here are all my chapter summaries
chapter 1 in this chapter ji li is selected for an audition and her parents disscourage her from attending
chapter 2 students start a dai zii bo trend ad a  mean dai zii bo is written about her
chapter 3-17 li ji undergoes strugles such as her ather being detained her house being ransacked and being ostricized by classmates but in the end ji li rises above all the threats of her futre being ruined and helps her family

Now that we've finished the book, what type of project should we do? Write your suggestions here. :)

Post your response to the end of the book (and the book in general) here.

Chapter 17 & Epilogue

I am so glad that Jili got her will to live back. I agree with her, and her mother. If you are gone, it doesn't help anyone that depends on you or cares for you. Jili is worth way more alive than dead. I am sorry for the conditions that they have to live in now, and with her Grandma sweeping, it must be horrible to come back home to an empty, sad place.
Even I, when I read about that time in the park, felt like I was Jili and I was thinking of a happier place. But so much has happened in the book, I had forgotten about it.
As for the epilogue, I am a little mad that not one of the Red Guards got punished. Of course, I know that they were as brainwashed as the rest of them, but did they realize their actions after Mao died? Did they regret them? I am glad that everyone got a happier life, like Chang Hong. I smiled when I read she married "a blck whelp". Ahh, the irony in some things.
I understand how the Chinese people thought Mao was God. Since he made the country pretty much isolated, I see how they looked up at a person with so much power. I just hope that any of this ever happens in China or any country ever again.

Poll

I was looking over the answers for the poll, and I think that we should discuss our answers and why we chose them. If anyone has any thoughts on this, please post them here. : )

Thank you, Elizabeth, for posting proactively, without a prompt. For those of you who are wondering where to post about chapters 15 & 16, you can either write in a comment on Elizabeth's post, or comment here.

Chapter 15 & 16

Harvest time.  some of the most painful, backbreaking work is done in the fields.  I can totally understand why she wouldn't let Bai Shan help her.  She, even though was bloody, broken and beat, she had to show that she was tough enough to become part of the revolution.  And when she leaved, even though working in the rice fields isn't exactly happiness, her small source of distraction from home is whisked away.

I'm glad she didn't tell the people where the letter was.  It would've probably brought on more suffering than relief.  It shows she is strong, even if loved ones have to suffer at her hand.

Today in class we discussed propaganda and the way people twist words depending on how they want people to understand something. Mary pointed this out with the word "revolution" vs. "civil war." Be on the look-out for the way words are used, and write down examples when you see this technique.

Write your reflection for chapter 13 (Half-City Jiangs) and chapter 14 (The Class Education Exhibition) here.

Write your reflection for chapter 11 & 12 here.

Chapters 9 & 10

Write your reflection for 9 & 10 here.

Write your reflection for chapter 7 & 8 here.

What are some positive qualities of communism you can think of (consider the view of a peasant)?

What connections can you make with Ji-li's experience? For example, when you look at communism, can you find parallels in something like working on group projects, sports, lit circles, classroom discussions, etc.? What about historical connections?

Here is a pre-discussion question: How do we dig deeper than the obvious in our discussion? We are all horrified by what is happening to Ji-Li and her family, but how do we get meaning out of our reading experience?

You can post your reflection for 5 & 6 here. I realize I didn't get this on until 8PM (thanks for the head's up, Mary!) so, if you posted in one of the other entries, you can copy and paste your comments at the beginning of class tomorrow.

Do you want to help child soldiers? Tonight, research the charities that already exist to help children who are caught in the middle of conflict. Post your findings here. Which charities are the best? Why? What goals do the charities have? Do you have other ideas for how to help this problem?

After reading your comments, I thought I should follow up. Many of you found it shocking how the government used children as pawns in the revolution. In class, let's discuss and research the use of children in civil wars. When has it happened in the past? Why does it happen? What effect does it have on the children and society as a whole? How can we stop it?

In the comments, share any articles you can find on this topic, as well as your thoughts and insights. Try to find sources that other students haven't looked at yet.

To start you out, you can take a look at this article: Beyond Kony 2012, Children are used in most civil wars