Literary Luminator: Section 3

I chose three quotes to study for this section of the text: Her precious watch. I'm not proud of this now, but that sound, which echoed in the tiled hallway, made me really happy. I sucked my bottom lip so that I wouldn't smile. - p.93 I thought this quote was important because it emphasized the strong feelings that Miranda has against her classmate Julia. I found it interesting that Miranda had these negative feelings after Julia had just helped her deal with Annemarie's seizure. Also, these feelings seem so hate-filled and I thought it was interesting to see such strong feelings coming from Miranda. To the general public she seems so passive and kind. "What do you mean, 'what would happen'? His nose started bleeding, that's what happened! And he almost threw up." "Besides that, besides the ordinary things." He tapped the toe of one shoe on the sidewalk. "It was dumb. Really, really dumb." "And?" "And what?" "And did anything happen? Besides the ordinary things?" He shook his head. "No-not that I could tell." - p.106 I chose this section of text because it made me think of how almost all actions have consequences beyond the "ordinary" consequences. Although we may not see those consequences unfold, they still exist and affect others in ways we may not ever know or understand. I also thought there was a connection from the earlier mentionings of a "veil" separating people from the big picture. Marcus couldn't see the big picture consequences of his actions. It was at that moment, standing next to her, that I figured out the truth. The truth was that Mom saw it too: the peeling paint, the cigarette burns on the stairs, everything. It soaked into me like water into sand, fast and heavy-making. But I still couldn't apologize for what I'd said. I wanted to, but I couldn't. I couldn't even smile at her. - p.120 To me, this section of text was important because it showed Miranda that she is potentially not alone in her embarassment of her home. I made a connection between this section and Marcelo in the Real World because in both books the children realize their parents aren't perfect, and that can be a major realization in a child's life. I thought it was also significant that Miranda still did not back down from her negative comments towards her mother. I still wonder what was holding Miranda back from showing her appreciation to her mother. What do you all think of these quotes? How did you interpret them?

Discussion Director: Section 3

After reading section 3 my interest level spiked and I had to keep reading the rest of the book. However, here a few questions that crossed my mind as I was reading:

1. A general question, but is there a significance to every chapter title including the word "thing(s)?"

2. Why do you think Julia has an interest in Miranda all of a sudden? What motives does Julia have?

3. Why do you think Colin took the two rolls from Jimmy's? Did he do it so Jimmy would think Miranda was doing an exceptional job?

4. Now that we know that Sal didn't do anything to deserve the punch from Marcus, does your reasoning behind Sal not wanting to be friends with Miranda change?

Investigator: Section 3

I decided to investigate Annemarie's special diet for her epilepsy. I have not heard that much about treating epilepsy, and found it intriguing that special foods could help stop the seizures. One of the ladies that I work with often has seizures, and I assumed that it was something that only medicine can control.

What I found out:

There is a ketogenic diet that children with epilepsy can take to help prevent seizures, if medicines do not work. This is a low carb diet, which explains why Annemarie cannot have bread. This diet has strict measures on calories, protein, and fluids. I thought it was strange that Annemarie's dad gave Miranda lemonade but gave Annemarie water. I assumed it was a way of him to watch the calories that went into Annemarie's body, which in a way, it was. This diet only helps children with seizures, and after two years on this diet, if the seizures have been controlled, then the diet can be stopped. If the child ever goes off the diet, like Annemarie did, then it would lose it’s effect. Some side effects of this diet are kidney stones, high cholesterol, dehydration, constipation, slowed growth, and bone fractures.

Since the diet is so restrictive, I think that Annemarie was happy for an excuse to get off the diet. I wonder if Miranda would have encouraged Annemarie to stay off the diet if she had known about the seizures.

Connector Section 3

This section had a lot going on in it, and I tried to think of not only things that we can connect to as adults but also things that our students will connect with. I think the main thing I am drawn to is the whole lunch situation, it kind of blows my mind that the students are allowed to leave school for lunch, I think that in this day and time that would NEVER happen...were you ever allowed to leave school for lunch? Even in high school?

Another thing is the fight between Anne Marie and Miranda, this really grabbed my attention because I feel like fights between friends are universal to all people. At one time or another in anyone's life I'm sure they have fought with a friend over something said, done, or assumed. I think the reason this particular fight between the two girls stood out to be is because the whole fight is based on assumptions made by Anne Marie about Miranda...what do you think about this, and how could we connect this with our students?

Investigator - Section 2

As the investigator, I became interested in finding out more about why Miranda’s mother called Mr. Tompkins a “frustrated architect.” Her mother explained that teachers didn’t have to go fight in Vietnam, so men that didn’t want to fight became teachers.

I knew that there were different reasons that exempted men from the draft, but never thought that teaching was one of these exemptions. Because teaching exempted men from the draft, the percentage of male teachers increased dramatically in 1970. At that time, 32.5% of teachers in the US were men. After the war was over, many of those men left the teacher profession to pursue their other careers.

A total of 1,857,304 men were drafted between August 1964 and February 1973.

When I asked my father if any of his friends had become teachers to avoid the draft, he could not recall anyone. However, he did remember many of his friends that enrolled in college to dodge the draft.

Did you know that male teachers were exempted from being drafted during the Vietnam war?
Do you have any experiences involving people who were exempted from the draft?

Artist: Section 2

I chose these three images, because I thought they were three of the most important aspects of section 2. The letter for obvious reasons, the time machine because we are first introduced to the idea of time travel and Marcus as an important character and the fire hose because I think the key missing is going to have something to do with the letters.

Section 2: Connector

In Miranda's school, free dental work is offered to students who cannot afford it on their own. Miranda says how her mom thinks health care should be free for everyone. That was a big debate in our present time. A health care bill was passed a little while ago, ensuring that everyone could get free health care. It never occurred to me that people in the late 1970s would have the same issues as we do now, especially with getting health care. Was there anything in this section that surprised you?

When I read this section, this was what really popped out me as to how to connect this to our world. It's so hard to not take something from the book and connect it to our own lives.

Section 2: Discussion Director

In this section, we see for the first time the notes Miranda has received from the mystery person. In both notes, the person mentions that he or she is on a "difficult trip." What kind of trip do you think the person means? Where might he or she be going? Continuing with all things mysterious... Every time Miranda runs into Marcus, he seems to not remember her from previous encounters. Why do you think this happens? While at their job at Jimmy's, Colin and Miranda took a risk by looking inside the Flinstone bank. So far Jimmy seems not to have noticed. Do you think there will be consequences for their actions? If so, how do you think those consequences will be brought about? Lastly, Miranda is engrossed in only one book: A Wrinkle in Time. Even when a teacher tries to push another book, Miranda rejects it. Why do you think Miranda is so interested in this particular book? Do you think the book will be significant to the plot of the story? If so, how?

Literary Luminator Section 2

For this section I have chosen three quotations that I think give light to who Miranda is writing to as well as give insight into her feelings. But the interpretation is up to you!

"'It is weird,' Mom said. She put her hands on her hips. 'But if you think about it, one thing really can't have anything to do with the other. Someone with the key wouldn't have to ask where the key is. It makes no sense.' She was right, of course. It was backward. But somewhere in my head a tiny bell started ringing. I didn't even notice it at first." p. 61

I chose this quotation because I feel like it represents Miranda's thought process very well. As a reader I can see that she is thinking through who the writer could be, how they knew where the key was, and also why the order of events is backward.

"Upstairs, a weird thing happened. After living there almost everyday of my life, I saw our apartment as if it were usually invisible to me: the stuffing coming out of the sofa in two place, the burns form Mr. Nunzi's cigarettes, the big flakes of paint hanging off the ceiling, and the black spot next to the radiator where dripping water had stained the floor." p. 65

I liked the quotation because I think it not only showed that Miranda was being critical of her house because Anne Marie was there, but it was also odd how this feeling of seeing all these things stuck out more after Miranda's house had been broken into.

"Mom says each of us has a veil between ourselves and the rest of the world, like a bride wears on her wedding day, except this kind of veil is invisible. We walk around happily with these invisible veils hanging down over our faces. The world is kind of blurry, and we like it that way."

In my opinion, this quotation relates to the previous, but also to how Miranda feels about her world and how her mom explains to her about seeing the "big stuff" as opposed to being distracted by the little stuff.



What do you think of all of these quotations and how they relate to what we have read so far, as well as foreshadow what we will read?

Connector - Week 1

Connector - Week 1

After reading this, I have struggled to find a connection beyond the self-connection. It’s amazing how much we can relate events in novels to our own lives. I think that students will definitely be able to connect with the relationship change between Miranda and Sal that has occurred since they reached middle school. I remember having a similar experience with one of my best friends who was a boy. We were best friends all through elementary school, but we grew apart in middle school. It was no longer “cool” for us to be friends. Do you remember any similar experiences from middle school?

However, for this role, I am going to stretch to make a worldly connection that I also picked up on in the story line of this book. Some of the descriptions and events that the author uses to describe the community make this story feel like it could have taken place in a small town. Although the setting was New York City, the descriptions connected me back to a small town atmosphere that I have seen in movies. When Miranda was locked out of her house, she visited with Belle at the market. This reminded me of scenes from movies that were set in small towns, particularly small towns in the south where people walk everywhere, and where children venture out on their own. Also, whenever I think about people who have known each other forever, a small town automatically pops into my head. This is because I grew up in a small community where I knew everyone, and had known most people from elementary school to high school. The tenant-meeting night also made me think of a small town meeting. I’ve never heard of a tenant meeting, but it reminded me of a small town meeting where most people don’t bother to come, except for the old people, and most of them are there to complain.

I know that there are also lots of descriptions in this section that are obviously about life in the city, but did you pick up on any descriptions or events that reminded you of a small town community?

Investigator: Week 1

After reading our first section I decided to investigate latchkey kids, because I think this is going to be pertinent to the plot of the book. I had never heard of the term "latchkey kid" and was interested in learning more about it. The term is said to have originated during and after World War II, while one parent was enlisted in the armed forces, the other had to work and often children came home to no parental supervision. Interestingly enough, when I searched "latchkey kid" on Google, most of the links referred to legal issues that arise with latchkey kids. Parents are not enlightened on an acceptable age to leave children at home alone and so often children are left alone with no supervision at too young of an age. The United States government does not establish criteria for leaving children under 18 home alone, these laws are left to state and local governments to establish and often are never established. I found the effects of being a latchkey kid interesting, a lot of latchkey kids face loneliness, fear and boredom. When latchkey kids are older they are more likely to have behavior problems and fall into such behaviors as smoking and alcohol use. There are also some positive effects associated with being a latchkey kid including independence at a young age.

As for Miranda, I think she is going to run into some problems being a latchkey kid. Now that she doesn't walk home with Sal, she faces obstacles before she even gets home (the laughing man) and her mom has hidden a key, I feel something bad coming on. "Mom's rules for life in New York City" (p. 25) also lead me to think that something is going to happen while Miranda is home alone. I'm interested to see if any of the effects of being a latchkey kid listed above affect Miranda.

For more information on latchkey kids, check out: http://www.latchkey-kids.com/

Literary Luminary: Week 1

I have three quotes that I think are significant from this first section. What are your thoughts?

pg 4: "Mom calls Richard Mr. Perfect because of how he looks and how he knows everything. And every time she calls him Mr. Perfect, Richard taps his right knee. He does that because his right leg is shorter then the left one."

I like this one because of how the author illustrates that everyone is not perfect. The mom sees Richard in a different way then Richard sees himself. This applies to everyone, you may not think you are that great, but someone else does.

pg 24: "If I'm not wrong, this is the beginning of the story you wanted me to tell. And I didn't know it yet, but it was also the end of my friendship with Sal."

Two significant events start here. We find out that Miranda is telling a story to someone, even though we don't have any other details. Also, Miranda's friendship ending is significant to the story.

pg 28: "So I figure it's because I never had a father that I don't want one now. A person can't miss something she never had."

Do you think this foreshadowing something in the story?

Artist: Week 1

Here is an image to represent a portion of the first section. What is being represented here? How do the different aspects of the image tell the story?

Section 1: Discussion Director

In this section we are introduced to the narrator, Miranda, a latch-key kid in New York City. Sal, Miranda's best friend also plays a large role in this section, until he is punched in the stomach by another boy. Another predominant character in this section is Miranda's mom who is currently training to be on a local TV show called 20,000 dollar pyramid. But amidst all the characters we do me, we are never really given any clues as to who Miranda is writing to during this time...

So my first question is, who do you think Miranda is writing to and why?


Another oddity about this section is the way Sal disowns Miranda after he gets in the fight, which leads me to ask, why do you think Sal does not want to be friends with Miranda any longer?



While the characters play a large role in the section, so does the game show that Miranda's mom is training for, so I'm curious, do you think this will continue to be present and play a large role in the future sections? Why or why not.

There are many other things in the section to be discussed as well, so feel free to add those ideas.

Welcome!

I can't wait to read your insightful discussions.