A More Perfect Union

DUE TO AN OVERWHELMING RESPONSE, WE ARE NO LONGER ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS.

Request a free set of books for your elementary school classroom!

Kentucky Humanities was awarded a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to provide 60 elementary schools in Kentucky with ten copies of six different books around the theme of A More Perfect Union to assist with civics education in elementary schools. A discussion guide will be included with the books.

The goals of this project are:

Deliver a quality humanities education experience
Increase a student’s knowledge of themes related to American democracy
Positively affect reading-related attitudes and behaviors with these books about democracy
Provide teachers with multiple sets of books to use in the classroom and a list of open-ended questions to facilitate learning by asking, rather than telling.
Help teachers guide students to connect the literature and discussion to other personal stories, events, film, etc. Suggested activities will help students make personal connections.
Help students employ collective learning strategies. Activities included will allow students to learn from each other.

The themes of the books selected for this project reflect ideas and principals that are central to American democracy (unity, equality, liberty, the common good, the power of voting, and representative governance.) These books draw attention to the contemporary relevance of the language the founding fathers chose as a means for articulating the basis for the systems and institutions that form the American government.

Download curriculum guide for the A More Perfect Union books included in this set.

The six books selected to coincide with the A More Perfect Union theme are:

We the Kids: The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States by David Cartow. Theme: Democracy and Citizenship. The book introduces general rights and responsibilities.
The Story of Ruby Bridges by Robert Coles. Theme: Equality in Education. The book tells the true story of a 6-year-old who was thrust into the national spotlight in 1960 when she was allowed to attend an all-white school.
The Big Orange Splot by Daniel Manus Pinkwater. Theme: Liberty/Personal Freedom vs. Responsibility to Society. This book looks at one neighbor’s right to make his house look like all his dreams and how other neighbors choose to deal with his artistic expression of this right.
The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. Theme: The Common Good/Consumerism and Limited Resources. The moral of this story is a simple one of respect for the environment and environmental sustainability.
Grace for President by Kelly DiPucchio. Theme: Power of Voting/National Elections. When Grace’s teacher reveals that the United States has never had a female president, Grace decides to be the first and begins her career in politics as a candidate in the election for school president.
Shh! We’re Writing the Constitution by Jean Fritz. Theme: Representative Governance/The Role of Government. This book provides a factual and detailed account of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and the personalities and struggles associated with writing and ratifying the Constitution using plain and humorous language.

Books will be shipped by January 31, 2022.

These books will be shipped free of charge to your school. In return, we simply ask you to complete a short survey to be returned by April 30, 2022. Final report, click here.

DUE TO AN OVERWHELMING RESPONSE, WE ARE NO LONGER ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS.