Friday, October 10, 2014

Yes, No, Maybe So? And Powerful Lines!

Today in class, we moved around the room as we explored how we respond to some controversial statements about themes in the novel, The Absolute Value of Mike. Last night, you each read Chapter 5 and created a web to share some of the key moments from the chapter.

We discussed the iceberg as we explored what it means to be homeless. In the novel, we meet Past--a character who goes against many common stereotypes about homelessness. And we talked about how society often tries to put many types of people in boxes, whereas RELATIONSHIP and DIGGING UNDERNEATH THE SURFACE are so important! With Mike, we are surprised to see Past and how he has an "office," a cell phone, and an incredible ability to make things happen!

Here's our board from today:



As I shared various statements, you all moved around the room to a wall labeled YES or NO or MAYBE SO. Then, from our various locations we talked about why you made that choice. We also inferred what Mike and Pasts' relationship is going to be like, and I shared my own experiences about having meals and conversations with people who are homeless.

Our word of the day was MOSAIC, which is a collection of small, colorful tiles brought together to make a work of art. It can also be a metaphor! As in this line: The students in Room 340 create a beautiful mosaic of energy and insight.

Our word for the day from yesterday was DESPONDENT, which means utterly depressed and crushed. As in this line: Poppy is despondent in the novel because of the death of his son, Doug.

Over this weekend, you are reading through the end of Chapter 7 in The Absolute Value of Mike. After reading, what is one of the most powerful lines (for you) from the chapter? Quote the line and then share with us why it was so powerful to you!


72 comments:

  1. One of the most powerful lines for me in this chapter was when Mike said "This kid is definitely coming home." I liked this line because even though it will cost 40 grand to get whoever the kid Karen wants to adopt within about three weeks, Mike is showing a certain confidence in himself which I haven't seen in the whole novel.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think the most important line was "Don't worry," I said. "This kid is definitely coming home." I think the line was the most important because it tells us that Mike is going to help and that sets the book off down the line again. It also leaves you at a cliffhanger and makes you want to read more.

    -Tia Nye

    ReplyDelete
  3. I think that one of the most powerful line is when he says "It's a bridge," I said quietly not taking my eyes off the photo. I think that is one of the most powerful lines is because this town to me is starting to get kind of creepy. i think this is creepy because past had a picture that looked like him and now Karen does too. This town is unraveling the creepy side of do-over.
    - Olivia Gomez

    ReplyDelete
  4. I think that the most important line was "It's very upsetting to lose a child, no matter how old." I think this line is powerful because it shows that no matter how old you are, it is still upsetting and hard to lose a child. You could be an adult and cry just as hard because you lost your child, no matter how old they are.

    - Lwiza AitDowd

    ReplyDelete
  5. I think the line "this kid is definatly comeing home" is the most powerful line in chaper 7 because it shows that mike is willing to do anything in order to get that kid to america, and mike sees this kid as himself in his childhood which makes him want to help this kid.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think the most important line was "well, poppy does fine woodworking and is supposed to be leading a whole crew of people in making wooden boxes for." I think this is most important because it just crushed a lot of his hopes and dreams.

    --Sean McNamara

    ReplyDelete
  7. My most powerful line was "Don't worry," i said, "this kid is definitely coming home" because it shows how willing Mike is now to help with the project and help the town instead of just thinking the summer is a waste of time.
    Clayton Hanlon

    ReplyDelete
  8. I think the most powerful line in chapter 7, was when Moo says, "We have a miracle...Mike!" I think that this line is important because Moo thinks that Mike is the miracle and that he can fix Poppy and resolve the problem. Pg.55

    -Pasha Sahin

    ReplyDelete
  9. i think the most powerful line in chapter seven was " dont worry. this kid is definitly coming home." i like this line because they are going to try to do everything they can to make sure that this boy is adopted and not alone even though it costs forty grand to get him here.
    - cierra wilkins

    ReplyDelete
  10. I think the most important line is "I want a child, Mike. You have to help me." I think the line was the most important because it was dramatic and surprising also it lead to the explanation of the kid on Past's cart.
    -Fiona Nash

    ReplyDelete
  11. I think the most powerful line from chapter seven is "Don't worry," I said. "this kid is definitely coming home." I think this is the most powerful line because it shows that Mike is going to help the town/Karen adopt the child and try to get Poppy out of his despondent state. -Fiona Morrison

    ReplyDelete
  12. I think the most powerful line from chapter seven is "don't worry", I said "this kid is definitely coming home". I think this is the most important line because it showing that the town wants to together and help poppy, to get him out of his depression, and their doing this with the power of this one kid ... Mike.
    -Anna Laursen

    ReplyDelete
  13. I think that the most powerful line in this chapter is "Don't worry" I said. "This kid is definitely coming home." I think this because its the main idea of the chapter and gives Mike a job to get everybody together to make the adoption happen.
    -Olivia Noyes

    ReplyDelete
  14. Collin burns The most powerful line for me was "She vacuumed for 3 days straight after Doug died", even though it might not be the most important line it still was powerful with sadness of their situation.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I think the most powerful line in Chapter 7 is "We have a miracle!….Mike!" This line shows that Moo believes in Mike, believes that he can "wake Poppy up." I'm also pretty sure that the fact that Moo believes in Mike will result in him saving the town of Do Over in some way, perhaps in that he finds a way for the Romanian child to travel to the States.
    --Shreya Kumar

    ReplyDelete
  16. I think the most powerful line is "The whole town is helping me out on my adoption effort" (pg. 59) because the whole town is nice enough to support Karen on her choice to adopt a child and help raise the money to adopt him.
    --Emily Rypinski

    ReplyDelete
  17. I agree with both Fionas, I also think that the most powerful line in chapter 7 is "Don't worry," I said. "This kid is definitely coming home." pg 67 last line. I think this is very powerful because it telling us that for once in his life, Mike is actually trying very hard for something.
    -Magnus Miller

    ReplyDelete
  18. I think the most powerful line is: "It's a bridge," I said quietly,not taking my eyes off the photo. I think this is the most powerful line because it shows that Mike now has a connection with this kid because of his own experience, and now will really try to help this kid get to Karen. This quote was on page 61.

    --Colin McHugh

    ReplyDelete
  19. I think that the most powerful lines in Chapter 7 are..

    "'It's a bridge', I said quietly, not taking my eyes off the photo. A bridge. Like the bridge I'd made out of LEGOs for Dad. The one that made Mom call me a great engineer."

    I picked those lines because they go back to when Mike's dad was actually proud of him. The lines made me stop reading for a moment. They also show Mike's mysterious connection to the boy from Romania.

    ReplyDelete
  20. I think that the most powerful line is "I shook my head slowly. It was like I was looking at myself. It wasn't a house. It wasn't a garage." (Pg 60) I think this is the most powerful line because it shows how stunned and surprised Mike is at the picture. It is a really cool moment for the reader and Mike when you don't understand and are confused and don't know what is happening.
    --Emmalyn Mirarchi

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I really like this comment because the "moment for the reader" is very important in writing.

      Delete
  21. I think the most powerful line from chapter seven is "This kid is definitely coming home." I think it is the most powerful line because it shows how much Mike is willing to help with the project and help Karen adopt this kid.
    -- Grace Acton

    ReplyDelete
  22. I think the most powerful line is when Karen said "The whole town is helping me in my adoption effort" I think this sentense is powerful because it shows that the town cares about each other.
    -Alondra Pacheco Flores

    ReplyDelete
  23. I agree with Fiona M. I also thought the line "Don't worry" I said "this kid is definitely coming home" is the most important because not only is mike saying he will help, but he is showing how he really does care about the town and the people in it. -Brianna Schmoyer

    ReplyDelete
  24. I think the most important line in chapter seven is "Don't worry," I said. "this kid is gonna to definitely coming home." I think this is the most powerful line because mike is gonna to help Karen adopt the child and try to get poppy out of his state.
    -Sara Picariello

    ReplyDelete
  25. I think the most powerful line from chapter seven is "Don't worry," I said. "This kid is definitely coming home. I think it is the most powerful because now we know that Mike will help Karen raise the money to adopt the child. To raise the money he needs to get Poppy to move, so Ii think that he will try to cheer Poppy up.
    -Angela Xing

    ReplyDelete
  26. I think the most important line was "I want a child, Mike. You have to help me" because it shows how much Karen needs a child in her life. It makes me think she might live alone and she wants someone to share a life with and if she doesn't get this child she might never stop crying.
    -Gwyneth Smedley

    ReplyDelete
  27. I think the most powerful line from chapter 7 is "this kid is definitely coming." I think this is the most powerful line because Mike is saying he will do what he has to do to get the kid home.

    -- Mark Goldsher

    ReplyDelete
  28. I Think that the most powerful was " you mean its not some kind of engineering project" i liked this line becuase it makes me mad when my expectations get lowered.
    -- Robert Arellano

    ReplyDelete
  29. I think the most powerfull line in chapter 7 is, "This kid is definitely coming home." I think it is the most powerfull line because it shows that Mike will help get him here in america nomatter what.

    -Stefan Scornavacca

    ReplyDelete
  30. I think the most powerful line in chapter 7 is,"Don't worry, this kid is definitely coming home." I believe this line is powerful because it shows that mike is all in for this kid coming and he will try to raise the money.

    -Will Bardenheuer
    (Next time, instead of clicking Anonymous, click Name and URL and type your name.)

    ReplyDelete
  31. I think the most powerful line in ch. 7 was (p.49) "I wanted to say the craziest wacko idea of this century." because it is weird that moo thinks mike can work miracles and do all this stuff by himself.

    -David Sampson

    ReplyDelete
  32. I think the most powerful line is "I want a child, Mike. You have to help me." found on page 57. I think that this is the most powerful line because this line shows us the reader what mikes new "journey" is. also, I think this is the most powerful line because Karen and Mike are having a heart-felt conversation and we get to learn more about the kid on past's cart, and Karen.
    --Riley Neville

    ReplyDelete
  33. I think the most powerful line is "this kid is defiantly coming home." because this is when Mike stops saying he's "just a kid" and decides to step up to the plate and help the town adopt the kid from Romania.

    -Olivia Diodato

    ReplyDelete
  34. My opinion of the most powerful line is : "The kid could be stuck in an orphanage for... forever." This line is important to me because it shows why it is so important to Mike to do anything for the adoption of this child from Romania before the international laws change. The idea of being alone in an orphanage forever with no one to love, or no one to be loved by struck me as very powerful.

    ReplyDelete
  35. One of the most powerful lines in chapter 7 is when Mike says, " Don't worry, this kid is definitely coming home." For a few reasons. The first reason is it shows that Mike care about the town and he wants to help. Also it shows that Mike really wants to show his dad that he doesn't have to go to Newton High and that maybe his dad will except him for who he is if he starts Poppy's project for him. Lastly, I think Mike wants to find out who the kid really is who the town wants to adopt. These are just a few reasons why I think that the last line in chapter 7 is the most important/ powerful.
    ~Caroline Mara C Block

    ReplyDelete
  36. I think the most powerful line in chapter 7 is on page 61 "Don't worry, this kid is definitely coming." I think this is the most powerful line because it's one of the first times Mike seems to care about something on his trip.

    -Sam Schoenberg

    ReplyDelete
  37. I feel that the most important line in chapter 7 is, "Don't worry...This kid is definitely coming home." (Page 67) I think this because it gives me a sense that Mike is getting something out of his trip and that he really cares about the citizens of Donover, not just Karen, but Poppy, Moo, and all of the town who are hoping for a child to adopt.

    ReplyDelete
  38. I feel the most important line in chapter 7 is, "Don't worry... This kid is definitely coming home," says Mike.(page 67) I think this because it gives me a sense that Mike really cares about the town, not only Karen, but Poppy, Moo, and all of Donover who are hoping for a new child.
    --Raiya Suliman (sorry, I had sent a quote previously but forgot to put my name on it so it may look similar

    ReplyDelete
  39. I think the most powerful line in chapter 7 is "Don't worry, this kid is definitely coming home." I think this because it shows how persistent he is and selfless as he is willing to put in so much effort for a town he just met.

    ReplyDelete
  40. I think the most powerful line is "It's a bridge," I said quietly, not taking my eyes off the photo. "A bridge like the bridge I mad e out of legos for Dad. The one that made Mom call me a great engineer." because his mother was actually proud of him.

    -Tommy Wacek

    ReplyDelete
  41. I think that the most important line in chapter seven in, "Don't worry, this kid id definitely coming home" because it shows how commited mike is to bringing this kid back from Romania and how much he caress about it.
    -Chris Pickreign

    ReplyDelete
  42. I believe that the most powerful line in chapter 7 would be "Don't wory," I said "this kid is deffinitely comming home" I chose this line because I felt like mike is relating to this kid and will be committed to raising the money and getting poppy (Pg 61)

    --brooke bourgeois

    ReplyDelete
  43. I think the most powerful line was "Don't worry, this kid is definitely coming home." I think this was the most powerful line because now we know Mike's dedication to adopting the kid. I also think this because Mike has a goal that is something he cares about and wants to accomplish.
    - Rachel Shrives

    ReplyDelete
  44. I think the most powerful line from chapter 7 is
    "It's a bridge", I said quietly, not taking my eyes off the photo. A bridge. Like the bridge I'd made out of LEGOs for Dad. The one that made Mom call me a great engineer."
    I think its important because it reminds mike of his mother and when his father was actually proud of him.
    Will Squire E block

    ReplyDelete
  45. I think the most powerful line in chapter 7 is on page(58)"oh artisans crew that's what moo is saying.'' she laughed. I think this is the most powerful line because it turns the whole story around and we finally now what artisans crew/ artesian screw means.
    -Jacob elliott

    ReplyDelete
  46. I believe the line, "This kid is definitely coming home," is the most powerful line in chapter seven because it shows that mike is willing to do anything to help transport the kid to america, Mike thinks that the kid is like him when he was younger and that also drives him to help.

    -Paul Witmer

    ReplyDelete
  47. I think the most important line is," Don't worry this kid is definitely coming home." i think this because it makes me want to read more of the story

    ReplyDelete
  48. I think the most powerful line in chapter seven is 'Moo brightend instantly. "We have a miracle" Karen and I both stared at Moo. I wasn't ready for the word that came out of her mouth. "Mike" because it means that Moo has faith in Mike unlike his father so it was surprising to him because no one ever told him he was a miracle.

    -Lucy Bodtman

    ReplyDelete
  49. I think the most important line is "This kid is definitely coming home." I think this is the most important line because it shows that Mike is still going to try and that he cares about moo and poppy and karen even though he never wanted to visit them.
    -

    ReplyDelete
  50. I think that the most powerful line in this chapter is the last line. "Don't worry, this kid is definitely coming home." This is the most powerful line because it shows that Mike finally cares about something on this trip

    ReplyDelete
  51. I think the most powerful line in chapter 7 is "Don't worry, this kid is definitely coming home." I think this line is the most powerful line because it shows us thta mike wants to help him get to America and he's willing to do anything for that.


    -Marcos Lora

    ReplyDelete
  52. I think the most powerful line is when mike says "this kid is definitely coming home" I think its the most powerful bc its when mike changes his perspective on this whole situation and he decides we really WANTS to help these people out and adopt this kid who is strangly simular to himself

    ReplyDelete
  53. I think the most powerful line is when mike says, "This kid is definitely coming home". I think this is the most powerful line because he has courage and determination that the boy is coming home

    ReplyDelete
  54. I think that the most important line is when Mike says, "This kid is definitely coming home". I think that it is the most powerful line because Mike is showing determination that the boy is coming home.

    Max Trabulsi
    C-Block

    ReplyDelete
  55. I think the most important line is "I want him home" because I can relate to that in a different way.

    ReplyDelete
  56. i agree with pasha. in chapter 7 moo says "we have a miracle... mike". its important becuase it shows that moo has hopes and believes that mike can "fix" poppy and he is probably one of few who moo actually believes in

    -will armstrong

    ReplyDelete
  57. I think the most important line in chapter 7 is "Don't worry" I said "this kids definitely coming home" I think that mike saying this means that he is going to try and help get poppy up and working or he is going to do it by him self.

    -- Natalie L'Ecuyer

    ReplyDelete
  58. I think the most powerful line in chapter 7 was "this kid is definitely coming home." I think it is powerful because Mike has all the pressure on him to raise enough money to get the kid to america.

    -Elena Franklin

    ReplyDelete
  59. I think the most important line in chapter 7 is "This kid is definitely coming home." I think this is the most important line because it shows that mike is going to try to raise the money to adopt the child from Romania .
    -- Carly James

    ReplyDelete
  60. I think the most powerful line in chapter 7 is, "It's very upsetting to lose a child, no matter how old." I think this because it's true it doesn't matter if you're in your 30's, or if your 80's, if you lose a child it's not going to be a fun experience.

    ReplyDelete
  61. I think the most powerful line in Chapter 7 is “I’m afraid Poppy’s still thinking about Doug.” It’s powerful because it tells me how depressing it was for Poppy to lose his son, Doug.

    --Christopher Clark

    ReplyDelete
  62. Chapter 7 "this kid is definitely coming home." This is the most powerful line to me because Mike wants to help this kid come to America when he does not even know the kid personally or as a friend.
    --Julia Proteau

    ReplyDelete
  63. I think an important line was "This kid is defiantly coming home" I think this because it shows how desperate it makes mike to raise the money for the child adoption

    ReplyDelete
  64. "don't worry," I said. "The kid is definitely coming home."
    --Isaac Noble

    ReplyDelete
  65. I think the most powerful line in Chapter 7 is "This kid is definitely coming home." I think it's the most important line because it shows Mike's determination to bring the kid home.
    -Tessa

    ReplyDelete
  66. I think that the most powerful line was when moo said "we have a miracle" and said mike because you know that she believes in him.

    David Ramirez

    ReplyDelete
  67. I think the most powerful line of this chapter is ''this kid is definitely coming home''. I think this because it shows that mike cares about the kid and that he is going to raise money to adopt the kid

    henry hays

    ReplyDelete
  68. i think the most powerful line in chapter 7 is when mike says this kid is defiantly coming home. because he is carring about moo and poppy even when he dosent want to be there or be with them.

    ben hays

    ReplyDelete
  69. I think the most powerful line is: " I shoved my hand into my pocket and held the Lego block as I stared at the picture."
    I think it is the most powerful because Mike can relate to the little boy because they both have mothers but have lost them.
    -Philippa Harvey

    ReplyDelete