Passing the Music Down by Sarah Sullivan is a good book that I would recommend reading to K-2nd graders. The book is about a man teaching a boy the violin. The man instills into the boy to pass the music down. When the man grows old and passes, the boy becomes a man and carries on the tradition. The boy teaches young people what he was taught by the old man. The book is an interesting story about the importance of learning from elders. I thought that the book had a strong message and can be used as a lesson to listen to the life lessons of elders. I recommend this book to students and teachers because it is a good lesson on respecting the lessons from the older people in your life. ( )

Passing the Music Down by Sarah Sullivan came to be about an older gentleman that is teaching a younger boy to play his music with the violin (fiddle). The little boy is so eager to learn that him and the older gentleman are always together. As they get older the boy gets better and they play music together. Once he was old enough, he promised the old man that he would “pass his music down” and he did. He passed it to many people as he played at concerts. I used to be a big fan of music, I played the clarinet a while back and I wholeheartedly wished it was something that I has stuck with because I loved playing it, and who knows maybe I could have passed it on to someone. ( )

An endearing tale of tradition and friendship. Once there was a boy who develops an enchanting friendship with an elderly man through their love of music. As a child, he became fascinated with the fiddle after seeing the fiddle player play tunes at fairs and festivals. He then decides to teach the child the mechanics on playing the fiddle. They spend a lot of time together by doing daily chores and afterwards playing music. Once the elderly man's health began to deteriorate, the young man makes a promise to honour him by playing and teaching his tunes. After playing at a concert, he discovers a chid in the crowd whom is interested in learning the fiddle. Now, the cycle repeats... The theme is based on friendship and how connections can be built through mutual interest. I would try to develop appeal towards this book by assessing background knowledge. I would ask open-ended questions in an attempt to have them reflect on their personal experiences with music. ( )

Appealing story celebrating Appalachian culture and the passing down of learning and traditions. ( )

A boy with a gift for the fiddle is taken many miles away to an old time fiddler for lessons. The boy learns many things from the old fiddler, including how to be an excellent fiddler.

Beautiful pictures and poetic text make this a lovely picture book.

“And when the work is done,
they sit out on the porch.
The old man tunes his fiddle,
and the boy leans in close.

They play ‘Bonaparte’s Retreat’
and ‘Yew Piney Mountain,’
tunes older than the towns
the boy traveled through,
tunes old as the mist
and twisty as the roads.” ( )