Breaking Through

Breaking Through

• Genre: Nonfiction; young adult autobiography
• Originally Published: 2001
• Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 750L; grades 7-9
• Structure/Length: 25 chapters; approx. 208 pages; approx. 4 hours, 37 minutes on audio
• Central Concern: In this sequel to The Circuit, Jiménez resumes his life story from when he is in eighth grade and has been living in California with his family for 10 years. As an undocumented immigrant from Mexico, his greatest fear is realized when he and his family are deported, but they return after applying for visas. An excellent student, Jiménez is later accepted at the University of Santa Clara.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Poverty; racism and discrimination

Francisco Jiménez, Author

• Bio: Born in 1943 in Tlaquepaque, Mexico; second oldest of eight children; family immigrated to California when he was four to work as undocumented migrant farm workers; his family moved with the seasons of crops, so he missed months of school every year; his family was deported when he was in eighth grade, but they returned with documents a few months later; settled in a migrant labor camp in Santa Maria, California; attended Santa Clara University and received a degree in Spanish; became a US Citizen during his junior year; received a Master’s degree and PhD in Latin American Literature from Columbia University; co-founder of scholarly journal The Bilingual Review; had an elementary school named after him in 2015; received commendations from Congress, the Department of Education, the California State Senate, and the governor of the State of Jalisco, Mexico
• Other Works: The Circuit (1997); La Mariposa (1998); The Christmas Gift (2000); Reaching Out (2008); Taking Hold (2015)
• Awards: The Américas Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature (2001); Pura Belpré Honor Book Award (2002); ALA Notable Children’s Book (2002)

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:

• Rage Fueled by Injustice
• Solidarity of Family and Community
• The Value of Spirituality and Faith

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will:

• Develop an understanding of the historical and cultural contexts around immigration challenges that affect the Jiménez family’s trajectory in Breaking Through.
• Study paired texts and other brief resources to make connections via the text’s themes of Rage Fueled by Injustice, Solidarity of Family and Community, and The Value of Spirituality and Faith.
• Read, discuss, and perform a comparative analysis on the iconic poem “The New Colossus” to compare and contrast the experiences of immigrants who passed through Ellis Island and those, like the Jiménez family, who enter America via the Mexico-United States border.
• Analyze and evaluate the plot and character details to draw conclusions in structured essay responses regarding the thematic importance of “constant fear,” prejudicial attitudes toward Mexican migrants, and other topics.