Our Mission Statement

Melody Around The World is a global learning project that introduces Melody to the world for the purpose of encouraging compassion for others, raising awareness for people with disabilities, and promoting global learning. Communication between participants will be facilitated through the Melody Around The World blog at MelodyAroundTheWorld.com.


January 15, 2014

Our Letter To The World

Dear World,

Our 4th grade class just finished reading Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper.  We were deeply moved by Melody's story of courage and perseverance, but we were crushed when Melody was left behind.  This gave us an idea.  We wanted to give Melody a chance to finally travel... Around The World!

Melody dreamed of discovering new people and communicating with them.  We have the same dream.  By helping Melody travel the world through this project, we hope to learn about other kids like ourselves... their languages, their customs, and especially the way they learn.

Through this project, we want to help people discover Melody and identify with her struggles.  We invite you to read Out of My Mind and sign up to host a Melody.  Then, we would love for you to share with us what Melody experienced while she was with you.  We look forward to learning with you.  Thank you for your interest in our project.

                                                                                  Sincerely,
                                                                                  Ms. Hampson's & Mrs. Chamberlain's 4th Grade
                                                                                  White Rock Elementary
                                                                                  Jane, MO
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8 comments:

  1. Gigi McAllisterFebruary 4, 2014 at 6:28 PM

    My 4th grade class in Maine is really looking forward to participating in Melody Around the World! Thank you for starting this great project.

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  2. AnonymousFebruary 13, 2014 at 6:00 PM

    Dear Gigi, I also teach at White Rock in Jane, MO and Co-teach twice a day in this classroom. Your students will really enjoy this adventure.
    ~Mrs. Hinkle

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  3. AnonymousMarch 9, 2014 at 8:38 AM

    We were very happy to have Melody visit us and we have sent her on her way to another school. We wondered why you chose to make Melody all black.

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    Replies
    1. EdcampMagicMarch 12, 2014 at 11:18 AM

      Thank you for allowing Melody to visit your school. I'm sure she had a great experience!

      Your question about why Melody looks the way she does is a great one! We chose to represent Melody as a silhouette of a girl in a wheel chair (or in all black as you mentioned), because the author, Sharon M. Draper was very careful to not assign Melody a specific race in the book. We discussed this with her very early in the development of the project. Here is what she said:

      "I worked very hard to make sure she had no race or creed. Melody is universal. Remember that part when she gets the meditalker and she says, 'I never even thought that there were kids like me in China or Germany who needed a machine to help them talk.'? That shows she could be anybody. So I'd like to keep her neutral."

      We really wanted to stay true to Mrs. Draper's characterization of Melody, so this is why our Melody looks the way she does. Thanks for asking!

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  4. ljhMarch 10, 2014 at 1:46 PM

    I have just signed up my class to participate in this project. This will be so exciting! If at all possible, it would be great if Melody could visit Australia in the term when we are reading the book which is from late October to early December of 2014. I read the book to my class last year and they absolutely loved it!!! Can't wait to share it with my new class later this year.

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  5. AnonymousMarch 18, 2014 at 1:25 PM

    Dear World,
    If you like this blog, you should check out our classroom blog:
    MyBigFatGreekClassroom.com
    ~Kaleb

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousMarch 22, 2014 at 4:37 PM

    Dear Kaleb,
    Almost everyday I check out mybigfatgreekclassroom.com it is a very good blog
    ~Kate :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. AnonymousApril 4, 2014 at 2:28 PM

    That was a really good idea ---MAURA St.Louis

    ReplyDelete

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