Freedom Wrters Diary : Junior and Senior Year!

Oh my goodness...where do I even begin?! Again, there are so many insightful and heartfelt testimonies in this diary. It truly is amazing how Erin Gruwell helped these teenagers who no one thought would make anything of themselves due to their environment, families, life styles, and stereotypes.

One part of this section of the book that I have to touch on is from Diary 57, p. 119-120. This student describes a "pep talk" Erin gave him after he had given himself an "F" in her class. She is pretty upset with this student and decided to tell him what it actually stands for. We all know what she said it stood for. I was pretty shocked that she said these exact words to the student, but I have to remember that each student is different and I have never walked in her shoes and tried to teach students who are living in the situations presented in this diary. However, that is not even the part that is interesting to me; the part that was truly interesting to me was the student's reaction. He starts out his diary by saying:

"Today I finally grasped the true meaning of self-reliance." After he has described what Erin told him he says, "No one in my life has ever given me facts so boldly. I never had a "pep talk" quite like this...what she showed me today is that a truly self reliant person takes action, leaving nothing to chance and everything to themselves. She showed me that excuses will not bring me about success and that adversity is not something you walk with, but something you leap over. The only obstacles are the ones you allow...I want to be a self-reliant person now and forever."

I was completely amazed by his reaction and what he learned from Erin. Although I can't see myself ever saying such words quite like she did to this student, it does inspire me to really make connections with my students and be real with them. This is what Erin did and she did get through to him. She told him what he needed to hear!

Another part that I must comment on is from Diary 85, p. 169-170. This part describes what a student saw and heard at the Holocaust Museum. As all of you know I do a unit on the Holocaust in my room and I think I am going to have to use this quote that the student had seen and wrote in the diary:

"They came for the trade unions, but I was not a trade unionist, so I didn't respond. Then they came for the Socialist, but I was not a Socialist, so I didn't respond. Then they came for the Jews and since I was not a Jew, I didn't respond. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak out for me."

I teach every year that maybe a lot of the Holocaust could have been stopped if only people would have spoke up and refused to be silent. This quote really ties in with that! In fact, I could even share what this student said after reading this quote on a wall.

She says, "On our way back to the hotel, I saw Swastikas that we had covered. Before, if I saw something bad happen, I probably wouldn't have done anything. I used to think, 'If it doesn't affect me, why bother?' With the covering of the swastikas, and everything that happened today, I now know that there is not a day that will go by, when if I believe something is wrong, I won't do anything about it. It is better to take a chance and make a change, than it is to pass and pity."

Oh how I wish I had a chance for my students to go the Holocaust Museum. But, maybe I should look into it...Erin Gruwell probably would. ;) But, how unbelievably inspired is this student due to what she has read, seen, and heard?!

There are so many testimonies that I could touch on, but I think that it is essential that we do realize that these students did make the decision on their own to graduate in the end and that Erin was truly the inspiring instrument that they needed as guidance along the way. This book was fabulous, inspiring, and very motivational for teachers. I think that it could be very inspirational to other students as well. However, I would be careful about recommending it to certain age groups due to language, sexual references, and violence. I really wouldn't hesitate recommending it to high school students, but I would caution with some 8th grade students.

Fabulous! Fabulous Book!

Visualizing

After reading Chapter 8 in our text book, I realize I really do not do a whole lot of visualizing activities in my classroom.

As I have mentioned before I am doing a unit on poetry for the rest of the school year: Does anyone have any suggestions for a poem that I could use in my classroom to help with visualizing?

As far as trying to get our young readers to use their imaginations and visualize, I think that using an excerpt from Harry Potter or a book of that type where you must use your imagination in a make believe world might get their attention! Any other ideas on this matter? Any other recommended books?

Science Fiction and Fantasy...Why are they so popular??

Okay...I am going to admit it...please don't judge me or hold this against me...but I did read the entire Twilight Series in a week and a half!! I know...you probably think I am crazy right about now... It was even in the middle of last school year. I honestly couldn't put it down! The way that Stephanie Meyers writes her stories is intriguing and you want to keep reading...it was very hard to put the books down. And, not only is it intriguing because of the forbidden love story, but it also involves vampires! And who isn't a little bit curious about vampires?? :)

I think our young adolescents love this genre because it is an escape from reality. At least, I know for me it is. In this genre everything is possible and there are no limits. In a world where there are so many rules and regulations and so forth, it is always nice to be able to venture out and just pretend sometimes without anybody telling you that something isn't possible and your imagination is allowed to run wild! When it comes down to it: It's just fun! :)

What do you all think??

P.S. Twilight - loved the books, hated the movies. I walked out of the theater in the middle of the first movie! The books were so much better; they usaully are better!

Freedom Writers Diary: Thoughts up to Junior Year!

I knew this book was going to be amazing.

There are so many parts I could talk about and discuss!. The whole time I am reading this with teacher eyes and my heart just cries for these students; they are all so young and have been through so many things that I have and probably never will go through in life.

A story that sticks out to me still is about the young 14/15 year old girl who was joining a sorority in high school. The things these girls would be put through so that they felt they would "fit in" with others, was unbelievable. It is so tragic that young people will do almost anything to fit in, even if they know it is not right. The collection of diaries are from the 90's, but it has not changed today. The need to fit in in every where and very real for preteens and teens today.

I absolutely loved the poem, "Moment" by Vincent Guilliano. It says so much about life and truly living. I really want to share this with my 8th grade class (we're in the middle of a poetry unit right now) and I think many of my students will really appreciate it.

Just like this poem that Erin Gruwell shared with her classes, she had so many fantastic ideas when it came to teaching in her classroom. It is really inspiring to me to bring apple cider into the classroom and make a toast for change or for inspiring goals at the end of each year! I also loved hearing how she would dress up. So many of us that teacher the middle/upper level forget that students still appreciate little things like that! Right now I am thinking, What could I dress up like this week? She also always found novels/books/literature that her class could relate with. This is so very important when teaching reluctant readers and teenage students; they always enjoy reading books that reminds them about things they know in each of their own lives.

I also definitely am interested in reading Zlata's Diary: A Child's Life in Sarajevo. I have not read it, but I have a feeling students could really relate to this diary. I will have to read it and find out!

Sounds like Freedom Writers!

Amanda will not have access to My Own Two Feet until June in her library! So, unless, anyone else does not like the idea of Freedom Writers, I say let's read it!! :)

My Own Two Feet Vs. Freedom Writers...

Sounds to me like most of us are up for anything and one of us really wants to read My Own Two Feet.

So, is anyone opposed to reading My Own Two Feet?

If no one is opposed to reading it, then I would love to read My Own Two Feet!

Orchid: I can't get on your blog! Is there a reason why? Do I have to do something special?

To My Book Group:

What would you all like to read? Do you want to read the Freedom Writer's Diary or do you have something else in mind? I am up for anything! :)

Read Alouds

This is one of my three READ classes that I have taken this year. Last term I was taking a READ class and read many books for teachers to help students with reading. One of the books I chose to read was When Kids Can't Read by Kyleen Beers. If you have never read it, I definitely recommend reading it. It gives you so many different strategies to help students with reading skills and it is a very easy book to flow through.

Among all of the reading strategies listed in this book was the think aloud strategy. I immediately put the strategy to work. There are so many ways that you can use think alouds in your classroom; the basic think aloud I did was during our reading of The Outsiders this year. I simply had three items on the back board during the entire reading of the book: questions, responses, and predictions. Students would start discussions after each chapter by simply asking a question, making a comment about a certain section of the book, or they could even predict what they think would happen later on or what they think a character really meant when he or she said something somewhat ambiguous. It was great! The kids really enjoyed it! I would make sure to call on everyone, as well as the students who always volunteered to share their thoughts.

These think aloud times after each chapter really allowed all of my students to speak, think, and get involved with the book. It was neat to see somewhat of a book club forming. I also think this worked so well because my classes this trimester are fantastic (great mix of students)and The Outsiders is just an amazing book. Students usually seem to connect with it whether they want to or not.

I am most anxious to make my think alouds even better next year by having more options for thinking aloud and maybe even having more activities...like maybe adding the fishbowl activity! :)

Historical Fiction: Daniel's Story by Carol Matas

To start off, I really can't believe that I had never picked up this book before! It is an amazing book set during the Holocaust. It is really hard to believe that it is about a fictional character because the setting and the actual events are completely true and actually come from different tellings of different victims of the Holocaust.

Daniel's Story is set during World War II, during the Holocaust. Daniel is a German Jew and he tells his story of losing his family, friends, and freedom during the Holocaust. He begins his story in Germany, then to Poland in the Lodz Ghetto, then to Auschwitz Concentration Camp, and then finally to Buchenwald Labor Camp. Throughout his story he tells of the happenings around him. He tells of murder, starvation, and beatings. A scene that can't be forgotten is when his two cousins are being transported from the Lodz Ghetto to an unknown destination. His aunt tries to go after them because she does not want to leave her children. The Nazi guard does not allow her to do so, but she does not listen and screams, cries, and runs after her children. The Nazi guard then shoots both of her children and then her. Completely horrific! And one could say that it is only fiction, but it is not. There are many true testimonies that account for stories such as this one during this terrible time in history.

There are many other horrible truths that this book shares (which includes a Nazi breaking a child's back and shooting a child in each of his legs and then killing him because he was missing places on the sidewalk he was trying to clean). These are some of the scenes I would be leery of when reading this book with kids, but I do think that 8th grade students in my classroom could handle it.

Carol Matas does a fantastic job of explaining what certain terms are, while staying on track with the story that is being told. I found myself many times thinking that this would be a good choice to teach along side The Diary of a Young Girl: Anne Frank because it talks about so many facts about the Holocaust that we discuss as an 8th grade class (i.e. life in the ghettos, rations for Jews, simple liberties that were taken away, concentration camps, crematoria, etc.) Along with these facts, though, there is a lot of heart and human soul to it. My students would also benefit from connecting with a soul, fictional or non-fictional, telling true accounts of things that really happened during this time. In fact, I think I am going to look into trying to buy at least 25 copies for my classroom for next year during this unit.

If you have not read this book, I would definitely take the time to read it! It would be a great book to recommend to your student who is a reluctant reader (it is pretty easy to read)and especially if you study a little bit about the Holocaust or World War II.

My Thoughts About Picture Books for Young Adults

I actually was very aware that books, such as the ones I read this week, were out there. I just have never really taken the time to explore this area as much as I am right now. I am very glad that I am getting the opportunity to take this class and broadening my horizons for my students and for myself.

I actually had to go to our public library in our little town because our middle school library didn't carry any of the books I was looking for. But, good new; our librarian told me that we still have some funds left for next year and I just need to tell her titles to order so that we can carry more books of this type and others! I am pretty excited about all of this!

I know that I could easily use every book I read this week in my curriculum and on the text set I am building. I really want to be able to give my students a wide variety of material covering World War II. Now, of course, I do not go into great detail about everything during World War II, but we do brush on major happenings (Hiroshima, Japanese internment camps, Pear Harbor, concentration camps, etc.) A lot of students become very interested in this part of history and each year they check out books like crazy from our library to learn more about "what really happened" during this time period.

While I was reading each book, I was constantly thinking, "How am I going to get my students to buy into picture books?" Well, I think I came up with a few ideas. But, my best idea is to type one of the stories up so that it looks like the format they are accustomed to reading in junior high. After reading it as a class and discussing it, I am going to surprise them by pulling out the actual picture book. I really want to see their reactions! I then want to talk about what their initial responses were to picture books before reading the story and then what their responses were after they realized the story was a picture book. This really will give a great opportunity to show students what picture books really can offer them.

I really found the information about using picture books with young adults helpful. Again, I was very aware of such ideas because of different workshops, seminars, and etc. that I have gone to in the past five years, but now it is nice to get to take the time to explore all of the options available to student and teachers. It is nice to be able to discuss it with others in this class as well.

Picture Books for the Young Adult Reader

My topic and focus area for the text set that I am building is based around World War II (all aspects) and the Holocaust. (I teach The Diary of a Young Girl: Anne Frank each year in the 8th grade.)I thought it very important to be able to be knowledgeable of a wide variety of books available for this broad topic. And, of course, I would like to be able to share more stories and history with my students in the classroom.

The four picture books I chose to read this week are:

1. Let the Celebrations Begin! by Margaret Wild and Julie Vivas
2. Faithful Elephants by Yukio Tsuchiya
3. War and the Pity of War edited by Neil Philip
4. Hiroshima No Pika by Toshi Maruki

Let the Celebrations Begin!
This story is set in a concentration camp at the end of the Nazi reign. Throughout the whole story a young girl speaks of the toys every child will have after the war is over and they are all saved. They also speak of the types of food they will all eat once everyone is saved. This book screams hope; even though this was a very dark time in history.

Faithful Elephants
This story is set in Tokyo at the Ueno Zoo during World War II. A zoo keeper tells about a monument for animals who have died at the zoo; this particular day he tells of the story about three elephants named John, Tonky, and Wanly. These three elephants were killed - starved to death because no other way would work - so that if the zoo was bombed the animals would not run wild and cause more destruction and chaos. This book was truly sad; it almost made me shed a few tears when I read of the starvation these animals had to go through. But, the book does make a point in the end about war and the despair that war brings to us all.

Hiroshima No Pika
This story follows a family who were victims of the bombing of Hiroshma in World War II. It really gets at the heart of the struggle and the pain these families went through just to survive. This family does somewhat survive, but not without consequences; many were condemned to be ill for the rest of their lives due to the radiation. This story also has very interesting illustrations; they are definitely for young adult readers and were more sophisticated in my opinion.

War and the Pity of War
This book contains a collection of many poems about every war you can pretty much think of. There are few picture (but there are some)but the poems are very well written and any student can find at least one that he or she can understand. Here is an example of one of the poems from the book that I think I will definitely share with my students next year:

The House That Fear Built: Warsaw, 1943 by Jane Flanders

I am the boy with his hands raised over his head in Warsaw.

I am the solider whose rifle is trained on the boy with his hands raised over his head in Warsaw.

I am the woman with lowered gaze
who fears the solider whose rifle is trained
on the boy with his hands raised over his head
in Warsaw.

I am the overcoat
who loves the woman with lowered gaze
who fears the solider whose rifle is trained
on the boy with his hands raised over his head
in Warsaw.

I am the stranger who photographs
the man in the overcoat
who loves the woman with lowered gaze
who fears the solider whose rifle is trained
on the boy with his hands raised over his head
in Warsaw.

The crowd, of which I am each part, moves on
beneath my window, for I am the crone too
who shakes her sheets
over every street in the world
muttering
What's this? What's this?

I believe this poem (after having discussed the Holocaust already in class) will be a great source of discussion and perhaps spark other students to write poetry themselves over this topic. I really enjoyed reading a lot of these poems in this book.