Reading Grade Level vs Content

Have you ever a read a book, and after you complete it you think, "That was amazing." That's the way I felt about The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. While reading this book, I wondered what grade level could I use this book in the classroom, then the sexual content increased, and I knew I could never use this book in the classroom. This would cause parental uproar.
Looking at the grade level of this book, I discovered that it is a 6.1 grade level. Sixth grade? It's crazy how books are classified just by the difficulty of the words and sentence structure. This book should never be read by a 6th grader, and I'm not sure I would be comfortable having juniors or seniors reading this.
I chose to read this book to base a diversity project on. I have to create a webquest that will assess student knowledge. Going into this, I am going to base my assessments off the fact that juniors or seniors will be reading this for class.
This book explores so many things that some kids actually experience like rape, molestation, and just finding a friend and fitting in. Reading through this book, I wondered if Charlie has autism or Asperger's because he cannot focus his thought process and he frequently cries when nervous. Later, we find out what happened to Charlie, and possibly his "home life" has something to do with his behavior.
Something I loved about this book, was the music incorporated into so many things. Teenagers usually associate some event in their life with a song, and Charlie's experiences were no different. There are many analysis I could have students do based on the song listed in the book. Also, students could compare the film to the book, which is a standard. I have not seen this movie yet, but I might find certain scenes and have students compare the movie scene to the book and explain how they were different and could be improved upon.
This book was touching and realistic, and it left me wanting more. Who is Charlie writing to? How does Charlie get through high school with his friends gone? Is Charlie ok? I would recommend this book to anyone over the age of 18, but I would never tell a 6th grader that this book was appropriate for him/her to read even though it is considered a 6th grade level.

Historical Fiction in the Classroom

Personally, I love historical fiction. Margaret George and Phillipa Gregory are usually listed in my favorite author lists. So, it seems natural to implement this type of literature into the classroom. Students usually don't enjoy history class. They think that learning about people who are dead is a waste of time, but historical fiction has a way of bringing the past to life. This might actually help students to enjoy reading from the genre in the future, or it may inspire students to just read in general. For my library services class, we were allowed to choose which historical fiction book we would like to read (all three choices span a different time period, but for the class you could give students a choice from books that take place during the same period of time for class purposes). I chose Uprising which is a book about the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire.

This is actually an event that I had no prior knowledge about, so I was interest in the story and reading more about the time period. The story takes place during the early 1900s in the middle of the industrial age and the women's suffrage movement. Both these topics are covered during an American History class, which makes this book a perfect choice to offer students to read. This book would also be good for students because there is a lot of information for them to dissect. Such as the chapters are written in different points of view, so students will have to keep up with who's point of view they are reading. Also, two of the main characters are immigrants who speak Italian and Yiddish. This is something that your students might need to recognize to understand the content a little better. Another topic that could be tied in with this book is the fall of the Russian czar. Yes, even Anastasia could be brought in when reading this book.

As for my opinion, this book would be perfect for the classroom. Although the end of the book involves hundreds of people dying in a fire, the content is not graphic by any means, almost down-played. The writing is pretty easy for middle school to high school students to comprehend, but I was not impressed. I have not done much research on Haddix, but she does not write with the confidence and expertise like George R. Martin, Gillian Flynn, or Phillipa Gregory. Overall, I enjoyed the book, but it is not my favorite by any means. A few suggestions for historical fiction that I enjoyed would be The Other Boelyn Girl by Phillipa Gregory, Mary called Magdalene by Margaret George, Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay, or The New Orleans Legacy by Alexandra Ripley.

Techonology in the Classroom

I wanted to wait before posting a new entry until after my teaching experience over The Narrative of a Life.

 

Something mentioned in my previous posts was the movie production assessment project I created to go along with the novel. Something that was critical to include for this project to be a success was technology. Technology in the classroom is almost a controversial topic to some educators, and it should not surprise you that many schools are banning the use of cellphones, laptops, and tablets during all hours of the school day. My students would not be able to complete the project without the use of a smartphone or other handheld device.

 

Many of the arguments against technology is that students would not do their work, but do other things such a text, look at facebook, or snapchat, but the key to having success with technology in the class is to make sure students are engaged in learning.

During the planning for my part of the project, I tried to make sure this type of assessment would interest students and assess the appropriate standards. Students were advised to use their cellphones and laptops to research material that would help them with the presentation of their part of the project, whether they were casting characters, choosing locations, or picking musical pieces. Something that was awesome about giving the students opportunities to use technology was that they presented photos, and we listened to the music chosen by the students. There was not any facebook or texting going on. The students were engaged in the task that was given, and they really seemed to enjoy working together. So, this misconception about technology should not effect our students in a negative way. As teachers, we should embrace change and advancement in the classroom, and that includes embracing technology.

Movie Productions with Literature!

My original idea from my latest blog has blossomed into something even bigger. After reading Frederick Douglass, I have noticed that choosing songs for the soundtrack from present day would be difficult. However, if students could embellish with scenes from Frederick Douglass, like his ship journeys, those scenes in a movie would be longer than in the book, so a song could be placed while on the ship. These embellished scenes would open the door for a song choice whether it is a current or not. Another thing students could look for is songs from the time. Popular compositions or folk songs that would be fitting during some parts of the book. There is actually a slave spiritual that is in the book that would be an excellent addition.
However, a soundtrack is not the only idea I have. This had turned into the students creating an entire movie production. They would pick songs pieces and explain where these pieces fit, filming locations, and casting of characters. Part of the book takes place in Baltimore, but just saying Baltimore would not be sufficient. The student would probably have to have a set built for that part of the movie, but what would it look like? Students can draw or find a picture similar to how these scenes will look. They could find pictures of old plantation houses in Maryland for the scenes at the different farms. This is a great way for students to understand the setting of the book.
Also, students will cast characters of their choice. They could cast the prologue narrator or Frederick Douglass at the age of 7, 12, and 28. All those castings would be considered different, and the student would need to cast at least 5 characters (I'm just throwing out a number). One thing students would need to be aware of is the race of each of these characters. Channing Tatum cannot play Frederick Douglass. This is a great way for students to analyze characters.
I think this final assessment really allows students to dive into the literature and analyze all aspects of life during this time period. Now, I have to think about how to organize this for my final activity and presentation!!

Fun Assessment Ideas with Literature

During my last library services class, we started our first book where the students present the material. Something that I think is really important when you are covering a book from a different time period is to start off with a little background about what life was actually like. You could do a role-play or bring foods and games that were popular during that time. The book that was covered (in half) last class was The Voice that Challenged a Nation, which is about contralto singer Marian Anderson.

I really enjoyed this book, and when covering it with students, it is important to explain this style of singing and its popularity during the time period. A connection needs to be made, such as Marian Anderson could be compared to Idina Menzel today. Idina is not a contralto exactly, but she is a disciplined singer of our time period.

During one of my own English classes my junior year, we did a really fun project. We were covering the book Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott.

The project was to imagine Ivanhoe was being made into a new film, and you are in charge of creating a soundtrack to go along with this movie. You had to create a CD that had up to ten songs and a companion guide that described the scene and justification for the song chosen. This project assessed that students had read the book and knew the material because you had to describe the actual scenes from the book. When my group presents on The Narrative of the Life of  Fredrick Douglass, I hope to include this final assessment in our project. Taking this soundtrack idea further, I also will have a project where students are casting roles for the film. They will need to choose actors and actresses for all major roles and explain why this person fits the role. I think this would be a great type of character analysis in disguise.

As a teacher, I think it is important to create a fun and thoughtful assessment to accompany required literature. Also, students need to have a choice in projects they have to complete, so I hope to provide other fun ways to assess student knowledge on my group's novel!