Taking the step from picture books to chapter books is an exciting moment for young readers, and the Boxcar books are one series that helps children make that transition.
Gertrude Chandler Warner, a first grade teacher, wrote the first book in 1924 (reissued in 1942) with this purpose in mind. The books track the adventure of four siblings, now orphans, Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Bennie Alden.
In book one, called The Boxcar Children, they begin their adventures with the simple wish to stay together. They also want to avoid their grandfather whom they’ve never met but do not trust.
In the process, the children end up finding and fixing up an abandoned railroad car and living in it. Henry, the oldest, does odd jobs to support his brother and sisters while the rest try to make the place a home. They succeed until circumstances require that they ask for help from adults.
All of this is believable in the small town setting of New England in the 1920s.
If your young reader enjoys creating his or her own world and private spaces, he or she will marvel at these terrifically innovative Boxcar kids. They make their beds out of pine needles, find cooking implements in a nearby dump, and wash them in a brook. They build themselves a fireplace for cooking and heat water to rinse their dishes. They dam the brook to make a pool for swimming. And, each finds wonder in the little discoveries that will make their boxcar more of a home.
The Alden children demonstrate more than self-reliance and independence, though. The children model behavior wherein they do their best to work together, are loyal, and altogether honest. Of course, they are kids, too. The youngest, Benny, for example, decides to give their new friend, a watchdog, a haircut, with amusing results.
In the other books, the Aldens often solve mysteries or come across strange characters, which keep readers curious until the end.
Gertrude Chandler Warner, a first grade teacher, wrote the first book in 1924 (reissued in 1942) with this purpose in mind. The books track the adventure of four siblings, now orphans, Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Bennie Alden.
In book one, called The Boxcar Children, they begin their adventures with the simple wish to stay together. They also want to avoid their grandfather whom they’ve never met but do not trust.
In the process, the children end up finding and fixing up an abandoned railroad car and living in it. Henry, the oldest, does odd jobs to support his brother and sisters while the rest try to make the place a home. They succeed until circumstances require that they ask for help from adults.
All of this is believable in the small town setting of New England in the 1920s.
If your young reader enjoys creating his or her own world and private spaces, he or she will marvel at these terrifically innovative Boxcar kids. They make their beds out of pine needles, find cooking implements in a nearby dump, and wash them in a brook. They build themselves a fireplace for cooking and heat water to rinse their dishes. They dam the brook to make a pool for swimming. And, each finds wonder in the little discoveries that will make their boxcar more of a home.
The Alden children demonstrate more than self-reliance and independence, though. The children model behavior wherein they do their best to work together, are loyal, and altogether honest. Of course, they are kids, too. The youngest, Benny, for example, decides to give their new friend, a watchdog, a haircut, with amusing results.
In the other books, the Aldens often solve mysteries or come across strange characters, which keep readers curious until the end.
