Marie Hammontree

Summary: This biography focuses on Walt Disney's childhood, and the certain obstacles he had to face before becoming the well known movie maker. He starts off being in the busy town Chicago before his family moved out to Kansas City to live on the farm land that they had bought. He learns to overcome his sadness of leaving Chicago by turning to art and cartoon drawing.

Personal Reaction: I read this book as a child, and I really responded to it then because I have moved around a lot so I show more know how hard it must be to let go of one place before moving to another. The thing he turned to in order to overcome his sadness was art, and mine was reading so I felt that we had a lot in common. Also, I am a big fan of Walt Disney's work, and that was a big motivator at the time to read this book.

Extensions:
1) I would have the class discuss what kind of hardships they faced, and what they turned to overcome them.
2) I would have the class write about their favorite Disney movie and then present it to the class. show less

I used this book for my Famous Americans Unit. It is part of a wonderful series of books that really help young students develop research skills. It is written in a story format but has a wealth of historical information that can be used in a report. It is broken down in to a chronological time line which is easy to follow. Can be easily read by third graders and up.

Everyone knows who Einstein grew up to be, but not what he was like as a child. This book allows readers to do just that.

Walter Elias "Walt" Disney had a huge impact on the entertainment industry as an animator, film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and international icon. But what was the original voice of Mickey Mouse like as a kid?

In this narrative biography, you'll learn about the childhood of the boy who grew up to win and be nominated for more Academy Awards than anyone else in history.