Nicole Tadgell

During the Great Depression, Marshall, an African American boy, uses lessons learned in arithmetic class and guidance from his mother to figure out how many beans are in a jar in order to win her a new sewing machine in a contest.

"Booker T. Washington had an incredible passion for learning. Born a slave, he taught himself to read. When the Civil War ended, Booker finally fulfilled his dream of attending school. After graduation, he was invited to teach in Tuskegee, Alabama. Finding many eager students, but no school, Booker set out to build his own school--brick by brick"--

When Annie has a career day at her school, each member of her family wonders if she will choose their career path--her grandfather the news photographer, her father the mountain climber or her mother the basketball player--until she reveals a dream that is all her own.

At bedtime, a young girl enjoys looking out her window and then creates a puppet show with shadows on the wall.