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The Great Depression
(1929-1945)

Eleanor Roosevelt - From Wallflower to Activist

Eleanor Roosevelt - From Wallflower to Activist
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 6 to 8
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   6.1

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    debutantes, gangly, gawky, paralyzed-forever, reform-that, tawnts, unspoken, wallflower, rallies, alcoholism, merely, misery, dominance, engagement, inept, polio
     content words:    United States, Though First Ladies, Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady, New York, President Theodore Roosevelt, When Eleanor, World War, Red Cross, Women Voters

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Eleanor Roosevelt - From Wallflower to Activist
By Toni Lee Robinson 		  
1     What is it like to be the wife of the President of the United States? Fun? Exciting? Constricting? Though First Ladies are not elected to office, they fill an important position. Some women slip into the job easily. For others the office is an awkward fit.
 
2     Shy, reserved Eleanor Roosevelt became First Lady in 1932. It seemed she had been born for the job. She was the daughter of a wealthy New York family. At her wedding, she was led down the aisle by her uncle, President Theodore Roosevelt. But Eleanor's life wasn't quite the charmed existence it might have seemed.
 
3     Eleanor's mother, Anna, was a society beauty. She saw none of the looks and grace she had hoped for in solemn, gangly Eleanor. Anna kept her daughter at arm's length. When Eleanor was eight, Anna died. With her father, Elliott, Eleanor felt loved and accepted. Elliott died of alcoholism when she was ten. Loneliness became a way of life.
 
4     At fifteen, Eleanor was sent to a prominent school in England. There her eyes were opened to a world of ideas. She became interested in social issues. She loved the school. Suddenly her life seemed to have meaning and purpose. She knew she wanted to help people and work for social reform.

Paragraphs 5 to 13:
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