Among the Hidden

In our group, we were assigned the sci-fi section of the text book. We were to read The Giver as a group and discuss it in the AET Zone. Then we all picked another book from the section to discuss. The one I selected was similar to The Giver in a lot of ways. The name of the book was called Among the Hidden and it was also set in the future. It was about a 12 year old boy and his family. He was the youngest of three boys. However, that was a problem in this story because the government would only allow families to have two children, so he remained in hiding most of his life. If the government (or population police) found out about him, they would kill him, so he lived his life in fear, in the confines of his home. He later makes the decision (he really doesn't have a choice b/c of the events that take place in the story) to obtain a fake ID and leave his family to go to a private school, disguised as someone else. The story leaves off at that point. However, the author wrote a sequal to the book. I enjoyed the story so much, that I purchased the sequal as well and I'm reading it now. I'll post on it next.

Looking forward to chatting with students

I've been reading the book Boy and I'm looking forward to chatting with the students about the character in this book. I'm sure they have many stories to share that are similar to the main character's and I'm looking forward to hearing about those experiences. I think it will be good experience for the children to read and discuss the books. I think one of the best things about being a language arts teacher and a media coordinator is that you get paid to talk about books! What better way to spend your profession that sharing something you love with future generations. I hope that the students will benefit from our discussions.

Chapter 7 Group

My group has decided to read and discuss The Giver. It is a science fiction book about a Utopian society that strips the people there of all the beautiful things/events in the world in order to help them avoid any kind of pain. They euthanize people who do not meet their standards. The author poses the question (thematically): What is more valuable, freedom of choice or protection from pain? It really gives the reader a great deal to think about. It is one of my very favorite books (of all time). I usually do not like science fiction all that much as a genre, but this one really breaks the mold for me. I feel like it is very philosophical and even hits on some existentialist themes.