Rosie's Backbone

"Sure you can hang out with us, but the back brace stays here," Maria says hotly.Christine stands next to Maria, hands on her hips. Rosie feels the warm September sun on her face. It soothes her, and she is glad for it. Her friends didn't treat her like this last year, but then she didn't need a stupid back brace in fifth grade. Sixth grade is different. Rosie hates it already.

This past summer when her friends were at the pool or on roller blades down by the lake, Rosie found herself in Minnesota. Her mom took her there to a special hospital where they fitted her for a brace that stretched from her neck to her waist. The doctors told Rosie she would need to wear it to straighten her spine. Without the brace, the bones in her back would continue to bend. Rosie's mom cried, but Rosie told her mom not to worry. She'd wear the brace, and her back would be fine. However, Rosie didn't realize how cold the metal would feel against her skin and how bulky the brace would look under her clothes. She especially didn't know that her friends would reject her just for wearing it.

"My mom paid a lot of money for this brace," says Rosie, looking down at the pavement of the schoolyard.

"So, ditch it, or we ditch you," answers Maria, narrowing her eyes. Christine nods.

"What do you want me to do with it?"

"I don't know. Do something quick, though," orders Christine, looking at Maria for approval.

Rosie thinks for a second. "All right, stay here. I'll be right back."

The girls eye each other, and Maria shrugs. "We'll wait five minutes, but then we're walking home." Rosie walks stiffly toward the school, hoping the front doors are still open. She's not sure what she'll do, but she knows she needs to think fast.

Five minutes later, Rosie emerges from the school without her back brace. She runs toward the fence where her friends are standing. Since third grade, Maria, Christine, and Rosie have met in this very spot, waiting for each other after school. Rosie always felt accepted by her friends, until now.

When Maria sees Rosie approach, she checks her watch. "Good, let's go," she says. Rosie is red-faced and out of breath. Her back hurts, but she presses it with her hand and doesn't say anything.

The girls link arms, forming a line across the sidewalk. Rosie feels good because she's in the middle.

"So, what did you do with it?" asks Christine.

"Left it in the girls' bathroom," Rosie answers. But as she thinks about her huge, metal brace on the floor near the garbage can, she feels sick.

Maria laughs. "Good place for that ugly thing!"

Rosie tries to laugh, but she worries about what her mom will say when she gets home.

"Want some gum?" asks Christine, as she opens a piece, tossing the wrapper onto the sidewalk. Rosie watches the paper fall, and her stomach tightens. Her mom always tells her not to litter. Rosie knows better, yet she doesn't say anything. Christine shoves the gum into her mouth and pulls two more pieces from the pack for Rosie and Maria. Maria throws her gum wrapper on the ground, too, but Rosie folds hers carefully into her pocket.

"Did you see that new kid?" asks Maria, making a face.

"He sure is weird," answers Christina. "Rosie, what do you think?"

Right now, Rosie can only think about her mother, who is always tired from working two jobs. Her mom wakes early in the morning and cleans a bookstore before it opens. Then she goes to an office where she types letters for lawyers. Her mom misses dinner more days than Rosie can count, leaving Rosie and her grandmother to eat alone. As she thinks about this, she starts to get a headache. She knows the reason her mom works so hard is because Rosie needs that brace. Her mom only had one job before the doctor visits and medical tests started to become such a big part of their lives.

"Rosie," Christina wrinkles her forehead, "you okay?" Rosie nods, even though she can feel her head pounding.

"Let's take the shortcut!" Maria says excitedly. Suddenly, Maria and Christine break away from Rosie and run toward a dirt path that cuts through the field and behind some yards. Rosie jogs, trying to catch up, but sharp pains shoot down her back.

"Ouch!" she yelps, and stands clutching her back. Maria turns to look but continues running.

"Come on, Rosie!" shouts Christine, giggling with Maria.

Rosie watches her friends run away, and she turns to look at the school. What if the janitor has thrown her brace into the dumpster? Or worse yet, what if somebody has broken it? She takes off in a trot toward the building. Behind her, she hears Maria call her a chicken. Rosie doesn't answer. Instead, she picks up her pace. Her head feels like it might explode, and her back is throbbing and sore.

"Why did I leave it?" she worries. "How could I have been that thoughtless?"

Rosie trots up to the front door and flings it open. She heads down the hallway and turns to the right, holding her back the whole way. She passes the kindergarten room that smells like paste and accidentally falls against the wall outside their classroom, which is decorated with construction paper pictures.

If her brace is still where she left it, she'll do the dishes every day for a week without complaining. She'll even play dominoes with her grandmother instead of watching TV. As she turns into the girls' bathroom, she sees her back brace. And for the first time since she got it, she can honestly say she's glad.

1.	CONNECT Rosie's friends reject her because she's wearing a back brace. Describe a time when you felt rejected for being different.
2.	QUESTION Why does Rosie have to wear a back brace?
3.	PREDICT What do you think Rosie will do with her back brace?
4.	QUESTION Can going against what you know is right bring out your best? Why or why not?
5.	CONNECT Rosie feels sick after leaving her back brace behind. Was there ever a time when you felt physical pain because you felt guilty?
6.	PREDICT What do you think Rosie's mom will say if she comes home without her back brace?
7.	PRIOR KNOWLEDGE Littering is polluting. List some of the ways that people litter and pollute Earth.
8.	CONNECT Rosie doesn't approve of her friends littering, yet she doesn't speak up. Have you ever been in a situation like this? Explain.
9.	QUESTION Can making fun of people ever bring out the best in you?
10.	PRIOR KNOWLEDGE Rosie had medical tests to diagnose her condition. Can you name a few medical tests that are commonly used by doctors?
11.	QUESTION Why do you think Rosie has a headache along with her sore back?
12.	CONNECT Rosie smells paste and sees pictures hanging on the wall. What types of things do you hear, smell, see, taste, and touch in your school?
13.	SUMMARIZE Whom did Rosie betray and how?