Summer Reading - Mark Twain

Being from the Elmira, New York area... we are famous in the fact that Mark Twain lived here during the summers at Quarry Farm and wrote some of his most famous pieces while vacationing on the Chemung River.

Reading Mark Twain, in today's world - like many other classics - is challenging in and of itself. With the word usage and language of the times - not really gelling with our word usage and language... it can be a bit troublesome.

What I enjoyed about the books was their charming qualities (I read The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Prince and The Pauper)... but... I also wondered how much students are able to get from the books when reading on their own without any guidance regarding the time period in which the tales were composed.

The Outsiders by: S.E. Hinton

We have just begun reading S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders in class... a great book with so many opportunities for discussions. One of the great things about literature is that it provides us the opportunity to express opinions about topics and events that we might never otherwise discuss.

I look forward to the wonderful discussions we will have regarding the major themes we find in the novel.

Book Review

A day spent with Kathleen Odean learning about all the great books published in the last year... it was both awe inspiring and overwhelming. For there will never be enough hours in the day or days in the week to get through all of the wonderful books she introduced. A wealth of information and reading.

So... each week... a new book will be focused on and discussed... even if I am the only one reading this blog :) I will know that I am doing my part to spread the word about great literature for Young Adults and hopefully, lighting the fire for reading in the students that I see each and everyday.

Thirteen Reasons Why

What a powerful book!!! It is amazing that someone can be going through so much and noone takes the time to notice. I think of the students I interact with everyday... what some of them must be feeling, experiencing, living... that noone pays attention too.

This is a powerful book by Jay Asher that should be required reading for those who care about kids.

UPDATE!!!! May 5, 2010
We actually discussed this recently at my book club... what an interesting discussion. We talked a great deal about the power that teachers have in working with students...

Speak!

I just finished reading this book. My daughter's 8th grade English class is going to be reading it at school - and I thought I should also read it so we can discuss some of the content at home. And there is some heavy content to discuss - acceptance issues among teenagers, date rape, under age drinking, and so many more.

The book left we a little dazed for a day or two... it would be very interesting to discuss with students and view their reactions to how things play out for the main character of the book at school. She is filled with fear and dread of anyone finding out what happened to her (date rape) and yet she needs to have someone on her side. She is conflicted on what to do and when she finally does tell her ex-BFF ... she doesn't believe her.

In the end - she has one teacher that she has built a relationship with that she spills her story out to. As the teacher of middle-schoolers, I can only hope that at some point, if one of my students is experiencing extreme difficulties in their life, that they will feel safe in discussing them... if not with me... then with someone else.

Killing reading in the classrooms!

Laziness and procrastination should be listed as certified diagnosis of overwhelmed mothers and educators... we have so much do to... so many books and journals and articles to read... that we loose sight of the activities that bring us joy - like reading for pleasure.

Isn't that amazing! The students are the same way. How many times do we hear it everyday -

"Why do we have to read? I hate reading?" Or, one of my favorites... "Why do we have to write so much in English class?" When another student responds "Because it's English class!"

Yet, as an adult, I also put reading on the back burner (like the burned dinner...). We expect students to come to our classrooms to read and enjoy what they are reading, yet we kill it with study guides, vocabulary review, questions, quizzes, tests. If you did that to me for every book I read - I too would quit reading. My kindle (which I received in November) would not already have 67 books (full length and samples) already downloaded just waiting to be devoured.

How do we move students from Learning to Read - to Reading to Learn without killing the fun and enjoyment that comes from being immersed in a passage of depth and adventure?

Thirteen Reasons Why

This is a young adult (YA) novel by Jay Asher.

Here is the book description from Amazon.com:
"Clay Jenkins returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers 13 cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker his classmate and crush who committed suicide two weeks earlier. One tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out how he made the list. Through Hannah and Clay's dual narratives, debut author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers."

WOW!!! Keep coming back to hear my comments as I read the book. I hope you will consider reading it as well.