Blog Buddy Response #14

How did your peers inform your practice of new literacies and adolescent literature?

Blog Buddy Response #13

What have you learned about using new literacies by building your project, and how might you integrate some of these activities into your own classroom?

Blog Buddy Response #12

How are 8th grades students at Meyer Middle School in River Falls using new literacies to inform, express, entertain and persuade?

Blog Buddy Response #11

What are some strategies for keeping up new technologies?  
How can you find support?

Blog Buddy Response #10

How do digital literacy activities build community?

To Help Find Graphic Novels for Your Students

The following websites have been recommended to me by various personal and Internet sources:

• www.firstsecondbooks.com lists graphic novels that are good for discussion

• www.noflyingnotights.com  lists age-appropriate fun stuff 11-13 year olds will  like to read

• www.comicsintheclassroom.net  has some great comic recommendations and lesson plans  

Why Comics Make Reading Fun

Searching around the Internet, I found a great online article titled "Why Comics Make Reading Fun" by Martha Cornig (http://graphicnovelreporter.com/content/why-comics-make-reading-fun-feature-stories). In her article, she discusses anecdotal stories of friends, colleagues, and former students who expressed a love of reading that was inspired by comic books and/or graphic novels. She discusses how comics teach new words, how literacy statistics have increased in areas where comics are noted to be students "reading for fun" genre of choice, and how librarians, educators and parents have relayed stories of an increased interest in reading when comics become a choice for free reading time. She then goes on to give tips on how to bring reluctant readers and comic text together. I have to say that I have an increased appreciation for the comic/graphic genre after reading this article.

Blog Buddy Response #9

What are the advantages of using graphic novels in the adolescent literature classroom? What might be problematic?

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by A. Bechdel

I read Fun Home last week. My personal opinion -yuck. Never in a million years would anyone in the U.S. public school system be allowed to use that book in a middle school (or high school) curriculum. Content, language, graphics - all inappropriate. I even found the literary references (of which there were endless) boring and repetitive. We get it - your life is like The Odyssey. Blah. I didn't care.

I did finally get used to the graphic novel format. I read the entire book in about 2.5 hours. I can see where that format of writing could appeal to young readers. My 10 y.o. son and my 12 y.o. daughter love reading books in that format. They are both very visual learners so I am sure the images tap in to their imagination as they read.

I will, however, never encourage them to read Fun Home. Even if my daughter comes out as a lesbian.

Blog Buddy Response #8

In what ways would your evolving final adolescent literature project impact student learning?

Blog Buddy Response #7

Describe they ways you plan to asses digital responses?

Blog Buddy Response #6

In what ways can you help scaffold critical thinking through multimodal composition activities?

Book Review: Holes by L. Sachar

When I have seen the movie before I read a book, I have a lot of trouble NOT seeing the characters as the actors who portrayed them on film. I always prefer to read a book first and then see the movie. Unfortunately, I saw this book in film-format several years ago with my kids (who LOVE the story by the way). So Stanley will forever be a young Shia LaBeouf and Warden Walker will always be Sigourney Weaver in my minds' eye.

That being the case, I enjoyed the book. It had a more surreal story line for me than either the Sherman or the Spinelli novels, but I liked how the author wove the themes of destiny and fate and luck throughout the lives of the characters.

I grabbed Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by A. Bechdel to read next and found myself irritated by the comic book format. I think I will read Speak by L.H. Anderson next.

Blog Buddy Response #5

What are some different ways teachers can moderate the digital book circles?

Blog Buddy Response #4

How can digital book clubs or literature circles be utilized in the adolescent literature classroom?

Book Review: Stargirl by J. Spinelli

I LOVED Stargirl. I read it in a day and it was a completely emotional experience for me. I cringed for Stargirl as she was introduced, I applauded when she stayed true to herself throughout the beginning of the book, my heart ached for her as she attempted to conform and was ultimately disappointed, and I cheered  for her when she decided to return to her true self. I was not surprised when she left town at the end of the book. I enjoyed the opportunity to imagine her off somewhere else being exactly who she needed to be. As for Leo, I found his alternately  love-struck and angst-filled  perspective a fairly accurate reflection of teenage relationships.

However, after gushing over this novel I have decided I do not want to read the sequel. I want to just let these characters stay the way they were as this book ended. 

This book would be completely appropriate in an adolescent classroom today and could be used to spark some interesting discussion around individuality and conformity. 

Blog Buddy Response #3

How do Digital Character Sketch Journals help students summarize the text from a character's perspective?

How else might you use VoiceThreads in an adolescent literature classroom?

Book Review: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian (part 2)

Several days ago I finished reading the Sherman Alexie text. I liked it. I like the way the author chose to use humor through cartoon drawings to express thoughts and emotions he didn't completely describe with words. Using visual images to broaden his descriptions gave the reader the opportunity to take the message deeper if they so chose.
I think the subject matter was heavy and complicated but the author did a nice job of keeping it within the perspective of the adolescent mind. The author gave the young adult reader the opportunity to feel how these serious subjects affected the main character and yet watch how he processed and handled the realities of his life. I see no reason for this book to be banned anywhere. The issues discussed are real and pertinent to probably more students' lives than we want to openly admit.

Blog Buddy Response #2

How is multimodal composition integrated into literature study?

How does the thematic braiding activity sharpen connections between literature and the world?

Book banned in 2010

This book was banned in April 2010 by the school board in Stockton, Missouri.. Reasons were listed as "sexual language, "off-color" jokes, discussion of racism, alcoholism and violence." Funny - that sounds like most cable TV shows.

Book Review: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by S. Alexie (part 1)

My initial thoughts as I begin to read The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie:

1. Great - a book about a child with a disability who gets picked on. (I have a child with a disability). This book is either going to make me sad or angry. Or both.

2. I love the child's perspective on his physical disability. As a former nurse, I have always been amused by how the patient perceives medical information.

3. Yep, still not sure I really want to read this. Wait - a classmate mentioned finding an image of this book on a banned book list. Hmmm... maybe I really do want to read it?!?

4. I know I am a protective parent because I cannot for the life of me figure out why these parents would willingly send their child, with his issues, to an all-white school. Are they nuts?

5. Just finished the article on critical literacy. Time to check out more about this author and why he may have written this book.

Blog Buddy Response #1

What are the new literacies related to Adolescent Literature, and how do they enable critical literacy?