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Read Around the World
Students chose from a selection of Read Around the World Books that take place in other countries or that feature characters from around the world. They will do assignments and discussions, projects, and a test each month.
Monthly Minimum Goals:
Read and log 10-15 pages for each in class reading assignment.
Read and log 15-20 pages outside of class.
Finish at least one book and total at least
Read Around The World – U.docx
Primary Source Site
http://www.primarysource.org/resourceguides
World Location Finder
http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/mapping/outline-map/?ar_a=1
Homeless Bird
http://www.enotes.com/homeless-bird-qn
Estrella's Quinceanera
http://www.papertigers.org/reviews/USA/papertigers/EstrellasQuinceanera.html
Bamboo People
http://resources.primarysource.org/content.php?pid=177307&sid=1492440
http://www.mitaliperkins.com/Bamboo%20People%20Activity%20&%20Discussion%20Guide-2.pdf
Boys without Names
http://files.harpercollins.com/PDF/ReadingGuides/0061857602.pdf
child labor
Secrets in the Fire
http://site.annickpress.com/catalog/catalog.aspx?Title=Secrets+in+the+Fire
global landmine crisis
http://www.international.gc.ca/mines/background-apercu/index.aspx?view=d
http://www.state.gov/www/global/arms/rpt_9809_demine_toc.html
http://www.taecorp.com/adsc/landmine_crisis.htm
adopt a minefield
http://www.landmines.org/Page.aspx?pid=374
A Step from Heaven
http://www.teenreads.com/reviews/a-step-from-heaven
The Crossing
This is the story of a fourteen-year-old orphan boy living on the streets of Tijuana whose life is changed forever by an encounter with an alcoholic American soldier. Manny Bustos's life on the streets is hard -- constantly hungry, never knowing where he'll lay his head at night, having to run from predators of all kinds. He dreams of making "the crossing" over the Rio Grande to a better life in America.
In real time, the story covers only a few days. Paulsen paints the scenes in minute detail. His writing style here makes me think of Hemingway: simple sentences, clear phrasing. I was impressed by this book. Though it's gritty, it's not explicit and would be suitable for younger readers, tweens as well as teens.
Connected book:
Homelessness
The Breadwinner
http://www.woostersch.org/library/Breadwinner/Breadwinner.html
Keeping Corner
Plot Summary:
Keeping Corner is the story of Leela, a 12 year-old Indian girl living with her family in the rural village of Jameel, in the Indian state of Gujarat in 1918. Leela's family is Brahman, the highest caste in India's strict class system. At 2 she was engaged to Ramanlal, a young boy from another Brahman family. At nine they were married, though Leela would continue to live with her family on their estate until her anu, a ceremony officially welcoming the girl into her new family. Just months before her anu, Ramanlal is bitten by a poisonous snake and dies. This makes Leela a child widow. According to her caste, she must shave her head, wear only the widow's chidri, and stay in the house for a year, keeping corner for her dead husband. Leela, who had been a happy, rather spoiled young girl with a love for fashion and jewelry, quickly falls into despair, wondering how she can live the rest of her life being shunned by her community for being bad luck. She finds help and solace in her brother, Kanubhai, her teacher Saviben, a lower caste woman named Shani, and ultimately in Gandhi's non-violent movement to overthrow the English occupying their country.
This novel is well-suited for classroom use, if for no other reason than the insight it gives about a culture foreign to many of us. Additionally, it could be used in a social justice context, with it's themes of feminism, classism, civil disobedience, and standing up for what is right despite hundreds of years of tradition. Listed below are teaching resources I've found for this book.
Intermediate Lesson Plans: The Rights of the Child
Wild Geese Guides: Keeping Corner