Mrs. Kirkpatrick's Bookshelf

Anderson, Laurie Halse. (2011).  Speak . NY: Square Fish. Melinda Sordino begins high school as a pariah. She is an outcast, shunned by her peers for calling the cops to a party over the summer. Melinda is terribly depressed, and unable to discuss the events that led her to call the police the night of the party to anyone. This story follows her journey through depression, as she grapples to cope with the traumatic events of that night. Her grades slip, her parents are either absent or fighting with each other, and her best friend no longer wants anything to do with her. Her art teacher, a kind and understanding man, commissions Melinda to create an art project featuring a tree. While working on this project all year, Melinda learns how to express herself through her art and with the encouragement of a fellow art student and the compassion of her art teacher, she finally finds her voice. I believe every high school student should read this book. It shines a light on the truly dar...

Textbook Reflections  Chapter 1: This chapter discusses why we share literature with children. Ten reasons and/or benefits are highlighted:  1. Because it is fun. We enjoy sharing about the books we love, and as we do, our enthusiasm spreads and grows in the children around us. When children are having fun, they are engaged.  2. It aids in the acquisition of language and language development. Our vocabulary and language development is directly related to the amount of time spent reading or being read to.  3. Reading develops empathy. Reading allows you to experience empathetic bonds while reading, without having the experience in your real life. Empathy develops kinder and more patient people. 4. Supports life-long readers. As children read more and more books, they can discover if they are serial readers (reading the same genre, authors, etc.) or series readers (reading books that are part of a series). Knowing what children like to read helps us grow reade...