TITLE: Molly's Pilgrim GRADE LEVEL: 5 Author: Barbara Cohen Themes: communication, understanding feelings, conflict, causes, escalation, de-escalation, self-esteem, perspective taking, bias. Synopsis: Molly, a third grader, is unhappy in her new school. She is the only Jewish student and is being made fun of by the others because she looks different and her English vocabulary is not as good as the others. She would like to go back to New York or if not there to Russia where she would be like everyone else. Their class is learning about Thanksgiving and is given the assignment of making a Pilgrim doll. Her mama helps her after Molly explains that a Pilgrim was someone who came to America for religious freedom Their doll looks like a Russian immigrant. The other students begin to make fun of Molly's doll until a very understanding teacher tells the class that Thanksgiving is based on the Jewish Harvest Holiday of Tabernacles and that modern Pilgrims still come to America. Questions and Answers: Q. Why didn't Molly like school at Winter Hill? A. The other students laughed at her. Q..?Why did they laugh at her? A. Her English wasn't perfect, she looked different. Q. Why couldn't Molly and her family go back to New York City? A. Her father would have to work in a factory instead of a store and they would have to live in a tenement instead of a nice apartment. Q. Why couldn't they return to Russia? A. Cossacks had destroyed their synagogue, village, and their home, and in Russia Jewish children were not allowed to go to school. Q. What new story did the class begin in reading? A. The First Thanksgiving. Q. What class project was the class going to do? A. Build a model of Plymouth, Ma. with houses, church, Indians and Pilgrims. Q.What was Molly's assignment? A. To make a woman Pilgrim. Q. Why did Molly's mama make the doll look like herself? A. Because she came to America for freedom. Q.Why was Molly ashamed of her doll? A. Because it didn't look like the Pilgrims in her book she was reading.   Developed by Beverly Nemec, Principal, St. Raphael School, , Ohio.
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