Mrs. Carol LaRow's 7th Grade English Classes

Student Reactions to an "All Class" Novel

As students read and discuss the novel, they write discussion questions. Students write questions as they read each chapter. Questions must be "discussion" not "recall." The students are encouraged to write questions they would like to see discussed in class. They may include ideas or content they have true queries about and address any topic that will help them arrive at the meaning of the novel.

In this blog, students have written their thoughts about particular chapters. Other students are invited to react to any of the reflections students have posted.

The class blog can be used to augment class discussions. As students discuss the novel, they come to understand characters' actions, author intent, theme, plot, etc. They arrive at the meaning of the novel as they listen to and interact with each other's opinions.

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Chapter 3:

I wonder why the authors had Tim be the narrator of the story instead of Sam? Sam was the one who ran away from home and joined the Patriot Army to help fight the British.  And he was the one who was killed by the Patriots - his own side. The title of the book has Sam's name, not Tim's. I wonder why Sam isn't the narrator. It would be interesting to hear his thoughts as he fights the British or is kept in prison waiting to be killed.
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2 comments:

Susie Smart said...

I think the authors had Tim be the narrator because it showed what it was like for someone living in the town before and after the war actually came. Tim was the younger son, and he wasn't old enough to join the army. He had trouble making up his mind which side he was on. He didn't know if he was a Tory or a Patriot, and we could see him trying to decide as the story went on. The title says my brother Sam is dead. The authors wanted the readers to think about the war the way Sam saw it.

June 21, 2008 at 7:27 PM
student 7 said...

I think Tim is the narrator instead of Sam because the authors wanted to give the readers a chance to see what it was like if people couldn't make up their minds about siding with the Colonists or the British. Sam already made up his mind. He even joined the Patriot army. So they chose the younger brother as the narrator so the reader could see someone trying to make up his mind.

May 10, 2009 at 1:50 PM

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