Dear Reader,
Welcome! It's another beautiful day here in Seattle and I am delighted to jump into your inbox and swoon over one of my favorite, newish young adult books: Chaos Theory written by the incredible Nic Stone. Read on to learn how to teach with it (and a reminder about today's TPT sale!).
Today's Book Recommendation
It's Mental Health Awareness Month, making this the perfect time to add Chaos Theory to your high school classroom library.
Title: Chaos Theory
Author: Nic Stone
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Age Range: 14+ (scenes of teenage drinking and references to teenage pregnancy)
Summary: A chance encounter brings high school seniors Shelbi and Andy into each other's orbits where they quickly realize how valuable of a friendship they have stumbled upon. As they share their vulnerabilities and their joys, they must navigate their open wounds of mental illness, alcoholism, and grief and learn how to not hurt themselves or each other any more.
Teaching with Chaos Theory
If you’re a health teacher creating a classroom library, start with Chaos Theory. It will educate your students about mental health while keeping them hooked with its love story and family drama. Students will appreciate its authenticity, too. Stone shares in the author’s note that “I, Nic Stone, am technically mentally ill. I won’t get into my specific diagnoses here because they’re genuinely not important, but I want to warn you that a lot of what you’ll see in these pages is based on my literal personal experiences.”
It's a great next read for students who loved...
- Turtles All the Way Down by John Green (teenage girl dealing with how her mental illness impacts her relationships)
- Baby & Solo by Lisabeth Posthuma (teenage boy learning how to grieve in non-destructive ways)
- Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell (teenage boy and girl grow their relationship from friendship to romance while dealing with family pressure and drama)
Resource of the Week
Treat yourself: it's TPT's Teacher Appreciation Sale! Get up to 25% off your entire order today and tomorrow (May 6 and 7). Use promo code "THANKYOU25". I suggest finishing the year strong with our Book Club Unit: Human Migration Stories and Story Elements Escape Room.
Have a good one and learn everything you can,
Hannah
PS: Do you have this sign outside of your classroom?
