Voices from the Middle, Vol. 26, No. 2, December 2018

Full Digital Edition

Table of Contents

Issue Theme: "Novel Lessons" with YA Texts

• Call for Manuscripts [FREE ACCESS]

• OFFICE HOURS Unpacking What's "Novel" in Our Work with YA Texts [FREE ACCESS]

  Sara Kajder and Shelbie Witte

• LEADING THE CALL Who You Gonna Be? Designing Novel Lessons That Matter to Students [FREE ACCESS]

  Robyn Seglem and Sarah Bonner with Kirrstein Hays

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  Abstract: This article provides a framework that explores how Nic Stone's Dear Martin helps students answer "Who you gonna be?"

  Keywords: Young Adult Literature, Inquiry

• LEADING THE CALL Critical Engagement with Middle Grades Reads: Who Lives? Who Thrives? Who Tells Your Story? [FREE ACCESS]

  Ebony Elizabeth Thomas

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  Abstract: Using Lin-Manual Miranda's Hamilton: An American Musical as a guide, the author discusses the metaphors we read by and ways to get students to see themselves in stories that may not have immediate connections, ways to "restory" the literature they have at hand in order to make it relevant to their own lives, regardless of whether characters look or speak exactly like they do.

  Keywords: Young Adult Literature, Reading pedagogy, diverse books

• YA VOICES Our Stories Are Our Resistance [FREE ACCESS]

  Amy Reed

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  Abstract: The author discusses the power of storytelling as resistance and resilience.

  Keywords: Young Adult Literature, anthologies, young adult nonfiction

• Matters of Life and Death: Racism, Patriotism, and Policing in All American Boys

  Luke Rodesiler

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  Abstract: This article presents a case for leveraging sports culture to advance literacy instruction and offers practical suggestions for engaging students before, during, and after reading Reynolds and Kiely's novel All American Boys.

  Keywords: Critical Literacy, Popular Culture, Young Adult Literature, sports-related literature

• Clearing Paths for Transgender Identities with Middle Grades Literature [FREE ACCESS]

  Katherine Mason Cramer

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  Abstract: The Gay, Lesbian, Straight Educator Network (GLSEN) 2015 National School Climate Survey reveals that transgender middle school students are more likely than their high school peers to face verbal and physical harassment and physical assault while at school based on how they express their gender (Kosciw, Greytak, Giga, Villenas, & Danischewski, 2016, p. 97). This is a health and safety issue, and middle level educators must take action by providing access to middle grades literature that features transgender characters and speaks to students' experiences. Such texts are more than coming out stories, revealing multifaceted characters and supportive communities.

  Keywords: cisgender allies, gendered spaces, LGBTQIA literature, middle grades literature, queer community, transgender identities

• STUDENT VOICES Novel Lessons: Choice![FREE ACCESS]

  Linda Rief with her eighth grade students

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  Abstract: In this issue, Rief's students discuss their reading habits over the past year and the impact some of those texts have made in their lives.

  Keywords: student choice, Independent Reading

• In Search of Identity: Connecting the Classic to Contemporary Texts

  Brooke Boback Eisenbach, Caitlin Corrieri, Kenzie Moniz, and Robert Forrester

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  Abstract: Young adult literature can provide an important catalyst to engaging our students in an examination of identity and understanding the perspectives and identities of others. In this article, we provide middle level educators ideas for complementing the works of classic literature with contemporary young adult titles that engage students in discussion and examination of their developing identity.

  Keywords: Middle Level, Young Adult Literature, identity, Middle Level literature, social-emotional learning

• TEACHING WITH YA LIT Constantly Curating: Building Text Sets and Pairings in Novel Study

  Jason Griffith

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  Abstract: Texts talk to each other and can be purposefully arranged in pairings, sets, and circles to help our students identify, develop, and strengthen text-to-text, text-to-self, and text-to-world connections. By engaging in this process of constantly curating contemporary, quality, and multimodal texts, teachers have a tool to address some of the inherent problems in having to teach even outdated canonical novels.

  Keywords: Adolescent Literacy, Young Adult Literature, multimodal/multiliteracies

• NEW VOICES Their Words, Your Voice

  Sarah Brown Wessling

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  Abstract: This column presents the voices of new teachers, sharing their insights in their first years of teaching. In this issue, early-career teachers encounter passages from classic texts to discuss their relevance with current middle level readers.

  Keywords: Reading, Teacher Education, relevant texts

• Walking Into the Wardrobe and Through the Sliding Glass Door: Writing Persona Poems with A Crack in the Sea

  Elizabeth M. Frye, Brooke L. Hardin, Heather M. Bouwman, and Adrienne E. Stumb

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  Abstract: In this article, we offer one means for readers to write their way into an aesthetic poetic response in order to think more deeply about the literature. Specifically, we describe instructional practices for teaching students how to compose persona poems in response to H.M. Bouwman's speculative fiction novel, A Crack in the Sea.

  Keywords: Poetry, Writing Instruction, reader response, Empathy, metaphor

• Brian Selznick's Marvel-ous Multimodal Novel: Exploring Images and Words with Eighth Grade English Students

  Stephanie Reid and Michelle Dyer

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  Abstract: In this article, the authors share an eighth grade English curriculum unit designed to help students analyze and interpret a middle grade multimodal novel. A multimodal novel contains a story told through combinations of images, words, and design elements.

  Keywords: Visual Literacy, multimodality, image analysis, multimodal novels

• MEDIA LITERACY Graphics ARE Novel

  Kym K. Sheehan

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  Abstract: In this column, the author discusses the popularity of graphic novels among middle grades readers and recommends some texts for classroom use.

  Keywords: Graphic Novels, middle level reading, anime, manga

• AFFILIATE VOICES State Affiliates Stepping Up for Their Students [FREE ACCESS]

  Lori Goodson

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  Abstract: Each issue, this column will share highlights from NCTE affiliate activities. This issue looks at GCTE, OKCTE, AETA, SCCTE, PCTELA, and MATELA.

  Keywords: Professional Development, NCTE Affiliates, NCTE member activities

• NOTES FROM THE MIDDLE LEVEL SECTION Confessions of a Reader Who Weeps

  Shanetia P. Clark

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  Abstract: This article from a member of the Middle Level Section Steering Committee shares resources available to locate and discuss new stories in children's and young adult literature and celebrates the positive moves YA literature as a whole is making toward diversity and inclusion.

  Keywords: Diversity, Young Adult Literature, Middle Level Section Steering Committee, vulnerability

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