Ross School is initiating a new educational program this year designed to support critical thinking skills through a work of literature, whether fiction or nonfiction. Known as All-School Read (ASR), this program invites students in grades 7 through 12, as well as faculty, parents, and boarding parents to read The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker over the summer.
"All-School Read programs have proven to be a very positive way to create community and share intellectual ideas, philosophies, and personal reflections,” said Dale Scott, librarian and director of Information Services. “It is also a useful tool in increasing literacy on all levels of the community. We searched for a book that would be of interest to all grades, and at the same time, at an accessible reading level for even the youngest students.”
The Age of Miracles is a work of fiction that prods us to ask “What if?” questions: What if Earth’s rotation began to slow down? What if life on Earth began to decay? What if our days became 50 hours long? Within this dystopian near-future, a young girl comes to grips with first love, loss, and moral uncertainty.
Opportunities to discuss this book will be scheduled for the beginning of the 2013–2014 school year, with the goal of maintaining All-School Reads throughout the year, supplemented by discussion groups and author visits.
For more information on this novel, visit www.theageofmiraclesbook.com.