2012 VRC for Middle School

Sabrina CarnesiCrittenden Middle School

Newport News, VA

Genre: Juvenile NF 636

Setting: Zambia Meaning of Bulu

◦ (Bantu)= wild dog◦ (Northwest Africa) =

Serious-minded, responsible, and stable

Main Characters:◦ Steve & Anna Tolan◦ Bulu

Bulu: African Wonder Dogby Dick Houston

Problem: ◦ Steve was in an accident◦ He and Anna sold everything and moved from

England to Zambia to live and work in wildlife conservation.

◦ Warned not to get a dog if they were living in the bush / adopted Bulu / Runt of the litter break their hearts dogs were eaten by predators died from diseases

Themes:◦ Jack Russell

Known as Big Dog in Tiny Body Bulu cared for the orphaned animals

Monkeys, warthogs, baboons, and elephants Protected them from lions, cheetahs, floods, etc..

◦ Dog / Pet Care / Regional & Ethnic Views on household pets

◦ STARK CONTRAST – ELEVATED REALITY – LIFE OF DOG / LIFE OF HUMANS Human deaths by AIDS in Zambia and orphaned

children Anna insisting Bulu be seen immediately by vet

•Author’s Book Site http://buluafricanwonderdog.com/

Study Guide available for download:http://www.randomhouse.com/book/83299/bulu-african-wonder-dog-by-dick-houston#reader'sguide

http://www.ifaw.org/af/solr-search/pets%20in%20africa

Animal Rights Blog

http://www.ifaw.org/af/solr-search/pets%20in%20africa

Animal Rights Website

"There is darkness on the water. There is darkness on the land. There is darkness all around us, but I will hold your hand.

You are safe, my precious child. You are safe now, you are home.

We have found you and we love you. You will never be alone."

—All the Broken Pieces, PP. 11-12

All the Broken Pieces a novel in verse by Ann E. Burg

Genre: Fiction – Quick Read- has been compared to Hesse’s Out of the Dust

Setting: 2 years post Vietnam War…late 70s

Main Character: ◦ Matt Pin 12 years old / air

lifted out of Nam

Problem: ◦ Vietnamese birth / abandoned by Am.

Soldier dad ◦ Brought to USA for a better chance at age

10 (story starts 2 years later)◦ Although he learns piano and plays

baseball…the past haunts him and◦ Nightmares◦ School kids bully him

Rob blames Matt for his brother’s death Matt fears that if his adoptive parents really

knew what he did, they will not want him anymore

Theme◦ PTS Post Traumatic Stress◦ Conflict / Peer mediation◦ Points of View (POV) of Vietnam War from

Vietnamese perspective◦ Immigration◦ Suicide Bombing

http://www.adoptvietnam.org/adoption/babylift-index.htm

Genre: Fantasy Fiction – Quick Read

Setting: ◦ Modern day Noble Green,

PA◦ “The Safest Town on Earth”

Main Character: ◦ Daniel Corrigan

12 years old tween sleuth (Sherlock

Holmes is his idol

Powerless by Matthew Cody

Problem: ◦ Daniel moves to PA to care for his

ailing grandmother.◦ the superheroes in Daniels town

are plagued with loosing their powers once they turn 13. No memory of super life or super

friends◦ Daniel is asked to solve the

puzzle◦ Super power REPRESENTED

IN THE BOOK: STENCH – FLY – INVISIBILITY – MANIPULATE ELECTRICITY – STRENGTH – HEIGHTENED SENSES

Powerless by Matthew Cody

Author’s Website http://matthewcody.com/

The ultimate list of superheroes and villains in the comic book universe www.comicvine.com/characters/

Superhero Database: superheroes, villains, teams, and powers www.superherodb.com/

The Superheroes Quiz…Which Superhero are you http://www.thesuperheroquiz.com/

Chapter 1 is onlinehttp://www.matthewcody.com/Powerless_ChapterSampler_PDF_WEB.pdf

Genre: SyFy ◦ Quick Read◦ 1st Person◦ Humor that appeals to children and adults

Setting: mostly on the 1st civilian ship to space as it journeys around the moon

Main Character: ◦ Liam

12 years old Extra Tall Facial Hair Looks thirty / Often mistaken for a grown-up

◦ Florida Kirby Liam’s friend (daughter)

Problem◦ He enters a contest as a "dad" and wins a trip with his

"daughter" (friend, Florida) to a new theme park/thrill ride. When he and Florida arrive, they find out they're in China with three other dads and their sons; the object is to test drive a new top secret rocket

Cosmicby Frank Cottrell Boyce

Theme◦ Walking in someone else’s shoes◦ The game “War craft”◦ Manned Space flights / NASA / ◦ Father / son relationships / Parenting◦ Gravity◦ Technology today and in the future

Critique◦ Technology mentioned in book could possibly date it◦ Comparative language is used to allow his readers to

immerse themselves in Liam’s adventure since they will never have the same opportunity to experience such an exotic journey. “She shouted so loud that you could hear her words moving away from us over the dunes. Then we heard something that sounded like God hovering the world. It was the wind. A wind that threw sand at our legs and arms so hard it felt like we were being stabbed with a billion nano-knives” (p. 132).

Cosmicby Frank Cottrell Boyce

Private Craft Soars into Space July 14, 2004 http://articles.cnn.com/2004-06-21/tech/suborbital.test_1_test-pilot-mike-melvill-spaceshipone-burt-rutan?_s=PM:TECH

Virgin Galactic: Civilian Spaceship December 7, 2009 http://articles.cnn.com/2004-06-21/tech/suborbital.test_1_test-pilot-mike-melvill-spaceshipone-burt-rutan?_s=PM:TECH

YouTube Video of SpaceShipOne (1st Civilian Spaceship) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29uQ6fjEozI

Update on Civilian Space Travelhttp://moonandback.com/2011/09/03/the-virgin-galactic-story-the-future-of-civilian-space-travel/

Genre: Fiction – Quick Read – emotional realism

Setting: ◦ Modern day suburbs of Las Vegas

Main Character:◦ Ella Cartwright – Bullied because

she’s of mixed race and discoloration of skin

◦ Zachery – suffers from a mental illness that causes escapism into a fantasy world

◦ Bailey James – likes to be the center of attention – spins situations to make it look like he’s on top – only other black in Ella’s school

Camo Girlby Kekla Magoon

Problem: ◦ a main character with

self-esteem issues due to her mottled coloration of her face

◦ another character who at first comes across as funny/quirky & later is discovered to have a mental illness and need of professional help

Theme:◦ Mental Illness◦ Bullying◦ Camouflaged reality◦ vitiligo

Author’s website: http://keklamagoon.com/

Mental Health Issues in Youth Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLMhBrcxwWU

Identifying mental health issues in teens http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/711264_3

The National Vitiligo Foundation, Inc. http://nvfi.org/index.php

Vitiligo Support International http://www.vitiligosupport.org/

Here’s what vitiligo looks like:

Genre: Historical Fiction Setting:

◦ 1941 ◦ WWII, Women’s Airforce

Service Pilots (WASP) Main Character:

Ida Mae Jones (Jonesey) Problem:

◦ Jonesey is a light skinned white that passes for black in order to be a pilot in the Air Force. This forces her to live a lie concerning her family and friends.

Flygirlby Sherri L. Smith

Theme: At what risk do you take to fulfill your dreams?

◦ Stay true to yourself◦ Preferential treatment outside and

within a race her best friend observes that she is

“Little Miss Pretty Hair [with:] Creamy White Skin” (p. 9)

◦ Female pilots◦ WWII◦ How the home front helped

Ration cards / saving bacon fat for ammo and medicine

◦ Jim Crow Laws / segregation◦ Career choices for women in the

40s◦ 2010 Congressional Medal of

Honor to WASP program members

Flygirlby Sherri L. Smith

Women’s Airforce Service Project http://wingsacrossamerica.us/wasp/

Will Latinos become the next group to pass for white? http://www.newstaco.com/2012/03/07/are-latinos-going-to-start-passing-as-white/

Anita Florence Hemmings passed for white to get acceptance into Vassar in 1893. http://panachereport.com/channels/hip%20hop%20gallery/PassingForWhite.htm

Genre: Fiction Setting:

◦ Young Oaks AFB, North Carolina

Main Character: ◦ Bo – son of base commander◦ Gari – Bo’s cousin from

Seattle◦ Ms. Loupe DOD teacher who

uses improv techniques with 6th graders to work through skills development and remediation

Operation YESby Sara Lewis Holmes

Problem:◦ Sibling rivalry among cousins◦ Miss Loupe becomes distant and loses

enthusiasm after her brother is MIA in Afghanistan

◦ In an effort to bring Ms. Loupe back to normal, the students stage a production for their base community to help them to cope with the unexpectedness of war tragedies

• Theme Department of Defense Schools(DOD) Modern Day Military Base Living and

employment Sibling rivalry Behavior expectations at school The war in Iraq and Afghanistan Working with others Stepping out of your comfort zone

◦ Personal Critique Slightly construed characteristics of

teaching methods and situations

Department of Defense Schools in Europe http://www.eu.dodea.edu/

The Use of improv theatrical technique for urban classrooms http://www.eastsideinstitute.org/Education_assets/The%20Developing%20Teachers%20Fellowship%20Program-%20Use%20of%20Improv%20Theatre.pdf

There actual is a technique for using improv to teach skills in K8 classrooms!

The Second City Guide to Improv in the Classroom: Using Improvisation to Teach Skills and Boost Learning. ISBN 9780787996505. Wiley, 2008.

Genre: Historical Fiction ◦ Based on the story of

the 1st Japanese to come to the USA

Setting: 1843 Japan and New England

Main Character: Nakahama Manjiro◦ Age 14◦ poor

Heart of a Samuraiby Margi Preus

Problem: Nakahama wants to be a samurai, but due to rank

this will never happen… Works as a fisherman Is shipwrecked w/4 others and saved by an

American whaling ship in 1841 Japan tainted all citizens that mixed w/outsiders

(barbarians)◦ Nakahama was the only fisherman that mingled with

the Americans…because he was sooo fascinated by the art of whaling and the English language & comes to America w/the captain

◦ Lives in usa for about 10 years and attends school◦ Earns money in the Gold Rush / returns to Japan / and

is then arrested as a spy until policies shift & Japan makes efforts to communicate with the outside world

◦ Earns rank of samurai for credit of helping Japan to overcome 250 years of isolation to enter into a relationship with the USA

Theme Elements of natural history, whaling, sailing, prejudice, politics, courage and determination America and Japan pre Civil War years

Heart of a Samuraiby Margi Preus

The 4-Tiered Class System of Feudal Japan: farmers / peasants, artisans, merchants, Samurai class http://asianhistory.about.com/od/japan/p/ShogJapanClass.htm

Heart of a Samurai Cliff Notes available for a fee on line - http://www.enotes.com/heart-of-a-samurai

Background Information on storyline is available on author’s website

Genre: Fiction – Raw Adventure

“…I had four fingernails split all the way down the middle. It felt like some had set them on fire.“

Setting: New York City & Tibet Main Character:

◦ Peak Marcello Age 14 Addicted to extreme climbing

◦ Joshua Woods Peaks famous mountain climbing dad

Peakby Roland Smith

Problem: ◦ Peak is arrested for climbing a sky scraper in New York,

where he lives. ◦ Given the option to go to juvie hall or live with

biological dad in Thailand.◦ Dad encourages Peak to be the youngest person to

climb Mt. Everest…but it has to be done before his 15th birthday

Critique: I learned three main things from this book... ◦ 1) "...what makes a story unique is not necessarily the

information in the story but what the writer chooses to put in or leave out. (pg. 146-147)"

◦ 2)"You don't have to be alone to feel alone. (pg. 154)" ◦ 3) Sacrifice. Think of others before yourself.

Theme◦ Mountaineering Climbing Safety Techniques◦ Dangers & thrills from extreme sports…”frozen dead

bodies litter the paths to the summit”◦ Father / son relationships◦ Geography of Tibet and Mt. Everest◦ Selfishness (a trait of those that are intensely single-

minded

Study Guide for Roland Smith books available to the public!http://rolandsmith.com/curriculum/index.htm

This is a site that has info on mountain climbing schools that teaches you how to tie ropes, etc. http://santiamalpineclub.org/mountain/climbing/schools/instruction/

Real life 13 year old American, Jordan Romero, reaches the summit of Mt. Everest in May of 2010 (CBS News World) http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-202_162-6508878.html

Climb Mt. Everest (National Geographic)

http://www.nationalgeographicexpeditions.com/expeditions/nepal-everest-basecamp-trek/detail?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=NGExpeditions&utm_content=General

Price needed to climb Mt. Everest in the tens of thousands –Equipment alone is between $8,000 to $15, 000 – Airfare between $2,500 to $8,000.

http://outdoors.whatitcosts.com/mt-everest.htm

Mount Everest Fact Sheet http://www.mnteverest.net/history.htm l

Genre: Space and Time (Science?) Fiction

Elements of “A Wrinkle in Time”

Setting: 1970s New York City

Main Character: Miranda ◦ 6th grader – age 12 –

introvert and single child syndrome

Sal ◦ Miranda’s best friend

When You Reach Meby Rebecca Stead

Problem: ◦ Miranda starts getting notes that tells her

about things that are going to happen in the future

◦ As she tries to solve the clues, she is drawn out of herself and becomes more aware of the needs of others around her

◦ The puzzle gradually comes together on the last day

Theme: ◦ Rehabilitation in prisons◦ $20,000 Pyramid◦ Homelessness◦ Racism◦ Single mothers◦ Dead-end jobs◦ Self esteem \ self awareness◦ Friendship◦ NYC neighborhoods

Author’s Website: http://www.rebeccasteadbooks.com/

Discussions Questions at LitLovers: http://www.litlovers.com/reading-guides/15-young-adult-fiction/1136-when-you-reach-me-stead?start=3

Study Guide available for purchase: http://www.novel-ties.com/estore/product/LGLS3813I/