In the Name of God

With so much negative connotation in the world against Muslim people, this book, I feel was a brave one to pick. With that said, I had a few issues with this book, and don't see it as one that I would want to teach in a classroom.

I felt that having the story from Nadia's point of view was interesting, as it did shed some light on a teenage girls perspective of the faith and what she thinks about it. However, I didn't like how she criticizes and even judges those around her who aren't like her, yet when Western (American people) do the same about her, it's racist and not okay. I have a problem with double standards, and don't understand them.

I also had a very hard time with how un-American this book is. I bleed red, white, and blue, and had a hard time with her attitude towards America's. Though she lived in Syria, and I can sympathize with what she faces on a daily basis, I feel that American's are ALWAYS made out to look like the bad guys - in every sense. We are so politically correct and afraid to offend someone of a different culture, yet when it is reversed to the US, it is okay because we are "the bad guys." Again, it is that double standard.

Overall, this book was an interesting read, but one I had way too many issues with. I couldn't see myself, personally, teaching this book in the classroom. Though I believe teaching students about different cultures is a great thing, I don't like one that depicts America in such a bad light.

Maus 1 & 2

I have never really read a graphic novel, until I had read Kampung Boy in a class last year for children's lit. Much to my surprise, I enjoyed that book, and could relate a lot to that book. The graphics were soft and nicely colored, and it was a pretty quick read (not very long). I bring this book up because as a graphic novel, Maus was so different. It had harsher colors, context, colors, and the overall theme was harder to deal with.

The beginning of the story was a little slow, and took a bit to pick up because it was setting the story up. Also, I feel that just reading it in the form of a graphic novel maybe took me a little bit. But after that, I got in to the story. I am from a Jewish background, so the content it already a little hard for me to read, as it usually is. I liked the way that Spiegelman told the story from his father's point of view, but also in a narrative form. I kind of brought you back out of the story to the "real" world of what's going on. I also found the use of the specific typed of animals interesting and what they represent. How "mice" are often seen as dispensable, and pests, and cats are the top of that food chain. And Americans are dogs, which are above the German cats.

I can see using this book in a classroom to teach about the Holocaust. I feel that a book like this would keep student's interest easier and they might be able to relate more to the way the story is written. I was worried that this would have belittled the historical part of the Holocaust by making it a cartoon with animals, but it actually worked well and was able to get the point across in different ways. This book would take a lot of pre-reading to get the kids kind of updated on graphic novels, how to read them and interpret them, and also to pair it with such a heavy topic, the Holocaust would need a pretty strong introduction.

Edgar Allan Poe

I have always been a fan of Poe. From early high school to now, there is always something I learn from his poems or stories. What is nice about al of Poe's work, is that there almost seems to be different difficulty levels within all of his works. As a 9th grader, learning Tell Tale Heart wasn't that hard to understand, and had the creepy factor that really gives the true essence of "Poe." That's when I first because very interested in Poe.

I think Poe would be very relevant to teach in the classroom. With SO MANY themes, metaphors, similes, and so on, it is a literary treasure chest!! You basically have your pick as to what you want to the students to discover, or interpret. One thing about Poe is that is can and tends to be overdone, so I think by picking maybe some of his lesser taught work, or even maybe looked a the more popular ones from a different angle will keep the students (and you as the teacher) more interested. 

With Poe being so popular, there have been a lot of remakes of the stories, plays written about him/his works, and so much more. It would be entertaining to show students some of these clips or videos. For instance, The Simpsons re-did the Tell Tale Heart, and it is pretty funny and entertaining. It mixes Poe's text with "Simpson's" text, and I think that will read well for young students.

Overall, I think teaching Poe is important. There is no one in the literary world that comes even remotely close to his writings/themes/thinking. There is something so dark and mysterious about Poe as the person, which comes across in his work. I love The Fall of the House of Usher because there is much left to the imagination, and much speculation as to the characters. But mostly I love the description of the house and area. It sets the tone like crazy, and I am immediately brought into this world.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

I was nervous about reading this book, and the length it was. Though it had bigger text, I was like, "I don't have time to read this!!!" Well, little did I know, it was such a great read the it took me maybe two days. I was surprised at how well he wrote, and the little stories and anecdotes within the book. I found myself relating in ways I didn't think was relatable, and really enjoyed this book.

When I was little, my brother and I were basically the only Jewish kids in the Spokane Valley (at least, that we ever encountered). Like Alexie, we felt like we didn't belong in this school that celebrated Christmas, and didn't recognize OUR traditions. I know what it's like to be an outcast, or feel like one, anyway. And his humor basically made his writing (and maybe his life even) more bearable. I love the part where he wants to smell and kiss the book. I have had moments like that when I have loved the smell of an old book. Though his was for a different reason that ended up with a different outcome, I laughed at this part and TOTALLY relate to it.

I feel like no matter what a child's situation is, they can take some of this book and apply or relate to it somehow. This book will for sure be one I have in my shelf in the classroom. I can see teaching themes of friendship, pursuing your dreams, racism, and so much more. This should be a standard in schools, and after reading a few colleagues' posts, I came to learn that it is banned! I would be willing to fight administration for a book like this. It is done tastefully, with humor, and real experience. It is an important read.

Michael Vey and the Prisoner of Cell 25

Michael Vey and the Prisoner of Cell 25

By Richard Paul Evans

Presented by Leah Dach

 1. Michael Vey is a story about a boy named Michel, his mom, his best friend, Ostin, and a girl named Taylor. Michael Very has a special power – he can create electricity! No one knows about this except for his mom and his friend, Ostin. But when Taylor, a popular girl from school finds out about him, she lets him in on a secret – she has the same power! While talking, Michael and Taylor realize they have many similarities, and decide to dig a little deeper. That’s when a series of events happen: They both receive a letter to a mysterious “school”, Michael’s mom and Taylor are kidnapped, a bad man who acts nice named Hatch comes into the picture, and it is up to Michael and Ostin to get down to the bottom of what’s going on. 

 2. I chose this text because I am a big nerd when it comes to teen youth novels, and I heard Glenn Beck talking about this series and how it was going to be the next “Harry Potter” craze. Well, I wasn’t sure about that, but I was intrigued at how it was being compared to such an epic story. As I read this book, I was pleasantly surprised at how fun it was to read - and so easy! Because of that, I feel it could be taught to maybe 6-9th graders. It does have a little bit of a lower language level (compared to a Harry Potter, Hunger Games, etc). It does, however, have high energy, fun action, and decent character development.

3. Teaching Ideas:

a. Prediction essay as to why the students think Hatch wants the “Glows.” What do they think will happen in Book 2? What evidence from Book 1 leads them to that prediction? 

b. Students could also draw out a timeline, filling in what they know from the past, up to the end of the book. Maybe write in some questions or comments along the way of the timeline - critical thinking - of why it is happening/when/to whom…

c. An argumentative paper about the pros and cons to having special powers.

4. I don’t see any real issues for this text, other than making sure it is level appropriate for the age group. A class fun of advance readers would be bored with a book like this (Lexile level 500), and even then, maybe a few freshmen would be too. This is a fun, fast paced book that should capture the attention of those reading it. I don’t feel administration would have a problem with it, as it is a very easy, appropriate book to read. Parents might wonder why their kids are reading a fictional/fantasy book and how that will help with their education. As a teacher, I would back this up as to literature comes in all different types of writings, and this is just one aspect of writing that students should be exposed to. Fiction can be fun and entertaining, as well as educational if taught well. 

 5. I think this book is really fun, and a great read. It definitely has a target audience and like I said, it wouldn’t be an appropriate book for an advanced English class, or really any age group above sophomore year for sure. As an almost mid-30 year old, I had fun reading this. Not everything in schools have to be so serious and non-fiction. We can have fun with English and enjoy fictional stories as well as learn different reading/writing/critical thinking techniques from them. I am hoping that a book like this would get students excited to be in English classes, and give them hope that not all books have to be “educational, stuffy, boring” books.

"Readicide" Blog #10

As a person who loves to read, this book was kind of upsetting in that we aren't encouraging students to read and actually enjoy it. We are killing their interest, and now, for most students, reading is complete torture, even though it is essential to our everyday lives.

While I was reading, I found the section of "the flow" to be very true for me. There are several books that I've read where I was reading for so long, I lost all track of time, didn't eat, didn't look up for anything, until the book was finished. I love getting so engrossed in a book to where I am transported to that wold and forget about mine. I like the example of asking students how involved they get in a movie and forget the world around them, and then compare it to a time they read a book and had the same thing happen. I like the idea of not disrupting the flow of reading, because we would' stop every 5 minutes in a move to discuss themes, foreshadowing, etc, like the author points out. There has to be a way to get kids engaged in a book to where they WANT to read, and they understand the very words they are reading. I wonder if some of this has to do with the content of the book. Of course, the more interesting a book is, the more kids will likely be interested, but a teacher has to find a way to engage students in all books, whether by making it relevant to them or relatable. This is one goal I have for my future classroom.

I liked reading about the "sweet spot." This was eye opening in the statistics given. I did not realize that "stands only a 1/14 chance of having a rich elementary experience." This number seems so low to me. I think about my daughter's 2nd grade classroom and to think that only 2 out of the whole 25 kids will have an actual enriching experience is crazy to me. It makes sense when they point out that teachers are spending more time on drill and kill activities, instead of actually teaching and doing a quality job. This is something that I know will take me a while as I get the rhythm and flow of teaching, but it is my main goal - to keep kids engaged and give them a quality education.

"I Read It, But I Don't Get It" Blog #9

I actually thought this book had really good information. As an avid reader, who has ALWAYS read a lot for fun, I sometimes forget that there are some people who either don't like to read for whatever reason, or like to read, but are a little behind in reading and have to go very slow. My daughter is a constant reminder that kids learn to read differently, and there are many different tactics to take with kiddos to help them along.

I thought the section on word callers and resistive readers was good. I think that a lot of ids (and adults too) rely as a resistive reader. They are relying on others to either give them the answer, or will just hang back until they pick up on the information needed. And the word callers just aren't retaining anything they read. I'm not sure which is a more difficult kiddo to teach - one that can read but doesn't retain, and one that doesn't read, but picks up on lectures and class discussions. I feel that maybe the elementary level teachers should have picked up on these types of learning behaviors and the kiddos should have had extra assistance with this. Either way, the students aren't getting enough out of class time and the materials by not being able to fully do the work.

While reading the Inference page, I kind of laughed because I totally did this in school. Not for a lack of reading/understanding, but simply because I was distracted with talking and didn't hear the question clearly or was so put on the spot that I totally spaced the answer. I think this is a coping mechanism where kids think everything that a teacher teachers is word for word out of the book. I thin that sometimes, some students can't really do abstract thinking. Sometimes it doesn't have a lot to do with lack of reading efforts, but are very "by the book" and don't really think outside the box. Hopefully most teachers understand this about certain students and know when to call on them and when not.

Overall, I liked this book. It had lots of good tips and a good way of explaining situations and kind of how to work around it, or how to explain it better. This is one that I will probably keep for my future classroom as a reference.