Johnny Tremain and other interesting stories....

I have been reading the old Esther Forbes book, "Johnny Tremain" ever since I assigned it to my eighth grade American History class.  I'd forgotten how much I love this story! I read it when I was in 5th grade and then again several years ago when I took a writing course and had to read my favorite childhood story for an assignment.  It is the story of a young silversmith apprentice set in Boston in the days before the American Revolution.  Johnny is the main character and he is quite on his way to becoming a master silversmith.  However, one day he burns his hand with melted silver causing a serious defect which ends his dreams.  He wanders the streets of Boston, ashamed, and looks for other work which he cannot seem to obtain due to his maimed hand.  Things take a turn for the worst and then for the better as Johnny makes new friends, helps in the fight for independence and discovers who he really is.  I have fallen in love with this book all over again and I am hoping my students are enjoying it as well.  Time will tell, as they will be taking a quiz on it when school resumes, and in the end they will be doing a project regarding Johnny and his tragedies and triumphs.    This is what I love about teaching....it gives me a chance to be a learner as well.  It allows me to relive the love of history that I left behind when I graduated from college so many years ago.  Teaching Social Studies has given me a new perspective on the world and what makes it go 'round.  For instance, Geography has never really been one of my favorite subjects, but in teaching it to seventh graders, I have found a new appreciation for the subject.  I have surprised myself in that I find I enjoy not only teaching map skills, but enjoy relearning them as well.  I have relearned so many facts about countries that I would never dream of visiting, and now I want to travel the world. I want to visit Egypt and Rome and Greece and the Middle East and lots of other places!  (In the past, the only two places I wanted to visit outside of the US were Ireland and Austria).  I may never get to visit any of these countries but the possibilities somehow make life more  interesting and exciting.  It makes me a better teacher because I want to learn as much as I can and teach as well as I can.  In the seventh grade class the students will be embarking on an adventure with a  displaced young Mexican girl named Esperanza.  The story of a wealthy child leaving her ranch in Mexico for a Migrant farm in California due to a family tragedy is what I chose for them to read in "Esperanza Rising".  I am enjoying this read as well, though I am slower at reading it than I am "Johnny Tremain".   Teaching geographic themes is the point of this exercise, however, I am hoping the students willl value reading it  for pleasure too.  Sixth grade World History classes are reading "The Trojan War".  This is not Homer's version, but a novel by Olivia E Coolidge.   It starts with three Greek Goddesses and how they manipulated Paris, the tragic hero of the story.  We have only read the first 3 chapters but the students have loved it so far.  With all I am able to teach and do, I feel especially blessed as a teacher and as a learner. As silly as it may sound, and with my love of reading and learning,  I feel I have been given a second chance to enjoy life (and learning). I only hope my students feel the same about their own learning in my classes