Theme+4

Welcome to Theme 4.

Theme 4 - Person to Person

How does helping one another make us gain strength?

What does the title of the theme, Person to Person, suggest to you?

Story 1 - Mariah Keeps Cool Summary: In this sequel to Mariah Loves Rock (Bradbury, 1988), the 11-year-old heroine begins her summer facing several challenges. First, she plans to enter an all-city swim meet never before attempted by children from their local recreation center. Then, her beloved older sister Lynn is acting mysteriously, and Mariah wants to know why. Finally, her 16-year-old half-sister Denise has come to live with the Metcalfs, and her disdain of rules and order is disrupting the family harmony. Hard work yields swim team success in the face of prejudice by some of the other participants, and Mariah discovers that Lynn is secretly volunteering at a homeless shelter. Overcoming her third challenge, handling her jealousy of her father's attention to Denise and coming to an understanding of her half-sister's behavior, requires all the maturity Mariah can muster. While the characters, setting, and dialogue ring true, the simplistic handling of a shuffled-around half-sister who feels courtesy and discipline cramp her style is less than satisfying. At the very least, one would expect the assimilation of a troubled teenager into a family would require tremendous parental effort, and none is in evidence. The father travels a lot and, when home, is not particularly sensitive to the family dynamics; the stepmother's resentment of the intruder is below the surface but still there.

Vocabulary Words: [|Mariah Keeps Cool Vocabulary Words.ppt]

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Story 2 - Mom's Best Friend “When Sally Alexander loses Marit, her first guide dog, the entire family mourns. But for Sally, this death means more than heartache; it means reduced mobility. Sally finds walking with another person or with a cane inadequate and decides to return to The Seeing Eye for another dog. Told by her twelve-year-old daughter, Leslie, who narrated Mom Can’t See Me, this is a story of a mother leaving her family to meet, get to know, and bring home a new and crucial member of the household. This sequel to Mom Can’t See Me sheds light on what it’s like to be a blind person and to be parented by one. The book is also illustrated by George Ancona’s photos.”

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Story 3 - Yang the Second and Her Secret Admirers

While her younger siblings have adopted many American customs since moving from China to Seattle, Yinglan Yang clings to her Chinese heritage, so her brother and sister hatch a plot to convert her to American culture.

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Story 4 - Dear Mr. Henshaw