Wonder

A few years ago my niece recommended the book Wonder by R.J. Palacios to me but I never had the chance to read it.  I decided to pick it up again in anticipation of the movie adaptation and I read it all week during free reading time in my classes (I noticed quite a few of my students reading it, too).  When I was over at my parents' house last week, I noticed that my Mom was reading it as well so I mentioned that we would have to see the movie when she finished with it!  My Mom is a lot like my nephew in that when I hypothetically mention doing something they both interpret it to mean that the plans are set in stone!  My Mom had planned in her mind that we were going to see it on Saturday and she talked about it all morning.  My sister gave me a head's up so I decided we better go see it!  When we got to the theater the only seats available were on the very front row because every other seat was taken.  There were lots of families with elementary school age children in the audience.  Now that is usually enough to make me run for the hills but in this instance I was actually glad to see so many kids because I think bullying is such a huge problem and I hope they got the message that kids who are different can be remarkable people.  When I picked my Mom up she made sure that I grabbed some Kleenex on the way out the door and I am actually glad that she did because I cried in about four places (my Mom cried through the whole thing and ended up sharing her Kleenex with the woman sitting next to her).  I loved this movie about a boy with a facial disfigurement who is going to school for the first time so much!  I was particularly struck by the scene where the bully's parents are called in to talk to the principal about his behavior.  Unfortunately the parents' reaction is an all too common occurrence that I see in education all of the time.  Parents want to blame the victim for being too sensitive, that their student was just playing a joke and that being picked on is just a part of living in the "real world."  I was so happy to see that the bully received a punishment despite the fact that the parents were influential members of the school board!  Bullying in never okay!  Jacob Tremblay, Julia Roberts, and Owen Wilson all give great performances.  I especially loved Izabela Vidovic as Auggie's sister and she does a great job showing the impact of having a sibling with special needs and I loved seeing Daveed Diggs (the original Lafayette/Jefferson in Hamilton) as the teacher who helps the students choose kindness.  Definitely go see this movie!