ones gun when one needs to eat.

Then one buries his bones. You see, theAnishinabeg think that everything in

creation is related. So one is related to this muskrat, to the tree, to the river, to

everything. (P.32)

When Kevin looks at nature, he sees death at every turn. By

contrast, theAnishinabe boy, Mickie, sees nature as a protective force, as long as he treats

her respectfully:


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My Ahsaymah, or Tobacco, in

Anishinaa-bemowin, carries my thoughts

to the Spirit World. It represents my

sincerity. When I offer Tobacco to thespirits, they tell me the secrets of the

Creation. The Water Spirits appreciate

my respectfulness so they guide me

safely across the rivers. Im always able

to find something to eat because the

animals offer themselves to me when Im

hungry. The Tobacco shows them the

truth of my intentions. (P.36)

Disciplining Children.

Both Kevin and Brock come from families where children are

sternly disciplined. It is new for them to learn about Indian discipline:

TheAnishinabeg never beat or shout at their children, Star said. If the child

is uncontrollable, they might threaten him with monsters that prey on disobedientchildren. But, for the most part, they speak calmly and clearly to the child who

misbehaves.

What do they say to him? Brock asked.

They tell him a teaching story, Star replied, like the one you just heard

(P.52)

The Equality of Women.

Stars father told us another story that night about Native American women.

Their roles varied widely from tribe to tribe, he began, but Indians have always

loved and respected their woman. They were leaders and war chiefs in some

nations. In all tribes, women are the ones who give and preserve life. Like any

man, a womans first allegiance is to her family and her tribe. A good life means

doing what you are supposed to do, rather than what you want to do. (P.53)


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And here are some terrific literary questions you can have your

children put to the text.

In the story, a real bear and a bearwalker appear. What is a

bearwalker? What do bearwalkers and bears have to do with one

another? The characters talk about the Bear Clan, real bears, and tell

Indian tales about bears and bearwalkers. What is the meaning of the

Bear as the central symbol of the novel? What kind of a bearwalker is

Kevin? What is the Bear Clan? The adventure begins and ends with the

bear. If you had to pick a geometric shape for the narrative, what

would it be? What relationship does this narrative shape have to the

content of the novel? (Hint: For traditional Native Americans, all things

are round).

What is the function of Flashback in the novel?

Characters are really ideas. Some ideas are static they never

change. Some ideas grow. In a novel, the static ideas support

or contrast to the ideas that grow. The characters/ideas are

presented as people so that the reader can relate to them andbe swept away with the flow of the novel. He has to care about

the characters in order to learn the ideas they embody. There

are four principal characters in this novel. Two of these

characters are main characters and two are secondary. Which

ones? Why? What is their function in the story? Of all the

characters, which ones are flats (types that never change) and

which ones are rounded (psychologically believable characters

that grow)? How does the author accomplish this?

How does Kevin change? How does Brock change? Do Jean-Baptiste

or Mickie change? Do the Schickbahouk or the Bearwalker change?

Does Crystal change?


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How does the narrator (the one who tells the story), Kevin

Murphy, feel about pretending to be someone hes not with the

opposite sex? What do you think the author feels about role-playing?

How does the author get this across in the novel?

How does the narrator feel about liberty? How does the author

feel? How does the author get her feelings across in the novel?

How does the author feel about discipline and raising children?

How do you know that Star is speaking for the author in this instance?

The function of a novel is to teach lessons or to raise

fundamental questions, which cause the reader to think seriously

about this or that issue. What are the lessons to be learned from

Summer of the Bear?

There are several different points of view presented about the

status of women. How does Jean-Baptiste feel about them? Kevin?Star? The Native Americans? The author?

Do you think Kevin was right to go off without sharing his plans

with his parents? Do you think the boys were wise to solve the problem

of the bearwalker by themselves, rather than reporting their suspicions

to the police? Do you think Jean-Baptiste should marry Louise

Beauparlant? Why? Why not?

For the Native American, Nature is good. Every part of the

creation is valuable, as valuable as man himself. Man may take only

those things in Nature that he needs for his survival. He must never

take more than he can use, and he must never waste what he does


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take. What is the attitude of white people towards Nature? What is

Kevins attitude? Jean-Baptistes, Mickies? Considering the shrinking

natural resources of the world today, what attitude do you think would

be a good one to adopt? Do you think Nature is evil? Harmful?

Dangerous? Are you afraid of wild animals? Why do you feel the way

you do?

Documents

Ages 11-15 Summer of the Bear Revised