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Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Operation Yes, written by Sara Lewis Holmes. Arthur A Levine, Scholastic, 2009. $21.99 ages 12 and up


"'Yes!' she said. 'When we're on stage, we can be anywhere. We can see what happens next when we don't run from monsters. And if we say yes, we can take ugly or stupid and turn it into a new picture together.'"

The setting is an air force base in South Carolina, in a sixth grade school classroom where the students are meeting a teacher unlike any teacher they have ever encountered. As she calls roll on the first day Miss Loupe is on her hands and knees plotting a space with masking tape and calling it a Taped Space. Within that space you can be anything you want to be, anywhere you want to be, and doing whatever your imagination allows. Miss Loupe is interested in her students, their knowledge of the world, in teaching them to trust her and each other through the use of improvisational theatre. The students are astounded, then intrigued and finally inspired by their fascinating, lively, intuitive teacher. What a place to learn!

Miss Loupe persuades her students to say yes, to any and all chances within the Taped Space. There is much that they share. They have all moved many times, as Miss Loupe has. They have fears when their loved ones are deployed to war and face armed combat (Miss Loupe has a brother away at war). They wonder where they might be next year. (Miss Loupe is a first year teacher, trying to find a place for herself in her alma mater). They all have insecurities, concerns, and questions about the future. With her encouragement, her students make progress at saying yes. But, when her brother is wounded and missing, Miss Loupe cannot rouse herself to remain positive and upbeat. Her students take it upon themselves to make a difference. With much planning and great support, they launch Operation Yes.

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