Cesar Mendoza - Waiting to Sing

Waiting to Sing, a story by Howard Kaplan and illustrated by Hervé Blondon, is a children's book intended for young advanced readers. The book tells the story of a young boy who identifies with his environment as being very musical. There are sounds coming out from every window in his neighborhood and the sound coming from his includes piano. His father was really good at piano and his life revolved around it. He took up piano lessons and practiced a lot just lie his father. His mother would be very encouraging and would try to make sure he would feel comfortable playing  his part. The mother played a big role in his preparation for a recital, but she unfortunately passed away. He feels very sad and lots of changes occur in his household, but he overcomes and ends up making beautiful music. The book is complex and long. I would use this in a 3rd to 5th grade classroom as part of a 3 day lesson. The first day would be to introduce ideas and get the students engaged in conversations about hardship and perseverance. The second we would read the book using the DR-TA method. The third day we would spend time doing a free write in response to a prompt.