Ellis Island

Cornerstones of Freedom

by R. Conrad Stein

Children can imagine being witnesses to history-in-the-making in this series that explores important events in United States history.

Genres: History, American History, Nonfiction, Childrens

Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

Reviews

[Grace Tandy]

Ellis Island was a processing center for people wanting to immigrate to the United States. Many were from Europe and did not speak English. If they were fortunate to get through immigration, they ended up on the busy streets of a city where they knew no one, had little money, and did not speak the language. Many people could only afford to send one family member over at a time, and that little money could only get them a ticket on the bottom deck, the steerage. There was overcrowding and the smell was terrible. There was a long process to be given access to the mainland of America. Two percent of people were sent back to Europe. Some families were split up because some were healthy and others were not. Many children were sent back to Europe alone. Many people found they did not like America and missed the way their lives were back home.

I enjoyed the real-life pictures of people who immigrated to the United States. It is interesting to learn the struggle many people faced to reach America. It makes me wonder when my ancestors came over from Europe to start a new life and how it was to adjust and make a new life for themselves here.

I might use this in my classroom to show kids how America came to be. It could be interesting to a student who likes history. It also shows prejudices of people who look different or people from different places; this is important today to show students how long the prejudice of other races has been around.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Cornerstones of Freedom books, first published in the 1960s, are very popular among homeschooling families who are looking for brief overviews of important historical events or famous people. They are well-illustrated and only about 32 pages each for a concise, focused read.

I have found them to be a good, easy read. To my knowledge, they are fairly accurate (I’ve found one or two inaccuracies). They are a good series and one that I would recommend.

Ages: 8-12
Reading Level: 4th – 6th grades
Pages: approx. 30-32 each

Cleanliness: nothing to note.

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[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

My mother bought me a good stack of these Cornerstones of freedom books when I was a young teenage girl, since I loved reading and history. I have used them many times for history projects over the course of my middle school and high school years. I have read this installment multiple times, and have found it to be a good source of historical knowledge! There is a lot of text in this book to give the reader a general knowledge of the history behind the subject. I do recommend this book, and the others in this series for anyone who loves history, and to teachers!

[Donnie]

Enjoyed, didn't know about the musemum

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

5th-6th

This book is an expository text. It is the history of United States Ellis Island adventure. The reader is introduced and made aware of the different people that helped impact history and what happen at Ellis Island. This book has more photography from the actual event, which allows students to really connect with the book and history.
For the students exploring American history this book would be a great recourse. This book would be a good book for a fifth or sixth grade research paper.

[Shannon Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading this children's book I've begun wondering why we can't teach history through books like this instead of textbooks. These stories make everything seem so personal and emotional.

I never knew that the door at the end of the processing center at Ellis Island said-PUSH TO NEW YORK.

Imagine how the immigrants must have felt having made it to that point. And imagine the feelings of the ones who never made it that far and were returned to their countries or separated from their feelings.

This was a good read!

[Lorie · Rating 3 out of 5]

In a mix of fact and fiction, the story of Emma Markowitz’s journey to America from Russia is told through individual family member’s diary entries and Emma’s letters back home to her grandparents. An activity for the student to make connections with how a young immigrant girl feels coming to America and going through the rigors of Ellis Island would be helpful so students come away with a deeper understanding of the process.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think it was a pretty cool book. now I know the word steerage and such and well its really cool. my class is doing an immigration project and my teacher ms. ethridge said we needed to get facts out of it and read the whole book.

[Ben · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't like this book! Really boring. Because it is from school. :(

[Rima Halig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative book about immigrants and the stuggles they attained while making their way to Ellis Island.