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Eleven-year-old Melody deals every day with her spastic bilateral quadriplegia, also known as cerebral palsy. She can truly relate to her goldfish, Ollie, as she watches him swim around a tiny bowl of water unable to communicate with anyone all day long. Being stuck in a wheelchair and unable to talk at all, she relies on other people to be her legs and her voice. The title of the book, out of my mind, is exactly what Melody would like to do with her thoughts and words - get them from her mind to the ears of others. Her mom and dad are amazing and do everything they can to make Melody's life better. Mrs. Valencia is their next-door neighbor who helps out whenever she can and is always rooting for Melody to do more. Catherine, an angel in the form of a paraprofessional, comes into Melody's life in the 5th grade, just in time for inclusion classes with the "normal" students. This is where Melody meets sweet Rose, the first friend she makes outside of Room H-5. Along with Rose comes Molly and Claire, the mean girls who seem to be out to get Melody. Being in school brings jealousy and sadness to Melody while being at home and watching her little sister, Penny, do all the things she cannot bring even more. Once Melody gets her Medi-Talker, her whole life is changed! She can finally communicate with others and can show them just how smart she actually is. After testing the highest in her whole class, Melody is able to join the Whiz Kids team and finally feels like a normal 5th grader. After months of studying and practicing, her team flies to Washington for the final competition without her. Her one true friend, Rose, changes dramatically by the end of the book and is part of the reason that Melody is left behind. Once again, Melody is left alone in sadness, just as she was when she was physically unable to save her goldfish, Ollie.

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Eleven-year-old Melody deals every day with her spastic bilateral quadriplegia, also known as cerebral palsy. She can truly relate to her goldfish, Ollie, as she watches him swim around a tiny bowl of water unable to communicate with anyone all day long. Being stuck in a wheelchair and unable to talk at all, she relies on other people to be her legs and her voice. The title of the book, out of my mind, is exactly what Melody would like to do with her thoughts and words - get them from her mind to the ears of others. Her mom and dad are amazing and do everything they can to make Melody's life better. Mrs. Valencia is their next-door neighbor who helps out whenever she can and is always rooting for Melody to do more. Catherine, an angel in the form of a paraprofessional, comes into Melody's life in the 5th grade, just in time for inclusion classes with the "normal" students. This is where Melody meets sweet Rose, the first friend she makes outside of Room H-5. Along with Rose comes Molly and Claire, the mean girls who seem to be out to get Melody. Being in school brings jealousy and sadness to Melody while being at home and watching her little sister, Penny, do all the things she cannot bring even more. Once Melody gets her Medi-Talker, her whole life is changed! She can finally communicate with others and can show them just how smart she actually is. After testing the highest in her whole class, Melody is able to join the Whiz Kids team and finally feels like a normal 5th grader. After months of studying and practicing, her team flies to Washington for the final competition without her. Her one true friend, Rose, changes dramatically by the end of the book and is part of the reason that Melody is left behind. Once again, Melody is left alone in sadness, just as she was when she was physically unable to save her goldfish, Ollie.

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The character from this story that I can best relate to is Catherine, the paraprofessional from Room H-5. I am currently working as a paraprofessional in an elementary school and can understand, first hand, some of the uncomfortable and difficult situations that Catherine may have been put into. Catherine was an amazing character in this story and I feel like I will be a better paraprofessional after reading it.
If Melody would have been born before the 1980's, her life would have been so different. She would have never received her Medi-Talker and have been able to communicate with others, much less been apart of the Whiz Kids team. Inclusion classes were not a thing in the 1980's, so Melody would have spent all day, every day in room H-5 at Spaulding Street Elementary with the other students with "disabilities".

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The main conflict in this story is that Melody cannot speak. She is stuck in a wheelchair, unable to move her body as she wishes, and cannot communicate with others. She listens to everyone and soaks in every bit of information, yet cannot express how she feels or tell her parents that she loves them. She is in a constant conflict with herself as she knows the answers to questions, wants to express how she feels, and longs to form friendships but cannot. Once she receives her Medi-Talker, she is able to communicate with others much easier and faster. There was so much emotion in the story related to Melody, her lack of communication, and her Medi-Talker. I cannot imagine what it was like to be Melody or a member of her family and to have the constant struggle of communicating. I believe that the author is trying to evoke empathy in her readers. She adds so many examples and situations where Melody struggles to express her thoughts and feelings; as a reader, I could feel the frustration and pain Melody must have been going through.
Another conflict from the book is the constant negativity she receives from Molly and Claire. Whether it is something directly said to her or the constant ignoring that the two girls do, they are always trying to hurt Melody in some way.

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Sadness, joy, frustration, excitement, jealousy, delight, pain, and forgiveness... these are just a few of the many emotions found in the book, out of my mind. To say this story is a roller coaster of moods is an understatement! The story begins with sadness as we learn about Melody's diagnosis and her quality of life. Being unable to walk or talk, she lives an extremely lonely life. Once Melody receives her Medi-Talker and is able to join her classmates in some inclusive classes, joy enters the book. As the story progresses, Melody proves to be a vital member of the Whiz Kids team and works even harder than the other members to prove her worth. Using the modifications she's forced to use brings on frustration for all the members of the team. As the big trip to Washington gets closer and closer, all hands are on deck as Melody works harder than she ever has to get herself ready for the exciting trip with her classmates! Finally being able to be included in conversations and meals out with friends brings even more excitement to Melody, but along with that comes jealousy as she watches how easy it is for "normal" kids to be social and enjoy each other's company. As Melody spends more and more time with Rose and the other members of the Whiz Kids team, she finds delight in feeling like a normal kid for the first time in her life. After all of the members of her team catch an early flight and leave Melody behind, pain is the only emotion portrayed in the story. Pain so strong that as a reader, you can feel it. After days of sadness and a very close call with Melody's little sister, Penny, forgiveness is found in the final chapter of the book.  "Fifth grade is probably pretty rocky for lots of kids. Homework. Never being quite sure if you're cool enough. Clothes. Parents. Wanting to play with toys and wanting to be grown up all at the same time. Underarm odor. I guess I have all that, plus about a million different layers of other stuff to deal with" (Draper, 2012, p. 293). Melody returns to school with her head held high asking for a reason why she was left behind. She proves to be the bigger person in the situation and shows a way of forgiveness to her classmates as she, "still laughing, I click on the power to my chair, do a smooth turn, and roll myself out of the classroom" (Draper, 2012, p. 292). 

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Sadness, joy, frustration, excitement, jealousy, delight, pain, and forgiveness... these are just a few of the many emotions found in the book, out of my mind. To say this story is a roller coaster of moods is an understatement! The story begins with sadness as we learn about Melody's diagnosis and her quality of life. Being unable to walk or talk, she lives an extremely lonely life. Once Melody receives her Medi-Talker and is able to join her classmates in some inclusive classes, joy enters the book. As the story progresses, Melody proves to be a vital member of the Whiz Kids team and works even harder than the other members to prove her worth. Using the modifications she's forced to use brings on frustration for all the members of the team. As the big trip to Washington gets closer and closer, all hands are on deck as Melody works harder than she ever has to get herself ready for the exciting trip with her classmates! Finally being able to be included in conversations and meals out with friends brings even more excitement to Melody, but along with that comes jealousy as she watches how easy it is for "normal" kids to be social and enjoy each other's company. As Melody spends more and more time with Rose and the other members of the Whiz Kids team, she finds delight in feeling like a normal kid for the first time in her life. After all of the members of her team catch an early flight and leave Melody behind, pain is the only emotion portrayed in the story. Pain so strong that as a reader, you can feel it. After days of sadness and a very close call with Melody's little sister, Penny, forgiveness is found in the final chapter of the book.  "Fifth grade is probably pretty rocky for lots of kids. Homework. Never being quite sure if you're cool enough. Clothes. Parents. Wanting to play with toys and wanting to be grown up all at the same time. Underarm odor. I guess I have all that, plus about a million different layers of other stuff to deal with" (Draper, 2012, p. 293). Melody returns to school with her head held high asking for a reason why she was left behind. She proves to be the bigger person in the situation and shows a way of forgiveness to her classmates as she, "still laughing, I click on the power to my chair, do a smooth turn, and roll myself out of the classroom" (Draper, 2012, p. 292). 

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I thought the funniest part of the story was when, in chapter 22, Melody finally got the chance to stand up to Claire. When Claire voiced that she was concerned that having Melody on their team, they would look odd on TV, Melody was able to respond from her Medi-Talker, "TV makes lots of people look funny, maybe even you, Claire!" (Draper, 2012, p. 195). If I could have, I would have given Melody a high five at this point of the story! I'm so proud of her for standing up to such a powerful and mean girl.
The saddest part, by far, was when Melody and her family found out at the airport that they had been left behind. My heart dropped; I could relate to Melody's mother the most at the part. As a parent, you never want to see your child get left out. I could feel in my heart what she must have been feeling at that moment, absolute heartache.
The most shocking part of this story was when Mrs. Brooks backed over Penny with the car. I could not read fast enough to the end of the story to find out what happened to the sweet little girl. I think we can all relate to how she must have been feeling that morning; dealing with a migraine, hustling to get into work on her scheduled day off, still trying to handle the heartache caused by Melody being left behind from the competition, and being annoyed with the rain. The fact that Melody was trying her hardest to tell her about Penny and that she was so frustrated with the whole situation and refused to stop and listen made the situation even more shocking. What a shocking plot twist at the end!

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The plot of this story was a very exciting one! The first chapter grabbed my attention just by simply describing how Melody feels about words. Having all the words in her mind but being unable to share them with anyone made her life comparable to a goldfish stuck in a small bowl of water. When Melody's little sister, Penny, entered her life at age eight, things changed. Now there was a baby who needed attention and help from her parents which left Melody feeling jealous and then guilty for feeling that way. Not only could Penny move and communicate, she also required attention from their parents. After years spent in room H-5 with other "disabled" students, inclusion classes were introduced to Melody. Between being included in classrooms with her peers and the addition of her Medi-Talker, Melody was finally able to form friendships and communicate with others. After proving how smart Melody is to her teacher and classmates, she was added to the Whiz Kids team and began the roller coaster of studying and getting ready for the big competition. This story's plot climaxed around chapter 28 when Melody found out that her teammates left her behind on purpose. I could feel the heartache Melody must have felt through the words on the pages. I did not predict this would happen until it actually did, but when Mrs. Brooks backed over Penny at the end, I actually had to stop for a minute before reading on. I felt so invested in this family and the heartache they had just gone through, this plot change was shocking to me.  It was definitely a plot change that reached out from the pages and touched me as a reader. After being shunned by her Whiz Kids team and having her little sister run over in the driveway, Melody was able to get herself back up into her chair and go back to the school where everyone knew what had happened to her. She was able to hold her head high and be the bigger person. The ending of the story was my favorite. Melody is an amazingly strong and brave fifth grader and is so inspiring!

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The plot of this story was a very exciting one! The first chapter grabbed my attention just by simply describing how Melody feels about words. Having all the words in her mind but being unable to share them with anyone made her life comparable to a goldfish stuck in a small bowl of water. When Melody's little sister, Penny, entered her life at age eight, things changed. Now there was a baby who needed attention and help from her parents which left Melody feeling jealous and then guilty for feeling that way. Not only could Penny move and communicate, she also required attention from their parents. After years spent in room H-5 with other "disabled" students, inclusion classes were introduced to Melody. Between being included in classrooms with her peers and the addition of her Medi-Talker, Melody was finally able to form friendships and communicate with others. After proving how smart Melody is to her teacher and classmates, she was added to the Whiz Kids team and began the roller coaster of studying and getting ready for the big competition. This story's plot climaxed around chapter 28 when Melody found out that her teammates left her behind on purpose. I could feel the heartache Melody must have felt through the words on the pages. I did not predict this would happen until it actually did, but when Mrs. Brooks backed over Penny at the end, I actually had to stop for a minute before reading on. I felt so invested in this family and the heartache they had just gone through, this plot change was shocking to me.  It was definitely a plot change that reached out from the pages and touched me as a reader. After being shunned by her Whiz Kids team and having her little sister run over in the driveway, Melody was able to get herself back up into her chair and go back to the school where everyone knew what had happened to her. She was able to hold her head high and be the bigger person. The ending of the story was my favorite. Melody is an amazingly strong and brave fifth grader and is so inspiring!

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I have a six-year-old daughter, Addelyn, who loves to be read to. We spend about 30 minutes each night laying in bed reading together, so I decided to read this story out loud to her. She and I fell in love with Melody in the first couple of chapters and couldn't wait to find out what happened next each evening. Draper kept both of us engaged throughout this entire story. Each plot twist in the story and heartache that Melody went through, we felt. We smiled when she received her Medi-Talker and when Penny was born, and we cried when she got left at the airport and when the accident happened in the driveway. Addelyn felt the same emotions I did in this story, as she has a wheelchair-ridden classmate in her first-grade class. She kept telling me how much Melody reminded her of her friend. I believe that reading this book out loud to Addelyn will make her a kinder classmate and me a more compassionate person. 

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I have a six-year-old daughter, Addelyn, who loves to be read to. We spend about 30 minutes each night laying in bed reading together, so I decided to read this story out loud to her. She and I fell in love with Melody in the first couple of chapters and couldn't wait to find out what happened next each evening. Draper kept both of us engaged throughout this entire story. Each plot twist in the story and heartache that Melody went through, we felt. We smiled when she received her Medi-Talker and when Penny was born, and we cried when she got left at the airport and when the accident happened in the driveway. Addelyn felt the same emotions I did in this story, as she has a wheelchair-ridden classmate in her first-grade class. She kept telling me how much Melody reminded her of her friend. I believe that reading this book out loud to Addelyn will make her a kinder classmate and me a more compassionate person. 

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I honestly loved this book. After reading the first couple of chapters, I was invested. When Melody hurt, I hurt - when Melody found joy in something, I felt joy. I will make sure I have this book in my future classroom library and I think this will make a great oral reading story for my future students. In this story, Melody was able to find her own happiness, despite the heartache and hard times she was forced to concur.

Reference
Draper, S. M. (2012). Out of my mind. Simon & Schuster.

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If I could change one thing about this book, it would be how everyone looked at, judged, and treated Melody. It would absolutely change everything about this story but would make a better world for everyone. We are all different, whether it be the way we look, the way we walk, the way we learn, or the way we communicate. Everyone is different and our world would be such a better place if everyone could work together and accept the differences. How boring would this world be if we all looked the same and thought the same? Different does not mean deficiency, it just means different.

The most important thing I learned from this story is how to be patient, understand, and compassionate as an educator. Being a paraprofessional now and working towards my degree as an elementary teacher, this story really touched me. I know I will have a wide variety of students in my future and hope that from this story, I will be an understanding, calm, and caring teacher for all of my students.

Reference
Draper, S. M. (2012). Out of my mind. Simon & Schuster.