Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Title: Wonder 

Genre: Fiction 

Author: R.J. Palacio 

Major Awards: Texas Blue Bonnet Award and #1 New York Times Best Seller 

Age group: 4th to 12th grade 

Summary: 

"Wonder" tells the story of August Pullman, also known as Auggie. He is just a ten year old little boy who does ordinary things like any other kid his age. The only difference is that August was born with facial differences that prevented him from going to regular schools and having to be home schooled by his mother. All throughout the book, August shares how people stare at him or treat him differently due to his appearance but eventually he just gets used to it and just becomes a normal thing in his life. The book also takes turns between the people in August's life and show how being related or being friends with Auggie has impacted their lives. The story takes a turn whenever his mother decides that it will be better for him to start going to regular schools because she believes it will be better for his learning. August hates the idea at first but at the end of the story it was honestly the best decision his mother could have made for him. August starts fifth grade at Beecher Prep and although there was a lot of negativity in the beginning, August stayed strong and overlooked every obstacle. After being seen and treated differently by some students, August gained many friends and was loved for what he is. At the end of the story, August was awarded the Henry Ward Beecher medal, for being an exemplary student and for being truly courageous and strong. August shares how he felt like he was floating because of how loved he was feeling as he was applauded on the way to the stage to receive his medal. This beautiful story touched my heart in many ways and was a great reflection of how much Auggie grew as a person and learned to love himself just as he was. 

Why would I use this book in my classroom: 

I would use this book in my classroom in order to show my students how kindness goes a long way. Jack was a great example of this because at the end he decided to be kind and be friends with August regardless if Mr. Tushman had asked him to talk to August. After that, they became really good friends and by Jack being friends with August, more friendships started flourishing. I also want to teach my students that it is important to always be kind to people because you never know what people are really going through deep inside their hearts. August tried to be strong and hide his feelings but Jack knew that some things really did hurt August. 

Appropriate grade level:

I think an appropriate grade level for this book will definitely be middle school grade levels, between 5th grade to 8th grade. There are a lot of changes that children in these years undergo and they do not know how to react or ask for attention, therefore they just release their frustrations by being a little rebellious sometimes. I believe this book will be a great reminder or a reflection for them to be kind to their other classmates.  

How I might use this book in my classroom: 

My goal is to become an English or Language Arts teacher and this book will be great for any of those classes. This book will work great for whenever the school is having a "Be Kind" theme week. I can have read alouds with the main parts of the book during that week. I can read parts of the book that share August's side of the story so that my students can understand how he feels. I can also read parts from the other characters of the story and show how August impacted their life. Then, at the end of the week, I will ask my students to create posters that show many ways of how they can show kindness to their friends, family, or to the world. Then, I will display their posters in a decorated "Wonder" display wall. I will leave it up until the end of the school year for a reminder to be kind to the world.