Four Feet, Two Sandals by Karen Lynn Williams

So taking off and putting on their left shoe and repeating until we end the game after about 15 minutes and then later in the day we might repeat the game but taking off and putting on their right shoe. When a Student does not use their proper hand to touch the right item they would have to take off their left shoe and continue to play, and the second time they do not use their proper hand to touch the right item they would put their left shoe back on. Unique Says use your left hand or use your right hand' and everyone would stand up to play and I would start by asking the students to use their left or right hand to touch something of color or with a particular shape. Text-to-Teaching Connection: What is a response activity that you can do in a classroom with children in response to the book?įour Feet, Two Sandals, by Karen Lynn Williams would be a great way to have my children grasp some concepts while learning right and left concepts threw some fun interacting classroom games. Highly recommended to anyone looking for children's stories about refugees in general, or the experiences of people from Afghanistan in particular.

The artwork by Doug Chayka, done in acrylic paint, has a soft impressionistic feeling around the edges, but utilizes bright colors that capture the tones of that part of the world. Despite the losses they have suffered - Lina's father and sister were killed in the war, while Feroza's entire family perished, save for her grandmother - the girls find a way to be generous and loving with one another, modeling the best of the human spirit for young readers and listeners. The narrative is simple but immensely effective, painting a picture of two young children caught up in terrible events well beyond their control. I found myself immensely moved while reading this story, which would make an excellent picture-book companion to books like Deborah Ellis's The Breadwinner and Parvana's Journey, which offer stories for older children about the turmoil in war-torn Central Asia, and the experience of Afghani refugees. From this beginning, friendship develops, but when Lina and her family are given permission to resettle in America, the two girls face being parted.

At first each girl keeps her sandal to herself, but eventually they decide to share the pair, alternating days. When relief workers pass out used clothing, Lina finds one yellow sandal with a blue flower on it, but discovers that its companion has been claimed by Feroza. Lina and Feroza have both fled war-torn Afghanistan with their families, heading for the relative safety of nearby Pakistan.

Co-authors Karen Lynn Williams and Khadra Mohammed spin an immensely poignant tale of two girls living in a refugee camp in Four Feet, Two Sandals.

Four Feet, Two Sandals by Karen Lynn Williams