Blogging Reflection

Hi guys!

Please click the link below to get to the survey that will help me determine how well our blogging experiment went.

Blogging Reflection

Thanks for your help!

Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry

My students once again read Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry for a class novel during February and March. Even though I've read it numerous times, I still enjoy reading the story of Kira, a young girl with a disability, who lives in an uncivilized and sometimes violent village. When Kira's mother passes away, she must fight for her right to stay in the village. Because of her disability, Kira is not seen as valuable; however, Kira does have a valuable skill - her ability to weave. As Kira's skill is put to use in a magnificent building known as the Edifice, she discovers many secrets about her village and makes friends with other artists within.

Lowry includes several interesting characters to add interest to Kira's journey. Some include Vandara, Kira's older rival; Thomas, another artist in the Edifice; Matt, Kira's young, carefree friend; Annabella, a wise, old woman whose skill involves making dyes through various plants in her color garden; and Jamison, the man who defends Kira's right to stay in the village. Though some chapters move more slowly than others, there are enough questions to keep readers intrigued and wanting to uncover all of the secrets for themselves.

My students are now in the middle of character projects. They've been closely following one of the characters as we read the novel and will now report what their investigations uncovered. Students are allowed several choices for projects (including a scrapbook, movie, collage, story quilt, a Museum Box, or their own idea). I look forward to seeing the final products.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

I've moved into reading The Book Thief, which I probably wouldn't recommend to my 7th graders but would to high school students and adults. Set during the time of World War II and the Holocaust, the story is told through the eyes of an intriguing narrator - Death himself. However, he carefully chronicles the experiences of a young German girl named Liesel (otherwise known as "the book thief"). Liesel's life changes drastically when she is forced to leave her mother and brother and is taken to live with foster parents (Hans and Rosa). Eventually, she accepts her situation and grows to love her foster family (though Rosa has an unusual way of showing her love when she calls Liesel various German versions of "pig").

As I've progressed through the book, the cast of characters has grown as well. I've been introduced to Rudy, Liesel's school buddy, who is known in town for the "Jesse Owens' incident"; Ilsa Hermann, the mayor's wife, who allows Liesel access to her library; Arthur Berg, leader of a group of boys that Liesel and Rudy join to steal food; and a Jew named Max.

In addition to the characters, the author's style has totally grabbed and kept my attention. He shares the story using Death's point of view, which is abrupt, sarcastic, and starkly realistic. Still, humor shines through frequently, yet one is always reminded of the dark times surrounding the humor - poverty, hunger, and the persecution of Jews in order to achieve Hitler's goals. Death often drops hints about the future of the characters, and I know some of the characters I've grown fond of will not make it to the end of the book. Still, Liesel's determination through a horrific period of history is the light that will guide me to the end of the story, and I look forward to reading how the author concludes this amazing novel.

Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz

My latest book is the first book of the Alex Rider series, Stormbreaker. I have about 60 pages left of the book, and I totally understand why many of my middle school students are "into" this particular series.

Alex Rider, the main character, is led into a world of intrigue and spying quite accidentally after his guardian and uncle (Ian) dies. Alex soon discovers suspicious circumstances surrounding his uncle's death and that his uncle wasn't just a finance manager at a bank. Instead, Uncle Ian, who really was involved with a top-secret intelligence agency, was killed when he got "too close" to unraveling the mystery behind what turned out to be his last mission. Ian's "co-workers" recruit and train Alex in the ways of spies (very quickly, mind you), and he and a few cool spy tools (i.e. zit cream that can melt metal) are thrown directly into his first case. Main players in Alex's first mission include a man named Herod Sayle, developer of a rockin' computer known as "Stormbreaker," the Russian hit man Yassen Gregorovich, the poor Mr. Grin whose face has been majorly damaged, and a German woman named Nadia Vole. Of all of his skills, Alex's greatest asset is his mind; his quick thinking allows him to overcome multiple obstacles (for example, being chased by killers on 4-wheelers) and sticky situations (maneuvering through an underground railway line, part of which has been submerged beneath water). I look forward to reading how Alex finishes his first mission. (Of course, we know he'll be successful; there's about 5 more books in the series!)

To learn more about the author, Anthony Horowitz, and the other books in his series, check out Mr. Horowitz's website.

The White Giraffe by Lauren St. John

I picked up my latest read on another snow day (that makes 4 so far, and remember, usually our snow days occur in March/April;). I'm through the first 5 chapters, which have read quite quickly. The main character, 11-year old Martine, suffers a tragedy within the first two chapters of the book; the result of her situation is to visit her grandma in South Africa. One of the problems with this, though, is that she didn't even realize she had a grandmother. Her widowed grandmother, Gwyn Thomas, also lives at the Sawubono Game Reserve.

Right now Martine is being driven to her grandmother's by Tendai, who works for her grandmother at the game reserve. He has just told her the legend of the white giraffe: supposedly, the child who can ride the white giraffe (thought to be an albino giraffe) will have power over all of the animals. Tendai himself has never seen a white giraffe even though he is in the game reserve every day, and the game reserve itself has not had giraffes in it for two years. However, he has seen footprints, but when he follows them, they seem to vanish.

In a way what I've read so far reminds me of another book I read over Christmas break, Escape Under the Forever Sky by Even Yolahem, which takes place in Ethiopia. The main character Lucy must use her knowledge of African wildlife to survive after she is kidnapped.

I'm sure Martine will be learning more about the animals within the game reserve. Martine also met Tendai's Aunt Grace who told Martine that she had a "gift jus' like the forefathers said" and that she should use it wisely. Hmmm ... I look forward to learning more about both her grandmother Gwyn, the elusive white giraffe, and how Martine's "gift" will come into play within the book.

Whisper in the Dark by Joseph Bruchac

Last weekend I finally was able to start one of the new books from our lit. circle tubs. I've read Bruchac's Code Talker, but I have not read any of his mystery books. Whisper in the Dark has definitely got my attention, and as soon as I'm finished here, I'm going to read more.

The main character, Maddy, fears that she is being stalked by a creature from the legends of her Native American ancestors. According to the legend, though, the creature gives 4 warnings before it makes its final move. The fourth time "The Whisperer" says the victim's name, and then the end for that person is near. So far, Maddy has received at least 2 warnings, if my memory serves me. Now she and her friend Roger, both fans of horror books and films, are trying to figure out what exactly is going on and how to protect themselves. Several of the chapters have a little twist or leave a lingering question so that the reader wants to continue.

As for a prediction, I do think that Maddy will come face to face with this creature, but she will rely on stories that her father had told her and possibly her athleticism and running talent to save her. Perhaps her friend Roger will come to her rescue, too, in some way, and their friendship will blossom into romance.

Snowed in ....again

Well, after our nice Christmas break storm, which allowed me to have a very quiet vacation time, we were hit with another round and were out of school on Wed., Thurs., and Fri. So an update on my students' public service announcement project is unavailable.

Unfortunately, the three days "off" were not as productive as I'd hoped, partly because I still felt "caught up" from the work I'd done over Christmas break. I'm hoping that students used their time to do some reading and, perhaps, blogging. I was able to read a little more in one of my Christmas presents, Twisted Tree by Kent Meyers, a South Dakota author. It's not the type of novel that reads in one day, but the language is like poetry, and after lots and lots of young adult literature, I was ready for an adult book.

Our "technology and society" unit, then, will continue next week, and I look forward to seeing how students organize their time for this particular endeavor.