Making a Difference
Over the weekend I had the opportunity to work alongside 100+ people to build a Habitat Home for a local family. I had been helping plan and fundraise for this project at Appalachian State for a year and this weekend made all the frustrations of fundraising worth it. What made the weekend so special was the fact that people from all walks of life and from all over the US came together to give a hand up to a family of four. Watauga County Habitat for Humanity, students at Appalachian State University and a group called the Habitat Road Trip Crazies joined forces to go from a cement slab to a two story home with windows and siding in TWO days. Throughout the weekend I found time to read A Crack in the Sea by H. M. Bouwman. Reading this book is like being sucked through a doorway to another world (or two). It is packed with tales of migration, history, and most importantly it teaches readers about kindness. The people I worked alongside of and H. M. Bouwman’s taught me lessons wove together in a beautiful way. They both taught me that we can make the world a better place, we can take action! This is a lesson that we need to teach our students so they can grow up and spread love and kindness to all people. Whether it is welcoming new, different people, paying it forward by volunteering, or buying someone else’s meal (which the Habitat Crazies do every where they go) we can all make a difference is this world.
Making Literacy Connections
Dreamers by Yuyi Morales tells a story through vibrant artwork. This book connects to A Crack in the Sea in many ways. The author of Dreamers is an immigrant and her journey is represented in her book. This pairs well with A Crack in the Sea because it also contains a story of migrants leaving their country in hopes of a better life. They also connect to students because they both show how books can impact people and give them an escape from the hard times they experience.
