American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang is the first graphic novel I've ever read! I enjoyed the experience, looking at the pictures and making inferences about the story's setting and mood almost made it like reading subtitles while watching a movie. The pictures are there, but in order to understand the entire story you must read the words. I love visualizing what the words are describing in my own imagination and the graphic novel kind of robs that imaginative side for me. With that being said, I am excited to extend my graphic reading experience by reading books like Maus.

I am excited for my observation time tomorrow because I recommended the book to one of the students in my 7th grade class on Wednesday. He said he liked comic books and that was it. Then I saw American Born Chinese on the shelf. At first he was convinced it was all Chinese and since he didn't understand Chinese he wasn't interested. We flipped through the book together and I showed him that the words were in English and then I told him I was going to read the same book over the weekend. By Friday, he was half way through the book and I still hadn't started it!

Now that I have read the book, I am interested in hearing what the kiddo has to say about it. There might have been some language and words that were a little above his reading level and I am interested in seeing if he looked them up, asked someone, or made inferences from the pictures. I think it will start a cool conversation and I might be able to find out a little more about him and where he's at as a student.

Night by Elie Wiesel

Reading Night by Elie Wiesel never ceases to amaze me. Each time I am captivated by the moments he described. This time, I thought about my grandma who just turned 98 years old. This could have been her and my papa's story. If things had been different, a different country, a different religion, a different Hitler, this could have been the story of my family. This perspective I took while reading the story made me much more sad while reading the book.

I find it interesting (for lack of a better word) that Night for  many people is the first "school assigned book" they read cover to cover. I know it was for me. There is a horror and sickening feeling that accompanies me as I discovered new things about the Holocaust. I remember being a student and wanting to read to the end - only because I knew it ended. The pain, fear, despair, hunger, and atrocities people endured throughout the time are unbelievable. For me that is why this book was so captivating.

This time through, I read Elie Wiesel's Nobel Peace Prize Award acceptance speech. He said, "give Isreal a chance to let hatred and danger be removed from their horizons, and there will be peace in and around the Holy Land." Reading this line impacted me on a deeper level, as did the book this time around. Thinking of Elie and his father as they could have been my GG and Papa filled me with more anger than I had felt reading the book before. In his acceptance speech, it is clear that Elie has  turned his hatred for good and has risen above his oppressors. He speaks out about atrocities in the world and reminds readers what some people are capable of doing and encourages them to speak out.

Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare

I totally felt like my 7th grade kids when I grumbled slightly as I pulled out Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. I opened the book and instantly flipped to the last page. Not as many pages as I thought! There is something about reading Romeo and Juliet when it is NOT in some million paged anthology that makes it much more enjoyable.

 

The play is still not my favorite of Shakespeare's work. I love the comedies and find them more enjoyable to read. With that being said, there have been so many adaptations to Romeo and Juliet that I think it could be taught effectively. There are so many adaptations such as movies and modern versions that students may find it easier to connect with Romeo or Juliet than other of Shakespeare's characters. 

 

When reading the play with my students, I would assign different students to different characters as we read. We would discuss the play the entire time to make sure students were comprehending the story as well as understanding the language used. After, students would be assigned to groups and asked to re-create their own version of Romeo and Juliet and present it to the class in some creative format such as a skit, video, picture video, or audio recording.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part -Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

I have heard numerous people talk about Sherman Alexie's The Absolutely True Diary of a Part -Time Indian but never took the initiative to read the book for myself. I am so glad I did! What a story of empowerment and life experience. I feel like students, teachers, and parents can all benefit  from reading this book.

I really enjoyed reading the book through the lenses of effort= success. In my education class 413 we have new n discussing how to teach students about effort and how to inspire students to put more effort into school work and daily ale an active role in their own learning. As a student myself, taking an active role in my learning is hard. It takes time, commitment and lots of late nights and support. Support from family, friends and teachers

This book shows me all the little things a teacher can do to inspire students. First, teachers have to believe in students and have expectations from them. Me. P saw something different in Junior. He saw a boy who hadn't fallen trap to the ways of the Natives and encouraged him to be better. Junior didn't believe he could accomplish anything or be anything more than the drink native like everyone else but with the encouragement or  ateacher and family support Junior was able to become a successful student and a successful basketball player.

I loved this book and I can see myself using  it in an 8th or 9th grade classroom. It models the idea that success depends on effort but it also reminds students that there is life besides school and sometimes life sucks. With poverty, death, and drunks Junior had to survive life and not give up hope. As a tracer I think it's important to foster a community where life can be lived and students can know that support from teachers and their peers will be alive in the classroom.