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General Suggestions For The Use Of FYEO

When introducing the book, brainstorm with students different types of "journals", for eg. a travel log, a runner's journal, an exercise journal, recipe journal, doctor's transcripts, taped/audio transcripts, reader's journal, an "ideas-for -stories" journal, a journal to record feelings and/or daily events, etc.

Study entries of famous diaries (i.e. those of Anne Frank and Benjamin Franklin). What was the purpose in writing these journals? Did they write the journals for others to read?

Introduce the concept of journal-keeping during a crisis in one's life (eg. Zlata's Diary, a Bosnian girl's journal, and others). How does this activity help during that time?

Ask students to think about what kind of journal they would like to keep. Would they show it to anyone? If so, to whom? Would they write in it everyday? What would be the purpose of their own journal?

In this novel, Andy includes artwork in his journal. Does artwork belong in a journal entry? What other unique and individual entries are possible?

POETRY

Tell the students that this novel begins each section with a poem written on the blackboard by the teacher each Monday morning. Discuss: What is a poem? Have you ever written one, not for a school assignment?

Read "I Hate Poetry" by Benita Little, Language Arts, Vol. 73, Dec. 1996 which begins:
"My teacher says that poetry
Is just the things I say.
Well I say, I hate poetry.
Poetry don't interest me.
It's just for girls. It's boring.
It leaves me snoring.
But...
I really liked Where the Sidewalk Ends
And all the poems we read about friends..."

Ask the students their reactions to poetry. What do they hate? What do they love? Poetry often stirs up strong feelings, pro and con. This happens to the characters Lucy and Andy, in the novel. Why do they think poetry has this effect on people?

Some educational researchers believe that negative feelings about poetry result from students believing there is a "right and wrong" meaning to the poem that they can't figure out for themselves.

You may want to try the following method when introducing a new poem, so that students realize their abilities to read and understand poetry on their own. (However, I suggest more teacher-directed activities within each section.):

Student Poetry Analysis:
-Read the poem to the whole class.
-Have a class member read the poem again.<
-Divide students into small groups.
-Each group chooses a reporter, who again reads the poem to that group.
-Group members take turns discussing theirr reactions to and understanding of the poem. Then group members each take turns discussing one or two lines of the poem.
-After 20 minutes, the group helps the repporter decide what will be reported back to the large group.
-Throughout, the teacher's role is to keepp the discussions going, to provide the literal meaning of a word, or explain unfamiliar phrases, rather than to be the keeper of the final and perfect meaning of the poem. As a "fellow interpreter", the teacher may add aspects of the poem which were left out, or give a personal reaction. This method has been found to increase confidence, motivation and independence of students with respect to their appreciation and reading of poetry. (See Dias, California English, in reading list.)

Suggest that students choose a book of poetry, select 10 poems they prefer, photocopy them, and finally choose one favorite to share with the class.

April is National Poetry Month. Create a bulletin board with news about national poetry activities during this time, (and during other times, too)--conferences, workshops, media performances, events in bookstores, libraries, and schools. etc. Add your classroom activities to the board, to impress upon the students that they are a part of an ongoing, widespread celebration of poetry.

Have students research the lives of the poets in the novel.

If they could interview any of these poets (or another favorite) what would they like to ask? (eg. What inspires you? When do you write? Do you have a favorite poem?)

Choose poems for your own Monday Morning Chalkboard, based on the needs, experiences and preferences of your students!

WRITING

Discuss diary/journals as a fictional genre, as in the case of this novel. Introduce or have available other novels which use a diary format to tell a story, eg. Dear Mr. Henshaw and Letters from Rifke , Dear Baby, (see reading list for this guide).
"Finding a voice means that you can get your own feeling into your own words and that your words have the feel of you about them", poet Seamus Henry has said. (cited in Hendry et al, 1993).
Define and discuss the concepts of "point of view" and "voice". The author writes in several "voices" in the novel. How are Lucy's and Andy's voices different? Lucy and Andy see the world differently when they are writing. How does the author let us know this?
Although written in diary form, what makes this book a "story"?
Discuss the concepts of conflict and drama which make stories compelling.
Have students think about or anticipate problems Lucy and Andy experience, making the reader turn the page to find out what happens.
Mention that the author has used elements of her own experience and fictionalized them in this book. For example, she herself used to write poetry, and also wrote jingles just as Lucy's little brothers do. The author lives in Los Angeles in an apartment, as Lucy does. She loves to cook, as Dylan does in the book. Ask students to think of and/or write about aspects of their own experience, and fictionalize them, i.e. change or add to that experience in their own writing.

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