TEACHERS GUIDE


ABOUT THIS BOOK

The vibrant, swinging world of New Orleans jazz seems to bounce off the pages in this tribute to an extraordinary young man. Based on Louis Armstrong's childhood, this fictional account is the moving story of a young boy's desire to own a cornet, inspired by the musicians he admired in New Orleans' famous jazz halls. Louis lives with his mother and younger sister on Perdido Street, in a section of the New Orleans called Back o' Town. Though his family is poor, Louis strives to save the money he needs to buy his desired prized possession--a brass cornet.

ABOUT THIS AUTHOR

Alan Schroeder, a lifelong admirer of Louis Armstrong, is the award-winning author of several picture books, including Lily and the Wooden Bowl, Minty, and Carolina Shout. His first book, Ragtime Tumpie, was chosen as an ALA Notable Book, a Booklist Children's Editors' Choice, and a Parents' Choice Award winner. He lives in Alameda, California.
Author Fun Facts
Born
January 18, 1961, in Alameda, CA
Education
Public Schools in Alameda, then the University of California--Santa Cruz
Pets
My house is too small for any pets, but when I was little, I wanted a pig!
Inspiration for writing
One of my favorite authors when I was young was Jack London. I also loved the fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen.
Favorite...
...movie: Cabaret
...hobbies: jigsaw puzzles--the bigger, the better!
...foods: pizza, shrimp curry, chicken pot pie, risotto, fresh-baked bread
...clothes: turtleneck shirts, anything warm (I live in the Bay area)
...colors: cobalt blue
...books: The Call of the Wild, McTeague, The House of Mirth, The Divine Comedy; anything by Hans Christian Andersen

TEACHING IDEAS

In the Classroom

Using the Book in the Classroom

Read Satchmo's Blues aloud and bring alive the vibrant, swinging world of New Orleans and the extraordinary young man who became known around the world as the Ambassador of Jazz. Enrich the curriculum for social studies, language arts, and music using the activities that follow.

Suggested Classroom Activities

Pre-Reading Activities

Play some of Louis Armstrong's music for the class. Discuss the tempo and the feelings it evokes.
Point out New Orleans on a United States map relative to the class' location.
Contrast the differences in popular entertainment between today and when the story takes place in the early 1900's, noting that at that time there was no radio or television.
Ask students how they may have earned money for something that they wanted. Chart the categories of how they earned money, what they purchased, how long it took to save for it.

Thematic Connections

Dreams Become Realities -- How did Louis show his passion for music? What was his dream, and how did he make it come true? Louis set two goals for himself: to purchase a cornet and to learn to play the cornet. Have the students discuss his goals with a partner and create a time line outlining young Satchmo's steps to accomplish his goals.

Heroes -- Louis admired his hero, Bunk Johnson, who could "blow his cornet till the roof trembled." Use the newspaper project above for a discussion about local heroes. Then ask the students to identify the characteristics of their own heroes and heroines to create a class list of the characteristics of heroes.

Learning about Ourselves and Others -- Develop a web for the traits of the main characters, Louis and his mother. Discuss the traits of each and those traits the students can identify with. Ask the children to make a web of their own characteristics and one for one of their care-givers, comparing theirs with the ones for Louis and his mother.

Family and Relationships -- Louis and his sister, Beatrice, help Mama with the chores. Have students list and then categorize the responsibilities they have at home, including those shared with other family members. Examples are caring for pets, taking care of their rooms, etc. Students can compare and contrast their own responsibilities with Louis' and Beatrice's in the early 1900s and make a mural or bulletin board display of chores they perform.

Interdisciplinary Connections

Music --There are as many different kinds of music, and ways to use it, as there are people to enjoy it! With these activities, explore the origins of jazz and other popular musical styles, various types of instruments, and the sounds those instruments make as you bring music alive in the classroom.

Have students research the origins of jazz--a uniquely American music--in New Orleans in the early 20th century. Much of the early music that developed into jazz grew out of gospel songs, spirituals, work songs, folk music, ragtime, and the blues.

Ask students to bring in tapes of music they like. Provide a selection of several musical styles, including blues, folk music, and gospel songs, and play on a cassette player in the classroom. Discuss the influence of jazz on modern popular music and encourage students to discover the connections between jazz, blues, gospel, rock and roll, and rap.

Have students research the differences among various instruments, and using The Listener's Guide to Music, Louis Armstrong's Greatest Hits, or other tapes, identify them by their unique sounds. The students can create a chart of instruments, or one classifying categories of instruments, e.g., for New Orleans jazz bands: cornet, piano, bass, banjo, drums and clarinet. They can fill in the chart as they identify each instrument, adding a picture (either drawn or cut out of a magazine) for each.

Encourage students who play musical instruments to bring them to school and play for the class.

Watch portions of videos, such as Hello, Dolly! or High Society, that feature Louis Armstrong to enrich the musical experience.

Geography --New Orleans has a rich cultural heritage. Have the students discover more about that heritage and how the location of the city at the mouth of the Mississippi River has influenced its history.

Math -- Louis worked and saved for his horn. Have children visit their local banks and inquire about savings accounts. How much interest would they earn, what is a minimum deposit, how long would it take to save for a special purchase? Or, invite a representative from the bank to speak to theclass about savings.

Language Arts and Literature -- Encourage the children to write about a dream or goal they would like to achieve.

Set a reading goal for the class, letting each student "earn" a music marker for every book read. When the goal is met, invite a musician in to demonstrate an instrument.

Discuss the author's note that the story is a fictional re-creation of Louis Armstrong's childhood. What facts is the story based on? Use the Author's Note in the back of the book as a starting point.

Borrow More Than Anything Else by Marie Bradby from the library. Read aloud this fictional re-creation of the childhood of Booker T. Washington and have the students compare the two stories.

Social Studies -- Satchmo's Blues brings alive the lifestyle of New Orleans and mentions some foods common to this southern region: jambalaya, red beans and rice, and cornbread. Have students interview family members to capture their many different customs and traditions, including special foods or recipes. Students can bring in samples of different foods, or if you have access to a kitchen at school, and have a teacher's aide or student worker to help, students can make simple dishes.

Biography

About Louis Armstrong

"If anyone was Mr. Jazz, it was Louis Armstrong. . . . He is what I call an American standard, an American original."--Duke Ellington

The author's note in Satchmo's Blues tells about Louis Armstrong's later life, including his successful recording career as the singer of hits including "Hello, Dolly!" and "Ain't Misbehavin'." Have students find out more about this legendary man and research why Armstrong was called "Satchmo" and the "Ambassador of Jazz." They can also write to the Louis Armstrong House and Archives at Queens College, City University of New York.

Did you know?
Louis Armstrong's favorite...
entertainer? Bill "Bojangles" Robinson
baseball team? Brooklyn Dodgers, then the New York Mets

Chronology

Louis Armstrong was born August 4, 1901.

When Louis was 17 years old, he bought his first cornet for $10.00 from a pawn shop.

He moved from New Orleans to Chicago in 1922 as a member of King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band.

He recorded the first jazz version of "When the Saints Go Marching In" in 1938.

Armstrong was the first black performer with his own network radio series. Louis's role as "The Ambassador of Goodwill" was solidified in 1956 when he was greeted by more than 100,000 fans in West Africa.

On December 1, 1963, he spontaneously played "God Bless America" at Smith College in memorium for President Kennedy.

In 1964, Louis Armstrong's "Hello Dolly" knocked the Beatles from the top of the charts.

The kids on Louis's block would talk with him on his stoop or watch westerns on television with him.

Louis Armstrong died on July 6, 1971 at his home in Corona, Queens, New York; more than 25,000 people paid their respects at a National Guard armory in Manhattan.

Armstrong's home was declared a national Historic Landmark in 1977 and will open as a public museum in 1997.

The US Postal Service issued a Louis Armstrong stamp in 1995, part of the Legends of American Music series.

Teaching Ideas by Dr. Deborah W. Allen and Marilyn Carpenter. Allen is a Professor of Early Childhood and Family at Kean College of New Jersey, Union, New Jersey. Carpenter is an Education Consultant in Tucson, Arizona.

VOCABULARY

Explore the regional dialects used in the book, e.g., people pronounce Louis--Lou-ee--the French way. Do the students have family members who use a regional dialect? Where are they from and what words do they pronounce differently?

After reading the story, you can discuss the idiomatic expressions used by the characters, e.g., ". . . you're sassier'n blazes!" Identify other idiomatic expressions in the story as well as idiomatic expressions they may use.

AWARDS

An American Bookseller Pick of the Lists

REVIEWS

Schroeder "remains true to the spirit of Armstrong's childhood....This beautiful book...is full of gorgeous writing, accompanied by Cooper's atmospheric paintings." -- School Library Journal
"Like Schroeder's first book, Ragtime Tumpie,...this is a fictionalized account of the childhood of a great American....The soft, rosy, and golden-brown tones of Cooper's paintings cast a romantic glow over the story....The incredible drive that carried Armstrong from poverty to worldwide fame is shown clearly in young Louis's singleminded pursuit of a dream, and therein lie the book's message and its appeal."-- Kirkus Reviews
"[Cooper's] soft-focus, two-page spreads, with text nicely incorporated into the design, use hazy browns and golds to capture the shimmering heat and pulsing rhythm of New Orleans' streets." -- Booklist

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

http://www.teleport.com/%7Erepmail/af-am-mu.html