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Little Green Leaves

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Posts posted by Little Green Leaves

  1. Hi all. I know this is a very specific question, but I thought maybe someone here could help. I'm looking for books about the history and culture of China to complement my third grader's reading of Marco Polo. I'd also be interested in a wider study of the region at that time.

    We read a lot of myths and fairy tales from Asia when he was younger -- along with a very little bit of history -- so at this point I'd love to read something more substantial about history, society, technology in the China of the time. Ideally, I'd love to find something about reactions to Marco Polo but I don't know if that exists.

    We've been loosely following the Ambleside Online curriculum and I find the Marco Polo book they suggest pretty offensive. I didn't pre-read it and now I'm having to talk a lot about racism and ignorance. I don't want to drop it -- because I want him to know what that kind of soft racism looks like -- but I do want to balance it.

    I'm open to books on any level. If there are great books for third graders, wonderful. More advanced books that we can dip into together would also be fine. Thanks in advance!

  2. I think respect is tremendously important. We don't all have the same abilities or the same skills, but we are all people worthy of respect. 

    I remember Flowers for Algernon as a really pessimistic book. It's so bleak and I think it sets up a kind of weird choice between being oblivious and happy, on the one hand, and being "too smart" and lonely, on the other hand. 

    I know people think there was something beautiful in the protagonist's innocent happiness as a disabled person. I just could never get past the sadness of it. If I remember right, the guys who worked with him made fun of him for wetting his pants or for becoming visibly aroused when a woman walked in. He was a running joke.

    I wouldn't want that kind of friendship for anyone I love...I wouldn't even want an animal to be treated that way. I'm not saying we are always going to be perfectly understood, but nobody should be the constant butt of jokes.  

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