Becky’s Comments (group member since Jan 02, 2018)

Becky’s comments from the Munoz Ryan author study group.

Grade have been posted for this class.

Just discovered that EPIC! has some Munoz Ryan picture books if you are looking for the ones for here.

Anita wrote: "She was upset that her money orders were missing. She got angry when she realized it had to be Miguel who took them. I thought the same thing Esperanza did. He had to have been the one. He left ver..."

Did you read the author's notes? This helps understand where the story came from and gives some good information about the field workers in the valleys of southern California.

We have seen Esperanza grow through this book. She has gone from the child who was always cared for to the young woman who can step up and take care of things when she needs to.
How did you feel when she noticed that her money orders were missing? Did you also jump right to Miguel as having them?
What would your reaction have been seeing Abuelita get off the bus?
Do you think life will come back to a place where Esperanza is comfortable with where she is?
Any other thoughts you want to share about the ending of this story?

We see Esperanza learning to take on more responsibility. She is forced when Mama gets sick to go out to the fields and to work in the shed. We see her continue to grow and become more understanding of others. We even see her starting to see that the workers who are striking have true needs as well.
What changes have you seen in Esperanza during this part of the book? Do you think she will be able to get her whole family back together, Mama out of the hospital and Abuelita to them in California? Do you believe she will again feel the heartbeat of the earth like she did with Papa at the beginning of the story?

We are in a new book now. Esperanza is the daughter of a landowner in Mexico in in the 1920s. This is a time of unrest in the area. Esperanza is living the life of any daughter of a landowner. Life changes for her the night her father is killed.
Life is all of the sudden changing dramatically. Not only now is Esperanza without her father she is also facing big changes thanks to her uncles. She now needs to figure out how to work and change her thinking.
What do you like about Esperanza so far in the book? Do you think she will figure out how to do what is needed? Will she learn from her mom that no matter what the situation you need to get done what is necessary?

Katie wrote: "As of right now, I do not think Friedrich's father was aware of the repercussions of having the two men over to play music. I think he was more concerned about the great opportunity for his son.
I..."

Its an M on the harmonica.

Joan is also listening and she says the score with it really brings the story to a different level.

Sarah wrote: "At first Ivy is quite confused as to why she is not able to get off the bus with Susan. She has simply never had to give a second thought to her background and how that may play a part in how other..."

Yeah where I went to college there was an interment camp that we went out and toured as part of one of the classes. It was hard to be there and see what remained of the atrocities our country did to others.

We come to the end of the book. What surprised you about where the author took it? Did you see all the characters coming together? Honestly I did not know what was happening. I was hoping it was Ivy because she was the only one I thought had survived her part of the story.
We again get back to the sisters from the beginning. I honestly thought when I started reading the book that the three main characters would have been taken over by the sister's spirits, but I am glad that their gift was all that was passed.
Ending thought on this book to share with the group?

What was your reaction when the Yamamato house was graffiti-ed? Do you agree with Mr. Lopez that it is important to clean up the house even though it means time out of the orchards?
Were you surprised to see what was in the hidden room?
What is in the letter? I think that is every military family's fear, how would you feel, not only are they trying to prove to the landlord they belong there but also worried about their son fighting for his country where they are not feeling very welcome at this point.
How are you feeling about the book now that we are the end of part three? Still worried about Friedrich and Mike?

Besides the two novels were are reading together and sharing thoughts about, each member has the choice to read either 3 picture books by Ryan or one other of her novels. Once done, you will need to tell how you would use the novel and ideas that would be shared with students.
The other choice is to read three of the picture books by Ryan. How would you use the book with students and what subject areas would the book support? I have Nacho and Lolita, The Flag We Love and Hello Ocean coming. I have read others by Ryan and am excited to see how her non-fiction reads.

We are in another section of the country at a another time during WWII. We meet Ivy. We get to see another group that has been marginalized in the United States and who do everything they can to make a difference.
Ivy is gifted and again we have a sibling pair that look out for and encourage each other's gifts. How do you think Ivy feels after being in a school where she regular to going to a school where just because she is am immigrant she needs to go somewhere else?
Do you have ideas of what is hidden in the Yamamato house? Are they really spies for the Japanese? Do you see how even in the United States we were suspicious of groups just because of physical characteristics?

I am the elementary librarian for Jamestown Public Elementary Schools. I see 3 - 5 for skills once a week.

Our group has grown and continues to grow. We have members from all over the state. Please share where you teach, school and town as well as subject or grade.

Candace wrote: "After Frankie bit the husband, I wasn't surprised the family did not take the boys. They would be getting a great deal with two for one, but it didn't seem like it would be worth the hassle of misb..."

If you look at the start of each section it gives the time frame in which this takes place. So section 1 was the rise of Hitler before WWII, part 2 was during the great depression, and part 3 will be shortly after, not giving anything away. Show how even though the world is big and diverse even then events in one place ripple to another.

So Mike and Frankie have been on some adventures. Were you surprised when the first family did not want to adopt them?
Do you think that Mr. Howard has an alternative motive for bringing the boys into the house?
What do you think the boys are willing to do to stay together or for the good of each other?
The ending of this section, again leaves us hanging, what do you think did happen to Mike?
Can you connect this part of the book to part 1? Can you see how Ryan plays on diversity?

Here we move to another part of the world. Were you left hanging from Fredriech's story?
In this section we meet Mike and Frankie, these two boys are orphans that want to do everything they can to stay together.
Again there is a harmonica that they find and one has more ability with it than the other. Is this the same harmonica?
Do you think the boys will be adopted or are they bound to spend their childhoods in the Bishop's home.
What similarities or differences do you see between the beginning of their story and Friedrich's story?

Friedrich is now in the midst of what the Nazi's can and did do. What were your reactions to father and Uncle Gunter's having dinner with known Jewish people. Are they just putting their noses up in the air at the powers that be?
We are left hanging at the end of this part, does Friedrich end up in a camp or do you believe that Anselm is in on the plan as well?
What do you think so far?
Your questions for the group.

In the first part we meet Friedrich, do you agree with the father that taking him out of school ultimately did him better?
Do you think he was led to the harmonica?
Did you know before reading these chapters that the Nazi's also tried to do away with people who had any deformity, even if they were German?
What other questions are there that you have after reading these chapters?
Do you think Elisabeth is really a strong Nazi? Will Friedrich make his dream come true or will he be a victim of Hitler?