“Call of the Wild” Reaches Prison of Teens

A major portion of the grant was to bring literacy to underserved populations. The Base Library had been bringing donated books and magazines to the detention center on a monthly basis. It was decided to bring the “Call of the Wild” materials and programming to the juvenile offenders.

Burlington County Juvenile Detention Center The center houses an average of 25 teens. The population consists of males and females, years of age. Students may stay at the center from 1 day to 18 months. Almost all youth residents are below reading level.

Jack London’s “Call of the Wild” is a story of a dog’s journey in the Alaskan wilderness during the gold rush. It is the story of a dog who is sold, abused, and who learns to conquer a new, brutal environment. It is the story of pack living. It is a story of survival.

The Base library partnered with the detention center to conduct book discussions, crafts, and workshops at the center – all based on a graphic novel version of the book.

Reading chapters aloud Airmen reading to the teens Discussing the book Listening to parts of the story Writing “What is SURVIVAL?”

Activities -Husky rescue visit -Preparing the dog sled -Airman survival pack

Activities Mapping skills – created map for sled run Poetry - wrote poems about “wolf howls”

Effects Teens preferred being read to Teens responded positively to Airmen Teens read aloud with varying levels Teens helped peers with words Teens loved SURVIVAL discussion Teens had mixed reactions to rescue dogs Teens included drawings with their poetry Teens LOVED wolf howls; talked about sound of pain Teens comprehension of storyline better than details Teens did cry

Additional Info Activities conducted over 6 week period Some different students each program Some activities done with teachers alone Students were NOT required to participate Guards in rooms at all times Materials were inspected and altered for safety ONLY paperbacks/ NO headphones Males and females always separated Dog perceptions varied Some read book on their own