By Julia Berg
Before the holiday school break, Ze and Sierra read the book Elana’s Ears by Gloria Roth Lowell together to fulfill Sierra’s reading homework.
They take turns reading paragraphs of the story of a young deaf girl and her dog, Ze reading in a silly voice, and Sierra reading normally.
Occasionally Sierra reads the dialog and interjections in the illustrations, including trying her best to imitate a dog’s bark. A few times during their reading, they point to the illustrated characters and declare that it is one of them, sparking a discussion on which character in the illustration both are as well as which scenes they relate to, such as Elana reading under her covers.
Although the book’s length adds to the challenge, Sierra and Ze remain engaged in the journey of deafness through the perspective of Lacey, the dog, giggling and awwing at moments throughout the story and especially enjoying the sweet relationship that has developed between Elana and Lacey by the end.
Volunteer Julia Berg tells us lively stories about our summer and after-school students at the Carver Community Center. See more of her stories here.
