Whirligig Review by Ms. George

This week I read Whirligig by Paul Fleischman. I loved the message of this book. To me, the theme is summed up perfectly on page 70. Fleischman wrote, “The effects of an act traveled far beyond one’s knowledge. Everything we did – good, bad, and indifferent – sent a wave rolling out of sight. He wondered what his own accounting, generations later, would look like.” I tell my students this same message weekly. I ask them, “How are you going to contribute to your community? Are your contributions going to make your community a better place or a worse place?” A lot of the time my students reply, “I don’t do anything. I don’t make contributions.” I try to explain to them that all actions, or inaction, shape the world we live in. I think this book will help them see that.

An American Plague by Ms. George

Victims from the Influenza Epidemic of 1918

A few years ago, I got on a plague/epidemic kick. At that time, I read half-a-dozen books all about diseases. Some of these books included:

• The Great Influenza by John M. Barry
  
• Invisible Enemies: Stories of Infectious Diseases by Jeanette Farrell
• Dr. Jenner and the Speckled Monster: The Discovery of the Smallpox Vaccine by Albert Marrin.

This week I was assigned to read An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793 by Jim Murphy for my adolescent literature class. Like the other titles, this book was terrifying.

Jim Murphy described, in detail, the symptoms of Yellow Fever and the panic that gripped the city of Philadelphia during the 1793 epidemic. Murphy wrote, "The skin and eyeballs turned yellow, as red blood cells were destroyed, causing the bile pigment bilirubin to accumulate in the body; nose, gums, and intestines began bleeding; and the patient vomited stale, black blood" (pages 13-14). How could I not recommend this book?

I also have to recommend Fever, 1973 by Laurie Halse Anderson. This book is historic fiction. It follows the lives of fictional and historical people during Philadelphia's Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1973.

American Born Chinese

I just finished reading American Born Chinese, a graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang. Although I had never read a graphic novel (nor was I planning on doing so), I had to because it was assigned in my adolescent literature class. The novel contains three different stories that cleverly weave together in the end. It contained a lot of humor and had an important message about accepting who you are and overcoming the desire to fit in. I highly recommend it!!

To read more about American Born Chinese or Yang's other books, click HERE.

One of my favorite pages.

Rachel's Challenge by Ms. George

Our school has recently started the program Rachel's Challenge. This program is ran by the family of Rachel Scott, a victim of the Columbine shootings. On January 30th, the student body at our school was introduced to the program and challenged to accept "Rachel's Challenge." By accepting the challenge, students promise to:

1. Eliminate Prejudice by Looking for the Best in Others
2. Dream - Set goals, Write goals, and Keep a journal
3. Choose positive Influences
4. Use Kind Words and Small Acts of Kindness
5. Start a Chain Reaction with Family and Friends

These 5 challenges were described in detail during a one-hour assembly. The student body was excellent during the assembly. They were attentive and quiet. Plus, I didn't see any cell phones or I-Pods - this is miraculous. After the assembly the students had a lot of positive things to say about the challenge. I think it will be an important program to help bring the student body together.

A Rainy Day by Ms. George

Yesterday when I looked outside, I noticed it was raining. The sky was dark and gloomy. As I went to grab my red umbrella, I heard a crack of thunder that made me jump. Because I did not want to get muddy, I put on my old boots. I also grabbed my black raincoat. Now, I was ready for the rainy walk to school.

Adolescent Literature by Ms. George

I'm currently enrolled in an Adolescent Lit class through BYU. Throughout the course we will be reading a dozen different books written for teenagers. I just finished the first book, Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World: The Extraordinary True Story of Shackleton and the Endurance by Jennifer Armstrong. It was an excellent book. It tells the true story of Ernest Shackleton's attempt to cross the continent of Antarctica. Attempt is the key word there because Shackleton and his boat Endurance never even made it to Antarctica (the boat became trapped in frozen ice 100 miles of the coast). The book tells the amazing survival story of Endurance's crew as they were trapped at the bottom of the world for almost 20 months!! Here's how Armstrong ended the book:

Shackleton had failed in his mission. And yet what he and his crew did succeed in doing in 1915-1916 was one of the most incredible feats of survival ever recorded. Every stage of their journey seemed more remarkable than the last. From January 1915, when Endurance was trapped in the ice, during its helpless drift through the Weddell Sea and its destruction in October, to the crew's long, miserable months of camping on the ice, the Boss had held his men together under terrible conditions. Their three-boat passage in April 1916 to Elephant Island was accomplished in spite of enormous odds. The voyage of the James Caird over 800 miles of winter ocean rivals any small-boat journey in history. Shackleton's trek across the unmapped peaks of South Georgia was the first in that hostile mountain range, and the survival of the crew in their hut on Elephant Island over one Antarctic winter is almost too much to believe. And yet it all happened Shackleton brought them all home.

Anyways, I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a fast and fascinating read. Here are a few pictures I found of Shackleton, his crew, and the Endurance:

Endurance after it was trapped in the ice pack.

Ernest Shackleton

Endurance after an ice floe hit it.

The crew with a lifeboat, after abandoning Endurance.

My Favorite Things by Senorita Jorge

With the Christmas Season comes a bombardment of holiday songs. Once such song is "My Favorite Things." You may recall this holiday favorite from Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical, "The Sound of Music." Because of this song, I have been reflecting upon my favorite things and I thought I'd share a few. (Please keep in mind these are in no particular order).

• Cell phones and text messaging
• British accents
• J.M.W. Turner
• Teaching kids how to read (There's nothing better)
• The words: fabulous, fantastic, and brilliant
• Maeve Binchy novels
• Black licorice
• Christmas lights
• DVR
• Honey-baked ham
• My bed and fluffy duvet
• TLC's Miami Ink
• Being called, "Little One," by my mom
• Carbs, especially soup bowls
• Television
• Cold Stone's Cake Batter Icecream
• The Muppet's Christmas Carol

I'd love to hear what tops your favorite things list.

The Nutcracker by Senorita Jorge

On December 5, 2007, I took my students to Capitol Theatre to see the ballet, The Nutcracker. All of the students behaved very well - they were respectful and attentive to all the performers. For the most part, everyone had a really good time. The students commented on how much they enjoyed the building, the costumes, and the dances. Almost everyone enjoyed the first half better than the second half. They loved the fight scene between the mice and the Nutcracker's army - especially when they fired the cannon.



To learn more about Capitol Theatre, click HERE.



To learn more about The Nutcracker or Ballet West, click HERE.

Ms. George, Why did you have a substitute? by Senorita Jorge

Last month I participated in the Jordan School District's Amazing Race. JSD's Amazing Race is based on the CBS show where teams race around the world from check point to check point doing challenges. Instead of racing around the world, our teams (made up mostly of geography teachers) race around SLC using GPS units to locate check points. We also had to do several challenges. This was the second year I'd participated. Last year, my school won!! To read more about last year, click HERE.

This year we did not, but we had tons of fun while our students stayed at school with substitute teachers. Here are a few pictures:

Me, Ms. Logan, & Ms. Allen checking our GPS units at the Trax Station.

Me, Ms. Allen, Ms. Bradfield, & Ms. Logan at the first Pit Stop.

Me climbing the rock wall. This was our last challenge. One team member was to climb to the top and retrieve our team flag. I was chosen to complete it (even though we had a P.E. teacher on our team) because I was the only one who had ever rock climbed before.

Still Climbing . . . Half-way there.

Still Climbing . . . Almost got it.

Abandoned House by Ms. George

The abandoned house stood in the middle of an empty field. The only sign of life were the black ravens that circled the dark sky. Because the roof had completely collapsed, the stone chimney was the only structure sticking out from where the missing roof should have been. All the windows had been broken long ago, leaving dark holes instead of shiny glass. Fog rolled through the dying weeds that covered the ground, entered the window openings, and continued out the dilapidated structure.

New School Year by Ms. George

A new school year means new voices on Ms. George's Writing Center. Continue to check in throughout the year to see what my new students have published.

Summer Break by Ms. George

Summer Break - How do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

1. No trabajo, obvio. (Translation: Obviously, I don't work.)

2. BBQs - What's not to love? Hamburgers, hot dogs, chips, dips, veggie trays, and to top it off, popsicles.

3. Swimming. Okay, let's be honest - more laying out than swimming. Imagine, laying on an over-sized towel until beads of sweat appear all over you body. Then jumping into the pool just to get out and do it all over again.

4. Summer Fashion - I'm not a big fan of shorts (in fact, I only own one pair and they're actually my brothers) but, I do love short skirts, summer dresses, sandals, and pedicures.

5. Two words - Road Trip.

6. Summer Blockbusters - You know what I'm talking about; ridiculously over-budgeted movies with even more ridiculous plots. I love them!!

7. Quintessential Americana - baseball games, parades, fireworks, camping (and when I say camping, I mean going up the canyon, roasting marshmallows, and returning home that evening).

8. A return to my nocturnal ways. Seriously, is it normal to go to bed at 10:30 pm? NO! 3:00 am? Yes, that's more like it.

9. It almost goes without saying, but the weather. For those who know me, you know I'm almost always cold. However, for three glorious months - June, July, & August - my teeth rarely chatter.

10. Summer Reading. Yes, I actually get to read books that weren't written for teenagers. I know, it's almost unheard of.