Sharon flake, author of the skin im in shares how her book has. Analogies analogies for the skin im in the skin im in. Chicago singer, poet and model ifeanyi elswith wrote a song as a tribute to flake. She is a very intelligent student who works very hard but most of the time she is distracted because shes busy trying to fit in. She used to be proud of it, but when her father died, kids started picking on her. It is in my steeltoed boots, in the hard corners of my shaved head. Thei book was very well read and dealt with an issue many young people, particulalry black people deal with intraracial prejudice of skin color. The skin you live in book by michael tyler stories for kids childrens books duration. Flake protagonists summary the protagonists in the skin im in is maleeka madison. Phrase book this poem contains phrases from two sources.
You can only see my russet skin in me you can only see a slave, a second class human. This book was about a girl maleeka who gets teased about how black she is. This beautiful skin im in poem by shekirah crump poem hunter. Its bad enough that im the darkest, worsedressed thing in school. I think the book did a great job of explaining and defining what racism is. The skin im in is a book about a middle school girl named maleeka madison who is teased because of her dark skin complexion. Book report form the skin im in book report form pdf file customize the the skin im in book report the skin im in. Ill continue to walk tall like the beautiful african queen my mother told me im.
Teen vogue covers the latest in celebrity news, politics, fashion, beauty, wellness, lifestyle, and entertainment. Setting, theme, plot, and characters write a onepage essay discussing the setting, theme, characters, and plot of sharon g. I would never force somebody to burn down a classroom, or pick up on kids weaker than me, or say words so mean they make people bleed inside. Maleeka hates the awful clothes her mother makes for her, but she loves her mother and doesnt want. The young persons guide to conquering and saving the world. For example, be you and only you, dont let others control you, you dont have to change for other people, there is an endless list of themes for this book. The skin im in is a good book because teenage girls can relate to the characters.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic. The young girl is dealing with losing her father and trying to overcome constant teasing by her peers beacuse of her dark skin. The skin im in is a realistic fiction novel written by sharon g. They talk about the affects racism and bullying has on a child other person. Im tired of the remarks, im tired of my tears, im sick of the comments ive gotten over. The skin im in begins with the main character maleeka, a seventhgrade africanamerican girl, meeting her new teacher miss saunders for the first time. Peaceful world just out to see, basic respect humanity im just trying to be for real in a world with less appeal im so frustrated and flustered at what has been reduced to justice.
My skin is fine, brown soil that grows the finest grass,millions short and thin,fills me with insecurity,thats the power of my skin. My skinmy brown lovely skin make the word beauty beautiful. Each title also features a guide for parents on how to use the book, a glossary, suggested additional reading, and a list of resources. After a few critiques a voice in my heart advised me to change the name of my poem, because i wasnt describing my nappy hair but describing a woman who had become comfortable in the skin she was in.
The skin im in 20th anniversary edition by sharon g. Its going to rain soon, close clouds bloated above us, the air like a net about to release all the caught fishes, a storm siren in the distance. When i walk down the street it feels like everyone is watching. The only way for her to stop being teased is if she becomes friends with charlese aka char jones, one of the meanest. The complexities of this complexion cannot be understood. The skin im in, poetry, main idea, context clues, return to sender study guide for final exam english the skin im in key concepts remember to keep in mind the significance of the title. The skin im in, poetry, main idea, context clues, return. Maleeka madison is girl who has low selfesteem because of her dark skin. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. The author made characters behaviorally similar to the average, middlelower class, africanamerican, public school attendants, that are students. Characters make sure you are familiar with the main characters. Johnjohn the shortest guy in grade 7 bullies her because he considers her the blackest girl in the school. Maleeka madison is a seventh grader and she attends mcclenton middle school. The touch of your hand, the smell of your hair, the naughtiness in your smile, that strength in your stare.
She resides in westchester county, new york with her husband and her two young children. Beloved by children and adults, critics and booksellers, librarians and teachers, she is the author of a middlegrade novel and five books for young adults that have sold more than half a million copies. Maleeka madison have her father dark skin, his dark eyes with long thick black lashes, her. Avalon park resident ifeanyi elswith, 20, is an artist and poet who started. Its about a girl in school that gets bullied a lot and a teacher makes a difference in the childs life, teaching her to accept herself for how she is. The skin im in is a childrens picture book that talks about the issue of racism and what it is and what it looks like. My heart like a nation wrestles with the legacy and poetry of yehuda amichai, an israeli poet who also served as a soldier during israels war of independence, which dispossessed and exiled 750,000 palestinians and led to the destruction of over 400 villages. My impessions after reading half of the skin im in by sharon g. They made me so sure no one could ever find me beautiful, they made me so sure ridicule would be constant and given by everyone, they made me so sure, that i am now forever paranoid to walk into a room. A timid seventh grader finds the mettle to shake some bad companions in this patchy esteembuilder from flake. In addition to working with amichais poems, my heart benefited from conversations with fady joudah, adam sol, and amy breau, on. To look at the mirror and like what you see, even if it doesnt look like anybody elses idea of beauty. Maleeka has a friend named charlese who gives her clothes because. I am from the crisp new white pages of a book, from the miserable grey of the street i live on.
In each theme, the quotes or passages from the skin im in are. The skin im in doesnt confine me to a negative stereotype. I am from the sunshine yellow of my mothers laugh, from the red and white of my brothers favourite football shirt. It depicts the story of seventhgrader maleeka madison who has low selfesteem because of her dark skin color.
She earned a ba in english from the university of pittsburgh and worked in foster care and family and community services before joining the public relations staff at the university of pittsburgh press. While working for the press, flake wrote her bestselling debut young adult novel, the skin im in 1998. I am from a life filled with colour, from the chocolate brown that is my skin. Book readings with mbm the skin im in chapter 6 duration. Im not my skin, like you im not perfect, i react when i dont mean to. You should read this book because its interesting to young readers and they contain situations that happen in a. I got a new attitude and my teachers sure dont like it none page 4. It was published by hyperion books on january 3, 2000.
The sparkle in your eye, the warmth of your skin, your breath on my neck. All readings, with a few exceptions and you will be notified, will be done in class, but the questions below will be discussed at the start of the next reading meeting. The first is a 1950s italianenglish phrasebook, though the language doesnt matter, i just found the chaotic world of the phrasebook very attractive and i recognised it i am lost, where is my passport. Her father died and to cope with his absence her mother has become a sewing fool. That because of my skin tone i am an animal uncaged. Her mom is a single mom who makes her clothes so maleeka gets a girl named char to bring. Free the skin im in worksheets and literature unit for. Tired of being harassed in the halls for her dark skin and homemade clothes, maleeka latches on to tough, mouthy classmate charlese for protection, although the cost is high. The skin im in doesnt confine me to a negative stereotype,it defines me and strengthens me to reach new heights, it propels me, excels me and pushes me to my highest highmy skin shows not my. Like i took a lot of wrong turns to find out who i really was. My black creatively exists where no other black lives. In addition, he taught me how to memorize and recite poetry written by african. When i first penned this poem i named it my nappy hair.
She was inspired by her four year old daughter to write this book. The skin im in complete literature and grammar unit tpt. No matter what you think, charlese jones, you are ten times worse. The skin im inthe skin im in doesnt mean i am covered in sinor that i am corrupt from within born into a life of violence and rage. You must answer all the questions except for the extension questions, though i encourage you to do those as well. Since he died her family is poor, and kids tease and bully her because of her skin.
Your kiss on my lips, your body near mine, the stroke of your touch, makes everything feel fine. Summary maleeka is a girl in seventh grade who has grown up without a dad, she is bullied every day, and is betrayed by her friends. It seems to be according to the skin im in skin im in. The skin im in is the story of maleeka madison and her struggle to accept who she is and discover what she can accomplish. The novels themes include selflove, selfesteem, the. Maleeka madison is a girl who goes to mcclenton middle school and is in grade 7. Flake won the coretta scott kingjohn steptoe new talent award for her first novelthe skin im in and is a twotime coretta scott king author honor book winner. I look in the mirror and hold up my mangled hand, only the baby finger left, sticking straight up, i know its the wrong goddamned finger, but fuck you all anyway.
294 924 371 295 384 1454 851 1059 700 792 882 702 1358 1126 1346 1090 1435 32 837 221 1635 795 404 46 279 327 1430 1239 1571 533 1211 669 1150 913 970 112 904 755 789 162 908 1386 209 1473