Currently reading....

So one of my favorite things about being a teacher is the time I have to read in the summer.  While it is still one of my pet peeves to hear "Oh that must be so nice to have the summers off" (honestly, anyone who grew up with a teacher as a parent realizes you never have time OFF, just time without students) it is a glorious thing to be able to read like I did as a child.

I remember the summer after eighth grade, when the teen librarian at the Warren Township library had to ask me to stop filling out the book forms for the summer reading program because my younger sisters and I were messing up the lottery system for prizes.  She said they had tried six times to pull a ticket before getting a non-Appert name.  Instead, I could just come once a week and pick out a free book (these were the prizes).  Books were something my sisters and I devoured- if you left yours lying around, someone else would jack it and finish it first- sometimes this was even my dad.

Today I gave myself permission to just read- no errands to run, no deadlines to meet, no plans to fulfill.  I decided to tackle some books I am using for a Literature Circle unit next year, so at the time of this post, I have just finished reading Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech, and before yoga this morning I read To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee.  Both will be options in a lit circle unit focusing on social issues and strong female characters. While I was certainly reading with my students in mind- is the subject matter of TKAM too mature for middle school? is the multi-layered plot of WTM too confusing for my struggling readers?  I also was blown away by the power of a beautiful book.  I cried when Salamanca finally made it to Lewiston, Idaho (a place not too far from where I live) and learned what had really happened to her family. (I am being careful about spoilers...you really should read both books.) I was angry at the choices people made in TKAM that resulted in innocent and guilty alike suffering at the end.

And this is why I give my students these texts.  To be able to empathize with anyone is a gift, and sometimes literature is one of the only ways that is possible for a middle-schooler.  I have three more books to go- Julie of the Wolves, Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, and Dicey's Song.  I'll see how many more I can finish today.