Re: Helllllllllllllllllp please!

[Marji Morris <mmorris@salemschools.com>]

oh, boy, what fun you're having.i can only imagine the quality of the 
fiction produced by the parent's company.

i went through something like that many moons ago with lord of the 
flies in a 7th grade honors class. what i ended up doing was developing 
alternate lessons on other books that the kids could read if their 
parents objected to what the class was doing. i kind of put them on 
independent study--except i gave them vocab lists and assignments. i 
guess it was more like alternative study. they left the room to 
read/work when the rest of the class was discussing the book. not ideal, 
but one possibility. you could give this kid swiss family robinson or 
some old (challenging) classic.
other alternatives--
stargirl
walk two moons(whoops, grandma gets shot)
Neither of these are as challenging as the books you've been reading. 
any good literature deals with conflict. ya books (and adult books) have 
a lot of REALISTIC action. right now i'm stumped.
what about doing literature circles and pick a theme, such as wwii or 
prejudice and offer choices. then the parent/kid/you could put your kid 
in one that wasn't so objectionable to the family?
m


Trisha MacKenzie wrote:
> I'm having a crisis of confidence after 16 years.  I'm still standing, 
> but I have been pummeled the last two weeks regarding reading 
> selections in my 8th grade classes.  I'm new this year at a very 
> high-achieving school.  Because I'm new, I'm expected to hold the line 
> a 30 year veteran established until I've proven myself, I guess.  A 
> parent, who by the way owns/owned a company called Positive Books for 
> Children, is unpleasantly challenging the established curriculum -- 
> she's angry that the tone of the books and short stories so far are 
> "violent" --
>  
> We're just coming out of a unit on Poe (Tell Tale Heart, Fall of the 
> House of Usher, The Black Cat, Annabel Lee, The Raven) -- prior to 
> that Seedfolks and a Depression era novel that I don't like called 
> Nothing to Fear.  Prior to that -- Marigolds by Eugenia Collier, 
> Ransom of Red Chief, The Day I Got Lost, and lots of poetry.
>  
> So.
>  
> Can I please tap into this group's broad experience, and ask for 
> titles of short stories and novels that YOU think have a positive, 
> uplifting tone for that woman -- and for me that have depth, 
> analytical possibilities, and a multitude of teaching opportunities.  
> I'm not asking for much, am I?
>  
> Oh . . . and we start Elie Wiesel's Night in early February.  That 
> will thrill her.
>  
> Thanking you in advance.
>  
> Trisha
>
> .·´*