I’m so grateful to every teacher and every reader who has the courage and strength to read THE BRIDGE HOME. I hope you’ve all enjoyed laughing with Muthu, Arul, Rukku and Viji this week. I’ve had a wonderful week – it’s been such a joy to see photographs of readers from around the world. It’s also been a rather busy one. So please forgive me if I haven’t answered every question I received. I did try to answer most of them in the video below.
Have you made a poster for the #GRABridge contest yet? If you’d like to, there’s still a bit of time. To find out more about this competition, please visit the Global Read Aloud Website.
To leave comments on my website, please, as always:
- Click on the blog title (or on the title listed below recent posts to the right of this screen)
- You’ll be redirected to a new screen with just the blog post.
- Scroll down, and you’ll find a box where you can leave your school name, state, and country.
Finally, here’s something I’d love for all of you to start thinking about. I’m hoping every one of you reading THE BRIDGE HOME might consider doing something for children like Viji, Arul, Rukku and Muthu, after you finish reading the book (which is still a few weeks away). For now, I hope you’ll ponder and consider taking up one of the social justice challenges below:
- Viji’s challenge. Viji loves books and yearns to go to school. Perhaps you could help other children who need books or want an education or spread your love of reading. For example, maybe you could help another child to read, or collect books for a library or school in need, or discover a way to help children who want to attend school.
- Muthu’s challenge. Muthu is always happy to voice his thoughts. Perhaps you could speak up (respectfully and responsibly) about an issue that moves you strongly. Write an open letter (or a letter to a newspaper or maybe to a senator) about a problem that affects your community (such as hunger) or a challenge the whole world faces, with suggestions on how to create positive change.
- Rukku’s challenge.The little family on the bridge enjoys independence and freedom and feels rich, thanks to Rukku’s bead business and the money that it generates. Maybe you can find a way to fund-raise for a cause you believe in, or collect money for an organization that you find important.
- Arul’s challenge. Arul is quiet but strong. Arul keeps his promises and never breaks his word. Think about your behavior and your habits. Make a pledge to change the way you act, in order to help the environment and reduce waste – and keep your pledge.
- Lalitha’s challenge. Lalitha loves art. Use art to raise awareness of a problem faced by your community or country or the world – or just create art using recycled materials and think of kids like those in THE BRIDGE HOME and send them your best wishes as you work.
Those are just some ideas I have – you may have more. I’d love to hear what you decide to do – and you can start these challenges at any time in the next few weeks – or even the week after you finish reading the book. But first, here’s to hearing more from you as you dig deeper into THE BRIDGE HOME.
Forestville Rd. Elementary School – Knightdale, NC – – 5th grade class
Was the family poor?
How much is 200 rupees in American money?
Why did Appa not like his family?
What advice would you give to a new writer, either someone who has just started out or has some amount of experience?
From – Verlon Amurao
Hutchinson Middle School
Texas
United States of America (USA)
wow ur a writer
Mrs. Tice’s Students – Grade 8
Dover Intermediate School
Dover, PA, USA
If Arul was mean and didn’t let them stay, how would you have changed the story?
When did you realize you wanted to write The Bridge Home?
Did your ideas for The Bridge Home change as you were writing it?
If you had to choose a favorite book other than those you’ve written, what would it be?
How long did it take you to write The Bridge Home?
Who is your favorite character in The Bridge Home?
What do you want readers to learn from The Bridge Home?
What did you learn from writing The Bridge Home?
What is one thing you would add or change to The Bridge Home?
How would you compare The Bridge Home to the other novels that you have written?
Do you see yourself in any of the characters in the book?
(Who inspires you the most?)
Lubbock
Hutchinson middle school
Texas
United States
Have you ever thought while you were writing the book to stop writing it and just give up.
-Hutchinson Middle
School,
TX,
USA
How did you get the Idea for Rukku selling necklaces?
(What inspired you for this Idea?)
Hutchinson middle school
Lubbock, Texas
United States
Why did you make the novel a letter to Rukku, because later on, it seems more like one big, long, story?
Hutchinson Middle School
Lubbock, TX
USA
I had that question too.😁😁😁
Hutchinson
Lubbock, Tx
USA
Where does Rukku find all the beads at and the string to build it
never mind
In your opinion, what are the easiest and hardest aspects of writing?
When ur in da sheets
What advice would you give someone who is going through the type of things Viji, Rukku, Arul, and Muthu are going through?
Hutchinson Middle School
TX
USA
What do they do if they get infected by something or hurt do they still go to work or stay at home
Which character would you want to be if you were in their situation?
Hutchinson Middle School
TX
USA
How much do you think the story would change if the characters were completely different? For example, if Appa were nicer, or if Arul and Muthu were less kind and accepting?
-Jacob Heraldo
Hutchinson Middle School
Lubbock, Texas
If you were in the same situation as Viji would you be as overprotective as she was with her sister.
From-Elijah Valdez Hutchinson Middle School Lubbock Texas
Hello,
We entered our questions on our class blog and we’re hoping you can visit it to read them.
http://daroom213.edublogs.org/2019/10/16/dear-ms-venkatraman/#comments
We each also have our own blog and we’re entering posts that share our reactions to each week’s section. Those can be found in the class blogs along the left margin. We welcome all visitors and comments as part of the GRA.
Best,
The Book Cavaliers
(North Carolina)
Are you religious? have you ever been bullied because of your religion? If so, how did you overcome it?
From- Evan Gillespie
Hutchinson Middle school, Lubbock Texas
How did you think of all of the details and things that happened in your book.
How long did it take you to write this book?
Hutchinson Middle School