DAR chapter awards grant to Polson teacher
courtesy photo
Polson High School social studies teacher Katrina Holmes holds the book “We Are Not Free” that she bought for her classroom through a grant awarded by the Kuilix Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
Hey savvy news reader! Thanks for choosing local.
You are now reading
1 of 3 free articles.
News from Daughters of the American Revolution, Kuilix Chapter
POLSON — Kuilix Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution awarded a $500 grant from the DAR’s Helen Pouch Memorial Fund Classroom Grant program to high school social studies teacher Katrina Holmes in Polson, Montana, for the 2021-2022 school year.
The Helen Pouch Memorial Fund finances DAR projects chosen by the Junior Membership Committee and includes the Junior Membership Classroom Grants Program. Two $500 grants are available for each state and the District of Columbia, and come from applications received by the State Junior Membership Committee. Each DAR chapter selects a winner and forwards that application to the State committee. Two winners are selected at the state level to receive the $500 grants. Applicants must be a classroom teacher for grades kindergarten through 12th grade, must be endorsed by a local DAR chapter, and complete the grant award application.
Ms. Holmes’ application requested funds for purchasing and incorporating a classroom set of historical novels that coordinate with a specific unit of study in U.S. History. The goal of the project is to increase literacy rates by encouraging students to become lifelong learners while creating a love for history. Holmes selected the book We Are Not Free by Traci Chee, a historical fiction novel following 14 Japanese-American teenagers being held in relocation camps after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The 11th grade students read the book while learning about WWII. Holmes found that, although the Holocaust is a familiar event, the relocation camps in the United States are rarely discussed in high school textbooks. Her students were amazed that these camps existed in the U.S. and learned what it was like to live in a relocation camp and see it from the inside out through the intriguing and thoughtful characters. They also got a different view of American teenagers during WWII.
Holmes’ students have shown different emotions throughout the novel: anger, sadness, humor and even understanding of Executive Order 9066 in which President Roosevelt authorized “the evacuation of all persons deemed a threat to national security from the West Coast to relocation centers further inland.” Holmes feels that she is reaching her goal as set out in the grant application. Many of her students have come to her saying that historical fiction is now their favorite genre. Due to the overwhelming response from her students, Holmes plans to use the book in future classes.
DAR is a non-profit, non-partisan professional organization of chapters in all 50 states, its territories, and 13 other countries dedicated to historic preservation, education and patriotism for all women who love America and the principles of liberty and equal opportunity for all.
