The boys picked to read Elijah of Buxton for this month’s discussion. The librarian asked me how I tricked them into reading an historical novel. I told her it was my wit and good looks. I think it has more to do with the cover. Anyhow, some have loved it, and some have struggled. Third graders are so used to being told to make sure words are spelled correctly that when they read a novel with dialect that is different it takes them out of their comfort zone.
On Friday during Independent Reading I look up because I hear Chris say “oh my god, oh my god, WOW!” He was almost to the end of the book. He gets up goes to his friends and rereads them the part. They begin to discuss the book. So much for the discussion this Wednesday, and Independent Reading. I think the guys have discussed the book more then any adult book club. There are times when we see and hear things that tell us this is why I put up with No Child Left Untested and the CSAP.
1 comment:
Kyle,
I thought ELIJAH was an amazing book. Don't know that I would go as low as third grade with it though. I read parts of it aloud to my boys, and want to read the whole thing aloud to them. I followed this with Liberty Girl (I think that is the name of it). That book has a crappy cover, but a terrific story about a girl whose father is an FBI agent in the south when schools are being integrated.
Carol
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