Y is for Yellowhammer

This is an Alabama Alphabet written by Carol Crane. Each letter is illustrated by Ted Burn that really captures the subject of the letter. I found it by looking at library catalog.  It's call letters are E 973 DIS (from Green Free Library in Wellsboro, PA). As a former teacher,. it is always interesting to find something new for children.

Each letter has a short poem - which could be read aloud for non-readers while the picture was shown or read by younger readers.  For older readers or adults there is a paragraph or more about something or someone from Alabama.

A Yellowhammer is the state bird and is also called the Common Flicker.  Alabama has been the "Yellowhammer State" since the Civil War.  The gray uniforms of the Confederate soldiers of Huntsville, Alabama had bits of yellow on the sleeves, coattails, and collars.  When they rode past soldiers in Hopkinsville in the state of Kentucky, someone yelled out, "Yellowhammer" twice, then "flicker, flicker" and the name soon was used for all Confederates from the state.

One of the best things about this book, is that there is a 20 question quiz at the end, which would save time for a teacher who could use it to find out if her class was listening.

This book would be a wonderful addition to a classroom from kindergarden to fourth or fifth grade when students are learning about states.  I did not know about "Ivy Green" which is where Helen Keller lived as a child.