The Peanut Game

In the book The Freedom Writers Diary one student talks about a "game" their teacher, Ms. Gruwell, had them play in class. She describes it with in the following way: 

"Dear Diary, 

         In Ms. Gruwell's class today, we played the "Peanut Game." The rules of the game included one piece of paper and a description of  the peanut inside and out. I wrote about the peanut ad said it was small, round, and dirty. On the other side of the paper I stated that even though it looked terrible, it tasted fantastic!" 

Take a minute and "play" the "Peanut Game." In your Reading Journal, write as much as you can about the outside and inside of a peanut. When you've completed this activity, return to this post. 


The Freedom Writer who composed this journal entry about the peanut game allowed the writing activity Ms. Gruwell had given to her to impact the way she thought about her own life. She continued her journal entry by explain the text-to-self connection she made.

"I soon realized the "Peanut Game" was similar to the situation I had about my weight.  

"One day in junior high, I was getting off the bus from a seat in the back. It is a seat where no one likes to sit and is always empty. I heard people shouting, "Hey, Fatso!" "You big baffalo!" A group of obnoxious girls screamed such awful comments that I, an "obese" twelve-year-old girl, will sadly remember for the rest of my life. 

"'Oh no, not again! Please, not again!'" I thought to myself as I stood up to get off the bus. I had tried to ignor the girls' name-calling the entire ride home. Now that we were at my stop, I knew I had to face them before getting off. In order to leave the bus I had to walk through the long crowded aisle and face the obnoxious girls. As I stood up, the girls followed. They crowded together, and approached me as if they were ready to strike at me. Why did they want to take their anger out on me? What did I do to them? All of the sudden, the girls began to kick and sock me repeatedly. I could feel the pain all over my body but felt defenseless. I did not fight back. 

"They continued to hurt me as if there was nothing more important to them than to see me in pain. The last few kicks were the hardest; all I wanted to do was get off the bus alive. My friends were staring at me, hoping that I would do something to make the girls stop. Why? Why didn't my friends help me? Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, I was able to release myself from their torture. I got off the bus alive. Imagining that the worst had already passed, I began to walk away from the bus and the girls stuck their heads out the window and spit on me. I could not believe it! They spit on my face!

"The feeling of their spit striking me, running down my neck, and their germs accumulating on my face, felt disgusting. I heard paper crumbling in their hands, and then they threw it at me. I began to walk faster as the bus was on its way. While I was cleaning my face with a napkin, I could still hear the girls laughing. When they waved good-bye, my nightmare was over. 

"Today in Ms. Gruwell's classroom, I realized that a peanut is still a peanut even if the shell is different. Some taste better, others look fresher, but in the end they're all peanuts. Ms. G's analogy, "Don't judge a peanut by its shell, judge it by what's inside of it," made perfect sense to me. As long as I know that I am a human being, I don't need to worry about what other people say. I the end, we are all the same!"  

This young woman suffered much pain at the hands of her classmates. The analogy of the peanut was able to free her mind to consider the reality that she is truly a human being, and because of that she is of great value and importance. Nothing about the outward appearance could ever change the reality that she is of great value.

It is important, as we become critical readers  that we not only read stories and are able to discover the main idea the author is presenting, or infer what might happen next in the story, but to make connections to life and self. Just as this Freedom Writer used the writing activity her class did to reflect on her own life and circumstance, take a moment and use her reflection to write on your own. In your Reading Journal, explain the main idea of story above, what you learned from it, and how it affects they way you think about your own life.  When you are finished writing, please bring your journal to Miss Sylvester so she may read it over and check off your response.