SPARK features two characters who have obvious "flaws": one has a birthmark, another a stutter.
This topic lends itself to great high school class discussion...
We all have things about
ourselves that we wish we could change. (If
only, we all think, I were prettier,
taller. Or, I wish I could make my
nose smaller, get rid of the scar on my chin, not have such frizzy hair, clear
up my skin…) If your fantasy could be granted, and what you perceive to be your
biggest flaw was magically erased, how would it change you? Would you behave
differently? Would you finally talk to your crush, go out for the lead in the
play? Would you step into the spotlight? Would you finally be brave enough to
make your mark?
Students can discuss the depiction of the external in SPARK--this includes costumes that appear throughout. They can also discuss the external vs. internal lives of the characters--and even of themselves. After all, sometimes, the best way to connect and interact with a book is by seeing connections between the text and the "real world."
Children are always being told the inside of a person is the most important part--and it is! But what are the barriers to getting to view a person's interior? How do our own opinions of our exterior, our perceptions of our own "flaws" keep people from seeing our own insides?
Are you a teacher using SPARK in your classroom? Contact me at hollyschindlerbooks (at) gmail (dot) com for a Skype.
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