Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper

Our current read aloud is the story of an eleven year old girl, Melody, who has never talked in her life. She has cerebral palsy and is confined to a wheelchair. Even though it is hard for her to use her body, her mind is sharp. She loves words even though she has never spoken a single one. We are learning that Melody has a great sense of humor despite the difficulties she deals with in her everyday life, many things that we take for granted. We previewed this story before we started reading it and formulated questions based on the information we had. (using the cover picture, the title, the inside book jacket and back cover. We are revisiting our questions to see if they are answered as we are reading. This really is an incredibly touching and uplifting story, even though sad at times. Melody has a strong voice and Sharon Draper has a way with words!