Story Geek Book Club: Turtle Boy by M. Wolkenstein ELA, English Language Arts
Fans of Auggie in Wonder will enjoy Turtle Boy by M. Wolkenstein. A 7th grade boy who's spent his life in a shell learns the importance of taking a chance. Winner of Jewish Libraries Award, #1 Children's Buddhism Books on Amazon
Kiera Astrid, M.L.I.S, M.F.A
Average rating:
4.9
Number of reviews:(92)
What's included
6 live meetings
5 hrs 30 mins in-class hoursClass Experience
US Grade 7
Over the course of 6 weeks students read and discuss middle-grade novel Turtle Boy by M. Evan Wolkenstein covering one or two milestone literary terms each week through short lessons. I teach using questions, slides, video clips, online games like Kahoot and Blooket, optional fun activities, and creative writing prompts. About the book: Turtle Boy is a great read for kids who enjoyed Wonder by RJ Palacia and ready for an older main character. Turtle Boy is a realistic, heart-felt story illustrating the impacts of friendship, chance, and choice. 7th grade Will has been spending his days mostly hiding out in his room due to his recessed chin kids have made fun of since 5th grade. The very likable Will narrates the story. Will is a unique boy character with his gentle manner, life circumstances, and genuine care for turtles and the environment. Over the course of the story, Will makes friends with a boy living with an incurable illness inspiring Will to discover the importance of taking a chance and facing his fears. Themes include: Friendship, loss, self-esteem, hope, chance, and overcoming fears. -2021 winner of The Sydney Taylor Book Award from The Association of Jewish Libraries -#1 Best-seller in Children’s Buddhism Books on Amazon among other awards and starred reviews. Reading expectation: 70-90 pages a week. Subject Matter: Ages 10-13 Reading level: Ages 9 -12. Class recommended for fluent, eager readers with an emotional maturity level at least 10 years old. Students develop closer reading and comprehension skills as well as critical thinking skills as they discuss the story each week reflecting on its themes and their life experiences with these themes. Students exercise closer reading and comprehension skills through guided discussions and games while applying literary terms introduced over the course of the 6 week book club. Literary term lessons are short (approx. 10 minutes) encouraging application through in-class participation and out-of-class creative activities. Through guided in-class discussions, video clips, activities, creative writing prompts, and quiz games students cement their reading comprehension and weekly lesson while having fun. Each week, I post an optional To Do List on the classroom page intended to provide creative, fun learning opportunities offering additional context to the story, support themes, inspire closer reading, and/or solidify lesson. The To Do List always includes: something to play; something to watch; something to read; something to do; and something to write. Class Structure: We'll meet once a week for 55 minutes. Each class includes: -Check-in -Circle Back: review previous week’s highlights -Share: writing and activities completed off the optional To Do List -Watch: relevant video clip *sometimes -Discussion: weekly reading -Learn Something New: 1 literary term -Game: played either in-class or after-class depending on time. -Check-out Teaching style: I encourage a reflective and curious group dynamic asking questions while listening for what sounds more interesting or important to the students. I believe kids learn best when they feel safe, seen, and welcomed in a group setting. Background: I have a BA in English and Writing, an MFA in Creative Writing and an MLIS in Library and Information Science. My background includes working as a youth services librarian as well as an adult service librarian developing programs, services, and courses centering literature. I’ve also worked a substitute teacher, writer, editor, barista, waitress, and authored three children’s history books targeting struggling readers published by Full Tilt Press, 2020. Story Geek Classes welcome everyone! We celebrate neurodiversity (e.g., ADHD, ASD, DYX, 2e, HiCap, G/T). I come from a neurodivergent-affirming perspective informed from working with licensed neurodivergent consultants and advocates as an educator, librarian, and parent. Interaction with educator and students: Students interact with each other and myself once a week for 55 minutes. Required experience or knowledge: None Topics Covered: Themes: Friendship, loss, self-esteem, courage, self-image, grief, fears, chance Terms: Theme, plot, setting, character development, inference, point of view, metaphors and similes, climax, and resolution. Week 1: Introductions: Format, Book, & Author | Elements of Story & Story Words Week 2: Discuss Chapters 1- 16 | Theme Week 3: Discuss Chapters 17 - 34 | Point of View Week 4: Discuss Chapter 35 - 44 | Character Development Week 5: Discuss Chapters 45 - 59 | Metaphors & Similes Week 6: Discuss Chapters 60 - 68 | Climax & Resolution
Other Details
Parental Guidance
This beautiful, funny, and uplifting story contains topics/themes such as serious childhood illness, parental death, and grief.
These topics are artfully and sensitively handled without sensationalizing or romanticizing as sometimes found in other middle grade or young adult literature. The story is, ultimately, about hope, friendship, and treasuring our lives and loved ones including our environment.
Please scroll down to the section provided by Outschool to read about my expertise with these sensitive topics/themes. Also, feel free to reach out to me with any concerns and/or information you'd like to share with me about your student's experience with these topics/themes.
Context of illness & grief:
We learn early on in the story that Will is terrified of hospitals ever since his father died during a routine surgery when Will was only four years old. Will requires a surgery to repair his jaw so hoping to help him with his fear, Will's mother and his Rabbi decide to make him visit a teenager at the hospital, RJ, as part of his community service project that he needs to complete before his Bar Mitzvah. RJ has a mitochondrial disease, has been cooped up at the hospital for ages, and doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to volunteers spending time with him. Actually, he loves to drive them away. But RJ is dying and Will may be his last chance to finish all the things on his bucket list. Though the boys don’t get along at the beginning and snap at each other quite like turtles do when they feel a stranger invading their territory, their friendship blossoms as RJ helps Will come out of his shell.
External Resources
In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:
Joined November, 2020
4.9
92reviews
Teacher expertise and credentials
2 Degrees
Master's Degree from University of British Columbia
Bachelor's Degree in English from University of Redlands
My background includes working as a Youth Services Librarian and Medical Librarian as well as independently creating the first library for a palliative care unit in a large hospital meeting with patients, patients' family and friends, donors, and staff to better understand their needs. This project required researching the many kinds of grief and selecting resources for children, teens, and parents either experiencing grief or terminal illness in the family.
I live with a rare disease that compromises my vertebral, carotid, and renal arteries and resulted in a vertebral dissection with a blood clot in 2017. My disease is not terminal, though comes with some restrictions and risks I've learned how to discuss with my young son. I don't discuss my medical condition with students on Outschool. I consider myself otherwise very healthy.
As a writer, in 2019 I was invited to provide the introduction for a collection of essays published by Anvil Press featuring authors writing about terminal illness or near-death experiences without the usual platitudes. Reviews
Live Group Class
$10
weekly1x per week, 6 weeks
55 min
Completed by 6 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 10-13
3-14 learners per class
