Why a good book is a secret door

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So what’s up with this Greg dude?

So what’s up with this Greg dude?

The series that I decided to read was Diary of a Wimpy Kid, book 1 and book 2. To be honest I don’t know why I haven’t read these books sooner, they are hilarious. The initial reason for choosing this book to read was because at the elementary school that I work at the kids are OBSESSED with these books. I mean they could tell you every single title AND the color of the cover page. So I almost felt obligated to see what all the fuss was about, and let me tell you I was not disappointed.

The series is about a young boy named Greg who is just beginning his adventure in middle school, everything from friends to bullies to just school in general. But this book is also about Greg’s family dynamic and the “struggles” of being a pre-teen. The book is set up as if it is Greg actually writing in his Diary that his mom got for him, so the font looks like hand writing and there are pictures that go along with what Greg is talking about. At first Greg didn’t want to write in his journal, but after some thought he decided that it was a an okay thing to do, even after his older annoying brother Rodrick found out.  Another character that is important in the series is Greg’s  best friend Rowley. And even though Greg sometimes thinks that Rowley is annoying, childish, and sometimes weird, they are truly the best of friend.

There are definitely some central themes in this book. When we observe Greg’s friendship with Rowley, it teaches that even though someone is different than you, friendship is a vital part of life and it’s okay to be different. Also there is the lesson that family is important even if there are some sibling rivalries going on. And also being a kid is hard, but its just part of life. That being said I think these books are geared toward older elementary school kids because of Greg’s age, but I definitely think younger kids could read these books. They may not understand or relate to everything, but its a relatively easy book to read (in terms of words and length). Because I believe that these books could be read by elementary school kids, and the lessons are so beneficial I could definitely see myself using these books to teach a lesson or two to my future students. They are not only a good read, but the pictures make it fun as well. Students could start their own diary as part of a writing lesson, or they could use this book for a book report. There are quite a few ways these books could be helpful to students of all ages.

Another thing that is interesting about this series is that because they are so popular, there is a website and a movie. So depending on the age of the children and the school policy, the students could read the first Diary of a Wimpy Kid book and then watch the movie as a reward for reading. There is also a really great website for the series.

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One Reply to “So what’s up with this Greg dude?”

  1. Yeah I totally agree with everything you said here. I am reading this series too and you’re right…I see so many kids reading this book and talking about it. Now that I am actually reading this series, I feel like a kid again and just remembering what middle school was like. Obviously middle school wasn’t as bad as what this poor Greg kid has to go through, but it does have comic relief to it which just makes the book so cute. Elementary school kids would definitely like this series and I had a similar idea of how we could use this series in a classroom. I said that students can have their own diary as well and practice their writing skills and maybe towards the end, we can create a classroom book of all of their writings together! SUCH A GOOD RESPONSE RACHAEL SO PROUD OF YOU ;)

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