About Me

Hello! My name is Britt LeBeau, and I am currently in between blocks 3 and 4 as an education student at FGCU. I am a Special Education major, and I hope to be a resource teacher at the high school level. I lived in Chicago, Illinois for 19 years. While in Chicago I ran track all throughout high school. I have been playing volleyball since I was 11. My high school was number three in the Nation, and my club team even went to the Junior Olympics twice. After graduating high school in 2009 I began school at University of Dayton in Ohio. When I was a sophomore I moved here to Fort Myers and began attending FGCU. I spend my summers at my cottage in Eagle River, Wisconsin. While there, I enjoy being boating on the lake, water skiing, wake boarding, and just being in the north woods. I am also part of a profession water ski show team called the Chain Skimmers Water Ski Show Team in Wisconsin. I attended Saint John Fisher from 3 year old preschool all the way up to 8th grade. Then I went to Mother McAuley High School for four years. I have always worn a uniform at school up until college. I have worked in retail, restaurants, resorts, and as a volleyball coach. For four years I was a water ski instructor for students from the ages of 6-18. My family has always lived on the South Side of Chicago, and the community is very close. My dad was a Chicago Fire Fighter for 35 years and is currently retired. My mom was a High School business teacher for 35 years in the suburbs of Illinois and is also retired. I have one younger brother who currently is attending University of Illinois. My family also has a pug that is ten years old, and I myself have a puppy that is just about to turn two! I enjoy being at the beach, out on the water, paddle boarding, playing sand volleyball, water skiing, and everything that has to do with the outdoors. Although I moved to Florida for the weather, I do enjoy spending my Christmas breaks in Wisconsin where I go snowmobiling and snow skiing. I am very active and love teaching. I have wanted to be a teacher because it is a job that keeps you on your feet, and I love working with kids.

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Chapter 6- Modern Fantasy


                   Chapter six is all about modern fantasy, and what could be more exciting then fantasy? To begin Melissa Thomas once said, “What is most important about fantasy, what separates and frees it from the boundaries of other genres, is that it is an undistilled version of human imagination—momentary worlds and magic that may be at odds with the rational truth, yet continue to reflect our culture and times.” Fantasy allows readers to escape from the world they live in every day, and that is why I believe it is so popular.
                There are two categories that modern fantasy stories are classified in. The first category is low fantasy. These stories take place in the real world but magical elements of fantasy make them impossible. The second category that modern fantasy stories are classified in is high fantasy. Stories in high fantasy take the information and experiences from the real world and project them into another world. It is because fantasy writers can explore complex ideas on a symbolic level that young readers are able to understand and follow along. Good fantasy writers illustrate the truth about the life in a way that realistic fiction or informational writing cannot. Fantasy is great for thoughtful exploration of philosophical issues at a level that can be understood and appreciated by young readers as well as adults.
                Fantasy books also help children find a strong sense of self in order to deal with their struggles in life, and through fantasy, the struggle for self knowledge becomes clearer. Hope is kept alive through fantasy. Children who read fantasy can experience many situations and come out with a sense of hope and empowerment that will carry them through the uncertainty and unknown journey of life. It is very important that modern fantasy has the basic literary elements to create and engaging and believable story for readers.  I found multiple websites that I think are worth visiting. The first is website I think is great for children is called Library Thing. Here, students, teachers, and parents can find the most popular modern fantasy books on the shelves. Once you click on the book you are interested in looking at the site takes you to a page that provides everything you could possibly want to know about the book. There are also things such as author chats, and group discussions that you can take part of. The next website I think is great for modern fantasy is The Golden Duck Awards for Excellence in Science Fiction. This website gives a variety of categories such as picture books, middle grades, and young adult books. What I liked most about the site is that it lists the criteria for what it takes to win the Golden Duck Award along with more online resources for teachers to use in the classroom. The third website you should visit is The Science Fiction and Fantasy Bibliography. This website contains a database of more than 4,500 fantasy authors, along with links to websites and book information. The fourth website worth visiting is Readkiddoread. This site is sponsored by James Patterson, an author. He dedicated this site to help parents and educators connect children with the books that will help children become lifelong readers. Once on the site, type “fantasy” in the search box and a great annotated book list will appear. You can also explore other genres by doing the same search. 
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