Ugh, Papers

I feel like this is the response whenever I assign any kind of writing to my students, "ugh, we have to write a paper...whhhhyyyy??"   Mitty Blake, the main character in Caroline B. Cooney's Code Orange, is no different. When told he has to write a term paper on an infectious disease he does what any self-respecting student would do-procrastinate.

Mitty finally chooses smallpox and once he realizes his sources have to include actual books (shudder) and not just Internet sites he raids his mothers book collection.  (It's not really hers, part of Mitty's mom's job is to decorate houses for wealthy clients and they want libraries that look nice so she always has a stash of books with nice bindings).  Side note-if you only have a library because you want your house to look nice and your only criteria for what books go into said library is that they have nice binding please pass your library on to me or someone who will actually use it for books they will actually read.

Luckily, one of these old books is on infectious diseases. It also contains an envelope with strange little scabs that Mitty immediately touches.  They dissolve because they are so old and Mitty inhales all of that dust.  Turns out these were scabs from a smallpox patient.  Can the virus survive that long outside a host?  Will Mitty single-handedly be responsible for the return of a disease once eradicated by vaccines?

Of course, I'm not going to tell you.  You just have to read the book yourself.  And I very much recommend that you do.  Code Orange was the perfect mix of excitement, suspense, and background info on infectious diseases.  Seriously, it is worth a read.


Writing a paper...that's kids stuff.  

And the Half-Blood Prince

Major spoiler alert ahead. I'm not kidding. If you haven't read the books, don't read anymore.  Click off this page and go read the books.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is the first book where I openly wept over the death of a character.  Dumbledore dies in this book and it was gut wrenching for me.  This post is a tribute to Dumbledore, a wizard who more than deserved all the accolades given to him-most especially the chocolate frog card.

But nobody does a tribute like buzzfeed so I give you with their wonderful list proving that Dumbledore was the sassiest wizard of all time.



nitwit, oddment, blubber, tweak...that's kids stuff

It's Better When You're Older

This is my standard response when people ask how I could possibly teach middle school.  It's better when you're older, when you're not living it.  I don't think anybody looks back with fondness on their middle school years but I honestly love working with middle schoolers.

Make no mistake it's still a hard time.  Your feelings change all the time, your friends are also changing and all of the sudden there is all this pressure to be who you are when you don't even know who you are.  Everyone starts expecting you to act like an adult and if that wasn't enough you also start wanting a little romance but have no idea how to make that happen.

Wendelin Van Draanen's Flipped captures all of these feelings perfectly.  The story is told from the perspective of both Julianna and Bryce, two eighth graders who also happen to be neighbors and they couldn't be more different.  But Flipped is about so much more than the awkward relationship between young teens who can't decide if they like each other, hate each other, or like like each other-even though that aspect of the story was incredibly entertaining and I definitely felt my middle school self relating to Julianna.

Flipped also tackles hard issues surrounding families and abilities but it is never preachy.  Instead it's honest and real and Van Draanen lets the reader make all the judgements.  I loved Flipped and will definitely be recommending it to many students this year.  But even though I loved the story I do not envy Julianna and Bryce.  I would tell them exactly what I tell my students, "It's better when you're older."

Righting yourself when you've flipped...that's kids stuff

And the Order of the Phoenix

As I'm sure you all know from the title, this is another Harry Potter post.  As with all of my previous Potter Posts SPOILER ALERT. 

Now that we are left with only those who have read the book I would like to use this post to give a HUGE shout-out to J.K.Rowling.  One of the things I stress to my students is that when we read we don't just become better readers, we can use that as a tool to become better writers.  As a result we spend some of our time talking about the authors craft (for you non teacher types-or students who haven't been paying attention-this is the way an author writes, what they do to make a good story).

J.K.Rowling is the perfect example of someone who not just has a fabulous story, but is someone who has clearly spent a lot of time working on her craft.  The first sign that Rowling has perfected her craft is that when you originally read the book you don't even notice how it is written because you are so engrossed in the story.  It is only when you re-read the books that you pick up on many of the wonderful things she has done. 

Herbology class isn't just a way to show more about Hogwarts and what types of things wizards learn, but it's also a chance to introduce plants that come up later in the books. A visit to St. Mungo's isn't just a chance to see Mr. Weasley recovering from his injuries, it's a chance to see whatever happened to Lockhart, and it sets the stage for future surprises. The Pensive isn't just a glimpse at cool gadgets that wizards have it's a way to use flashback without actually flashing back.  

What is truly remarkable is that when you re-read the books you don't think, "ugh, she gave everything away here" or, "she only wrote this so she didn't have to explain it later." You think, 'oh how clever."  And what's even more clever is this isn't just within the book it's within the series.  Little details from book one help you understand something in book five.  And that is why the best books are worth re-reading.  We often re-watch our favorite movies, so why does it seem strange to re-read our favorite books?  

That's enough of my rambling.  I challenge all of you to re-read all of your favorite books and maybe think a little bit about the author's craft as you read.  

Being clever...that's kids stuff.  

It's a Mystery

I have to be honest, mystery is not my preferred genre.  I get stressed out whenever I read a mystery.  I'm not the kind of person who tries to guess the ending or figure it out as I read so I feel all the pressure and suspense of the moment.  That being said Joan Lowery Nixon's The Kidnapping of Christina Lattimore was a nice change of pace for me.

Christina Lattimore is from a wealthy Houston family.  After a fight with her grandmother, the family matriarch and holder of the family fortune, Christina is kidnapped.  But the kidnapping seems a bit off.  Something is not quite right, and that feeling only continues throughout the book.  I would love to say more but I really can't without spoiling the ending.  Is Christina found?  Are the kidnappers brought to justice?  Is everything as it seems?

While mystery will never be my favorite genre, I have to admit I liked the excitement and suspense of this book.  I think it helped that the book wasn't overly long.  At just under 200 pages you could read it in one sitting, say on a rainy Saturday, so you can see how everything works out.  The reading team at my school has discussed doing a mystery as one of the anchor books for this coming school year.  I think this book may be a great anchor book.  It has enough appeal for all types of students and I think they would be more willing to engage in a book as a class when they want to figure out what happens.  

Solving the mystery...that's kids stuff.  

And the Goblet of Fire

The annual Harry Potter Summer Re-Read continues with Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.  The dust jacket describes this book as, "the pivotal fourth novel in the seven-part tale of Harry Potter's training as a wizard and coming of age."  That's exactly what this novel is, pivotal. Warning this post has spoilers.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione aren't children anymore, a fact that becomes painfully obvious when they all try to find dates for the Yule Ball.  Those scenes reminded me of the vibe around school when everyone is trying to find a date to the 8th grade dance.  But this novel is also pivotal in that there is more focusing on the wizarding world outside of Hogwarts.

Towards the beginning of the novel we have the Quidditch World cup, our first chance to see a collection of adult wizards.  There is also an added emphasis on what kinds of jobs are available for wizards once they finish school.  We have heard hints of jobs at the Ministry of Magic but this is the first time we get to see more of the scope of this enormous organization.  But that's just the beginning, you could teach at a wizarding school-and there's more schools than just Hogwarts, work with dragons, work for the bank (in ways that seem much more exciting then the bank tellers of our world), become an auror, play quidditch professionally, or even open a joke shop.

It made me wonder what would I do if I was in the Harry Potter universe.  To be honest, I didn't need to think about it long at all, I knew almost instantly I would teach at Hogwarts.  I love being a teacher, Professor McGonagall is one of my favorite characters (and teaching idols), and I love Hogwarts.  The question remains what subject would I teach?  History of Magic has an appeal as does charms.  I couldn't teach transfiguration because I would want to teach alongside McGonagall not take her job.  What would your job be?

Finding a date...that's kids stuff.  

I Don't Buy It

I read once that when people read a book or see a play or a movie they go in willing to suspend reality.  Some more than others.  This perfectly explains why my husband always guesses the ending and I am more surprised-I have completely suspended reality and he is more skeptical.  Long time readers of this blog will know that I love fantasy, dragons, magic, wizards, mythical creatures, the more the better.  When I re-read Harry Potter every summer I buy all of it, every year, I have completely suspended my own reality and have entered that of the book.

I say all this so that everyone knows where I'm coming from when I say my only thought on finishing On the Blue Comet was, "I don't buy it."  Rosemary Wells The Blue Comet starts with the life of Oscar Ogilive, a young boy living with his dad in the 1920's.  Even though Oscar's mom has died, Oscar and his father have a happy life together.  Dad goes to work while Oscar goes to school and takes care of the house.  In the evening they play with trains.


By play with trains I mean they save their pennies to buy new train cars and use their creativity to build inexpensive replicas of the layouts found in the catalog.  Both Oscar and his dad love the trains. Life is good; but, as we all know, in 1929 the stock market crashes and Oscar's dad can no longer find work.  Oscar has to live with his aunt while his dad goes to California hoping to find a steady job.

This is when things get weird.  Oscar goes to visit his trains, that they had to sell to the bank owner, when the bank is robbed.  His extreme fear somehow makes it possible for him to jump onto the train layout and end up at the actual train station.  This I could buy (even though the first third of the book contained no trace of anything unusual), but when Oscar arrives in California he has traveled forward in time 10 years. The train jumping and time travel then continues in the rest of the book.

I just didn't buy it.  I couldn't get into the story because I couldn't accept the premise.  And I can accept a lot if it works in the world of the book.  It just felt like the author decided to throw in a little time travel and expected the reader to just accept it.  I can't wait to see what the members of next years Reading Olympic's team think of this book.

Suspending reality...that's kids stuff.