Good Times... Noodle Salad....

I say, let the kids read what they want as much as possible. While you have to assign books to read, they will get more out of the book if they are actually interested in reading the book they have. Perhaps this is too much to ask for younger kids, so I would give them a list to choose from.

I think it's important to teach kids how to look for books to see if they are interested in them. Teach them about genres and how to read summaries and such.

I said all this in my last entry. It is important that the kids are motivated to read the books. In essence, you have to trick them into doing it themselves. Kids are rebellious, therefore, we have to give them as much rope as they can. Teachers like to follow the students with a stick and smack them if they get out of line. I think it would be better if we gave them boundaries... with room to move from side to side. Perhaps different corridors and doors to go through. This would give the student options. As the student gets older, we can make the boundaries wider, give more doors and more corridors.... Until they are old enough to just let them run free.

However, it is wise to assign at least some readings. I think that these readings should have variety. I see no problem in letting students read banned books. You have all of that garbage on TV, naked girls on magazine covers. There are sex, drugs, and hate everywhere. Why do we try and pretend it doesn't exist in the classroom? Letting the students read these books will also spark their attention more. I do not want to read about "1984." I want to read about sex and drugs. So I think we should allow these questionable books to be read in school. It will spark students interest, as well as educate them on how bad and unwise things are ("Go Ask Alice").

So I think freedom and variety are important when giving adolescents reading assignments.

This is a good review of the book Go Ask Alice

http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/goaskalice/themes.html


It is strange how different people act in similiar situations.

Myself, I never really had any constant friends growing up. I had a few buddies here and there. But I wanted to fit in with other kids. I sought for a person to would understand me. Granted, I had some loving parents who were my only friends at times. But, as a whole... I always tried to fit in. In the end, I just kinda accepted the fact that I was different than others and lived my life that way I guess.

The author has a similiar problem... but she was willing to do what it took to fit in. Though at first it was an accident, it ended up working. I will not sacrifice my morals in order to fit in. But I guess the author was really that in need of a person to depend on. Yet, in the end she confides in Joel... but by then she's too deep in the pit to really get out. Because it ends up killing her.

Her pit was more of an outward cry for help. But my thing was depression. I was depressed for a long time (ever since I was in gradeschool)... but lucky for me I made things right with Jesus and it's been different ever since.

I guess it serves as an example, if you depend on the wrong things... even when you try and escape them, they will not let you leave. I wonder how come I never did drugs? How come I didn't do the same things that the Author did?

I think perhaps, it is because my parents were so involved... the Author's parents didn't appear to be to involved with her life... but they show up from time to time. They just seem to be pre-occupied.

I am sad that she didn't get to spend a long life with Joel.

I suppose it is like a yo-yo effect... or a rubber band effect... Drugs is like holding on to a rubber band hooked on a wall. You do them and you smack into the wall. Yet, everytime you try and run away from them... you smack into the wall again. And everytime you get further and further away because you run faster and harder.. the tension becomes to intense and you go smacking into the wall again even harder and harder everytime. Because she really does it herself all the time. Saying, "ok I'm going to run as fast and as hard as I can on my own... that way I will get away from the wall this time." But she doesn't, instead it keeps bashing her back into the wall even harder.......... until it finally kills her.

I guess what we all need, is someone to pry your damn hands off the rubber band. And then get rid of the rubber band altogether. God is really the only one who can do that in its entirety. Perhaps He made it that way. so people would depend on Him.

I was reading Abby's Journal and I made a comment on how kids try to be rebellious.

If we took the rebellion aspect out of things.. perhaps it would cut down on the kids who do it for that reason. Or if we turned it around to a "You'll never be clean" or "you won't be successful" sort of thing. That reverse psychology could really work... but only on rebellious kids.. because that would really give them a sense of rebellion. Rebellious kids will rebel against anything.