Realistic Fiction

This book has many different settings. The settings include Edith B. Sugarman Elementary School, George's backyard, pet store, and a craft store. In the beginning of the book, George sees a new toy that he really wants. The toy is Dude-on-a-Skateboard and it is the coolest remote-controlled toy ever. George's parents told him that if he wanted the toy, he had to save his allowance to buy it for himself. George's friends knew that would probably not happen because he was not very good at saving his money. He LOVED spending his money. George tried working at his mom's craft store, opening a lemonade stand, and putting on a circus in his backyard, but his super burp always slipped out at the wrong times. This super burp made George act really silly and crazy. George decided to get a job at the pet store, and when he and his friends had the money saved up for the new toy, they found out the the toy was sold out. In the end, the friends were happy they did not buy the toy afterwards because they found out that the toy turned out to be a piece of junk. 

I would love to use this book in my classroom. It is funny, but at the same time the events are pretty realistic. I think it would be a fun activity to have the students come up with their own ways to earn money to buy a toy. I also think it would be fun for the students to get into groups and act out different scenes from the book. 

Wringer takes place in a town called Waymer. The main character is Palmer LaRue. Palmer is not looking forward to his tenth birthday. In fact, he has been counting down the days until it comes. In Waymer, ten year old boys have to be wringers at the annual Family Fest. At the end of the Family Fest there is a pigeon shoot, and the wringers are in charge of breaking the necks of the wounded pigeons. One day, a pigeon came to Palmer's bedroom window, and he became the pigeon's protector. Palmer's friends (who enjoy being wringers) find out about his pet and try to capture it. Palmer decides to let his pet go so it will be safe from his friends. Palmer finds out that his friend, Dorothy, released his pet close to the place where pigeons are captured to be killed. Palmer ends up going to the Family Fest and saves his pet from being shot.

I really enjoyed reading this book. I think it is a great book for children to see that they should stand up for what they love and believe in. I would have my students write in journals from Palmer's point of view. They could write about the feelings he has in the days leading to his tenth birthday, his feelings for Nipper, and how he built up the courage to rescue Nipper even though his friends wanted to capture the pet. I found a unit plan for this book from the Humane Society: 

http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/parents_educators/wringer_literature_circle.pdf

Questions to Consider: 

1. How do we help students reflect and respond to realistic fiction?

2. How will you handle it when the subject matter hits close to home for your students?