Mrs. Gruwell took her students to the museum to learn about the holocaust. The kids were all very moved by what they had learned, particularly about a five year old child that died. The teacher then invited survivors of the holocaust to speak to the students over a nice dinner that she had organized through work at her second job. Speaking with the survivors taught them that they could over come anything. She made the students feel special that day, as they realized that she had done all of that for them. One student states that he can't believe that she did all of that for them. A student in honors class was disrespected by her teacher because she was black and he felt she should speak on behalf of all blacks. She decided to switch classes. The staff was angry. Students arrive to class. The teacher has students do a toast to celebrate a new beginning . She is trying to teach them that they can learn, and they can change, and they should stand up for themselves. One student reads a heart felt letter to the class about his life,the students stepped forward to show him support and Mrs. Gruwell assures the students that she is there for them and that they are home. Each students received 4 books that reminded Mrs. Gruwell of the students . She purchased the books herself. The diary of Ann Frank seemed to have the most impact on the students. She comes home to husband who is rather cruel stating that they are her kind of kids, not learning what normal kids have learn, he is clearly frustrated and seems to feel inadequate next to her and her enthusiasm and will soon leave her.
Students read the Diary of Ann Frank and are moved by her story. They want to raise money to meet the lady that helped hide her. They worked very hard together and built a strong bond. Eventually the day came and the students got to meet the lady that one student called his hero. She tells students that she is not a hero, anyone can turn on a small light in a dark room, they are all the heroes. (Very Moving) Ava does the right thing and tells the truth in court, after a struggle she goes to the teacher for support. It is clear that she has a strong bond with her students and she will do almost anything for them. Students are afraid when they find out that they can't move on with their teacher. They want to fight the administration. Her dad who didn't support her at first, now tells her that she is an amazing teacher that is special and has been blessed with burden, and that he admires her. The staff does not want to let her stay with her students, they seem to want to let them fall back into the cracks to prove that she was not a good teacher and that the students are just stupid. She tells the students not to lean on her, they made it to their junior year. She has students do a final project writing a book with their journals called the freedom writers diary, so they are not forgotten. Eventually they find out that she will get to be with them through their junior and senior year. She eventually moves on to help other school systems implement similar programs.
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