Daniel+C

1/27/16- At the end of the “tour”, I had a range of feelings in my mind as if I was walking the hallways at Beecher Prep with August. There was kindness and humor from the directors, Mr. Tushman and Mrs. Garcia, as they tried to genuinely welcome August. I also felt feelings of nervousness and confusion by both August and the students taking him on the grand tour, as when August would not talk while looking at the floor or when Jack Will was unsure if August knew what an eraser was in the classroom. Some of these feelings changed as the tour moved on. For example, I think Jack may be one of the people that will not care if he is seen with August, like the empathy shown by Charlotte, and may even become one of his friends over time, trying to help August at school even now by letting him know he will need to talk more especially when dealing with bullies like Julian. Julian, I think, is the total opposite of Jack Will and Charlotte, and does not want to be seen with Auggie out of fear of people making fun of him. Julian seems to care more about himself, showing off to others, trying to impress. Nonetheless, even though the rude questions from Julian were balanced by the compassionate pieces of advice from Charlotte, I felt by the end of the tour that Beecher Prep was not the best fit for August.

2/2/16- Auggie’s September at his new school continued to bring like the Fall season a range of colorful emotions. All of the characters had a mix of emotions as well, from his parents who were nervous to his sister Via who seemed frustrated and concerned like when Auggie cut off his little braid on the back of his head. There were also moments that made me want to laugh even though I knew for Auggie it may not have been funny like when he told his mom he and Summer were like Beauty and the Beast. It was positive to see that Auggie now seems to have a real friend in school in Jack Will and that Jack does not seem to see Auggie like Auggie sees himself. Auggie’s September reminded me how the beginning of the school year is hard for everyone, no matter who you are or how you look. It is hard no matter what to get used to waking up so early, getting back to a routine, and to homework and quizzes. Anything new is a change.

2/4/16- Auggie has many things to think about before he decides to return to Beecher Prep. He needs to think about how he will feel returning to a place where he is bullied and people are cruel, where Auggie may not know who is a friend and who is just pretending. Just like the costumes the kids dressed up in for Halloween and the masks that covered the faces from knowing who was really who, Auggie needs to decide on who is an actual friend like Summer and Charlotte, or who is just pretending. Auggie also should let his parents know what really happened so they can help him deal with these problems and then decide on what is best for Auggie next. His parents and family can keep him safe and make sure that he does not get hurt both mentally and physically. Auggie needs to feel safe and secure that he is not going to return to a place that makes him want to fall inside a black hole.

2/4/16- //List at least 3 strong questions you have about Via, Auggie's sister, that you hope to find out in the next parts: // 1. Does Via wish she was an only child? 2. What is Via’s favorite thing to do apart from Auggie? 3. Is Via also having a hard time at her new school? Is she making friends in high school? 4. Does Via still feel as close to Auggie as they did when they were little? 5. Does Via ever feel ignored by her parents?

2/9/16- There were many things that I learned about Via but the one that surprised me the most was that she does not remember life before August for her entire life has orbited around August. It is a wonder in many ways that Via is not more angry as she had to learn to never complain, never bother, and never ask for help. Via has had to learn to hide many of her feelings and to mask her emotions, to pretend that her life is not focused around the catastrophe of August’s face and that her life is normal. Via does not want to be defined just as the sister of someone with a birth defect, with a deformed face. Via does not want to continue to be disappointed by her family and her friends, and importantly I also learned that Via does not want to bring another life into hers and a family with a defective mutant gene. Via just wants to be loved.

2/9/16- Via’s part about Halloween differs from Auggie’s in that Halloween is a sad time of year for Via as her Grans died the night before Halloween. Auggie has always looked forward to Halloween, as it is his favorite time of year. Via’s Halloween day began sad, weepy, and stressed, missing Grans. She really needed her mom that day but as usual her family was focused on Auggie. Via then was calm and strong for August as she helped him deal with his fury from his Halloween incident at school that day with Jack Will, getting Auggie to get out of bed, go to the parade, and feel a bit better. Each had a bad day but Via had a better understanding that everyone has bad days, even on Halloween, and that life goes on. Via’s part about Halloween may have differed because she is older and that may make her wiser.

2/16/16- It was important for us to read Justin – Part Five to get another more factual and detailed point of view. Justin was new to the story and able to provide a fresh perspective, to remind us what it is like to first meet Auggie, to be totally taken by surprise like when Justin first walked in Auggie’s room after dating Via for two months and did not know what to say except to talk oddly about his zydeco band. It also was important for us to read Justin’s perspective because it reminds us that no matter what we see, no one is exactly what they seem, like when Justin joined Via and her family at a Mexican restaurant for dinner. Justin had tics and Auggie is a medical wonder with a very rare mandibulofacial dysostosis, and we know that many people pretend to sometimes not notice things or even pretend to be something they are not. People may pretend when they are nervous like when Justin acted all tough guy at the subway station defending Jack or when they are embarrassed like when Via does not tell her parents about the show at her new school because she really does not want people to know about Auggie. In addition, Part Five and Justin connects many of the characters back together for us in the story from the pink-haired Miranda all the way back to Auggie in a picture as a child in an astronaut helmet. Finally, it also was important for me to read Justin’s perspective because it reminded me of the power of wishes in our crazy lottery like universe. Even when the universe is not kind to some of us as Miranda said at play rehearsal, there are people just like Via who still keep wishing on things like ladybugs. Part Five – Justin helped us understand how important it is to have family and friends in your universe there to protect you, to give you a nest to rest or wing to hide under when you need caring the most.

2/18/16- <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In life you do not need to be happy all of the time, but Miranda was able to admit to herself that "for the first time in a very, very long time, I felt absolutely happy.” Miranda has many reasons to feel this way as she has had to go through a lot of changes in the past year, more than just normal high school transitions. First, her parents got divorced the summer before ninth grade with her father immediately remarrying and about to have a new baby on the way. Her mother then started to act strange and distant too, even missing Miranda’s opening night play with no one else there to see her. Miranda also felt like she was drifting away from her past and from her old self, knowing that she is changing and not just the color of her hair to pink. She has a new look, a new crowd of friends, and a varsity jock boyfriend named Zack but she still is not really happy. Miranda also has started to tell some lies, for example at summer camp and then to the play director at her new high school, lies like that she has a little brother with a birth defect and deformed face. The lies and make believe games she was playing may have made her feel better for a moment from the extra attention and popularity but not for long. It is not until Miranda sees August after the opening night play that she is finally able to admit to herself that she feels absolutely happy, because it is then that she is back with her true friend Via and all together with an actual family where she feels safe and loved.

2/23/16- <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Things happen in life that make us change. For Auggie, it was his time at the fifth grade nature retreat at Broarwood in Pennsylvania. It was his first time to sleep away from home, not counting the time he stayed till past midnight at his friend Christopher’s house when he was about eight years old. This was different for Auggie in many ways. He had to be independent, away from his family for three days and two nights. Surprisingly, what changed Auggie and his friends the most is what happened in the woods at the Big Movie Night. That is when something became different for them all, when they had to be strong and stay together against the seventh graders from another school. Auggie was brave and had his friends, Jack, Amos, Miles, and Henry, to help him when he needed them the most, running together like crazy from the woods to the cornfields until they could find their way back to the movie. Things were different. Auggie would mark this as one of the most horrific days of his life but it was only one day, and a day where something had changed for them all at Broarwood. Auggie now had his own emperor’s guard, with friends who would stand by his side and make sure that he was not like a lamb to the slaughter, and that was very different. Finally, things did change as people treated Auggie differently after Broarwood, not noticing his face anymore but seeing who Auggie really is and his real character.

5/10/16 1. Do you think parents should believe the stories their children tell, or should they investigate the truth when important matters are involved? Do you think a parent's role is to give a child emotional support even when he or she has done something wrong? Is there a point at which a parent may have to let society punish a child for wrong-doing? I think parents should investigate if their child is telling the truth because the parents could go all out on the situation and the kid could be telling the truth. I think it depends what they think. If they think it is something silly they should not react so much but if it is a bad thing they should really react to it.

2. When a rule at school does not make sense to you, do you have the right to decide which rules you will obey and which you will not? Can you think of a rule you would refuse to obey? What would be the consequences? No. If the rules do not make any sense they should still obey them. Maybe go ask a teacher if they do not understand and they can explain it to you. I think whistling would be my top of my list.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">**Characterization**

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Protagonist:Good guy: Auggie Antagonist:Bad Guy:Julian Dynamic:A character who changed the most: Amos, Miranda, Jack Will, Via, Maya, Mom, Dad Static:Someone who doesn't change the whole story: Charlotte, Summer, Julian, Mr. Browne, Mr. Tushman Direct Characterization: Exact words that explain the character:?? Indirect Characterazion:Use actions or words that the character says so that the reader can figure out their own way:Julian