We wanted to do something to engage our students as soon as they walked into school this year, so we decorated our hallway with various scenes from the book Monster by Walter Dean Myers. The book is about a boy on trial for being the “lookout” when a murder occurred at Mr. Nesbit’s store. Students will read the book in the Courtroom (Mrs. Vann’s Room) and keep track of the evidence they believe supports their theory of his innocence or guilt. Then in the law office (Mrs. Burnett’s Room), they will write their argumentative essay to convince us of their theory. Students seem to be excited about it and are anxious to get started reading the book.