Sarah, Plain and Tall

Sarah, Plain and Tall

• Genre: Fiction; children’s/middle grade historical classic
• Originally Published: 1985
• Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 650L; grades 1-5
• Structure/Length: 9 chapters; approx. 112 pages; approx. 1 hour on audio
• Protagonist and Central Conflict: On the midwestern prairie in the 19th century, a widower, Jacob, runs a newspaper ad seeking a new wife. His children Anna and Caleb become enamored with the woman who answers the ad: Sarah, a woman from Maine who loves the sea. Once Sarah arrives, Anna and Caleb fear she may not want to stay.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Death of mother; the idea of a stepmother as a “new mother”  

Patricia MacLachlan, Author

• Bio: 1938-2022; born in Wyoming; lived in Minnesota and Connecticut; taught junior high English and worked in family services before becoming a writer; wrote over 60 children’s books; earned the National Humanities Medal (2022)
• Other Works: Arthur, For the Very First Time (1980); Cassie Binegar (1982); Skylark (1994); The Sick Day (2001); Cat Talk (2013); The Truth of Me (2015); Poets Dog (2018)
• Awards: Newbery Medal (1986); Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction (1986); Golden Kite Award (1986)

CENTRAL THEMES  connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:

• The Beauty of New Beginnings
• A Child’s Need for Security and Stability
• Finding Comfort and Connection in Nature

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will

• Gain an understanding of the motivations behind 19th-century American women’s decisions to move West, as depicted in Sarah Wheaton’s story.
• Examine the contrast between life in coastal Maine and that on the midwestern prairie by analyzing how the author uses this theme in the novel.
• Make predictions about and investigate unfamiliar vocabulary and reflect on its purpose in the novel.
• Analyze how geographical place affects a character’s personality and development in the story.