Out of the Mouths of Babes

My class is very excited about learning about the Underground Railroad and Freedom Quilts.  We've read two more books and the children can't wait to begin working on their quilt block booklets.

We read The Patchwork Path A Quilt Map To Freedom by Bettye Stroud.  This book tells the story about a little girl whose mother made a sampler quilt and taught the girl the quilt code using the blocks in the quilt.  Her mother dies after her sister is sold to a far away plantation.  The little girl and her father escape slavery using the code she learned from her mother's quilt.  This book teaches about the Monkey Wrench, Wagon Wheel, Bear's Paw, Crossroads, Log Cabin, Shoofly, Stars, Flying Geese and Drunkart's Path quilt blocks and what they mean to the runaway slaves.

Under the Quilt of Night by Deborah Hopkinson focuses on the Log Cabin quilt and has some great opportunities to discuss new vocabulary with the children.

After reading these stories, one of my students said, "So quilts can do more than just keep you warm." ----- out of the mouths of babes!!!

Happy Quilting,
Laurel