Fatty Legs novel study

This week, all the intermediate classes finished reading the novel Fatty Legs by Christy Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton. Many of the students are now reading the sequel and the picture book version of the novel. The novel study has raised even more questions about residential schools for the students and we have three guest speakers scheduled in the next few weeks to help address some of the students' questions.
We used an online application called TodaysMeet for students to post their comments and questions as I read the novel to the classes. Using the iPads the students scanned a QR code to link to the secure site and were each able to post from their iPads and see the ongoing conversation on both the iPads and the big screen.

Some insightful comments and questions posted to TodaysMeet included:


Why are the "swan" and the "raven" so different??
Will Oleman be ok?Will she try to escape?
Why is the Raven making Olemaun read when she knows Olemaun cannot read?
We take our life for granted. The kids in residential schools had to work so hard yet we go home and just do the dishes, etc
How will this traumatic event affect her when she is older???
Separating kids from there parents that long is wrong
Religions differ and the people inside religions differ even further
This book is making me cry a bit in the inside
That school is like child labour with learning
If you we're ulaman and you had the chance to ran away would you run away or stay at the school


Two students from division 1 created a podcast reviewing this novel:

listen to ‘Fatty Legs by Margaret Pokiak-Fenton ’ on Audioboo

~Ms Novakowski