How far will you go to save your/ families lives? How can Educators Improve Class With Technology

The Hunger Games is by far my favorite book that we have read yet this semester. I'll go as far as even saying the best book I've read in a really long time. I'm even considering the second one as a summer read! I would absolutely love to use this in my classroom and believe that my students could really engage in this book and have empathetic reactions to the characters of their age group. A lot of discussion questions could really be generated and get the students thinking about the situations that Katniss, Gale and Peeta as well as the other characters are involved in.

Such as: the relationships of the characters and how it helps define their personality, specifically Katniss. How does Katniss's feelings of Gale play in the feelings or pretend feelings for Peeta. Are they actually in love? The idea that all of the killings are taped for the population to watch, how do you think the population reacts to this, even though we don't get to read about this aspect. What is the cruelest part of the hunger games? Are the viewers manipulated to think that the hunger games is 'entertainment'?
Student's could write about how they would react if they were forced into such a thing, or think of something else similiar to the hunger games that would effect them. Or even just imagining how it would be if the US changed to the 12 districts tomorrow, and you were forced to invade private property in order to hunt and kill the food for your family. (Just that alone, I couldn't imagine)
Did you believe she had it in her to win all along? OR does the author do a good job at making you think that but then taking it back, as if she doesn't have what it takes.
- I don't know, because when I first started reading this I knew that she was going to win. Even though, at times the author made me doubt what I thought I knew. I even thought about what if both Peeta and Katniss won together, since it was pictured them as a team, all along. And what do you know, they both did. I normally do not like when I am able to predict books, yet this book didn't make me feel that way.

I liked the articles we had to read this week as well and it made me think that I need to show my students how much media influences their daily lives even though they might not realize it. As well as how media influeces our identities, morals and choices. The more that students use media in their literary lives the less resistant they will be to reading. The more teachers use media in their classroom the less difficult it could be to motivate the students to read according to the articles we read this week. I appreciated all of the research that Tarasiuk did as well as the activities she did. As well as how the students reacted! I really liked the digital book talks. This experience shows how much teachers should be involved in their students lives and learn from them. All of this reading makes me more and more excited about learning how to teach and actually getting into the classroom!