Wonder by R.J. Palacio

I read Wonder by R.J. Palacio which has won some major awards such as being on the Texas Bluebonnet Award master list and being on the New York Times Best Seller list.

The book's main character is little Auggie Pullman. The reader gets to follow Auggie's journey as he starts the 5th grade, and how his life is impacted as well as how much he impacts the lives and hearts of others. I would definitely use this book in the classroom because it shines a light on how people are different, and how there is nothing wrong with that! The book also focuses on bullying, and how it effects everyone involved. When reading the book, you can't help but fall in love with Auggie, so when he's bullied by those around him it stirs up the readers emotions. The book allows the reader to put themselves in Auggie's shoes, and reminds them that the way they treat others is important because he or she wouldn't want to be treated in a negative way.

I think the appropriate grade level for this book would range from 3rd grade all the way up through high school. Yes, the wording is very simple for those high schoolers, but the message that is portrayed in the book is important even as an adult. This book can also be read to 2nd graders and maybe 1st graders, but the changes in points of views might confuse them a bit. There are always going to be people that are different than us no matter how old we are, but Wonder helps remind us that it's always better to choose to be kind.


A way I would use this book in the classroom would be to have a lesson on visualization. This is a very important skill when reading, and being able to see the story in your head instead of just words on a page can be difficult for some students. An activity I would do with Wonder
is have them draw, based on Via's description, what they think Auggie looks like. Another way I would incorporate Wonder in my classroom would be a writing assignment where they write a chapter of the book from their perspective. Putting themselves in the story requires critical thinking and creativity all while enhancing their writing techniques.

The ending of Wonder by R.J. Palacio is Auggie receiving the Henry Ward Beecher Medal for being the greatest not by what he had done, but for how by just being him he had impacted the hearts of so many people. Auggie got his standing ovation, and it was well deserved.

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