Uncle Jed's Barbershop

little girl uncle was the only black barber in the county, her uncle would walk to were he needs to cut hair, and thats a long walk ,but he dose it everyday. he uncle was saving all his money to build his shop,but one day the little girl got so sick and her mom & dad didn"t have the money for the so they can take her to the hospital. so her uncle gave the money he was saving for his shop ,so they can take her to see the doctor. in the end all his customer got together to help build him barbershop. pierce college library ages 6 to 9

A story about a man who never gives up on his dream no matter how many times he is knocked down. ( )

This is an excellent book which is set in the south during segregation and the Great Depression. It involves a man who saves up for a barbershop but due to circumstances has to delay his dream. Many lessons can be found here including never giving up on your dreams and how to face obstacles such as racism. Students can also catch a glimpse of how things were during this racially charged time in America. ( )

Summary: Uncle Jed’s Barbershop is set in the segregated south before and during the Great Depression. Sara Jean, the narrator, is a young African American girl whose uncle Jed is a barber with big dreams of owning his own barbershop. He speaks often of this dream and how he is saving up to make it come true. Sara Jean gets sick and needs an operation that her parents can’t afford, Uncle Jed helps them pay for it – setting him back in his dream of owning a barbershop. Uncle Jed just starts over in his savings. Then the stock marked crashes and Uncle Jed looses three thousand dollars in the banks. He doesn’t give up, he simply starts over again helping his friends and neighbors providing them with haircuts and shaves whether or not they can pay him. Finally, when he is seventy-nine, Uncle Jed opens the barber shop that no one believed he could.
Teaching Implications: This story has many lessons that could stem from it. The first is the theme of never giving up. Uncle Jed faces many obstacles but he never gives up or gets upset. He continues to start over and help those around him in any way that he can. The story is set in the segregated south and briefly describes some of the struggles that the African Americans faced during that time. This book could be used to introduce segregation and the effects of it on African American people. The story is also set during the time of the stock marked crash and the great depression. The effect of the great depression is not often depicted through the eyes of African Americans. This story could help the understanding of the Great Depression be more well rounded in understanding it from many people’s points of views. ( )

Uncle Jed's Barbershop was the book that i chose for my first read aloud at Holt Elementary. This book made the children ask tons of questions about the book and I could really tell they were interested in the book and the concepts im trying to teach. This book tells a story of a child growing up and her uncle always being there for her and her uncle finally opens his barbershop at age 79. ( )