Clement’s narrative makes it so easy for American readers to relate to life in Afghanistan. Visit the publisher’s site at http://books.simonandschuster.com/Extra-Credit/Andrew-Clements/9781416949299 or Clement’s site at http://www.andrewclements.com/books.html
Advertisement
I thought that Extra Credit was a great story of two people from totally different places becoming friends. It was very interesting to see what life is like in Afghanistan in a way that was understandable by a young person. One of the things I really loved about the story was getting to see the two perspective and how it went back and forth between a day in America to a day in Afghanistan. The similarities and differences in the two were able to really be brought out by doing that. Also I think this book could be used in the classroom to inspire students to have pen pals even if it just someone from across town or another school. This book shows how much fun and how exciting it can be to send and receive letters from people, and within that you have a reading and writing activity.
I agree with Megan. The story would be great to incorporate into the classroom. The entire story revolves around two students from different countries writing to one another. The two characters, Sadeed and Abby, learn a lot about one another. They share there experiences living in different places, Afghanistan and Illinois, and learn about one another’s cultures. I believe this book would be a great way to encourage students to write a letter to someone or even find a pen pal of their own.
I also believe the pen pal thing would be something great to start in the classroom and school. I think that is something that can be easy to set up, as the teacher. Even if the students were not able to write to students from a different school they could at least write to students in a different grade at their own school. It is something that can have a lot of benefits for the students. There are a lot of things that can be taught as the students are doing the pen pal activity.
I also agree that is was great to be able to see the difference from the day to day activities. It is a great way for the students to learn about another country and even another state within their own country. I think there are a lot of great things that can be done with the students if this book is used.
I agree with Megan that after reading this book it would be interesting to have each student write to a pen pal, especially from the different country. This would give students an authentic opportunity to learn about a new place, new cultures, and new ways of life all over the world. With the push and importance of promoting diversity in the classroom, I feel that this is a great and effective way to add more cultural rich experiences to the classroom.
I agree with Megan the idea of doing pen pals even in a different area shows the differences and similarities we share. In the class, I was observing the students wrote to students also in second grade, but who live in Western Maryland the students were able to tell about things they enjoy here on the Eastern Shore like going to the beach, something many of us know well but people who live on the western shore may never get to experience or not as often as we do.
I agree that this book definitely supports having pen pals. I remember when I was younger I had a pen pal from another school in my area. I was so excited to get letters and talk to my new friend. I cannot even imagine how excited I would be to have a friend from the other side of the world. It would be such a great experience to have students talk to others across the world. I think it would actually help open children’s eyes and realize they are not that different after all. Through Extra Credit it is clear how both Abby and Sadeed both slowly realize how they are similar. They even learn to take their differences and make them a learning experience. Abby wanted to know how it felt to live near mountains since she lives in a flatter area. On the other side Sadeed had mountains but never realized how amazing they were. By writing to each other I think students will learn to appreciate the little things they have. They will also learn to appreciate and accept differences rather than discriminate against each other. It will help students learn that although there are people all over the world, we are all people and have similar hopes, dreams and ideas.
I agree, this book would make an excellent class read. The idea of having students have pen pals from another country is great. When I was in 3rd grade my class did that, we had pen pals from Australia. This gives students access into a whole other country just by writing to someone from there. This book would tie into the Common Core because you are integrating social studies and reading and language arts.
I thought this was a great book. It is one that can lead to many connections for the students. There are some students who have been in danger of failing and have had to complete extra assignments like Abby.
The relationship that develops between Abby and Sadeed is a great thing. It shows that even if there are people of someone’s culture that are mean and do horrible things there are still people of that same culture who are nice and do not participate in the horrible actions like other members do. It was also great to see the comparison and contrast between the land in the U.S. and Afghanistan. Also, seeing the differences in daily life was a great thing as well. This is a book that would allow the students to learn a lot about Afghanistan and the differences between America and Afghanistan.
I also think that the pen pal thing is a great detail in the book and a great thing to do in the classroom. It would be easy to even set up the pen pals in the same school. Students from two different grades or two different classrooms could be each others pen pal. If I use this book in my classroom I would definitely incorporate the pen pals one way or another.
I completely agree with Jill’s idea that this book could be useful to show that not everyone in a specific area have to be “bad guys”. I am sure the students reading this book would be aware of the issues between the United State and Afghanistan. This book is good to show that even though those things are happening the students there age are just like regular kids like them. There culture my be different and they may do different things on a day to day basis but overall they are just kids like them. It is important to show the students this point and not have a completely negative outlook on some different countries.
I also really like Jill’s thought on how the book brings in issues of “bad guys” in certain places. Of course, every country probably has these issues; however, not everyone is involved and that is the important thing to focus on. Whenever people hear news about bad people in a ceratin country, they often times assume that all the people living there are the same way. However, that is not the case. This book gives the reader a different perspective on issues like this.
I agree with Jill I think many times students and even adults view ourselves as different from people of other cultures and it important to understand those but also to understand that we also share some similarities too. I also agree the book would be great for students to relate to because some have struggled maybe not with failing but even with just a class that could have or did cause a bad grade and they had the opportunity to improve it through extra credit.
I believe that this would be a great book to incorporate into the classroom because so many children could relate to this book. First of all, many students these days are getting held back and for those students they probably feel embarrassed, feel as if they are a disappointment, and just plain dumb, but if they read this book, they can see and understand that anyone could get held back and if they do, it should just motivate you to do better and/or even come up with an extra credit assignment to get their grades up. Aside from the getting held back aspect, children could also relate and/or be interested in the pen pal concept. What doesn’t sound fun and exciting about writing letters to a student in another country? I know that if I were an Elementary student or even now, I would love to be a pen pal and learn about a different culture from an actual person of that culture as opposed to just reading about it in a text book. Children would get so excited every time they would get a letter and would keep them much more eager to learn. Also, if one were to assign this book for children to read, they could even set up a pen pal project for their kids to complete once their finished reading, which would be a great idea in integrating language arts (friendly letters) and social studies (culture).
I definitely that there are a lot of students that get held back and that can be a troubling experience. Reading this book can be inspirational for them. It can make them realize that there are many things they can do to improve their grades or get through the school year that they have to repeat. Reading the book can make learning about Afghanistan very interesting for the students. I also believe that they will pay more attention to this book and get more out of it than text books about Afghanistan. If pen pals were set up in the class the students could create pen names and write to one another and try to figure out who they are writing to. I definitely believe this is a good book to have in the classroom and even use during social studies or language arts to connect the two subjects.
I totally agree with Jordan’s idea that reading about a different country in a book like this would be a lot more interesting then learning about it in a text book. The perspective of a student your own age is much more engaging then the perspective of a text book. As a teacher connecting this book to current events would also be great. Especially the part where Sadeed is stopped by that man. Using this part of the book connected to current events would probably make student more interested in the current events.
I agree with you and Jordan but I think it would be awesome for students to be reading this book and other international novels WHILE learning about those countries in textbooks too. I think it would bring new meaning to the textbook material, and inspire students to be interested in the material. The book would provide students with lasting memories about what they have learned, by being able to picture characters and letters, to recall this information more easily.
I agree with Jordan it is such a great idea to partner reading the book with then doing a concrete assignment such as writing a pen pal. I remember being in middle school and writing a student in France. I used to love getting her letters we were alike but also different. I even admired the way she wrote her words so different from mine. I took French every year after that until I graduated from high school. It was a great experience and definitely encouraged me to dive into my French studies so I could learn more about her native language and culture.
When I read the book I didn’t really think about how many students worry about failing a class or even a grade. However, when I read other people’s comments like Jordan’s it is obvious that this topic would be very relatable to many students. I don’t know how many times I have been worried about failing a test or not passing a class, and I am sure a lot of young students and even college students will be able to relate to this story. In addition, the story encourages students to do extra credit if possible, in order to bring up a grade.
I agree with Jordan that a lot of kids could definitely relate to this book that have struggled in school. A child can feel really alone when they are having these academic problems and this book shows them that they are in fact not alone, and with a good teachers help and little motivation they can do better and bring their grades up. Maybe the teacher could even have the student that is falling behind read this book for extra credit and assign them a pen pal either in a different country or state, or even in their own school but in a different grade.
Unfortunately, many students are getting held back and if we as teachers can come up with exciting activities like the one in this book we could possibly help our students. This activity changed Abby from a student who did no work, to a student who went above and beyond to complete this project. I would like a penpal too. I feel like once when I was in school I did something like this, but it didn’t turn out as well as my teacher had hoped. Maybe if we did some research and picked penpals that would actually respond, it would be more beneficial for our students rather than randomly picking someone and hoping they answer.
I hadn’t thought about this point before reading it here, but I agree that we as teachers would have to be careful in our selection of a pen pal for our student. If they ended up with a pen pal that did not engage them or respond to them, it would most definitely do more harm than good and also defeat the purpose of this type of assignment. I also think that as teachers we would need to be prepared to offer our students more information on any issues that might arise in a letter from a pen pal.
I agree with Jill that pen pal can be done in school. And it’s cool to write to a boy from different country even across the ocean and continent. Students can learn many things from each other.Like Abby, she doesn’t know anything about Sadeed’s country at first. In the book, Abby’s class creates a board to show her letters and materials about Afghanistan. I learned that in some school,teachers help children to communicate with others by writing letters or by emails.It’s a good change for children to practice their writing skills and make friendships with others.
Maybe there are many girls like Abby who doesn’t like doing her schoolwork or even repeats the sixth grade. Many problems will happen when children grow up.She doesn’t like doing homework but it means that she is a bad girl. In many school, teachers evalute students upon their scores in tests.Abby learned that there are many children who don’t have chance to study at school in Afghanistan.There are many students who may suffer from the wars. Abby knew what the country is like by Sadeed’s discription.And she received a small piece of stone from Sadeed’s home.She changed bit by bit.She got the postive living attitude from Sadeed.
Teachers may get the presure from parents. In this book, you can find that the board which was canceled at last because someone’s parents told teacher to take it off.Parents are senstive to political and religion issues sometimes. They don’t want curriculum will influence their children’s minds.So teachers have to adapt to few of them and change plans. It’s hard for teachers to make decision when they face these problems.On one hand, they want children can learn a lot, on the other hand, their parents don’t allow it.
I really enjoyed this book because it allowed the reader insight to what the lives of children in Afghanistan are like. The story was very interesting and allowed those readers who have ever had a pen pal to relate to the story even more. The idea of a pen pal is a great idea and one that would be awesome to incorporate into the classroom. I myself had a pen pal all through elementary school and it was a great experience for me. I learned a lot about Florida and what it was like to live there. While I was able to share what it was like to live in Maryland and what I did for fun here. Students will find this book very interesting because they are able to learn a lot and see different culture.
I feel that this book does share a lot about the culture of Afghanistan, however did you noticed that Amira and Sadeed signed some of their letters with “God-Be-Willing”? I couldn’t help but wonder if this is how Afghan children may truly send their letters seeing as how Islam is the religion of many in Afghanistan??
That’s a good point. I also wondered about other small differences. I do not know much about Afghanistan but I wonder how much of this book is true to their culture. I know to us it seems authentic but is it?
I would absolutely incorporate a penpal activity into my classroom at some point in the classroom. I have seen through this story what children can potentially learn from doing an acitivity like this. I do know there are some downfalls to creating penpals, but if it works out well it would be a great activity. I also like the idea of the bulletin board. Maybe if the entire class was doing this project, they could have a class board. The students would be able to see what everyone’s pals are saying and maybe at the end, the entire class could compare and contrasts the different cultures within the classroom’s pals.
Katie I really like the idea of the entire class having a penpal and the class making a board together. It would be neat if they had penpals from all different parts of the world and the students could compare the different cultures of their penpals.
I truly loved this novel, Extra Credit, because it connects two children who may seem like total opposites. I love how the story is developed, with Abby reluctantly taking on this task to pass the sixth grade and then to her surprise finding a true friend halfway across the world. I think that many young readers would relate to Abby. She is a typical middle school student who doesn’t exactly see the value in spending hours slaving over homework. However, I think some young readers will also relate to Sadeed. He is a middle school student with a love for learning who prides himself in completely new challenges and taking risks.
I thought it was interesting how Clements incorporated the cultural conflicts into the book including the parents who wanted the Afghan flag down and the Afghan who ripped up the note from America. These would be interesting event to discuss or debate with students in the classroom.
This is definitely a book that I would share with my class or encourage my students to read.
I agree, this book was a great read and really informational for students who do not know much about other cuontries cultures. I also loved that the book portrayed two different types of students, like you said. Any type of reader will be able to relate to one of the characters and it may even encourage these students to do extra work and see the advantages to working hard in school, like Abby. Your idea on debating the events in the story is also a great one and would really teach the students a lot about cultures.
I really enjoyed this book. I thought that it would excite students due to its relatability to their own lives, and current topics. I think that most kids do not realize that not every part of Afganistan is how the country as a whole is portrayed on the news. They think that every town is a desert with people that they have nothing in common with but through this book I think that they would realize kids are the same around the world. I also like how Clements addressed real issues like when a mother at the school asked the teacher to take down the Afgan flag. I am sure that this scenerio could really happen at almost any school in the US sue to the negative connotation of the word “Afganistan.” It also shows that not everyone in Afganistan hates Americans. In the book it appears that these people are the minority, just like most people in the US don’t have everyone in Afganistan. I would definitely use this book in my classroom. I really liked Jill’s idea about haveing the students get a penpal from a different grade in the same school. This would inspire them to write just like it did Abby in the story. Every student has different knowledge and experience and I think that they could learn a lot from one another just like Abby and Sadeed did.
I agree with you, this book would be something that students would really relate to and be excited about. I also enjoyed the realness to the story, and how the mother had asked to take down the flag. It definitely made me question how I would handle this situation in my own classroom.
Oh my gosh, I absolutely loved this book! I started reading the book and I felt like it was just like any other book I would have to read, but once I got to part where the letters were being frequently exchanged, I couldn’t put it down! The parts of the story I liked include: how Sadeed’s letters were so culturally rich, Abby’s ignorance to a new country, and the ending of the story. The project that Abby tackled was very beneficial for her, and would be for any student of her age. The detail that Sadeed wrote in his sister’s letter really gave Abby a feel for what a different culture is really like. Students may have never been able to leave their home state, let alone the country so hearing from someone around the world is fascinating. One of my favorite things he talked about was the gender differences in his culture. Students in America may find it absurd or interesting that boys and girls don’t communicate the way they may in America. When Abby started her project, you could tell she wasn’t very excited about it. She was unaware of things that she was an expert on in the end. she took her project and went above and beyond. She took the time to research differnt pictures and the flag from the country. This project took a student who normally doesn’t complete her work, and turned her into an achiever. When Abby receives her last letter from Sadeed I was very excited for her, haha! We were unsure if there would be another letter, but there was and that was the perfect ending to the book! I would be glad to incorporate this story into my classroom.
Katie, I definitely agree that this book was amazing. I was impressed how authentic it seemed. I think younger elementary students can definitely relate to how sheltered Abby was about Afghanistan and the other side of the world. The whole time I read this novel I kept thinking about what a great idea it would be to have students communicate with students from around the world. Even as a twenty-one year old college student, I realize I have no clue what others around the world have to deal with. To us it is unbelievable to think that a boy and girl cannot write to each other. Our country has come so far to gain gender equality. To be honest, I know this book was published in 2009 but I wonder how many places still see woman as inferior to men. I think this book poses a lot of questions and would be a great way to get students interested in learning about the Middle East and discussing current events.
I really enjoyed this book but I must admit at first I was shocked at the ending. In a children’s novel I did not expect the author to be so honest. In real life I can definitely see how pen pals from America and Afghanistan would be forced to stop writing to each other because of others’ hatred toward the other country. I was blown away when I saw this harsh reality thrown into a children’s novel. For a while I sat there and wondered if it was too much for children of this age, but then I realized they need to learn the truth. They need to understand that the world is not full of sunshine and happiness. We need to address the hatred and prejudice that exists in our world. Educating students about the harsh realities of the world is the best way to get them motivated to change the world. A young child like that cannot believe that some people would be so harsh and threaten someone for talking to a person of another culture. I think this novel will help open students’ eyes and get them fired up to change the future. That is our job as educators; to help educate the youth and prepare them to be productive, successful citizens. What better way to prepare them for the world than to motivate them to fix the problems that we face in today’s society.
I agree that it did seem harsh in a children’s book that they were forced to stop writing one another. However like you said it is the reality of today’s world and can open the eyes of children. I think it could get children to start thinking and looking into events that are actually happening around the world. Once they are involved in learning about the problems can become motivated to change them in the future.
I also agree that it was harsh, but it is a reality and I believe students, especially 5th and 6th graders are old enough to begin to realize and learn about these realities. It would definitely be a teaching moment to not only teach what is currently happening in the world around us, but to also touch on what we can do to change this in the future.
Just as both of you stated, I was definitely shocked as well. I feel that in most children’s novels, the endings are always happy, predictable, etc. However, this one is entirely reality-based, which I do believe is best for students to learn in most situations. This book may lead to students desiring to begin writing to another student in a different country. If “Extra Credit” provided them with false hopes that every country is welcoming and wishes to learn about Americans, that would be very, very wrong. We live in a complex world today and I believe the ending of this story was great for teaching students about life and society in today’s world.
I agree with you about the ending – and I think maybe students stray away from novels and more towards violent television shows and video games because the happily ever after of many novels and story books is unrealistic. As students begin to grow up and learn more in school, they want to here more realistic endings, not perfect stories that sound like fair-tales they read as bedtime stories when they were much younger.
I really liked the book Extra Credit and thought it was extremely relatable and age appropriate for younger readers. I remember when I was in elementary school and had to write letters to people in different countries and recall always being so excited to receive the letters back from my pen pals. This was a great way to encourage language arts and was always a lot of fun. The fact that it entails such a serious side to it dealing with a country who does not like America helps students learn about the worlds differences. Having incorporated culture and current events into a fun and relatable read is a great way to get students interested in different countries and how they live. Because in class we learned that relatability is extremely important to encourage children to read, this is the perfect book to have in my own classroom library.
As I read this book I couldn’t help but remember when I was in elementary school and wrote to my pen pal, too. I remember how excited I was to see what my pen pal had written and to write back to her. So, I agree that this would be a great way to engage students in our own classrooms and encourage them to write more. You said that reading a book that addresses one country’s dislike of another helps students learn about world differences, and I agree. This would also be a great way to relate back to social studies and talk about how countries have always been different and wars have even been faught because of this, or even discuss the current events that are happening around the world because of differences.
I can also relate to having a pen pal when I was in the second grade. My second grade class teamed up with another second grade class at a different school in the same city. While this distance was clearly not as far as Afghanistan and the United States, just this small activity was able to create connections with people that you don’t already know. It was also very cheap and easy for my teacher to conduct, since she was friends with the other second grade teacher and they could easily get our letters to her and vice versa. No mailing even required! (Although we did design envelopes and learned how to address them in the process). With such a simple idea, children will be writing with a purpose.
I also had a pen-pal when I was in elementary school! I can’t remember exactly what grade I was in, but I do remember how excited and eager I was to receive a reply from her. My pen-pal experience worked out differently than most however, in the sense that my pen-pal actually ended up moving from her hometown and as a result, started attending my school! This wouldn’t happen to most students, however, I can’t help but wonder what would happen if this happened to Abby and Sadeed in the book, Extra Credit. Either Abby or Sadeed, depending on which one moved, would experience a culture shock, but it would be really interesting to see how their relationship ended up and whether or not they would be willing to adapt to the new culture. I think Andrew Clements should create a sequel to Extra Credit and expand on Abby and Sadeed’s letter writing, as well as Abby’s school adventures as she moves on to the seventh grade.
I never even thought about doing a pen pal activity with this book before but that is a great idea! My students currently have pen pals from PA and they get so excited to hear back from their pals and see what they have to say. They are also learning a lot by participating in the pen pals activity as well. I also think the sequel idea would be amazing to have and it would be fun to see these two characters progress even more.
Extra Credit is novel about a young girl that takes on an extra credit project to redeem her bad grades and allow her to pass into the next grade. Abby was not putting in a lot of effort prior to realizing that she will be “left behind” if she doesn’t pull it together. Abby learns that getting good grades isn’t about being smart or teachers liking you but about working hard to earn your grades. In Abby’s extra credit project she writes to what she thought was a girl in Afghanistan. However Abby’s pen pal really is Sadeed, the older brother of her female pen pal. Sadeed is his school’s best student but because of the beliefs in their culture it was not appropriate to have a male and a female pen paling with each other. Sadeed sends Abby a secret letter to let her know how he is really her pen pal. Abby gets excited about her school project and learning about Sadeed and in his family. She has to take caution in writing her letters to respond to Sadeed but without letting anyone know that Sadeed wrote her a letter. In the end the pen pals are forced to stop writing because it wasn’t safe for Sadeed’s family to write to people in America because some people in Afghanistan do not like Americans.
This book gives a small insight to Afghanistan culture and how different their lives are from our lives here. Clothing, traditions, and many beliefs are different. Then there is the sudden “issue” with them writing each other. This is a good story which gives some information about another country and is also sure to get the inquisitive minds thinking and wondering about life in other countries.
I like how you listed that this book addresses how clothing, traditions, and beliefs are different in various countries. I think this would be a great way to address this topic and integrate Social Studies in the Reading/Language Arts classroom. Each student could research a particular country. The students would have to learn about that country’s typical dress/clothing, traditions, and general beliefs. Then, the students could write a report or create a project of some type that they can share with the class to help others learn more about that country.
I loved this book! I thought it was so real and engaging and I am sure that students would love reading this too. But I also definitely think that they would very interested in having a pen pal as well!
This novel is about a young girl who is failing the 6th grade. As an extra credit assignment, her teachers offers her the task of pen paling with another students from a different country. Abby chooses Afghanistan because there are mountains there and she loves mountains. She begins to write to a girl, but in turn gets letters from Sadeed, the girls brother. Sadeed loves writing to Abby, but has to do it secretly because he is not allowed to communicate with a girl.
Many different controversial topics are brought up in this novel that should be further discussed in a classroom. This includes the difference in culture – school, boy and girl interaction, jobs, food, clothing, etc., what is happening in the world, and in the end of the novel – why they had to stop writing. I believe that many students in the United States don’t have a sense of world events, and I think this book would be a great way to introduce the topic and teach about it!
I really enjoyed “Extra Credit.” I thought it was a great book that students would be able to relate to. As a teacher, I love books that students can relate to. I like the two characters, Abby and Sadeed. I feel no matter what gender the reader is, he/she would be able to relate to either Abby or Sadeed. The reader could relate to Abby for not doing her work and wanting to always be rock climbing or relate to Sadeed for growing up in a difficult part of the world that is experiencing violence and still going to school and helping his family. I feel that both Abby and Sadeed are brave in their own ways. Abby is brave for not wanting to stay in 6th grade for another year once she hears the bad news and working hard to pass 6th grade. Sadeed is brave for writing letters to Abby and wanting to like America even though many people from Afghanistan don’t like America. I felt sad for Sadeed because he wasn’t allowed to write to Abby because he was a boy and then he had to stop helping his sister with the letter writing because of the problems that might come to his village because of being a pen pal with an American. It’s so sad, but so very true. I also felt bad for Abby because she was finally starting to like the project and it had to all stop. It really showed that this can take place in the real world.
I really love the idea of pen pals. I had a pen pal when I was in school and really enjoyed writing to her. Not only did I practice my grammar and writing skills, but I was able to learn about another part of the country. This book would be a great way to introduce pen pals to a classroom. I think that all classrooms should have pen pals and I believe it should be the old fashion way through the mail. This could take place throughout the whole school year and be across curriculum. It would be a great learning experience for students.
This book also teaches students a valuable lesson of completing homework and school work. Yes, sometimes you have the opportunity to do extra credit for your grade, but this doesn’t always happen. You should always give your best and always complete your school work on time.
Overall, I thought the story was a good story. I felt like I was reading a real story about two students from two different parts of the world just living their lives and just wanting to experience each other’s culture by being each other’s pen pal.
I just finished Extra Credit by Andrew Clements. What a great novel. I loved how he showed two different characters’ lives in two different places in the world. The reader was shown how these two different characters had so much in common. Their interest in each others’ lives and cuture was the obvious similarity. Abby’s attitude about herself and others changed by the end of the novel because of her experience. I thought it was very clever of the author to make Sadeed’s home be in Afghanistan. In our country today there is so much tension and lack of knowledge about this part of our world. I believe Clements wanted the reader to know that it was not a place to be scared of our unsure about, but rather a place with people who shared the same concerns that we as Americans do. Abby as well as Sadeed learned that reaching out to people of differences can be difficult, mostly because of the opinions of others.
Students can connect with each of these characters in various ways throughout the story; not feeling accepted and learning to stand up for what is right even if it doesn’t seem easy at first.
Here is an additional add-on from my previous post:
I believe that Andrew Clements did make it easy for American readers to relate to life in Afghanistan in his book, “Extra Credit.” The author does a good job describing how life is over in Afghanistan. It’s a very simple life. Americans can relate to this life over in Afghanistan. They can relate to Sadeed’s hard work and dedication. He wanted to do well in school and make something of himself. That’s the American dream. Americans can also relate to the closeness of Sadeed’s family. He helped his father at his job and also helped his sister write the letters. In America, family is also very important.
At times while reading the story, it did seem like two students just being pen pals. I agree with Kim that the author wanted the reader to know that it was not a place to be afraid of because the citizens of Afghanistan are similar to Americans. Andrew Clements did a good job writing a story that involved Afghanistan in a way that American readers could relate to in their own personal way.
Valerie,
I agree that there are tons of ways that children will be able to relate to Sadeed’s culture, as well as to identify some things that they have in common or different from Abby.
I enjoyed reading this book. It was a smooth read that would help children to begin to compare and contrast their culture with that of culture in the middle east. I loved how the author took time to spell out both similarities and differences that the two main characters had with each other. Both of them could relate to each other because of the family that they had (brother, sister, mom, dad). Both of them attended school. However, there were vast differences as well (expectations/limitations for boys and girls, danger from day to day).
This would be a great example of a book that could be used to introduce children to other cultures, even if the book is not necessarily written in or produced outside of the U.S. The reader might enjoy that he/she can relate or differ from both characters in one or more ways. Great read!
I didn’t read this book from the list either, but I just ordered it! All of the conversation that has sparked from the reading made me think about the value of using the story to communicate the fact that the Afghan culture doesn’t consist of unruly terrorists. I think it would also be beneficial to read so that students can become curious of other cultures. Conversations could be had about the fact that international friends can be easily obtained through social networking sites. In fact, a classroom facebook page could be created and the teacher could iniciate international connections and monitor the communications. Great ideas everyone, thanks!
Extra Credit is a novel that not only depicts a main character that young readers may be able to relate to, but it also addresses current political issues and exposes young readers to cultures that may differ from their own. As a teacher candidate, I greatly enjoyed the extra credit project that Abby’s teacher offered. Communicating with a student in another country can open a student’s eyes to things they never knew about. Students with pen pals in other countries are able to learn about everyday life, cultural traditions, and many other aspects of living. My favorite part of Abby’s extra credit assignment was the bulletin board updates. I feel as though having Abby share her letters with the entire class via a classroom display allowed this project to impact even more students, rather than just the student communicating directly with the pen pal. This assignment seems to be very beneficial to a number of students in multiple ways.
Melissa,
I also liked that the teacher required Abby to create and update a bulletin board regarding her pen-pal in Afghanistan. I think that by making this a part of the assignment, the teacher encouraged the other students in the class to hold Abby accountable for completing the assignment to bring her grade up. Abby’s classmates were always eager to see what new information Abby would post, and therefore, if Abby didn’t post anything for awhile, her classmates would ask. I also thought it was ridiculous that a student’s parent contacted the school in regards to the picture of the Afghanistan flag hanging on the bulletin board. The bulletin board is a means of learning for everyone in the class in one way or another and was not meant to offend anyone. I do not think Abby should have had to remove the flag due to the fact that it symbolizes the country her pen-pal is from and most importantly, nobody was forced to look at it.
I chose to read “Extra Credit” because I am very familiar with the author, Andrew Clements. He was always one of my favorites when I was in upper elementary school. In this novel, Abby is placed in the unfortunate situation of possibly failing a grade and being held back due to her low scores. The author talks a lot about motivation in the story and mentions different learning styles that would have benefited Abby if she had been a real person. For example, she was constantly wanting to be outdoors. She adored rock climbing, rope climbing, and demonstrated that she could show much more enthusiasm if her daily lessons somehow incorporated her interests. As a teacher candidate, I am constantly being reminded to differentiate instruction and consider all of my students’ needs when teaching. Therefore, including movement or drawing or ANYTHING that might provide the connecting piece for a child and his or her learning is so crucial in the educational profession. One of her teachers did find a great way to get her connected to her learning through her extra credit assignment. Abby became pen pals with another student in Afghanistan. The two students learned a great amount about the different cultures and the activity turned Abby’s schoolwork around and gave her a new appreciation for culture, as well as learning.
When I first started reading this book, I was slightly confused. I wasn’t sure what was going on during the first few pages and it took me some time to understand the story line, but once I figured it out, I thoroughly enjoyed the book!
“Extra Credit” isn’t like any other book I have read. It’s unpredictable story line kept me engaged and always wanting to know more. One thing I particularly like about this book is the fact that it conveys so much realistic cultural knowledge to readers. Throughout the book, Clements does an excellent job of giving the reader a glimpse of the culture in Afghanistan as well as the American culture. I believe this “glimpse” provides teachers with perfect learning opportunities and projects. I think it would be really beneficial if the students researched and delved deeper into the culture of the Afghanistan people after reading the novel. I think this would help them understand the characters and events that took place on a more personal level. I also think it would be neat to have two classes of the same grade level be pen-pals. For instance, one fifth grade class, for example, could research one country’s culture and another fifth grade class could research a different country’s culture. Then,they could write to one another pretending as if they are living within that culture. This would give students and even adults a new appreciation for cultures including their own.
At first I couldn’t get into this book, but after the first few chapters I really enjoyed it. The book discusses some serious issues, but does it in a kid friendly way. Reading this book in the classroom would be a good way to introduce a unit on culture. The students could pick a country and research some of the customs and how things may differ from the United States.
i agree with you. It was hard for me to get into as well but before I knew it i was really engaged into the dialogue between the two girls. They both share some pretty serious things with one another which may help students feel more comfortable sharing their thoughts or hardships if they read this book. And I agree, this definitely would be a good book to use when introducing a unit on different cultures.
I also think this would be a good book to teach about different cultures. But I especially think it would be beneficial to teach around the anniversary of 9/11. I’m sure there will be some parental discontent about this, but the book does such a good job of showing that people are people no matter what and that the actions of a few don’t represent the overall feelings of every person (American or Afghan or anything else). I think this would be an important message to share after a 9/11 anniversy, because we need to teach tolerance and explain to kids that not Al-Qaeda doesn’t represent the views of every Muslim. This story has a great message of openness, which is what American students need to hear when they learn about different cultures
I had never thought of this, that is such a good idea. I see that so many people have the idea of having their students have their own pen pals like in the story but this is another way to expand off of the book. I too enjoyed the book and getting a glimpse at Sadeed’s culture, I really learned a lot. If students do their own research they will be so much more informed about that country and they could present it to the class in so many ways.
I really enjoyed reading this book. I think what was most interesting to me was the flip flopping perspectives on what it was like to live a day in America and then the next in Afghanistan. I think this style really showed the similarities and differences between these two worlds in an interesting way. This book would be really easy to use in the classroom because there is a lot information being said about these two lifestyles that could be used when integrated with content. Students would also be able to gain a lot of insight about the different culture in Afghanistan. The two main characters are learning a lot from each other so imagine what students could learn by reading this book. If students could read this book, they would get to experience things that they normally wouldn’t just by reading what the two girls are saying back and forth to one another. I definitely thought this would be a good book for students to read especially since there were things in the book that I never knew before and was learning just by reading it.
I find myself agreeing with the numerous other posters who love the contrast between the two worlds. I loved the part where Abby talks about wanting to visit mountains, and Sadeed realizing just how interesting his homeland really is. It’s also pretty cool to see how Abby is just going through her life in high school without ever stopping to realize how fortunate she really is. After school she can just go on nature walks and play on the climbing wall, yet Sadeed has to go work at his fathers grainery. The contrast of the two cultures is an important feature of the book, but not the defining aspect. I love when Abby notes that people are simple, but things around them get complicated. Abby and Sadeed bond, which is in contrast to the black/white worldview that many people seem to have of Afghan people. This book helps to show a young reader whats really important in life and not to let prejudices get in the way of getting to know someone
Matt I agree! The book is an excellent way students can see the perspective of how are culture is so different from someone who live in Afghanistan. This book should enlighten students to how good they have it in America and inspire them to learn about different cultures.
While I love the idea of communicating with people from another culture, I find myself shying away from using traditional pen/paper methods. I know I sound like such a Generation Y student here, but I really feel as if this is outdated and overly time consuming. While this was certainly ok for the characters in the book, I think that if I were to use this book as a lesson, I’d rather use some form of electronic communication. We live in a world, and will teach students living in a world, of instant face-to-face communication. I think it would be much more interesting to have students potentially engage in an email correspondence or set up a class-wide skyping session with classroom in another country. While this may raise issues with time, students could record themselves asking questions and have the other students respond.
Students in my class could still practice letter writing skills, but sending them via email seems like a more relevant way of communicating in today’s world. You could still use parcel though and have students send a package of things representing their classroom/school district with handwritten/typed descriptions.
I agree with you, Matt, about the reliability and logistics when it comes to using technology over traditional methods of communication. If I wanted to have my class communicate with other students from around the world, while also improving upon their writing skills, penmanship, spelling, and familiarity with the componants of a friendly letter, I would have them compose hand-written letters first, to get these skills down, and then assist them in emailing the letters. This way, students are creating drafts using the traditional method and gaining writing skills from the lesson, but then introduced and becoming more familiarized with technology, as it is more reliable and a necessary skill for students to master as well.
This is a great point you both have. Traditional pen and paper communication is becoming obsolete with exceptions like military letters when technology and computers are sparce. Many countries that we think of as less fortunate and technologically advanced still have the tools and devices for communication over the airwaves. I like the idea of still enforcing handwritten letters to establish penmanship and handwriting skills, but typing is becoming more like a necessity for our students’ future. Children are beginning to handle and work with computers as young at two years old, but to keep a solid balance of writing and typing, it is best to use both within the classroom.
Extra Credit was a great book that I found hard to put down. Two students of completely different up-comings and backgrounds become pen pals. Through a few letters they are able to learn so much about each others countries and really begin to form a relationship. Due to their countries differences Sadeed and Abby aren’t allowed to write to each other anymore. As this came as bad news to the two they both ended with a positive outcome of the assignment, friendship and a new perspective. This was such a clever story that opened my own eyes into a world that I am unfamiliar with. This book will teach students about Afghanistan and some of their culture. It would be a great book for a class read and to start a unit where your own students have pen pals of their own.
Extra Credit is a book that deals with a pen-pal friendship spanning from the U.S. to Afghanistan. I like how this book is relieved of prejudices but instead resolves the cultural differences when Abby and Sadeed continue to write each other. International books help open our eyes to differences as well as similiarities between two ethnicities and cultures. This book could motivate many schools to become involved in a pen-pal program to experience new things and learn about each other just like the characters in the book.
Yeah I also liked that you could see the cultural differences between the two characters. I think having students read this kind of book would help them understand different cultures and how they function as a society.
Extra credit is an excellent book about how unfortunate events can sometimes lead to discovering more about someone elses culture. An american girl, Abby, from Illinois communicates with a boy, Sadeed, from Afghanistan. Sadeed is faced with difficulty in his own country because their are so many strict rules about communicating with others outside their culture, but some how Sadeed some how is able to participate in Abby’s extra credit work.