Slice of Life Entry Challenge #17:Noticing the Light
As I mentioned in my slice from yesterday, our class is reading Number the Stars as our read aloud. We are in deep in a historical fiction unit right now. My students have started making some deep connections of the book, and I am so thankful. I read the part where they say that all of Denmark is dark after sunset. They are not allowed to have their lights on after a certain time and their electricity is rationed. My students are continually shocked and surprised. In Seoul, our Interent connection is probably one of the fastest in the world, and flashy signs and lights are everywhere.
One of my students commented how at night, South Korea is bright and full of lights, while North Korea is black with very lights. There is a famous picture that shows this difference. We started to discuss some of the similarities between North Korea and what the people in Denmark were experiencing. My students are very sheltered in some ways. Yes, they do see the news on T.V. and are influenced by the media, but I wonder, if they really know what is happening in North Korea. We do talk about it in class, but I don’t know if they just brush it off since they are used to hearing about it. I wonder if they are truly aware that their neighbors are suffering, hungry and crying out for help. Yet, no one seems to really be hearing them.