Yesterday we got the the end of chapter 3, where we encountered Mrs Which for the first time. A shimmering quivering circle of silver says, "I ddo nott thinkk I willl matterrialize commpletely. I ffindd itt verry ttirinngg, andd wee hhave mmuch ttoo ddoo." In the audio, L'Engle's voice sounds like it is an echo chamber when she reads Mrs Which's words. The kids LOVED the way the audio helped them to understand what L'Engle wanted them to get from the way she wrote the words.
As we wrapped up our discussion and prepared to move on to word study, N. pointed out the dedication. "I know why Madeline L'Engle named him Charles Wallace!" she declared excitedly. "Look! The book is dedicated to Charles Wadsworth Camp and Wallace Collin Franklin. Charles and Wallace. Charles Wallace!"
The power of reading together.
(My Wrinkle in Time Blog Tour Post is here. Watch for future posts about reading this classic with fourth graders.)
More! More! Am loving reading about this study. Having them listen to L'Engle's own reading of her book is perfection!
ReplyDeleteSince I just read & reviewed it, it's so great to see this!
ReplyDeletei'm reading this aloud to my 4/5 combo class....i've always had a hard time with Mrs. Which's voice -- now i know all i need to do is invest in a karoke machine that will make my voice echo! :)
ReplyDeleteOnce again, what a delight to be in your class, Ms. Hahn! Would you use the audiobook if it weren't L'Engle reading it herself, I wonder? Perhaps I must read it yet again...
ReplyDeleteI'm dying to read a novel to my K class--many teachers in my school are working their way through every Magic Treehouse with theirs (books which I think are very fabulous in their own ways, but as a steady diet may not be sufficient), and I long for more of that hovering moment when we're all spellbound. I can often get it with picture books, but I have English language learners who are clearly much even with rich picture support.
So what could I choose that would challenge and delight so many different listeners?
oops: ELLs who are clearly not accessing much even with picture support.
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking you need to go for variety. Sometimes lots of pictures for the ELLs, sometimes longer text for the others.
DeleteSuggesting novels for K read aloud is really way out of my league. I assume you feed them a rich diet of Elephant and Piggie and other Geisel Winning Books?
I wonder if you might pair this novel with Rebecca Stead's "When You Reach Me". The 2010 Newbery Award book alludes heavily to L'Engle's "A Wrinkle in Time". I am doing this book with an 8-11 year-old book club at the public library where I work.
ReplyDeleteI have indeed considered When You Reach Me as my next read aloud after A Wrinkle in Time, but it's too soon to decide that for sure!
DeleteThat's pretty exciting about the student getting that Charles Wallace "code" figured out! Thanks for sharing,
ReplyDeleteLee