DOCUMENT RESUME ED 026 424 (JD 007 688 Teaching Happenings and Five Novelettes: An Instructional Bulletin for BIO English. Los Angeles City Schools, Calif. Div. of SecondaryEducation. Report No-LACS-ESEA-T-E-126-67 Pub Date 29 Jun 67 Note-500p. EDRS Price MF-$2.00 HC-$25.10 Descriptors-*Curriculum Guides, Discussion (Teaching Technique), High Schools, *Instructional Materials. Lesson Plans, Literature, Novels, Reading, *Reading Materials,Stuent Interests, Textbooks, *UrbanSchools Identifiers-A C Brocki, Jane Sprague, John Durham, NeutralTerritory, Night Emergency,Take One Small Seed. The Fireplace, The Long Haul The document consists of three parts--an instructional bulletin for teachers of urban high school students with average or below average readin_9ability, a book of readings,, and five novelettet preparedforthese students. The bulletin offers guidelines on the ways to use the readings and suggestions for teaching literature to urban pupils as well as for stimulatingeffective discussion. Also presented are outlines of lesson plans, both general andspecific. The paperbound. pocket sized book of readings contains both fiction andnonfiction selections written especially for city pupils. (NH) c\I 1IGHTE RG CY by JANE SPRAGUE C47i B10 Enroll 00 .LOS ANGELES CTIY SCBOOLS -NIFDivision of Secondary Education Specially-Funded lIngrams Pubhcation No. ESEA 4-5 N967 This publication was developedwith funds pro- vided by the federal governmentunder Title I, Elementary and SecondaryEducation Act of 1965. APPROVED: EVERETT CHAFFEE Associate Superintendent Division of InstructionalPlanning and Services ROBERT E. KELLY Associate Superintendent Division of Secondary Education ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Many of the personswho took part indeveloping reading selections for B10English have beenrecognized and thanked of Happenings, theanthology for in the introductory pages here to Mal- B10 English. Specialappreciation is expressed of English, JeffersonHigh School, colm Small, Chairman and who took time toread and evaluateNight Emergency, of Jefferson HighSchool, who took time to to Sue Hunt, students evaluate the read, evaluate,teach, and have her manuscript in a trialedition. Al Kaelin,Consultant, Pilot Projects, designed the cover. HARRIETTE F.WILLIAMS Pilot ProjectsCoordinator Specially-Funded Programs THOMAS 0. LAWSON Administrative Coordinator Specially-Funded Programs r NIGHT EMERGENCY CHAPTER 1 Rexford Hamilton sat on the porch swing and pushed himself back and forth slowly with his long legs. He listened to the squeak of the chain that held the swing. He had been listening to that chain foras long as he could remember. He drank more beer from the cold can in his hand. The street was quiet tonight. Itwas fall, and it was the first Monday since school started. Everybodywas inside, watching TV or doing homework. Rex was glad that stuI was all over for him. No more school for old Rex. He had better things to do. Behind his head the window of his mother's living room showed a warm light through the drawn-down 1 window shade. He couldhear the TV going.He knew his younger brothersand sisters were doinghomework. Only Chuck wasexcused. He was gettingready to go to work. Work! Rexford smiled.He tilted the beer canagain and drank half of thebeer at once. Whatcould that kid do? Nobody had toldRex what kind of ajob Chuck had found. And Rex wastoo proud to ask anyquestions. Just then, the dooropened and Chuck cameout. He was dressedin a white uniform,shirt and pants, all new and starched. Rex sat up. "Well,look at that. You'regoing to work in a laundry! Nowain't that nice." Chuck stopped andlooked at his olderbrother. Rex had been Chuck's worst enemyall the way. Chuck was used to nasty cracksand endless teasing. "Not a laundry.The new hospital.I'm going to be an orderly." "Oh, an orderly."Rex smiled. "Well, now,that's much better than sortingsomebody's dirty laundry,ain't it? You'll get to emptybedpans and clean up messesif you're an orderly. That's amuch better job. Andyou'll get rich, too.Someday you might evenget promoted to head orderly, if you're agood boy." Rex liftedhis beer can in a toastto Chuck."Congratulations! I'mproud of you, little brother." Chuck watched him emptythe can and thenthrow it out into the street."I have to go. See youlater." "Oh, by all means. Don'tlet me keep you." Rex watched Chuckwalk briskly downthe street. He was such a square.Always had been. Rex got up andstretched. He was sotall he could 2 touch the ceiling of the porch with his fingers. He straightened his tight-fitting pants and pulled down his newest ten-dollar shirt. It was time to godowntown. He met his friends in the pool hall as usual.They played a couple of games, and then they went tothe Hangout for a few beers. A guy called Dugan came up to the table anddragged a chair over so he could sitdown with Rex and his friend, Mugsy. "Hey, Rex, the Top is in town," Dugan said. "Who's the Top?" said Mugsy. Dugan glared at Mugsy. "Who's this creep,Rex? I'm not talkin' with any squares around." Rex smiled. "This is Mugsy, Dugan. He's a new man, but he's not a creep. I just haven't toldhim about Mr. Top, that's all. He's okay. Go ahead.Talk." Dugan looked at Mugsy's tough, scarredface for a minute and then went on. "Mr. Top isin town. He's lookin' for some stuff. Things have beenkinda tight, and the junkies are ready to pay anything.If you've got any ideas, now is the time to sell 'em." Rex looked at Mugsy. He could seethat Mugsy wouldn't need an explanation. Mugsycaught on fast. "I haven't had any good leads for awhile," Rex said. "The new laws are making it harder andharder to get stuff. Some of the junkies have eventried to raid hos- pital drug rooms," Mugsy said. Rex sat up straight. He had a great idea! "Hey, I think I have a lead. My brotherjust got a job as an orderly in the newhospital." "Is he cool? I thought you said he was asquare." 3 i th 111011VA '1! 1w!r11 t %top001dltcPItioolpIyAl 0110;1hoor '$c441i140Iugmi41011,1TI$4 ori to 40010AMtot_ Ntri '11?traqieliqa-ql;firrit"WH°i011140111El A, They agreed to meet in themorning to walk home to- gether. It was funny going towork at eleven o'clock at night. Rex belonged to the teamunder Dr. Cramer. The nurse was MissHunt, and the intern would bewhoever was on duty. Rexfound that wearing the whiteuniform helped him fit into the team.He looked like one of them. Miss Hunt started him putting somebandages and supplies into the proper place. Hehad just about finished when he heard a siren screaming.It was funny to know it wasn't the cops. For once,Rex didn't have to worry about that. When the ambulance pulled up tothe door, Rex saw the emergency team go intoaction. The two men from the ambulance wheeled thestretcher into the first emer- gency room. Theylifted the old man onto thetable. He was big and heavyfor an old man. "He fell through the railing ofhis porch," one of the ambulance men said. "He fell abouteight feet. Can't move from thewaist down." "Does he have a family?" "Not as far as we could find out.He doesn't speak English." "Okay," said Dr. Cramer."Leave your papers with the Admission Office." "Sure." Rex finished what he was doingand stood quietly near the door of the X-ray room. Heknew they were too busy to give him morework, so he just watched.This was better than TV. Rex had afeeling of excitement, but he didn't know why. Rex watched as the doctortried to talk to the oic) man. 6 It was hard. "We'll have to use dye. Got to find out where hisback is broken, if it's broken. Get the X-ray technicianand the intern," Dr. Cramer said. "Yes, Doctor." Miss Hunt went to call them. The intern came right away. They took him intothe X-ray room. "Let's turn him over on his stomach." Rex could see that they would need help. Hestepped forward just a little. He wasn't sure that theywould let him touch a patient. "Rex, come over on this side." Miss Hunt spokewith- out looking at Rex. He took his place beside her. She showed himhow to help turn the old man as quickly aspossible without hurting him any more than they could help. "He doesn't seem to feel much pain," theintern said. Rex looked at the old man's face. It was traylooking. But his eyes were open. No one paid any more attention to Rex, sohe went back near the X-ray room door. Whenthe girl who would take the X-rays came, the doctor told herwbat to do. The nurse brought some stuff in abig tube with a long needle in it. Rex felt weak in theknees. He didn't like needles very much. The X-ray technician smiled at him, so hemoved over closer to her. "What are they going to do?" "They're going to put that dye into his spinalcolumn and then tip his body, head down. The dyewill run down until it comes to the place where the pressure mustbe. 7 Then we'll know where the trouble it." "Will it hurt?" "The needle will be just a sharp prick, that's all." "Lights out," said Dr. Cramer. The X-ray technician turned out the lights. Rex blinked. When he could see again, he saw the doctor and the nurse and the intern standing around the old man. A motor started. The table began to movc and thed man's head began to go down.