Out of My Mind
Sharon Draper is an award winning writer and an educator. She was born in Cleveland, Ohio on August 21, 1952. She is a graduate of Pepperdine University and was National Teacher of the Year in 1997. She is well known for her books "Darkness Before Dawn" and "The Battle of Jericho". She has been honored at the White House six times in her lifetime so far. What she is currently working on is unknown to the public.
Click here to go to Sharon Draper's personal website.
Click here to go to Sharon Draper's personal website.
Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy is a disease that can affect the nervous system as well as the brain a d how they function. The are different types of cerebral palsy. They include spastic, dyskinetic, ataxic, hypotonic, and mixed cerebral palsy. William John Little who lived from 1810-1894 was "the first man to define cerebral palsy as a brain injury caused by oxygen deprivation at birth, turned his illness-ridden childhood experiences into a lifelong desire to help others through his practice of medicine." The cause of cerebral palsy is a brain malformation or the brain getting injured. The type of cerebral palsy all depends on the type of person who gets affected by it. It also has to do with the severity of the brain damage.
Sources: http://cerebralpalsy.org/about-cerebral-palsy/history-and-origin-of-cerebral-palsy/
Sources: http://cerebralpalsy.org/about-cerebral-palsy/history-and-origin-of-cerebral-palsy/
Stephen Hawking and ALS
Stephen Hawking is one of the most brilliant people in the world. Despite his diagnosis of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) in 1963 when he was 21-years-old, he is still able to communicate his brilliance through a speech-generating device. Normally, ALS hits people when they are between 40 and 70. Hawking was born on January 8, 1942 in Oxford, England. He is an "English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, author and Director of Research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology within the University of Cambridge." He was married and divorced twice. His first wife Jane Wilde and him were married for 26 years and they had three kids, Robert (1967), Lucy (1970), and Timothy (1979). His second wife Elaine Mason and him were married for eleven years and had no children.
Sources: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Hawking
Sources: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Hawking
Mainstreaming Children
Mainstreaming is the education of disabled students in average classes during certain time periods based on their skill level. Mainstreaming is a huge benefit to disabled children by giving a higher academic achievement rate than exclusion practices. Mainstreaming is also a disadvantage for disabled children because children who are only mainstreamed for certain classes or certain times may feel socially rejected by their classmates. Another disadvantage is the cost, the special education program costs start at a low of $10,558, but if the student has a major learning disability, it can range up to $20,095. Mainstreaming eliminates the factor of removing the disabled child from school. Before Mainstreaming, public schools only taught one out of five disabled children.
To learn more about mainstreaming click here to watch a video.
To learn more about mainstreaming click here to watch a video.
ADHD
ADHD stands for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. It is also is a Psychiatric Disorder. People who have ADHD usually get counseled, medicated, or sometimes a change in their current lifestyle. People with ADHD are overly energetic. Some signs that a person might have ADHD are losing focus easily during things that may not be enjoyable or entertaining. Another sign is that the person cannot stop talking. ADHD is most commonly diagnosed to children because they have short attention spans. There are specific tests to determine whether or not someone has ADHD if there is concern. If you have ADHD, it's not a big deal or anything to be embarrassed about because many people like you are out there and know how you feel. Approximately 5.2 million children between the ages of three and seventeen have ADHD. Most commonly are males, not females.
"One Tough Cookie"
Melody•Cannot move
•Classes with many other students and one teacher •On a "Quiz Whiz" team •Can eat, but needs help |
Both•Cerebral palsy
•Have a normal, younger sibling •Think/Have opinions •Inclusion classes |
Hannah•Can move a little bit
•One-on-one classes •Not on a school team •Has to be fed through tube in her stomach; filled |
Conflict
In the book "Out of My Mind", the conflict is Man vs. Man. Melody has to continue battling her cerebral palsy. She just wants to break out of that shell and be thought of as "normal" and not "retarded". Melody is frustrated that she cannot talk, walk, eat by herself, use the restroom by herself, and other things similar. She hates the fact that no one ever truly understands her or what she is saying. Even when Melody wants a burger, her dad never makes the connection when she is tapping words like "go" and "eat". Even though it is a struggle, Melody realizes that she has to persevere and wait for something good to come her way.
"Out Of My Mind" vs. "Radio"
melody•Has cerebral palsy
•Has "tornado explosions" •Cannot move or speak •Sometimes get overexcited or embarrassed •Needs more support from family |
Both•Both have normal siblings
•Both names have to do with music •Both love music •Both were thought of as "retarded" •Both were included •Both were left behind at some point •Both at a school |
Radio•Doctors say he's "slower than most"
•Threw a tantrum •Both parents deceased •Able to physically move and speak •Scared at first |
Chapter 1-8 Summary
In chapters one through eight of "Out of My Mind" by Sharon Draper, the protagonist of the story is Melody. Melody is an 11-year-old girl who has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, "She has cerebral palsy" (Page 23). Melody struggles with the fact that she can't talk or walk. For example, "I can't talk. I can't walk. I can't feed myself or take myself to the bathroom. Big bummer" (Page 3). So far, Melody is talking about how her teachers baby the disabled people in her class. There have been a few teachers that pleased Melody in the past, but she gets very annoyed. Mrs. V. a babysitter for Melody. Mrs. V. is helping Melody with talking and moving. Melody is very determined to walk, talk, eat, go to the bathroom, and a lot more on her own because she is tired of being treated like she is a baby. Melody wants to feel like a normal girl and be like all the other girls.
Chapters 9-18 Summary
In chapters nine through eighteen of "Out of My Mind" by Sharon Draper, Melody's mother announces that she is going to have another baby, Melody gets her own personal assistant/aid to help her, and now gets to take part in "inclusion" classes. The entire family freaks out because they are scared that this baby will also be disabled, but the baby, Penny, came out and was completely normal and healthy. For example, “So when they decided to start mainstreaming us into the regular classes, the electric chair was really helpful" (Page 179). Inclusion classes are when disabled students are allowed to participate in the regular kid classes. In inclusion classes, Melody meets a girl named Rose who accepts her right away which makes her want to talk more than ever. One day Rose comes to school with a new computer and everyone surrounds her because the thought of a fifth grade girl having a new computer is SO COOL which gives Melody the idea of computers designed specifically for her; so she tries to tell Catherine (assistant/aid) this, but it takes quite some time. Nevertheless, Catherine and Melody do some research and print out information on the "Medi-Talker". Melody is so excited that she almost has a tornado explosion trying to tell Mrs. V. about it. Mrs. V. talks to Melody's mom and the paperwork starts. Melody gets very impatient because there are so many processes to ordering the Medi-Talker and then there was a missing signature that had to be sent AGAIN! Despite all of this commotion, Melody gets the Medi-Talker and then goes to school and shows it off just in time for the class to take a quiz; Melody gets the highest grade. The teacher makes a rude comment that if the questions are as easy that Melody can answer them, that they are too easy. An example is “If Melody Brooks can win the first round, then my questions must not be difficult enough! We’re all going to rally to win the competition!” (Page 298).
Here is a trailer to watch and get an insight of the book.