In time to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the United StatesDeclaration of Independence (also known as the United StatesSemiquincentennial) comes a poetic and lushly illustrated book for kids celebrating the spirit of America. With beloved poems from Robert Frost and Carl Sandburg to Emma Lazarus and HelenHunt Jackson, The American Spirit is a moving celebration of the themes,history, and people that make the United States of America the majestic nation itis today. Fifty poems--from men and women of different cultures, backgrounds, and time periods--showcase America''s rich history and culture from before its founding to today''s modern times. Each of the fifty entries includes a famous poem, a short essay on itspatriotic themes, an activity or questions to further reader understanding, andselected vocabulary words, all of which work together to help kids understand both the poemand our country better. Table of Contents Part One--Exploration & Discovery Part Two--Heroes & Legends Part Three--Music & Art Part Four--Work & Progress Part Five--Freedom & Equality Part Six--Resilience & Change Excerpt: On the Mississippi by Hamlin Garland Through wild and tangled forests The broad, unhasting river flows-- Spotted with rain-drops, gray with night; Upon its curving breast there goes A lonely steamboat''s larboard light, A blood-red star against the shadowy oaks; Noiseless as a ghost, through greenish gleam Of fire-flies, before the boat''s wild scream-- A heron flaps away Like silence taking flight. The River of Dreams The Mississippi River has long symbolized exploration and connection, winding through America''s heartland and history. Hamlin Garland''s vivid imagery captures the river''s power and mystery, painting it as a bridge between past and future. This timeless waterway has carried stories of traders, settlers, and dreamers, embodying the spirit of discovery that flows through the nation''s veins.

Celebrate Learn about the history of the Mississippi River and its role in shaping America. Find a map of the river and trace its path. Imagine what it might have been like to travel along its waters in the 1800s--what would you see, hear, and feel? Define: unhasting: not rushing larboard: left side of a ship.