A+Child+Called+It

Pelzer, D. (1995). //A child called it: One child’s courage to survive//. Florida: Health Communications, Inc.

A Child Called It is a very heart and gut wrenching book, that describes the horrific abuse (psychologically, emotional, and physical) that a mother displays towards one of her sons. At some points it is a very hard read. Dave is one of 5 boys to what seems a loving family at first, but then his mom becomes addicted to alcohol and his life turns for the worst. Out of all the brothers, he is pinpointed as always doing wrong and needing punishment. From the age of about 4 to 12, Dave struggled to survive under his mother’s wrath. Some of his “punishments” included sleeping in the basement, starvation, eating spoiled food, drinking ammonia, breathing in gas (ammonia and Clorox), being stabbed, and so much more. Luckily, some of his teachers and his school nurse noticed the torture Dave was going through and freed him of it. Due to the child abuse laws not being mandated until 1974 (Dave was freed in 1973) his mother was never arrested and convicted of the horrible torture she put Dave through every day of the majority of his childhood. Upon finishing the novel, my instant thought was that this book was inappropriate for adolescents. However with research, I have seen that they actually enjoy reading this book and they get a lot out of it. Sadly enough, the abuse depicted in this book is real life to some kids that will be in our schools. Also omitting the abuse, this book talks about a boy who has to find the courage to survive something difficult he has come in contact with throughout his life. A lot of adolescents have struggles that no one else understands, and reading this book, besides the abuse, will show them that they can find the courage to withstand anything they come against. __Implementing in the Classroom__
 * (Language Arts – Learning to write a letter) -- Upon the completion of reading the book, students can write a letter to Dave Pelzer and ask him how his life is doing now and thoughts about the book.
 * (Science – Gases) – In midst of Dave’s abuse, he is forced to breath in a deathly combination of gases. The students can learn about and explore why this gas is dangerous and what it does to humans.
 * (Social Studies – Laws) – Students can learn and discover why it took so long for the child abuse law to be mandated and what the law encompasses.

v Even though this book is difficult to read, it is important for teachers to understand what students with this background are going through. Also you are getting insight from a child who went through this, the signs to look for of abused children. As teachers we gbnbare required to report and suspicions we have that relate anything close to abuse. v Also, I know that some of us are Special Educators and sometimes these students become withdrawn and fall behind academically. Due to this, they might be placed into our classrooms. Knowing this, we really have to be aware of our students and this book helps us become knowledgeable in signs of child abuse.