My Louisiana Sky is a historical realistic fiction multi-themed novel by Kimberly Willis Holt based in the 1950s at a time of segregation in a fast-changing world. This novel offers a wonderful example of an author blending actual events and people from history with a plot that includes the importance of family, treatment of others and bullying,  true friendship, acceptance of loss, and so much more. The lessons are primarily  done through lively and deep discussion and question/ answer periods in which students build off each other providing details from the novel to support ideas.

 Over the two week, two session, time   of reading the book, students will complete reading assignments as indicated in the homework section of this class listing. The following skills will occur during each meeting time and are  blended together in discussion  using the book  to search out details, facts, figurative language, themes, vocabulary in context and much more.  

Class is organized through primarily discussion with students building off of each other and adding specific details from the novel to support ideas. We work together to locate figurative language examples and discuss their impact on the novel as with supporting comprehension details and vocabulary in context. Learners and the teacher bring real life examples and connect the elements of the book to their own lives. Class is stimulating, exciting, funny, relaxed and always supportive of each other and of the learning goals. All of the items listed below are blended together in every class, rather than separated out as solitary skills one at a time, forming a class where students delve into the plot, author's technique, character decisions , themes and more with higher level thinking.
The following skills will be a part of each class.
*vocabulary building and vocabulary in context, 
*figurative language, (similes, metaphors, personification, irony, foreshadowing, cliffhangers, ...) these items will be located during the reading of chapters and discussed for their meaning and author's technique in terms of how the specific figurative language adds to the writing style.
*comprehension skills, including how multiple plots are woven together to create a detailed and descriptive realistic novel will be discussed throughout the progression of sessions as will questions and answer periods regarding all aspects of plot development, characters, setting events and themes from the chapters read for the class.
*Students will strengthen  active-reading skills including locating examples of themes, descriptive facts that support comprehension answers, character motives, mood, realistic details and events including those based from actual historical moments and people, and the building of well detailed settings which add credibility to the plot. Finally the location of resolutions in class number for is a highly important part of the process.
* Each learner will reflect on the experiences of the events from history, choices made by characters, character development and realistic elements to connect to his or her own thoughts and experiences in order to share opinions and ideas and discuss literary elements of plots, turning points, settings, character development, conflicts and form connections to characters and plot outcomes