More Information about Will and Max Graf

I was so interested in the article I talked about yesterday about Will and Max Graf that I'm back to write some more because I found some more information on them that I think you will enjoy. I found two more articles about Will and Max being in middle school. There is also a really good video on the one article that I found about the boys social scene in middle school. You should really check it out. Here is the address: http://www.post-gazzette.com/pg/07331/836935-51.stm

McKay explains that this is the boys' sixth grade year in school. They are shorter than their 5-year-old brother. (2007, p.1) McKay also explains that the Graf boys noticed that their friends grew a few inches over the summer and they now have to look up even higher to see communicate with them. McKay explains "Not that either boy thinks that's such a big deal. Because most of their classmates have known them since kindergarten, everyone's "cool" with the disparity in height" (2007, p1).

As in the Kindergarten class the boys were in, accommodations were made in middle school that the boys attend in Ohio Township, PA. McKay explained that "the district had provided stools in the classrooms, lavatory and cafeteria to help the boys reach things that are too high and provided some latitude in gym class when performing some of the tougher physical activities (2007, p.2). She also explained that "they're also allowed to exit the middle school at the end of the school day from the sixth-grade hall instead of the main entrance to avoid the "traffic jam" of the 330 kids trying to get to their buses at the same time" (2007, p.2).

McKay also explained that Will is looking to participate in am intramural basketball team and Max is looking forward to learning how to play the drums.

What I find the most interesting about these boys is that at the sixth grade level, they are comfortable with themselves and their dwarfism. I can only hope that my niece has the same positive attitude about school as the Graf brothers do.

The next article I found is about the Graf brothers' social progress. Through this article, McKay explains that the boys attended their first "social" and it was a success. McKay explains that after arriving at the dance the "brothers ultimately ended up in different parts of the darkened gym: Will hung mostly with his guy buddies, while Max -- who'd worked up the courage to ask a female classmate to meet him at the dance -- happily showed off his dance moves to a gaggle of giggling girls" (2007, p1). At the end of the dance Max even got to slow dance with a girl that instinctively got down on her knees to dance with him. (2007, p.2).

These two articles excited me because this is something that I can envision for my niece when she gets to the age of the Graf brothers. I would love to hear comments and feedback!

McKay, G. (2007, September 12). Dwarf brothers Will, Max Graf find bigger challenges in middle
school. In Post-gazette. Retrieved June 1, 2009, from http://www.post-gazzette.com/pg/07255/
816565-51.stm

McKay, G. (2007, November 27). Dwarf brothers get comfortable in middle-school social scene. In
Post-gazette. Retrieved June 1, 2009, from http://www.post-gazzette.com/pg/07331/
836935-51.stm