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Type of bind: Paperback
EAN num: 9780595455287
ISBN number: 059545528X
Label: iUniverse, Ltd.
Manufacturer: iUniverse, Ltd.
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 182
Printing Date: February 14, 2008
Publishing house: iUniverse, Ltd.
Release Date: February 14, 2008
Sale Popularity Level: 1940939
Studio: iUniverse, Ltd.
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Product Description:
“With focus and characters as mainstream as Main Street, this fine novel is far more a great read than message tale.”—Tom Corcoran, author of Air Dance Iguana, Jimmy Buffett-The Key West Years, and Key West in Black and White
Life is good for Jenna Bianchi. She’s just started her second year of teaching English at Morrison High School, a job she loves. She has a pet parrot with attitude. And there’s a handsome math teacher who wants to be more than just friends. But everything changes when a defiant, disruptive tenth grader walks into her classroom.
With a smart mouth and a swagger to match, Michael Tayler is a problem for Jenna from the very very first day. His school record screams troublemaker, and Jenna wonders if the new year is already doomed. But when she reads Michael’s very first poetry assignment, she recognizes it for what it truly is: a cry for help.
Michael’s presence sets into motion a chain of events that turns Jenna’s perfect life upside-down and threatens to destroy her career. Faced with a challenge unlike anything she’s ever known, Jenna commits to doing what no one has done for Michael Tayler before.
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Rated by buyers -
This wonderful novel resounded with me in many ways. Reading it was like revisiting my high school years. Those years full of teen-aged angst, rebellion, and confusion.
Minniti writes in a fresh, crisp, witty style. As one who has been "in the trenches," she offers her reader much "teacherly wisdom" and great insights into this most challenging of professions.
You feel the earnestness of Jenna Bianchi, the young teacher faced with dealing with an unruly student, new to her school, Michael Tayler. He's trouble from the time he enters her classroom. But as Ms. Bianchi examines his school records, she notes that while his grades have been abysmal, Michael possesses high test scores and an above-average I.Q.
This information ignites her curiosity into the reasons behind his defiant attitude, and his lack of motivation for his studies. Jenna begins to wonder if Michael could possibly have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. (ADHD). She begins researching the subject on the Internet, coming across an article titled "Helping the ADD/ADHD Student in the Classroom." She decides right then to do her best to help Michael Tayler.
After giving the class an assignment to write a cinquain poem, Jenna is further intrigued and touched by Michael's response:
My thoughts
Scattered, restless,
Bouncing, spinning, whirling,
Their static buzzes in my brain.
Mind-bits.
Suddenly, she sees that behind his surly behavior, lies a desperate child, crying out for help. It's heartwarming to see how Michael's attitude slowly turns around as Jenna tries various strategies to help him. A simple gesture such as a tap on the shoulder, when she sees his attention wandering in class, begins to make a difference.
After reading his poem, and noticing his writing talent, Jenna steers him toward working on the newspaper staff. Reluctantly agreeing, Michael soon begins to relax, make friends and start making the most of his abilities.
Unfortunately, Michael's wealthy father, resents Jenna's interest in his son. Yet she finds ways to deal with him too.
Jenna's romance with math teacher Chris, is endearing and entertaining, and her pet parrot Brutus, is literally, a scream. This novel will appeal to parents, students, teachers, and anyone in the helping professions. We've come a long way from the days when students, unknowingly afflicted with ADD or ADHD, were labeled lazy or stupid.
We can only hope the students of yesterday will be fortunate enough to cross paths with a teacher such as Jenna Bianchi. I'd like to clone her. She's smart, compassionate, motivated, brave, and caring. While reading this, it hit me, in hindsight, that my own son had exhibited all the signs of ADHD, yet no one picked up on it. If he'd had a teacher like Ms. Bianchi, perhaps his life would have been easier.
The title refers to a term coined by a teacher, describing a student who bugs a teacher so much, the teacher prays for June. Minniti tackles a serious subject and makes it a pleasurable ride. Read it, enjoy and learn. Great book!
Rated by buyers -
I absoultely LOVED this book!! Not only is it educational for the reader, but it has a great story line that is fun and easy to follow. It is so well written-I could actually put myself in the shoes of the characters and feel the emotions they experienced throughout the book. I walked away learning something as well, which I think is another great quality of the book. I recommend this to everyone and anyone!
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