The Saturday Boy
The Saturday Boy is a fiction novel about an eleven-year-old boy named Derek. A novel that is fiction is a book that is not based on true events. The book is about imaginary events and people. Even though The Saturday Boy is a fiction novel, the way David Fleming writes it makes the entire novel feel like real events.
The main character, Derek, lives with his mother and father, and he faces many different challenges that seems unfair for a child his age. Even though Derek lives with his parents, his mother is the primary caregiver. His mom is a nurse at the local hospital, and his father is an airman in the military, so he is always gone. His father gave him an Apache helicopter, so he would have something to remind him of his father while he was deployed. Derek hung the helicopter right above his bed, so he could touch at night when he thought of his father the most. Derek and his father wrote each other all the time, and Derek kept each note his father wrote him under his bed in a lunchbox his father gave him. Derek would read the letters all the time especially when he had a bad day because his dad always knew what to say. School is not his favorite place to be because a kid named, Budgie, always gives him a tough time. Derek goes through the entire book wondering why Budgie treats him so bad considering they were once best friends. After all, Budgie was the one to give him his nickname, The Saturday Boy. School was also not a safe place because of his teacher, Ms. Dickenson, believed it was appropriate to embarrass Derek in front of the entire class. She would write sentences on the board about him, and the entire class would laugh. School was becoming a place Derek hated until he decided to join a school play. A girl in his class named, Violet, allowed him to borrow one of her pencils in class one day, and she was also in the play. When he seen Violet was in the play, Derek did not hesitate to volunteer too. Derek prepared for the play by attending each of the practices. The play was a Christmas play, and Derek was hoping his father would be able to make it home to see him. The day before the play their director read off all the names of the students who would be helping during the play. This turned the tables for Derek because Budgie's name was called. Budgie would attempt to ruin the play for Derek, but it was not successful. Derek was very proud of himself, and how well he did during his scene. After the play, it was time for Christmas break, and Derek could not be any happier. Christmas break was not what Derek hoped for, but his mother and aunt tried their best to make it better for him. His father did not get to make it home, but his mother decorated the house in hopes of lightening Derek's emotions. Unknowingly, Derek would also find out that he and Violet had so much in common. This encounter was one of the things to lighten his spirits, and he was convinced that they would become more than just friends. Teaching Challenges One of the challenges I believe I will encounter teaching this book is death. Many students have parents that have died, and it may be a sensitive topic. Death is not always physical. Some students may feel their parents are dead because of the way they are treated by them.I want my students to know that they are not alone, and it is fine to talk about their feelings about death. They may also find classmates with the same experiences as their own. Many students also have parents in the military, and their biggest fear may be that their parent will not return home from their deployment. I do not want to create this type of fear in my students. They may not fully understand that this is not a true story because it may seem so true to them. I want my students with military parent to share with the class their experiences as a military child. I want the students to compare and contrast their story with Derek's story. It would be nice to hear real stories from someone we know. It also will allow others to empathize with their classmate, and understand why everyday may not be a good day for them. It is stressful as a child to not have a parent around. It can be hard seeing other students be with their parents everyday, and their parents are million miles away. I want each of my students to leave my classroom being able to understand each other. Especially the students who parents are with them everyday. As a child, my father was not home daily because of his job. There were plenty of days I was upset because he was missing out on so much, therefore I know the importance of giving these students and any student with a missing parent the needed support during a moment when their situation is bothering them the most. Another challenge of this book is educating myself as a teacher about what an Apache helicopter is. I am sure students are going to want to see an example of this plan because it is mentioned often in the book. As I was reading the book, I was curious to know what was so significant about this plan. I also wanted to know why it is used in the military, and the purpose it serves. I wanted to be knowledgeable about the helicopter, so I can answer the different questions my students may have. Their also may be a student in the class who can relate to the story and give myself and the class more insight. I would be nice to do research on the helicopter, and see if there is one nearby. This can create a field trip for the students. I want to expand my students knowledge not just read a text because it is required. I also want to show my students that we show the same interest. It is hard to teach a text that I am not engaged in myself. If I convey to my students that this is something I am interested in, they will be more willing to learn. It is hard to motivate students if i cannot motivate myself. Therefore, I think it is very necessary to educate myself on the Apache helicopter and try to create fun activities in class to get my students engaged. |