Division 5 has been very engaged in our novel study, Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper! The story follows 11 year old Melody, an extremely intelligent girl who loves music, her family, and learning about the world around her. Melody has a severe form of cerebral palsy, which impacts her ability to move and speak. Because Melody is non-verbal, and because of her physical appearance and her wheelchair, most people assume that she “doesn’t have any thoughts”. But with the support of her family, and with an assistive device called a ‘Medi-Talker’, Melody is able to begin sharing her thoughts with the world.
While Melody is not a real person, the technology that she uses in the novel is based on the machine used by Stephen Hawking. Stephen Hawking was diagnosed with ALS, which caused him to become paralyzed. Hawking was able to use assistive technology to share his intelligence and ideas with the world, just like Melody. Click on the video below to see the Science and Technology!
Discussion questions for at home:
-What are some other tools or technology that people with diverse needs/disabilities can use?
-Have you ever felt like someone assumed something about you/judged you based on your appearance?
-Why is important that we read books with characters like Melody? What can we learn from seeing the world through her eyes?
-How accessible/easy is our school, neighborhood, & world for people in wheelchairs? What could we do to improve this?