Student Writing: Respecting & Tolerance For Other People's Beliefs

Well I'm now officially teaching High School until the end of the year. I have 2 classes - Humanities 8 (a mix of Social Studies & English with a creative writing focus) and Health & Career Education (HACE 9). For one of my first teaching assignments studying World Religion, I had my Grade 8 Humanities class write about their own beliefs and why they thought it was important to respect other people's beliefs.

The images above are an amalgamation of their thoughts.

Here are some of the statements that I thought were especially poignant...

1. Beliefs are important to all sorts of people in one way or another, but open-mindedness is just as significant.
2. When we can take the time to learn about one another’s beliefs, we get to see another type of thinking.
3. If people could consider other people’s beliefs and walk a mile in their shoes there would be a lot less fighting and prejudice.
4. Religion shouldn’t be seen as a way to judge someone but as a way someone has chosen to live.
5. We all need to understand and accept each other’s beliefs because that is the only way peace in this world will increase.

Review ~ Promises in Death

Title: Promises in Death by J.D. Robb
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
My Review: This series is best when Lt. Dallas is involved with cases that she has a personal stake in. You can feel her pain when she has to tell her friend about the death of his loved one. I also loved how the rest of her crew jumped in to help. The most entertaining part was how all the ladies give their input in the case. I laughed out loud during a few scenes where Eve gets so uncomfortable with the messiness of life around her.

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Review ~ Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Title: Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Review: This book was hilarious. I laughed out loud so many times that people were starting to look at me funny. I think the biggest selling point of this series is the drawings which was a brilliant idea by the author. It still allows the reader to use his/her imagination, but it conveys the absolute absurdity of the situations the protagonist gets himself into.

As a teacher, it's always great to find books that kids of all ages (especially boys) like to read and the bonus is it's one I can enjoy too! It brought back memories of my own struggles in elementary school, but in a "it's always good to find a way to laugh about it" kind of way.

I know the live-action movie is out this weekend and I'm sure it will do well, but I think it would have been better as an animated film (maybe stop-motion). I think the real people will spoil the fun a bit because real people never live up to our own imagination. I'll update this after I've seen the movie and see if I change my mind. I'll also see what my students thought of the movie.

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Review ~ Devil's Arithmetic

Title: The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen
My Rating: 4 of 5 stars
My Review: Initally I thought this book kind of plodded along and didn't delve too deeply. I started to wonder why it was lauded as an award winning novel. After reading the entire novel, this initial pace and thought process makes sense. I could be wrong, but perhaps it was written that way to make us feel the apathy that Hannah felt about her family get togethers. I think most teenagers feel this way about our history (whether it be family, coutnry, culture or world history) which is really sad.

What sets this book apart is how both the main character Hannah and the reader is transported to another time and place in order to get a real sense of what the time was like by actually living through it. Instead of merely being an observer Hannah is thrust into a life she has only read or heard rambling stories of. I appreciated how the author played with what was real or imagined memories for Hannah through this experience.

As an avid reader of historical fiction, a student of history and an educator, I appreciate the opportunities for learning that a book like this presents. I think students today could benefit from actually living history to make it relevant and come alive. If only it were possible. My challenge as a teacher is to find ways to make that happen in the classroom every day. That's a huge undertaking! I'm glad I have books to help me along the way.

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Books to Movies ~ Alice in Wonderland

ALICE IN WONDERLAND {2010}

I know this isn't where I normally review movies I watch (see This n That), but I was thinking as I went home after watching this movie (and seeing Avatar last Tuesday) that these amazing film directors (Tim Burton and James Cameron) must have read a lot of books growing up. They have such an incredible imaginations and the worlds they paint and create are so vivid, intense, magical, ethereal, dramatic (the list of superlatives goes on and on) that I have to believe that their imaginations conjured up these fantastical pictures from the images in their head as they read extraordinary literature over the years. It makes me want to re-read the book(s) again (Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass) which I'm pretty sure I read as a small child.

I'll add more to this article, but I just wanted to get down my initial thoughts while they were still in my head.

Review ~ The Guernsey Literary Potato Peel Society

Title: The Guernsey Literary Potato Peel Society

Author: Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

Publisher: The Dial Press

Publication Date: July 2008 (Hardcover) | Pages: 288

Genre: Historical Fiction | Age Level: 13+

Website: www.randomhouse.com/rhpg/guernsey, Book Club Guide 

Tags: WWII, Bookclub, letters, Channel Islands, Guernsey, occupation

Summary: “ I wonder how the book got to Guernsey? Perhaps there is some sort of secret homing instinct in books that brings them to their perfect readers.”January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject. Who could imagine that she would find it in a letter from a man she’s never met, a native of the island of Guernsey, who has come across her name written inside a book by Charles Lamb….

As Juliet and her new correspondent exchange letters, Juliet is drawn into the world of this man and his friends—and what a wonderfully eccentric world it is. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society—born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi when its members were discovered breaking curfew by the Germans occupying their island—boasts a charming, funny, deeply human cast of characters, from pig farmers to phrenologists, literature lovers all.

Juliet begins a remarkable correspondence with the society’s members, learning about their island, their taste in books, and the impact the recent German occupation has had on their lives. Captivated by their stories, she sets sail for Guernsey, and what she finds will change her forever.

Written with warmth and humor as a series of letters, this novel is a celebration of the written word in all its guises, and of finding connection in the most surprising ways.

Review: This book was a light breezy,heartwarming read I flew through. I often forgot I was reading a book; instead I felt like I was reading treasured letters from friends. 


It transported me to a fascinating period of history (just after WWII) and through these letters from the Guernsey Literary Potato Peel Society we are transported to the hardships, hope and heart of a small island occupied by the Germans during WWII. We are shown how a shared love of reading can make a horrific situation more bearable and it may even save your life!


After reading this novel, I want to visit Guernsey (which hopefully I'll be able to do one day) and read more about the Channel Islands during the war.


Rating: 5/5

Bookclub Guide

Currently Reading... The 39 Clues Series

I'm still on the reading way too many books at once wagon, but I have recently focused on one particular series... The 39 Clues which is a planned 10 part book series each written by various children’s authors. The series follows the exploits of siblings Amy Cahill and Dan Cahill and their worldwide quest to unlock the secret of their family's power while pitted against six other teams that are bent on acquiring that ultimate power no matter what the cost. Each book explores a famous “Cahill” family member from history.

Book 1: The Maze of Bones, written by Rick Riordan – READ

Synopsis: Minutes before she died Grace Cahill changed her will, leaving her descendants an impossible decision: "You have a choice - one million dollars or a clue." Grace is the last matriarch of the Cahills, the world's most powerful family. Everyone from Napoleon to Houdini is related to the Cahills, yet the source of the family power is lost. 39 Clues hidden around the world will reveal the family's secret, but no one has been able to assemble them. Now the clues race is on, and young Amy and Dan must decide what's important: hunting clues or uncovering what REALLY happened to their parents.

About the Author: Rick Riordan is the bestselling author of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.

My Thoughts: As a teacher, I can appreciate the educational benefits of a book that explores famous figures from history. Personally I am a big fan of mysteries, especially ones that involve history. I also like the interactive element of the story that allows the reader to follow along with the challenge online and try to figure out each clue. These books are pretty popular at the library that I taught at in Surrey. I would be interested in reading some kid’s reviews to see what aspects they like.

Book 2: One False Note, written by Gordon Korman – READING NOW

Synopsis: THIS JUST IN! Amy and Dan Cahill were spotted on a train, hot on the trail of one of 39 Clues hidden around the world. BUT WAIT! Police report a break-in at an elite hotel, and the suspects ALSO sound suspiciously like Amy and Dan. UPDATE! Amy and Dan have been seen in a car . . . no, in a speedboat chase . . . and HOLD EVERYTHING! They're being chased by an angry mob?!? When there's a Clue on the line, anything can happen.

About the Author: Gordan Korman wrote his first book, This Can't be Happening at Macdonald Hall, when he was 12 years old for a coach who suddenly found himself teaching 7th grade English. He later took that episode and created a book out of it, as well, in The Sixth Grade Nickname Game, where Mr. Huge was based on that 7th grade teacher. He is the author of more than 50 books.

My Thoughts: As this novel examines Mozart’s life, it holds a particular interest for me due to my music background. I like how this continued to advance the quest to find the 39 clues. We also learned a lit more about all the "family members" including how far they will go to advance in the game. Their au pair is turning out to be pretty useful - I'm guessing we will learn more about her as we go along. I'm sure she is not there helping them by accident or out of convenience.

I never knew about Mozart's sister even though I studied music history in college for 2 years. Did I just miss that part or was it not included? Hmmm. Anyway there is a book called Mozart's Sister by Nancy Moser, perhaps I shall have to add that to my rapidly growing list.

Book 3: The Sword Thief, written by Peter Lerangis

Book 4: Beyond the Grave, written by Jude Watson

Book 5: The Black Circle, written by Patrick Carman

Book 6: In Too Deep, written by Jude Watson

Book 7: The Viper's Nest, written by Peter Lerangis

Book 8: The Emperor's Code, written by Gordon Korman, to be released April 6, 2010

Book 9: Title TBD, written by Linda Sue Park, to be released May 25, 2010

Book 10: Title TBD, written by Margeret Peterson Haddix, to be released August 31, 2010

Poetry ~ Emily Dickinson

HOPE

Hope is the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul,

And sings the tune--without the words,

And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;

And sore must be the storm

That could abash the little bird

That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land,

And on the strangest sea;

Yet, never, in extremity,

It asked a crumb of me.

Poetry ~ Blanket Haiku

warm, soft, inviting

cozy wrapped around me tight

reading a great book

Review ~ Wicked Lovely

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I found this book a little hard to get into initially. The characters had little appeal especially the heroine Aislinn - she was weak, insecure, and very blah. I think the character I caught on with first was Donia because there was something interesting about her. I found as the novel went on the character development improved and I became more invested in the story. One thing that kind of picked me and made no sense was why Aislinn's friends were so intent on pushing her towards Keenan. Was that because of his charms? I thought the only decent friendship in the whole book was between Aislinn and Seth. It seems like the other friends were superfulous and it turns out one of them Leslie is in the next book, so I guess that's her purpose.

Overall I would recommend this book to others who appreciate this genre or teen romance. I plan to read the rest of the series to see where it goes. I am currently reading Ink Exchange (hard to get into again). I know there are another 2 books at least in the works.

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Deep Thoughts... Books For Boys

In my teaching experience with students aged 9-15 there seems to be a good representation of books geared to both genders. But, if you scan through the teen section at your local bookstore (Chapter/Indigo where I live), you'll notice there is a lack of books directed towards teenage boys. The predominant genre is paranormal romance geared towards teenage girls. One only has to see the craze of Twilight everything to notice the popularity of this genre and of course dozens of other series have popped up related to vampires, werewolves, faeries, ghosts, witches, etc...

To prove my point, I looked up bestselling teen books at a variety of popular bookseller sites and discovered that over 75% of the bestselling books are geared towards teenage girls: Amazon: Top 100 Teen Bestsellers, Chapters/Indigo: Top 50 Teen Bestsellers, Borders: Teens Home Page and Barnes & Noble: Teens Home Page

Good news for boys! I stumbled across a website, Guys Lit Wire that is dedicated to bringing books that appeal to teenage boys to light.

This is a site dedicated to books for boys (Grade 3 to 6). Here is a resource list (from 2006) compiled by the University of Northern British Columbia.

Here's another list compiled by the Barrie (in Ontario) public library.

← Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
~ a great example of a good book geared towards boys


Another trend is that most stories have caucasian heroines/main characters. Where I teach there is a high East Indian and Asian population. Where are the role models for these demographics that are written in English? How are these girls and boys supposed to identify with characters they can relate to if they are all "white" people? I find a lot of the teens at the school I teach at are reading the Manga graphic novels. Is that the solution? Not sure.

Reading & Writing Log

Read This Week:
Books: Wicked Lovely (review coming soon)
Blogs: A Year of Reading, Best Book I Have Not Read, Book Chick City, Hula Seventy, Wonderings and Wanderings, Bloody Bookaholic, Guys Lit Wire,

Wrote This Week:
Two blogs for this site and four for my other blog.

I have some ideas from some of the blog posts I read today (I got the inspiration from this post. Hint... it's about lists). I'm thinking I need to include more of my photos (taking some new ones would help) in my blogs for writing inspiration.

 

On a side note, I've noticed that a few book review sites like this one and this one compare the US and UK book covers a fair bit. Does it really make a difference whether you read the book or not based on the cover? I guess maybe it has a better chance of getting you to pick up the book if there is a good cover, but for the most part it's the plot that gets me.

Currently Reading... Wicked Lovely Series

Well as I mentioned in my last post, I've been trying to juggle a whole lotta books all at once. That wasn't quite working for me, so I've decided to pick just one, "Wicked Lovely" by Melissa Marr. Update: I just picked up the second book Ink Exchange.

This is a Young Adult, Paranormal Romance that is all about mortal and faerie interaction. These are no Disney Fairies though, they are more complex and some of them are more inclined to malevolence than good.

As a wee lass, I was a pixie while in Brownies. I'm guessing that's when my interest was piqued and I've dabbled in reading about them ever since. I can't say that I am overly involved in reading about them, but every now and again it captures my fancy. Like when we were in Amsterdam and I came across this shop...

Over the past few weeks, I have picked up a few books with faeries as the main plot feature ~ Faery Rebels: Spell Hunter, Wings, Tithe and The Mortal Instruments series. I also went looking for books about faeries while I was in Wales in Jan 2007. I was surprised that I didn't find much, but one of Carl's relatives gave me a book on Gnomes (I'll find a link soon) that is pretty fascinating.

Here is a little more info from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairy

On My List... Way too many books!!!

I've always been the type of reader that can have at least 2 or 3 books on the go at once, but I think it's gotten a bit out of control - I've lost count of how many books I am reading. Maybe it's because I am not really invested in any one book I am reading or maybe because I am trying too hard to catch up on too many books.

Since I started really getting back into reading books in earnest over last few months (thanks to a great book I read last summer "The Book Whisperer" by Donalyn Miller), I find my bookshelves are a bit overrun both physically and virtually. I am trying to build a repertoire/collection of young readers and teen fiction as part of my "be in touch with what my students are or might be interested in reading".

I really want to start getting into actually reviewing books and doing more writing, but that means I have to actually finish a book or two! Maybe this is just my procrastinating nature rearing it's ugly head once again.

You can take a look at my virtual shelves here:

http://www.shelfari.com/mscarrsbookshelf
http://www.goodreads.com/mscarr
http://www.librarything.com/home/MarilynCarr

What do you do to keep focused and actually finish books instead of having a bunch on the go?

Professional Reading ~ Content Area Writing

I have been reading a book called Content Area Writing: Every Teacher's Guide by Harvey Daniels, Steven Zemelman and Nancy Steineke for my professional reading group. There is also a companion book about Content Area Reading (which I will most likely get). The reason I chose this book was because I wanted to get more ideas of how to encourage my students to write more.

The authors point out a truth we all know as teachers (and thought as students)... most students HATE writing! What if as Daniels, Zemelman and Steinke suggest, students don't actually hate writing, they just "hate the kind of writing we make them do" (pg 3)? WHAT!! Why would they hate the writing we ask them to do when it's what we have so carefully planned, thought out, deliberated over and if you admit it - what we had to do as a student? Maybe it's because it's not how they think, relate or act in their non-academic lives.

The approach that these authors take (as experts in their field and with collaborative efforts with other teachers) is that you need to meet students where they are at and find ways to get at their thinking in ALL subject matters. We need to find ways to make writing a part of the learning process not just the drudgery of copying notes off the board or overhead (I'll never understand how this is useful - it sure never helped in my student career), or answering comprehension questions for a novel study, history or science textbook or completeing the obligatory dreaded research paper/essay. Some of these types of writing are necessary, but it's how and why you/they do it that's important.

Here's a little bit about the guts of the book...

It's separated into two different types of writing:

1. Writing to Learn ~ This is just as it sounds. It's the process of brainstorming ideas, jotting down notes to remember something, reflecting on what you've read or heard without the pressure of having your writing analyzed or red penned to death. This type of writing is not to be marked (unless you want to make it part of the participation mark). It's students discovering and sharing what they know with themselves, their fellow students and teachers.

2. Public Writing ~ This is the more formal aspect of writing that many of us are used to. The difference with this book is that it examines the process and looks at how we can support students during that process. I am still reading this book and haven't read this part yet, so I'll add more once I've read more.

In the meantime...

What it comes down to is that writing is an essential part of our lives and we can either make a rewarding or painful experience in our classrooms or at home with your kids.

Deep Thoughts ~ Can reading save your life?

I'm not sure if reading saved my life as a child or just made it more bearable. I had a rather difficult childhood and it's tempting to just remember the challenges, but I also have to be thankful for the blessings I received - one of which was a family that loved to read. I'm pretty sure every member of my family as dysfunctional as it was loved to read.

I have so many great memories of great books I read as a child. How many people can relate to having their little night light or flashlight under the covers with their ears listening for footsteps so they could quickly turn out the light before they were caught reading? I'm sure many parents/teachers would love to "catch" their kids/students reading now!

My early successes in school were related to reading and writing. I was in the top reader group in grade 1. I had one of my stories read out to the class in grade 4 (one of my best elementary school memories for sure). I loved loved loved it when my teachers read aloud to us - especially Mrs. English in grade 4 - she was awesome at it. I had three years of correspondence at home (grade 5 to 7) and truly reading made it tolerable. Even later in life when I went back to school for six years to get my teaching degree - I was anxious to read for fun at the end of every semester.

Now I am two years into teaching. Although I don't have a full-time teaching job, I have relished the time I have to read for both professional and pleasure purposes. I see at the myriad of schools that I have been to from kindergarten to grade 12 that overall there is a sad lack of passion or even remote interest in reading. It breaks my heart when I think of what a lifeline reading has been for me. Every now and then I go into a school that sparks a little hope that maybe the art and fun of reading hasn't yet died out for kids today. My hope is to keeping fanning those tiny embers and maybe, just maybe I can help fan the flames into a lovely warm fire that spreads.

My question to you is... How has reading saved or made a big impact on your life? Do tell...