Reading Response Blog #26

4/12/2015

We have been learning about what is means to be resilient. Someone who is resilient is able to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions. When you are resilient, you are tough and unable to be brought down by something. Both fictional stories and biographies often feature characters or real people who are resilient in some way or another.

To be resilient doesn't just mean you can survive alone on a deserted island with little food or fresh water. Resilience can be in the mind (psychological), of the body (physical), or in relationships (social). People often think of resilience as being strong and flexible.

This Week's Prompt:

Think about some recent stories that you have read in your independent reading. Choose a character from your reading that shows resilience. Explain how this character is resilient to one or more of the challenges he or she faces. Also, consider this: What does this character teach you about being strong and flexible?

I look forward to reading about resilient characters you have read about!

Image Credit: Resilient flower. http://www.entrepreneurradio.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/cover_42_en_US.jpg

94 Comments

Layla

4/13/2015 10:01:14 am

Dear Ms. Kimball,
I just re-read The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen. The main character, Jessica, gets in a car accident. Her friend dies, and she loses her leg. The doctors have to take it off. Jessica's passion is to run. But she can no longer do that with only one full leg and a stump of a leg. Jessica must face the pain of physical, social, and psychological challenges.
The physical resilience Jessica shows is dealing with the pain of her stump. It hurts and it's very hard to go through the pain. Also, she has to do painful physical therapy. But Jessica doesn’t give up and does what she is told. People who weren’t resilient might have given up.
The social resilience Jessica shows is when she goes back to school and she has to face her track team, she still is there for her team even if it is hard for her. When Jessica’s team invites her to the meet, her team says she still part of the team, but Jessica doesn’t feel that way. But that doesn’t stop Jessica from still going to the meets to cheer on her team and being a loyal friend.
The psychological resilience Jessica shows is when she has to deal with a lot of emotions, she doesn’t get angry at her family. Jessica has to go through a lot of different emotions, and it’s hard to handle all of them. She goes through frustration, sadness, and confusion. Jessica doesn’t completely melt down and scream at people and blame them in anger. She handles it quite maturely.
From,
Layla

Ms. Kimball

4/14/2015 10:48:44 am

Dear Layla,

Wow! What a thoughtful, detailed analysis. I enjoyed how you categorized Jessica's challenges and resiliences as physical, social, and psychological. It helped me understand how much she had to overcome. I can't imagine how difficult it would be to have something you love to do suddenly taken away from you by an accident. The resilience people like Jessica show to continue doing what they love despite the enormous physical, emotional, and social obstacles in their way blows my mind. What an inspiration, don't you think?

Great choice for a resilience story!

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Olivia D.

4/17/2015 01:38:41 am

Dear Layla,

I read that book as well and I thought it was amazing! I remember Jessica getting into a lot of fights with her mother. Is that true or am I just making that up?

Sincerely,
Olivia D.

Layla

5/4/2015 01:41:44 am

Dear Ms. Kimball,
I do think that The Running Dream is an inspiration. Readers can learn a lot from Jessica.
From,
Layla

Sofia and Talia

4/17/2015 01:28:27 am

Layla,
Why do you think that Jessica felt like she wasn't part of the team any more? How would you feel if you were going through what Jessica went through?
From,
Talia and Sofia

Layla

4/25/2015 06:02:28 am

Dear Olivia,
Jessica did have a lot of fights with her mom, but she never stayed mad for a very long time.
Thank you for responding! Also, I thought The Running Dream is an amazing book!
From,
Layla

Amy

4/30/2015 02:12:23 pm

Dear Layla,
Wow! Great response, what kind of genre do you think this book is?
What kind of person would you recommend this to? What level would this book be?
Sincerely,
Amy

Talia

4/13/2015 12:23:04 pm

Ms.Kimball,
In the story James and the Giant Peach, James is socially resilient. James lives up on a hill surrounded by a fence. He lives with his aunts who won’t let him leave the hill. For this reason, James never sees anyone that is his age. He has nobody to talk to, play with, or even just be around. All day James is basically being his aunts’ slave. James never gives up trying to have a better life. He stays calm and doesn't lose control of his feelings. For this reason, James is socially resilient.
Talia

Layla

4/14/2015 06:01:10 am

Dear Talia,
I would have never thought of choosing James and the Giant Peach for this resilience blog. Nice choice for the claim and evidence to back it up!
From,
Layla

Ms. Kimball

4/14/2015 10:52:57 am

Dear Talia,

I agree with Layla! Interesting choice for a resilient character and an especially great job backing up your choice with evidence. I always find social resilience the most complex to understand. It sounds like James has to deal with isolation from his peers. How does he feel about it?

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Talia

4/16/2015 12:50:28 pm

Ms.Kimball,
James feels unhappy about being isolated. At one point at the beginning of the story, James talks about having nobody to be with exept for his awful aunts.
Talia

Talia

4/16/2015 12:46:53 pm

Thanks, Layla!
Talia

Alec

4/17/2015 01:35:34 am

Talia,
Is their anymore ways he is resilient? I know what you replied was part of the beginning but does James show resilience in the middle? Even the end? Otherwise, great response! Keep up the great work in your responses!

Alec

Forrest

4/17/2015 01:38:20 am

Dear Talia,

Great response! That was a great story to ues. When you said "James is being his aunts' slaves." I really agree. What about the peach is there anytime when he shows resilience then? When I read it there was. Other then that great job!

From,

Forrest

Talia

4/28/2015 11:54:30 am

Forrest and Alec,
When James was in the peach he had resilience. He stayed calm and helped the worm know that he would be safe from the birds.
Talia

Sage P

4/17/2015 01:42:40 am

Dear Talia,
WOW! Great response. I really liked how you related James to a slave, I totally agree with you. I also really liked how you mentioned how he was surrounded by a fence to back up the eveidence that he is treated like a slave. Awesome response!
From,
Sage P.

Rheona

4/13/2015 02:41:31 pm

Dear Ms.Kimball

I read the book ‘A Crooked Kind Of Perfect’ by Linda Urban. In the story the main character, Zoe Elias shows psychological resilience. She shows psychological resilience when she sends her father to buy her a baby grand piano and her father comes home with a “wood-grained, vinyl-seated, weeze-bag Organ”. She is infuriated at her father! She wanted a baby grand piano, to be a musical prodigy, and to get invited to play at Carnegie Hall, a place where all the famous pianists play. When she sees the Organ that her father bought she doesn’t scream in anger. She contains her frustration . She doesn't scream because she knows that her father is the kind of person who will never say no to anyone. Her father can be easily persuaded to buy or do things, and Zoe knows this. Zoe knows that it was her fathers intention to buy a baby grand piano, but a salesman persuaded him to buy an Organ instead. That is why Zoe shows resilience when her father brings her an Organ instead of a baby grand piano. She just calmly accepts that her dreams might have been crushed forever.

From,

RHEONA

Ms. Kimball

4/14/2015 11:46:45 am

Dear Rheona,

Interesting choice for a resilient character. I'm glad you provided a detailed, thorough explanation. This helped me see your interpretation more clearly. I'm still questioning if accepting that you don't get something that you want means your resilient. I feel like characters need to overcome more than just disappointment to be considered resilient. However, you said, "She just calmly accepts that her dreams might have been crushed forever." That seems like pretty intense disappointment. Was Zoe really "crushed" by her disappointment at first? If so, how?

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Rheona

4/16/2015 11:31:13 am

Dear Ms.Kimball,
Zoe is very disappointed but never actually tells anyone, you can tell because throughout the story she keeps on telling you through the text that she really wanted a baby grand piano. For example, in the book she says, "My piano teacher was supposed to be a sweet, rumpled old man. I would call him Maestro and he would call me his precious star. My parents would bring me to his elegant home and he would serve us tea and I would play for him.
'A prodigy' he would say. He would discourage me from practicing too much and spoiling the spontaneity of my play."
This is how she envisioned her life with a piano.

However, her reality is very different. She has a teacher named Mabelline Person. The book says, “And the second thing (you need to know about her) is that she like Ginger Ale and she expects that you will have one -preferably Vernors, in a glass of ice- waiting for her when she arrives. . . Then you have to drag a big heavy armchair from across the room so she can sit on it and watch your fingers on the keys and keep track of the notes in your music book and sigh. Not a satisfied, what-a-prodigy sigh. A, what-have-I-got-myself-into sigh.”
As you can see, Zoe is very disappointed by how horrible her life is compared to how she thought her life would be with a baby grand piano.

From,
RHEONA

Ms. Kimball

4/16/2015 02:11:18 pm

Dear Rheona,

Wow! I love the way you used quotes to contrast Zoe's dream with her unsatisfactory reality. The quotes you chose were also very enjoyable to read. I can definitely see now how challenging life can be if you are constantly disappointed by your own reality.

Thank you for sharing!

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Arim link

4/14/2015 12:35:32 am

Dear class,

I read Warriors: Into The Wild by Eric Hunter. A character that is resilient in the book is a cat called Yellowfang. This character Shows resilience because Yellowfang had no food or water for days, and finally firepaw attacked her because she was trespassing, and when she went to thunderclan camp, she still showed no pain, she was able to keep it in, even after all she's been through. This is a character in a book I read that showed resilience.

From Arim

Sam

4/14/2015 06:25:22 am

Dear Arim,
that does sound like a very painful thing to go through, that you would have to show a lot of resilience in. I read the series, and I'm wondering if Firepaw shows any reliance through out the book.

Sincerely,
Sam

Ms. Kimball

4/14/2015 12:07:38 pm

Dear Arim,

I agree with Sam. That sounds like a challenging ordeal for Yellowfang to go through. Why do you think she was able to withstand all of that pain without showing weakness?

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

아림 link

4/28/2015 12:37:26 pm

Dear Ms. Kimball,

I think Yellowfang could ignore all that pain because she is a strong Warrior. Also that she is a medicine cat so she knows a lot about pain and how to make sure that you don't feel it. I think she took some herbs for the pain so she couldn't feel it and when she got attacked she just hided the pain because she didn't want to show it. I think she got rid of the hunger by another kind of herbs that cats use when they travel long distances and don't get hungry.

From Arim

Danny

5/5/2015 01:06:37 am

Dear Arim,
Why was Yellowfang out in the wild?

Nathan

4/14/2015 06:14:15 am

Dear class,
In the story Warriors, a character called Graystripe gets a cough by falling into freezing river clan water. Graystripe is saved by a cat called Silverstream. This cold is called white cough.
Graystripe is resilient because he still leaves the clan (to see Silverstream, who he has fallen in love with) . Though this cough is challenging everyone in the clan, Graystripe still leaves the clan secretly.

From, Nathan

Ms. Kimball

4/14/2015 12:13:17 pm

Dear Nathan,

I am a little confused about the plot and how Graystripe is resilient. I think more details and context about the cough and Graystripe leaving the clan would make your response clearer for readers. Is dealing with the cough the challenge that Graystripe faces? Is he overcoming something physical, mental, or social? How is being secretive related to being resilient?

Thank you in advance for clarifying!

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Talia

4/16/2015 12:52:39 pm

Nathan,
I know that this is a weird question, but is Graystripe a human? Graystripe doesn't sound like a name for a human.
Talia

Arim link

4/28/2015 12:36:08 pm

Dear Talia

No graystripe is not a human, he's a cat.

From Arim

Arim link

4/17/2015 01:37:11 am

Dear Nathan,

Thank you, soooooooo much for spoiling why graystripe leaves, I DID NOT GET TO THAT PART YET, but other than that, good job.

from Arim

Rheona

4/30/2015 12:48:56 am

Dear Nathan,
How did Graystripe's cough challenge everyone? If you were in Graystripe's position, with a horrible cough, would you still leave the clan to see Silverstream? If no, why not? Also, are there any punishments for leaving the clan?

From,
RHEONA

P.S So sad to hear you are not joining us for middle school!

Sofia

4/14/2015 07:26:57 am

Class,
To me, the main character Kya in How I Lost You is very resilient.
Kya has a best friend, Grace, who is always out partying and does stupid things. Once, when meeting celebrities they dreamed of and getting the chance to be on their team, Grace dissapears to talk to a man and returns a little more than a bit "tipsy". Kya gets frustrated, her dreams of being on the Grinders (The paintball team they wanted to be on) ruined, but Kya has resilience keeps strong and reminds herself that Grace is in a worse situation than her (Grace is having some family problems) so she brings Grace home.
Another way Kya is resilient is when Grace left her. Grace leaves Kya for a boy that they both know is nothing but trouble. Grace gets mad at Kya, shouting at her. It was the first time they fought since.. Well... Ever. Kya cries, but then brings herself together again to tell herself that Grace is just giving Kya a lot of baggage to deal with.
During all this, Kya also has to keep a secret for Grace, and has her own problems. She doesn't just give up though. She tries to work things out between Grace, herself, and James, the third friend. She also tries to sort out whats going on, with her emotions, and the events going on in her life. She struggles to try to make it on the Grinders, and somehow, she does it all.
Sofia

Ms. Kimball

4/15/2015 01:58:45 pm

Dear Sofia,

What a complex story line. I had trouble following it. Sounds like there is quite a bit of social strife the main character has to deal with. What are some ways that Kya coaches herself to be resilient? You said she doesn't give up and she accomplishes the things she sets out to do. What is it about her mindset or personality that makes this possible for her?

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Sofia

4/28/2015 09:07:49 am

Ms.Kimball,
The story plot can be very confusing, but works out in the end. a personality trait Kya has is determination. She is practically known for being hard working and determined. She also had done a lot of things because she wanted to keep her friendship with Grace. After that had ended, she wanted to show Grace that Kya could live without her and didn't need her all the time. She is optimistic, and always trying to find a positive side to everything.
Sofia

Talia

4/16/2015 12:56:05 pm

Sofia,
Wow! Thats a complex story! How was her dream of being on the Grinders ruined?
-Talia

Julia

4/14/2015 07:34:20 am

Dear Class,

I read The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. The main character in this book, Katniss, shows lots of resilence. One way she shows resilience is by never giving up. During the Hunger Games, Katniss literally has to kill everyone so she could stay alive. Instead of not trying and letting her self be killed after her friend dies, Katniss recovers quikly and pushes forward. Katniss was in a very difficult position, but she pushes through.

Sincerely,
Julia

Ms. Kimball

4/15/2015 02:01:14 pm

Dear Julia,

Good choice for a resilient character. What do you think Katniss has in her personality or her mindset that helps her push through? Does she have any support from other people who help her strengthen her resilience?

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Julia

4/17/2015 01:36:09 am

Dear Ms. Kimball,

I think Katniss was really determined to prove the Capitol wrong, so she used that energy to help her in the Hunger Games. I think she also wanted to be able to be there for her sister, so that made her want to win the games even more.

Sincerely,
Julia

Rheona

4/17/2015 01:40:07 am

Hi Julia,
Wow! Great response! I love how you put little bits of the definition in the response and how you also explained everything very clearly.

Good job!
From,
RHEONA

Sage W.

4/17/2015 01:42:18 am

Dear Julia,
I love love love Katness and I agree that she is very resilient. Which challenge do you think was the most difficult to show resilience?

Great response,
Sage W.

Julia

4/30/2015 01:29:14 pm

Dear Sage,

There were many challenges Katniss faced but one big one was having to loose so many people. For example, first she has to leave her little sister and mother, and also her good friend Rue dies and Katniss has to go on without her. What do you think was Katniss's hardest challenge?

Sincerely,
Julia

Sofia

4/28/2015 09:58:35 am

Dear Julia,
I definitely agree with that! How would a normal person react to this compared to Katniss? Was there anything that made her push forward?
Sofia

Julia

4/30/2015 01:30:33 pm

Dear Sofia,

I know if I were in Katniss's position I could not have done what she did, but I think becasue she wanted to get back to her sister so much, she kept fighting.

Sincerely,
Julia

Olivia Y.

4/14/2015 10:13:05 am

Dear Julia,
I would have never thought about choosing Hunger Games for this resilience blog. Good job with backing it up and supporting how she has resilience!

Julia

4/17/2015 01:37:23 am

Hi Olivia,

Thanks for responding to my post. We miss you soooo much!

Sincerely,
Julia

Olivia y.

4/17/2015 10:56:39 am

Dear Julia,
I miss you soooo much!

Sincerely,
Olivia Y.

Talia

4/28/2015 11:57:25 am

Olivia,
Seeing your responce made me SO happy!!! Miss you!
Talia

Sam

4/15/2015 01:41:40 am

Dear Ms. Kimball,
The character that I chose that I think shows resilience is Harry Potter. Living with the Dursleys is one thing but also having to grow up without your parents is another. The Dursleys are an incredibly rude family who treats Harry horribly. This shows how Harry would have to be strong, not physically but emotionally. Growing up without parents could be hard because when Harry’s at home he doesn’t have anybody to comfort him. An example of Harry being strong, is how on Harry’s birthday he didn’t even get acknowledged a happy birthday. An example of Harry being independent is, without his parents no one can help him with his homework. The dursleys won’t help Harry with his homework because they forbid anything from the Wizard world. These ways show how Harry is resilient and in what ways.

Sincerely,
Sam

Ms. Kimball

4/15/2015 02:06:28 pm

Dear Sam,

Good choice for a resilient character. Harry definitely faces many challenges throughout the series and his emotional strength is often tested. The Dursleys are very abusive to Harry and deprive him of many of the important supports that kids need to be successful. Why do you think Harry is able to survive through all of this?

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Marc

4/15/2015 11:01:30 am

Class,
Since I am not that far into the kill order, I'm going to talk about the ways Thomas has resilience in the other maze runner books.

First of all, Thomas shows resilience in The Maze Runner by never giving up. In this situation especially you need to show resilience, becuase he does not complain about not being able to get out of the maze, he just goes with the flow, and that definitely shows resilience.

Another way Thomas shows resilience is is the scorch trials. For example, when they get caught in the middle of a big thunderstorm, he urges for his friends to keep running to shelter. He does this even though they are in the middle of nowhere, and he knows he won't be able to get to shelter. Therefore, since he still keeps going, he shows resilience.

Another one of the ways Thomas shows resilience is in the death cure. He shows social resilience when he leaves Newt behind in the crank palace. Obviously Thomas wanted to help Newt, and break him out of there. However, Newt did not want to leave, so after a while, Thomas told his friends to just leave, and let newt have what he wanted.

In conclusion, Thomas shows a lot of resilience in the maze runner series,

Sincerely,
Marc

Ms. Kimball

4/15/2015 02:14:18 pm

Dear Marc,

Wow! Great job organizing your response and providing evidence to support your reasons. I can tell you learned from the "Responding to a Prompt" five step process! I agree that going with the flow, persevering, and taking action despite our emotions are signs of resilience. Do you think you would show the same type of strength and flexibility that Thomas did throughout the series if you were in his situation? I don't know if I would have the emotional strength to leave my friend behind as Thomas did.

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Marc

4/28/2015 08:52:38 am

Ms. Kimball,

I do not think I would be nearly as emotionally strengful as Thomas was. He is a very tough character, both mentally and physically.

Sincerely,
Marc

Talia and Sofia

4/17/2015 01:38:06 am

Marc,
Great response! What was in the maze that made it frustrating? What is the scorch trials? What is the death cure? Is Newt a human? If not, what is Newt?
From,
Talia and Sofia

Sofia

4/28/2015 09:13:07 am

Marc,
a question for your first paragraph, when you had said Thomas goes with the flow. Is there something at the end of the maze he wants? Or does he just want to get to the end?
Sofia

Yubin

4/15/2015 01:44:39 pm

Dear Class,
I recently read a nonfiction book called “Space” by Will Osborne and Mary Pope Osborne. In this book, I found an extremely resilient person named Galileo Galilei (A.D. 1564-1642). He was an Italian astronomer who believed Nicolaus Copernicus (A.D. 1473-1543), a Polish astronomer, was right in that the Sun does not travel around Earth, but Earth travels around the Sun. Galileo didn’t know how to prove it, but he never gave up. Instead, he showed his psychological resilience by searching ways how to prove his belief. At last, he built a telescope of his own, and studied the planets and other objects circling around the Sun. Galileo studied the night sky for 30 years and wrote many books about his discoveries. Even when he died, Galileo tried to show people that Copernicus was right.

From,
Yubin

Olivia D.

4/16/2015 12:33:34 pm

Dear Yubin,

I really enjoyed reading your response, I could tell how you put in alot of effort into it. How did Galileo finally prove his point?

Sincerely,
Olivia D.

Yubin Lee

4/28/2015 01:34:27 pm

Dear Olivia,

Thank you! Galileo used the telescope he designed to observe the night sky. He discovered moons circling around the planet Jupiter, the rings surrounding the planet Saturn, and saw the planet Venus seeming to change shape like our moon. Even he saw millions of stars. The longer Galileo looked through the night sky, the more he knew the earth was not the center of everything. So he wrote many books of his discoveries, but unfortunately, people did not believe him at that time.

Sincerely,
Yubin

Ms. Kimball

4/16/2015 02:25:38 pm

Dear Yubin,

Great choice for a resilient person! Galileo was a very determined historical figure. He got in a lot of trouble for promoting the fact that the earth and other planets orbited the sun. Most people believed that everything orbited the earth and that the earth was the center of the universe. Did you know that Galileo was forced to say he gave up this theory and then was put under "house arrest" (trapped in his home)? Despite this, he continued his scientific work. Even though people told him he was wrong and tried him in court, he never actually gave up his beliefs. What a resilient man!

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Yubin

4/29/2015 01:23:10 pm

Dear Ms. Kimball,

Thank you! Yes, Galileo was arrested in his home until he died and forbidden from publishing his writing. This ban was lifted only in 1835, which is almost 200 years after his death.

Sincerely,
Yubin

Kaela

4/17/2015 01:39:17 am

Dear Yubin,
I really liked your response and I wonder how many books he wrote? What is your favorite thing that Galileo did to prove his theory. It must have been a hard thing to prove because well we are on the earth so its hard to prove stuff not on earth with the limited technology he had. I enjoyed reading your response very much it was very creative.
From
Kaela

Alec

4/16/2015 05:38:51 am

Dear Class,
The book I chose my character from is City of Orphans by AVI. My character is Bartleby Donck, the detective guy that has really bad health. He doesn't want to spend his money on a doctor because he wouldn't have enough money left to live. He faces difficult challenges. He has really bad health and he shows resilience by telling people,
"Don't mind my health." Blood sometimes seeps from his mouth. He has to face another challenge which isn't related to health, but he has to live in a messy dump house thing with stuff everywhere. Moldy bread everywhere, the fridge open, trash bins tipped over, and many other things. Those are some tough challenges but he did show resilience. He should have been rewarded for his resilience or something, but I guess not. He ended up dying from his terrible health. Too bad. He should have been a long time ago. He could not last too long.

From, Alec

Talia

4/16/2015 01:01:31 pm

Alec,
Do you think that living in the dump has to do with the bad health? Not having a clean place to eat sleep ect. can do stuff to your health. (At least I think so because people are always saying that you need to be sanitary to have good health)
Talia

Alec

4/17/2015 01:30:17 am

Talia,
In my response, I said that Donck lived in a house. He has a bed to sleep in, and he doesn't live in a dump. I'm just describing how bad in condition his house is. And yes, I think living in a dump has to do with bad health but that didn't actually happen. Just saying.

Alec

Ms. Kimball

4/16/2015 02:34:45 pm

Dear Alec,

I enjoyed reading your description of Bartleby's living situation. It sounds terrible! I agree with Talia, the poor living conditions probably contributed to Bartleby's poor health. It sounds like he tried to survive in his difficult situation by not complaining or getting down on himself. He doesn't seem like a whiner! It's sad he doesn't make it through.

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Alec

4/30/2015 01:37:59 am

Ms. Kimball,
I totally agree!

Alec

Sofia and Talia

4/17/2015 01:42:26 am

Alec,
We liked your response! What gave the main character resilience?
From,
Talia and Sofia

Dear Alec

4/30/2015 01:33:08 pm

Dear Alec,

Which challenge do you think is harder for Bartleby to show resilience to?

Sincerely,
Julia

Sage P

4/16/2015 10:43:41 am

Dear Class,
In the book Wonder by R.J Palacio I think the main character, August, shows resilience in many ways. August was born with a face that doesn't look like anyone else's and he has to face a lot of challenges that he uses his resilience for him to be able to face these challenges. One way that August uses his recilience in the story is he doesn't cry every time when someone calls him a name or stare at him. I think this could be a psychological and social challenge that August has to face almost every day. August uses his family, positive energy, and his friends to help him throughout the challenges he faces. I think all of those things that show resilience that I said are very important for August to have. There are many other challenges that August faces and other ways that August shows resilience but I just did a few.
From,
Sage P.

Ms. Kimball

4/16/2015 02:41:56 pm

Dear Sage,

August from Wonder is a great choice for a resilient character. He has some enormous struggles, especially having to go through all of those operations as a young child. On top of overcoming the challenges of starting school for the first time in fifth grade with kids he doesn't know, he has to deal with people staring at him and treating him badly because of his face. Poor kid! You're right, he uses his family, friends, and positive energy to stay strong. Having good friends and a loving family can really help someone be resilient in tough times.

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Sage P

4/17/2015 01:39:18 am

Dear Ms. Kimball,
Thank you for responding to me! I totally agree with you, I never thought about some of those challenge.
From,
Sage P.

Mikey

4/30/2015 10:45:58 am

Dear Sage,
I really liked your post. I specially like how you included that he has to face two types of challenges almost daily. Great job!
Mikey

Kaela

4/16/2015 11:45:46 am

Dear class,
In one of my books Wonder August shows resilience.

August is a boy who has a facial disorder. He is stared at on the street and is use to it if you can believe it. August shows resilience in the face of challenges in many ways.

August shows resilience in the face of challenges in many ways. One way he shows resilience is by staying calm. I know this because even when his sister gets mad at people he stays calm like they're not even looking at him at all. The other way I know is because when he is at school he doesn't go all mad or anything when people avoided sitting next to him.

August shows resilience in the face of challenges in many ways. Another way he has resilience is by being friendly. One way he is friendly is he never yells at people when they stare or whisper he just smiles and keeps walking. Also, he is nice to a boy who was showing him around school even when he asked August a rude and mean question.

August shows resilience in the face of challenges in many ways. Lastly, he shows resilience by being strong. One way he is strong is by going to school with a disability like that in the first place it must be scary! Also, he is strong because he has to survive with only really 1 friend and he moved away and so August only sees him ones a year. Thank you for reading.
Sincerely,
Kaela

Ms. Kimball

4/16/2015 02:45:40 pm

Dear Kaela,

Nice job organizing your response using the 5-step guide! I can tell you tried really hard! I agree that August stays calm, tries to be friendly, and is strong despite his fears. You provided some thoughtful, clear evidence to support your arguments. I don't know if I would be as resilient as August was if I was in his situation!

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Kaela

4/17/2015 01:30:41 am

Dear Ms.Kimball,
Thank you for saying such nice things it means a lot to me. And I know it would be hard to be him and I know I definitely would not be so resilient.Thank you so much.
sincerely
Kaela

Olivia Y.

4/17/2015 01:44:36 pm

Dear Kaela,
I love your response! I liked how you supported how August is resilience and how you Supported your reasoning. Support ( back it up with details and examples.

Sincerely,
Olivia Y.

Amy

4/16/2015 12:28:07 pm

Dear class,
I'm reading the lions of little rock. In this story, Marlee, shows resilience when her best friend doesn't come to school one morning. Marlee is resilient because her and Liz, the best friend, were supposed to do a presentation together but Marlee has to do it on her own. This is being resilient because Marlee doesn't talk a lot. Marlee has resilience because she did her part in the presentation and she even did Liz's part. Even though Marlee threw up after the presentation, she still had resilience because she did more than she was suppose to do.

Another time Marlee had resilience was when her dad got her a christmas present to fly in an airplane. She had resilience her because she was very nervous. Instead of staying back with her dad she went on the airplane with her mom, sister and brother.
I think Marlee is a very resilient person.
Sincerely,
Amy

Ms. Kimball

4/16/2015 02:50:26 pm

Dear Amy,

Marlee sounds like a very brave person on top of being resilient. I'm inferring that she is shy because you said she doesn't talk a lot. Is that right? If so, I can imagine how frightening it would be for her to have to present in front of a bunch of people, especially if she had to suddenly take on an extra role she wasn't prepared for. I wonder how bravery and resilience are related. Do you think they mean the same thing?

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Amy

4/30/2015 02:09:20 pm

Dear Ms. Kimball,
Marlee is a very brave person, although she may not think so herself. Marlee would describe herself as a quiet person who doesn't talk much. Marlee is a very shy person. I don't think Bravery and resilience mean the same thing because to me being brave is people who are ready to face a challenge that comes there way. Resilience on the other hand means the ability to sping back quickly after a difficulty.
Sincerely,
Amy

Olivia D.

4/16/2015 12:30:36 pm

Dear Ms. Kimball,

In the story, All Fall Down, the main character, Grace, shows resilience by finally overcoming her mothers death. This story is about a sixteen year old girl who is sent to live in the american embassy after her mother dies. Everyone think Grace has gone crazy becaue she swore she saw her mother murdered, even though everyone "knows" it is a fire. When Grace arrives she believes she sees her mothers murderer and gets into all sorts of trouble lookingofr him.
Grace is mainly resilient because she goes trough all kinds of pysical and social pain just to find this man. Grace won't give up. For example, her friend even told her she was crazy and said to stay away from them. Also her grandfather never helps out and always ignores Grace insisting she is crazy, but Grace doesn't let there hateful words get the better of her. These are some reasons why Grace is resilient.

Sincerely,
Olivia D.

Ms. Kimball

4/16/2015 02:56:01 pm

Dear Olivia,

All Fall Down sounds like a very intriguing story. I'm dying to know if Grace actually finds her mother's murderer or if it turns out to be a delusion. Nevertheless, it sounds like Grace is focused and determined despite other people trying to discourage her. It takes a lot of psychological and social resilience to go against the pressures of others. Some people may say that is stubbornness. What do you think?

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Olivia D.

4/17/2015 01:34:02 am

Dear Ms. Kimball,

I do think Grace is very stubborn, going against all that pressure. She won't give up even when all her friends discourage her and I think that makes her very stubborn.
Also I forgot to mention that Grace has thought she saw her mothers murderer multiple times, all different people, that is mainly why they don't believe her. It's is a little similar to like the boy who cried wolf, she keeps claiming she sees him but when she actually does she nobody will believe her.

Sincerely,
Olivia D.

Forrest

4/16/2015 02:24:15 pm

Dear Ms Kimball,

I am starting a book called A Long Walk To Water. This book is about two 11 year olds living in Sudan. Both show resilience. In this book there is a character called Nya. She shows resilience because she has to walk eight hours every day. She does this because she needs to get water for her family. Nya’s family has to move a lot to find water and survive. Nya has to be really brave and strong for her family even though she is 11. I have only started this book and I cant wait to keep reading.

From,

Forrest

Ms. Kimball

4/16/2015 03:00:25 pm

Dear Forrest,

That is intense to walk for 8 hours a day! Talk about resilience! I'm guessing Nya and her family are poor and barely meeting their basic needs to survive. What kind of personality does Nya have that makes her so resilient?

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Forrest

4/17/2015 01:33:24 am

Dear Ms Kimball,
Nya shows resilience because she doesn't complain. She has to 2 hours to the water and 2hours back. She goes two times. This is why she is resilient. Thanks for the response.

From,

Forrest

Layla

4/17/2015 01:31:04 am

Dear Forrest,
That book is an excellent choice for a resilient character. When I read that book, I thought that Nya was extremely resilient.
From,
Layla

Forrest

5/4/2015 06:37:32 am

I totally agree. This is a great book and what marc said to me. How would you rate this book.

from,

Forrest

Marc

4/17/2015 01:36:42 am

Forrest,
Wow! Eight hours every day!? They must have a lot of resilience to keep walking. On a scale from 1-10 how much would you rate that book?

Sincerely,
Marc

Forrest

5/4/2015 06:35:40 am

Dear Marc,
I know right! it is crazy that she has to walk eight hours every day. I would rate this book a 6.

from,

Forrest

Sage W.

4/16/2015 02:55:11 pm

Dear Class,
In the book Legend by Marie Lu I think June is very resilient. The definition for resilient is to able to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions. In Legend Junes brother dies but when this happens June gets over it. She still misses her brother but she is able to recover and go back to her "normal" life. I think that since Metias (Junes brother) and June were super duper close and the only family they each had left must have made the death even harder on June and yet she still recovered. I personally think that shows a lot of resilience.

From,
Sage W.

Ms. Kimball

5/3/2015 01:36:17 pm

Dear Sage,

My apologies for the late reply!

What personality traits or strategies does June have to help her be resilient and overcome her brother's death?

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Sage W.

5/4/2015 01:44:49 am

Dear Ms.Kimball,

I'm fine with the late response. Now to answer your question about what qualities June has that show resilience. June doesn't complain and although it shows that she still misses Metias it never really shows her sobbing or complain about her brothers death. Complain doesn't seem like the right word though.

Danny

4/17/2015 01:24:39 am

Dear ms.Kimball
The book I read was tiger rising. In the book rob had to be resilient when robs mother died, in the book it said that rob cried but he knew he had to be resilient. Also when rob’s dad killed the tiger. Rob did kick and punch his dad, but he stayed strong.

Mikey

4/17/2015 01:26:27 pm

Dear Ms.Kimball,
A character in my book that shows resilience is August in Wonder. He shows resilience by not letting the bully (Julian) get on his nerves. What I mean by that is that when Julian is bullying him, he doesn’t let it even bother him. I really admire that because I am not very good at that myself, and it is pretty hard to get bullied about something that you can’t change. He taught me to not let words affect my personality, even if they are mean.
Mikey

Ms. Kimball

5/3/2015 01:38:53 pm

Dear Mikey,

My apologies for the late reply!

What personality traits or strategies does August have that make him resilient enough to not get dragged down by Julian's terrible behavior to him?

Sincerely,
Ms. Kimball

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.

Student Work
for
Ms. Kimball's Grade 5 At Underwood, 2014-2015

Relive the greatness of this unforgettable group of students, my fabulous fifth grade class from Underwood Elementary School in Newton.