Getting paid to teach rather than paying for the opportunity

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to teach a class for the first time while on the payroll clock. Granted, it was little more than babysitting a few social studies classes, but there is definitely something to be said about earning a paycheck after so long working on this new career. As I told students while I was student teaching, I liked the idea of teaching so much I was paying (a lot of money) for the opportunity. Substituting yesterday was the opportunity to actually get paid instead. Will it be much? No. Did I really enjoy the day? No, but I did survive without too much collateral damage. It's fair to say that I learned a few things, not the least of which was that I'd much prefer a long term position to the daily guessing game of not knowing where or what I was teaching.

Today, I received excellent news: I don't have to submit to the daily Rubiks puzzle for at least six weeks. Starting on Monday, I will be back at the school at which I did my student teaching, with a full slate of English classes. Tomorrow, I am meeting with the teacher for whom I am covering, getting lesson plans and a pretty good sense of what is going on. It is a school I know well, and I'm happy to report that it was the English department head who made sure that I was on the short list of those to contact for the substitute position. My guess is that a successful stint will almost certainly lead to a full-time position in the fall. At the very least, I will be better able to schedule my life, balancing out the completion of my class, other interviews and responsibilities with my office position. There will be long days, but I survived it while student teaching, so I can do it now. Guess I now have something new to talk about at next week's college reunion!

The Pursuit of Happyness

Successful entrepreneur Chris Gardner writes a compelling autobiography that is far more scintillating and dramatic that the film version with Will Smith. That’s not to say the movie didn’t follow the book or that it lacked heart, but the substance of the book lays a much deeper foundation for the struggles that Garner would eventually overcome.

One such element is the description of Gardner’s childhood in Milwaukee during the sixties. He details a life of desolation among the city’s poor neighborhoods and the struggle to survive daily ordeals. When Gardner discusses the actions of his stepfather, one can almost hear the stepfather’s voice and the misery he would inflict on young Chris and his family. Older and trying to eke out a living in 1980s San Francisco, the elements and distance and level of poverty all set the scene for Gardner’s journey into fatherhood.


The characters come alive as the dialogue jumps from the page. Young Chris, at that point aspiring to be an actor, asks his mother for money, only to get a lively response: “Well, why don’t you just act like you got five dollars?” his mother gives sage advice like this that reverberates throughout the book. Gardner does a pretty good job of keeping his character believable, letting the stories tell themselves. While the accomplishments are amazing, they are believable because Gardner injects everything with humility, acknowledging his mistakes and not exaggerating his exploits.

Throughout The Pursuit of Happyness, Gardner deftly invokes passion while layering the steps that would establish his desire to be a father whose son was his top priority. His determination is riveting, drawing the reader to feel heartbreak when his describes being homeless while trying to take care of his son Christopher and earn his keep at Dean Witter. We learn about his studying medicine while in the Navy and how his aspirations to become a doctor hit roadblocks. We journey with Gardner when he meets his birth father and we gain insight into his eventually successful career managing investments. It’s a gripping tale and an excellent choice for teen readers.

Henry Aaron's Dream by Matt Tavares

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


There are a lot of books about Jackie Robinson, but this book has an interesting perspective--it looks at how Robinson's breakthrough to the Major Leagues was a seminal moment in the life of Henry Aaron.

The illustrations are incredibly rich with detail. I have at least two favorites: there is one in which Tavares has Aaron looking at the lineup posted in the dugout with his name in the leadoff spot; another has Aaron sliding in to second base, ahead of the tag being applied by Jackie Robinson. With the first, I recognized some of the players listed for both teams, an element of authenticity that reminds me that with specificity comes credibility. In the latter, I could not help but wonder whether people watching that play in the exhibition game had any idea of what lay in store for Aaron's career. I doubt that any would have believed that he would go on to become baseball's all-time home run leader by the time of his retirement.

Henry Aaron's Dream is much more than a baseball book--it is a marvelous recapturing of attitudes during the Civil Rights movement and a lesson in perseverence. It also reminds us how important it is to have role models and inspirational figures that lend substance to the dreams we pursue. One can only imagine the seismic impact of Barack Obama winning the presidency, the importance of breaking that glass ceiling for African Americans. We are another day closer to no longer referring to people as "the first person of color" to do this, or "the first woman to" do that, and so on. I find it intriguing that, when growing up, I never gave any thought as to Hank Aaron's race. The books always talked about about Robinson and his Dodger teammates (especially Roy Campanella), Larry Doby, Roberto Clemente, and guys like Minnie Minoso and Buck O'Neal. But Aaron's story is integral to understanding race as it impacted baseball, American sports and American culture in general.

This book gives the reader an importance glimpse as to Aaron's development prior to reaching the Show, and I think it is a must-read for baseball enthusiasts, as well as those who are studying African American history. I believe it merits consideration for all ages, although I should note that there are two uses of n-word that could spark trouble if not appropriately addressed. While the use of the word does lend authenticity to the story, it likely spells the end of read-aloud opportunities without changing the word. Some others may believe differently, but I'd suggest a 'courageous coversation' in regards to the implications of the word if it is read aloud.





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A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly

A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Set during the early part of the twentieth century, A Northern Light features Mattie Gokey, a bright sixteen-year-old-girl trying to balance her education with caring for her four sisters and father after the death of her mother. Her older brother Lawton has also left the family and Mattie struggles with taking care of the house and feeding everyone, particularly during a difficult Northeast winter.

While incorporating some of the events surrounding the death of Grace Brown—the inspiration for the Theodore Dreiser’s An American Tragedy, as the book’s cover points out—the story remains focused on Mattie’s coming of age and her relationship with her teacher Miss Wilcox. Author Jennifer Donnelly does a tremendous job of illustrating the period, giving a sense of the family’s desperation and determination to succeed in spite of the elements. Mattie represents a glimpse of the challenges faced by young “independent” women, including the difficult decision of whether to continue schooling or to get married to Royal Loomis; the fact that she cannot choose both is a sure sign of the times.

How historically accurate is this book? The sensational case of Chester Gillette has been documented in Adirondack Tragedy: The Chester Gillette Murder Case of 1906 by Joseph W. Brownell and Patricia W. Enos, among other accounts, and proved to be one of the first “trials of the century.” Grace Brown was pregnant as the time of her death, and the letters that were given to Mattie in A Northern Light were based on the actual letters between Grace and Chester. Donnelly has placed Mattie at the Glenmore hotel, where Grace and Chester were staying Grace was found dead.

The book does not center on the tragedy described above. Rather, we see the efforts Mattie makes with her studies and the difficulty her father has in letting her go to work at the hotel. Mattie needed to work in order to earn money for her train ticket to New York, but her father wanted her to continue her role as mother to her sisters. Nothing is clear-cut about her decision to leave her family—Mattie likes Royal Loomis very much, but she knows that if she passes up the opportunity to go to Barnard College, she will never again have another chance.


Though there are times when the story drags a little, the richness of the characters and color of the period do keep us interested in Mattie’s plight. Her sisters, particularly Lou and Beth, are a riot, and the dialogue is snappy and endearing. Donnelly also uses an interesting device in a having a single word serve as the heading for each chapter, representing Mattie’s quest to learn a new word each day. We read along, curious to learn how the word represents that particular chapter.

This novel would appeal to junior high school and early high school students, especially those who enjoyed Little Women. It would be a prime selection for independent reading, though I could see it potentially being used in a local history class in Upstate New York. Donnelly includes notes after the book to clarify which factual elements she chose to use artistic license. For example, she writes that the letters given to Mattie by Grace Brown included all of the correspondence between Grace and Chester, but that in reality, only the letters Grace received from Chester Gillette were recovered at the hotel; her letters to Chester were found in his room when he was arrested for her murder. The historic roots of the story give it a little more credence, helping to establish the period for the young reader. That Mattie and her family are fictional does not take away from the fact that they are still representative of the period. The important thing when considering historic fiction is that the truth doesn’t betray itself. If the reader can detect blatantly false items that disrupt the historic continuity or the continuity of the story, then she will no longer be able to yield to that “suspense of disbelief” that characterizes a good story no matter the medium.



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