Review Of ' The Book ' Of Dibs '

As a sociologist, Kai T. Erikson looks at history as a reflection of changes in societal norms and expectations. Erikson re-visits his look at historical happenings of the Puritans in his novel “Wayward Puritans: A Study in the Sociology of Deviance”. By examining several “crime waves” throughout history, Erikson points out several aspects of how we see deviance. After researching Puritan lifestyle and the corresponding influences of deviance, Erikson explores the Antinomian Controversy, the Quaker Invasion, and the Witches of Salem Village.

The issues in this case study involve Melinda Smith, a veteran special education teacher, Derrick Yate, a student with behavioral disorder, Greg, the school principal, Barba Cole, the school social worker, Mrs. Yates, Derrick’s mom and Mr. Douglas, a general education teacher. Besides being a student with behavioral disorder, Derrick was low achieving and had developed a notorious reputation around school. According to Karen, one of the fifth-grade teachers, “Derrick has terrorized everyone”. Despites all the putdowns on Derrick, Mrs. Smith decides to take on the challenge to straighten his behavior.

I am writing to you to protest the School Board’s proposed banning of the book A Child Called “It” by Dave Pelzer. The book spent six years on the New York Times best-seller list, was an international best seller, and received a Pulitzer Prize nomination. As an award-winning author, Mr. Pelzer has shared his true-life story based on a childhood where he received physical and mental abuse by his alcoholic mother.

When I first started reading Dibs in Search of Self, I was not sure if I was going to really be able to get into the book. Once I started reading it, I found it to be interesting, informative, and enjoyable. I found myself being more and more interested after each chapter and found myself wanting to learn more about Dibs’ situation. There are so many aspects of this book that made me feel emotionally connected to it. I could not help but become interested in learning more about this child’s life and seeing how he changed throughout the course of the book. Along with the book being a great read, it was also interesting being able to read a book that related heavily to the topics that we have talked about in class. This book not only gives a real-life perspective about childhood psychopathology, but it also make you think about the difference factors that can influence a child’s overall development.

     I had many different reactions to this book. At first, I was horrified and shocked to learn about the conditions of these poor schools. Growing

He likes to plan far in advance even to the point of bothering his teachers for future homework assignments and numbering his clothes on hangers so the schedule of wear is equal. It is very common for children to exhibit some controlling behavior like the boy in the story because it gives the child a small piece of control in their own life. ("Brain Psychics") This is due to the lack of control on their parents’ relationship and the inability to control separation and divorce. This is quite believable and allows the reader to relate to this situation, especially if a divorced single parent or one who was a child that grew up in a divorced home.

Many children who struggle with social experiences fail to connect with classmates, leading to many of them dropping out of school. This action, in most cases, leading to delinquency and anti-social behavior. In Boo Radley's case, he was never an anti-social child being described as a nice boy by Miss Maudie. When the children received gifts from Boo in the oak tree, they receive a spelling bee medal which they assume he won when he was younger. This example shows that as a child Boo did not exhibit any social development issues until his parents chose to keep him locked at home. Later in his high school years, Boo got involved with the wrong group and ends up getting in trouble with the law. His parents were left with a decision, let Boo be put to trial or to keep him at home. They decided to keep him locked up at home which, is the start of Boo's isolation from society and the beginning of the end to his group mental development. In modern days, the way to treat from slow social growth in ways to prohibit future mental issues is overall, support from people. The best treatment for isolation issues is to have the person in isolation feel like they have a support system who will not judge them.

Many opposed this event by turning to Monasticism, these people wanted to devote their lives to God, but despite of all of this Weisser notes that Oneness still exist.

At this point you can tell in the start of the book he is a inconsiderate, and immature teenager as his mom describes him. He doesn’t take part in school, he would rather go out and gamble with his friends during the day and sneak out at night to do more

Through the Exosystem, Bronfenbrenner includes the economic system, political system, education system, government system, religious system, neighbors, social services, and mass media into the mix of systems that can influence a child’s development and can be held responsible for a child’s upbringing. In Dave’s memoir, there are many examples of this part of Bronfenbrenner’s model, one example of a neighbor that could have offered aide to Dave would have been Dave’s Boy Scout Den Mother. It would have been clear to the Den Mother that Dave was in utter distress and torment when he ran up to her door to explain why he could not make it to the troop meeting. However, the Den Mother did not seem phased by Dave’s appearance and simply told him she would see him at the next meeting.

Miss Caroline is a brand new teacher and has been trained to teach in a certain way. When she finds that Scout’s premature reading ability disrupts her teaching plan she has no idea what to do with her, and tells Scout not to read at home anymore. ‘Miss Caroline told me to tell my father not to teach me anymore, it would interfere with my reading.’ This shows how society is oblivious to individual situations and this can cause achievements to be frowned upon.

Is silence really an important factor in ife? Silence is described as complete absence of sound, however is there more to it? In The Chosen the theme is taken on with great significance. In the book “The Chosen” by Chaim Potok, silence isn’t ordinary, for it can teach various lessons, and can be looked at in a good way.

The protagonist soon learns that life of a person is expected to be guided by the norms that regulate virtually every aspect of one’s developed. A good example is the criticism that she faced when she had learned to read before school: it was something that children were not supposed to do.

The outcast ditches school and church, spending his time fishing or swimming. He doesn’t show faith in a god or care about education. The boy doesn’t take responsibility for himself. The narrator proves this again by saying, “...and stay up as long as it suited him; nobody forbade him to fight; he could sit up as late as he pleased; he was always the first boy that went barefoot in the spring and last to resume leather in the fall; he never had to wash, nor put on clean clothes; he could swear wonderfully.” (43) Nobody has any regulation on him.

The impact this short story brings to the reader is one we all can relate to. We have all been that little child who wants something different then what our mother is trying to buy for us. Parents are always there to help us out with what we need before the things we want. The attitude and behavior of the child in the short story should impact the students to make them see and understand why