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The story focuses on making a personal sacrifice to make someone else happy (provide them with something). This story students can possible connect to prior personal experience while they are learning how to identify themes.

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ONE DOLLAR AND eighty-seven cents. That was all. And sixty cents of it was in pennies. Pennies saved one and two at a time by bulldozing the grocer and the vegetable man and the butcher until one's cheeks burned with the silent imputation of parsimony that such close dealing implied. Three times Della counted it. One dollar and eighty-seven cents. And the next day would be Christmas.

There was clearly nothing to do but flop down on the shabby little couch and howl. So Della did it. Which instigates the moral reflection that life is made up of sobs, sniffles, and smiles, with sniffles predominating.

While the mistress of the home is gradually subsiding from the first stage to the second, take a look at the home. A furnished flat at $8 per week. It did not exactly beggar description, but it certainly had that word on the lookout for the mendicancy squad.

In the vestibule below was a letter-box into which no letter would go, and an electric button from which no mortal finger could coax a ring. Also appertaining thereunto was a card bearing the name "Mr. James Dillingham Young." The "Dillingham" had been flung to the breeze during a former period of prosperity when its possessor was being paid $30 per week. Now, when the income was shrunk to $20, the letters of "Dillingham" looked blurred, as though they were thinking seriously of contracting to a modest and unassuming D. But whenever Mr. James Dillingham Young came home and reached his flat above he was called "Jim" and greatly hugged by Mrs. James Dillingham Young, already introduced to you as Della. Which is all very good.

Della finished her cry and attended to her cheeks with the powder rag. She stood by the window and looked out dully at a grey cat walking a grey fence in a grey backyard. Tomorrow would be Christmas Day, and she had only $1.87 with which to buy Jim a present. She had been saving every penny she could for months, with this result. Twenty dollars a week doesn't go far. Expenses had been greater than she had calculated. They always are. Only $1.87 to buy a present for Jim. Her Jim. Many a happy hour she had spent planning for something nice for him. Something fine and rare and sterling-something just a little bit near to being worthy of the honor of being owned by Jim.

There was a pier-glass between the windows of the room. Perhaps you have seen a pier-glass in an $8 flat. A very thin and very agile person may, by observing his reflection in a rapid sequence of longitudinal strips, obtain a fairly accurate conception of his looks. Della, being slender, had mastered the art.

Suddenly she whirled from the window and stood before the glass. Her eyes were shining brilliantly, but her face had lost its color within twenty seconds. Rapidly she pulled down her hair and let it fall to its full length.

Now, there were two possessions of the James Dillingham Youngs in which they both took a mighty pride. One was Jim's gold watch that had been his father's and his grandfather's. The other was Della's hair. Had the Queen of Sheba lived in the flat across the airshaft, Della would have let her hair hang out the window some day to dry just to depreciate Her Majesty's jewels and gifts. Had King Solomon been the janitor, with all his treasures piled up in the basement, Jim would have pulled out his watch every time he passed, just to see him pluck at his beard from envy.

So now Della's beautiful hair fell about her, rippling and shining like a cascade of brown waters. It reached below her knee and made itself almost a garment for her. And then she did it up again nervously and quickly. Once she faltered for a minute and stood still while a tear or two splashed on the worn red carpet.

On went her old brown jacket; on went her old brown hat. With a whirl of skirts and with the brilliant sparkle still in her eyes, she fluttered out the door and down the stairs to the street.

Where she stopped the sign read: "Mme. Sofronie. Hair Goods of All Kinds." One flight up Della ran, and collected herself, panting. Madame, large, too white, chilly, hardly looked the "Sofronie."

"Will you buy my hair?" asked Della.

"I buy hair," said Madame. "Take yer hat off and let's have a sight at the looks of it."

Down rippled the brown cascade. "Twenty dollars," said Madame, lifting the mass with a practised hand.

"Give it to me quick," said Della.

Oh, and the next two hours tripped by on rosy wings. Forget the hashed metaphor. She was ransacking the stores for Jim's present.

She found it at last. It surely had been made for Jim and no one else. There was no other like it in any of the stores, and she had turned all of them inside out. It was a platinum fob chain simple and chaste in design, properly proclaiming its value by substance alone and not by meretricious ornamentation-as all good things should do. It was even worthy of The Watch. As soon as she saw it she knew that it must be Jim's. It was like him. Quietness and value-the description applied to both. Twenty-one dollars they took from her for it, and she hurried home with the 87 cents. With that chain on his watch Jim might be properly anxious about the time in any company. Grand as the watch was, he sometimes looked at it on the sly on account of the old leather strap that he used in place of a chain.

When Della reached home her intoxication gave way a little to prudence and reason. She got out her curling irons and lighted the gas and went to work repairing the ravages made by generosity added to love. Which is always a tremendous task, dear friends-a mammoth task.

Within forty minutes her head was covered with tiny, close-lying curls that made her look wonderfully like a truant schoolboy. She looked at her reflection in the mirror long, carefully, and critically.

"If Jim doesn't kill me," she said to herself, "before he takes a second look at me, he'll say I look like a Coney Island chorus girl. But what could I do-oh! what could I do with a dollar and eighty-seven cents?"

At 7 o'clock the coffee was made and the frying-pan was on the back of the stove hot and ready to cook the chops.

Jim was never late. Della doubled the fob chain in her hand and sat on the corner of the table near the door that he always entered. Then she heard his step on the stair away down on the first flight, and she turned white for just a moment. She had a habit for saying little silent prayers about the simplest everyday things, and now she whispered: "Please God, make him think I am still pretty."

The door opened and Jim stepped in and closed it. He looked thin and very serious. Poor fellow, he was only twenty-two-and to be burdened with a family! He needed a new overcoat and he was without gloves.

Jim stopped inside the door, as immovable as a setter at the scent of quail. His eyes were fixed upon Della, and there was an expression in them that she could not read, and it terrified her. It was not anger, nor surprise, nor disapproval, nor horror, nor any of the sentiments that she had been prepared for. He simply stared at her fixedly with that peculiar expression on his face.

Della wriggled off the table and went for him.

"Jim, darling," she cried, "don't look at me that way. I had my hair cut off and sold it because I couldn't have lived through Christmas without giving you a present. It'll grow out again-you won't mind, will you? I just had to do it. My hair grows awfully fast. Say 'Merry Christmas!' Jim, and let's be happy. You don't know what a nice-what a beautiful, nice gift I've got for you."

"You've cut off your hair?" asked Jim, laboriously, as if he had not arrived at that patent fact yet even after the hardest mental labor.

"Cut it off and sold it," said Della. "Don't you like me just as well, anyhow? I'm me without my hair, ain't I?"

Jim looked about the room curiously.

"You say your hair is gone?" he said, with an air almost of idiocy.

"You needn't look for it," said Della. "It's sold, I tell you-sold and gone, too. It's Christmas Eve, boy. Be good to me, for it went for you. Maybe the hairs of my head were numbered," she went on with sudden serious sweetness, "but nobody could ever count my love for you. Shall I put the chops on, Jim?"

Out of his trance Jim seemed quickly to wake. He enfolded his Della. For ten seconds let us regard with discreet scrutiny some inconsequential object in the other direction. Eight dollars a week or a million a year-what is the difference? A mathematician or a wit would give you the wrong answer. The magi brought valuable gifts, but that was not among them. This dark assertion will be illuminated later on.

Jim drew a package from his overcoat pocket and threw it upon the table.

"Don't make any mistake, Dell," he said, "about me. I don't think there's anything in the way of a haircut or a shave or a shampoo that could make me like my girl any less. But if you'll unwrap that package you may see why you had me going a while at first."

White fingers and nimble tore at the string and paper. And then an ecstatic scream of joy; and then, alas! a quick feminine change to hysterical tears and wails, necessitating the immediate employment of all the comforting powers of the lord of the flat.

For there lay The Combs-the set of combs, side and back, that Della had worshipped long in a Broadway window. Beautiful combs, pure tortoise shell, with jewelled rims-just the shade to wear in the beautiful vanished hair. They were expensive combs, she knew, and her heart had simply craved and yearned over them without the least hope of possession. And now, they were hers, but the tresses that should have adorned the coveted adornments were gone.

But she hugged them to her bosom, and at length she was able to look up with dim eyes and a smile and say: "My hair grows so fast, Jim!"

And them Della leaped up like a little singed cat and cried, "Oh, oh!"

Jim had not yet seen his beautiful present. She held it out to him eagerly upon her open palm. The dull precious metal seemed to flash with a reflection of her bright and ardent spirit.

"Isn't it a dandy, Jim? I hunted all over town to find it. You'll have to look at the time a hundred times a day now. Give me your watch. I want to see how it looks on it."

Instead of obeying, Jim tumbled down on the couch and put his hands under the back of his head and smiled.

"Dell," said he, "let's put our Christmas presents away and keep 'em a while. They're too nice to use just at present. I sold the watch to get the money to buy your combs. And now suppose you put the chops on."

The magi, as you know, were wise men-wonderfully wise men-who brought gifts to the Babe in the manger. They invented the art of giving Christmas presents. Being wise, their gifts were no doubt wise ones, possibly bearing the privilege of exchange in case of duplication. And here I have lamely related to you the uneventful chronicle of two foolish children in a flat who most unwisely sacrificed for each other the greatest treasures of their house. But in a last word to the wise of these days let it be said that of all who give gifts these two were the wisest. Of all who give and receive gifts, such as they are wisest. Everywhere they are wisest. They are the magi.

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Read Full Text and Annotations on The Gift of the Magi The Gift of the Magi at Owl Eyes

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This text focuses on the story of an immigrant boy who is learning to find where he belongs. It will allow students to connect to or learn more about the struggles of moving to a country where you don't speak the language as well as provide a fairly easily identifiable theme.

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The story focuses on themes of kindness and the main character is a quieter boy who feels "invisible" but works up the courage to make a new friend. Students will be able to use this text to be able to identify a theme and supporting evidence that mirrors their own experiences.

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"A l ovely lesson in the simple acts of friendship, especially recommended for the most popular kids in class." - USA Today

"This is a simple yet heartfelt story." - School Library Journal, starred review

"Tender illustrations rendered in glowing hues capture Brian's isolation deftly... Accessible, reassuring and hopeful." - Kirkus Reviews

"Ludwig and Barton understand classroom dynamics...They portray Brian's situation as a matter of groupthink that can be rebooted through small steps. It's a smart strategy, one that can be leveraged through the book's excellent discussion guide."
-Publishers Weekly

"Trudy Ludwig has given us the gift of another empathic, poignant book for children that addresses the complex topic of peer relationships...A must-read."
-Carrie Goldman, award-winning author of BULLIED: What Every Parent, Teacher, and Kid Needs to Know about Ending the Cycle of Fear

School Library Journal Best Book of the Year WINNER

Georgia Children's Book Award NOMINEE 2016

Kentucky Bluegrass Award NOMINEE 2015

Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Award NOMINEE 2014

IRA Teachers' Choices SELECTION 2014

Illinois State Library Monarch Award SELECTION 2017

Missouri Show Me Reader Master List SELECTION 2015

Nebraska Golden Sower Master List SELECTION 2015

Tennessee Volunteer State Book Master List SELECTION 2015

Virginia Young Readers Program Master List SELECTION 2015

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The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig: 9781582464503 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books

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A gentle story that teaches how small acts of kindness can help children feel included and allow them to flourish, from esteemed author and speaker Trudy Ludwig and acclaimed illustrator Patrice...

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This text provides an insight into what it's like to not be what everyone wants you to be. While it's a "silly" picture book, the simplified text will provide all students with access to the content (even those who are not as proficient in English). As well as provide students with the opportunity to experience what life might be like for their peers who don't conform to the label they have been given.

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This is a collection of poems from the journals of rapper Tupac Shakur. Students would be able to read a few and choose one poem that spoke to them to focus on for their assignment. This book provides not only an insight into the life of a very famous figure, but also provides mirrors and windows for students about topics of poverty, perseverance, feeling isolated, and living in a world that doesn't seem to want you. All experiences students of color or low-income status can relate to.

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This story focuses on identifying the differences between "wants" and "needs" a conversation low-income students have had many times. The themes of this book are easily identifiable making it a great text to use for this unit and being a picture book, makes it easier for students to identify the theme and understand it's content.

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👟 Those Shoes [READ ALOUD] by Maribeth Boelts

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This story is from a Turkish fable and provides students with a look into how universal fable lessons (don't judge a book by it's cover) are across all different sorts of cultures. This also exposes students to Turkish culture both verbally and visually.

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FAMILY/READ ALOUD The Hungry Coat by Demi - A Tale from Turkey (philosophy and ethics for kids)

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The main character of this text is Chinese and is undergoing a test to potentially become the next Emperor. The story provides an insight into older Chinese culture and a great theme for students to identify.

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This story is told only in pictures, and takes place in a neighborhood with primarily people of color. The fact that there are no words aside from the title might provide some students with a challenge when trying to figure out the theme, but also can provide students with an excellent opportunity to read a book without the language demands of actually having to read it. The story provides students with an opportunity to use context clues to better identify a chain of events as well as an opportunity to see themselves reflected in the content of the story (standing up to bullying)

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"A wonderfully illustrated, hopeful book that can help caregivers tackle an emotionally fraught subject with even very young children. "- Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"A simple, beautiful story with an empowering lesson and call to action." - School Library Journal, starred review

"The wordless pages and small, toylike figures make this a good choice for young children who can work out for themselves what has happened, what Vanessa's new friend does, and why it works." - Publishers Weekly, starred review

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I Walk with Vanessa by Kerascoët: 9781524769550 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books

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Skip to Main Content (Press Enter) "A wonderfully illustrated, hopeful book that can help caregivers tackle an emotionally fraught subject with even very young children. "- Kirkus Reviews, starred review "A simple, beautiful story with an empowering lesson and call to action."