Ally is in sixth grade and she has a secret. A secret so big and scary that she will do anything to keep people from finding out. Ally can’t read. She tries but the letters dance around the page and get all mixed up. Her coping skills include drawing and focusing on pictures, faking injuries, and outright defiance in order to be sent to the Principal’s office, but they don’t always work. The teacher’s pet is a bully, so the rest of the kids in class feel isolated from one another, but things are about to change.
When Ally’s teacher goes on maternity leave a new teacher Mr. Daniels uses keen observation and a friendly approach to reach his new students including Ally. Once he finally gets to the heart of her secret, he is able to have her tested for dyslexia and work with her afterschool on different strategies to overcome it. In this love letter to great teachers Mr. Daniels looks beneath the surface to help find and bring out the strengths of each student in the class. Ally finds that the perseverance she was forced to develop to survive is a rare characteristic among her classmates, one that they value her for. She is able to make friends with other students as they each find their own gifts, and come into their own power.
LibraryMin 