Diverse classroom library books11/3/2023 ![]() A project of the Southern Poverty Law Center. This library of short texts offers a diverse mix of stories and perspectives. Choose from informational and literary nonfiction texts, literature, photographs, political cartoons, interviews, infographics and more. ![]() From the Association for Library Service to Children. This paper explores the critical role libraries play in helping children make cross-cultural connections and develop skills necessary to function in a culturally pluralistic society. The Importance of Diversity in Library Programs and Material Collections for Children From the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Looking for new books to offer your students that might offer other perspectives? Harvard education professor Pamela Mason and Jabari Sellars, a middle school English teacher in Washington, D.C., have some new ideas on what to read. Just what makes a book culturally relevant? Teachers and students can use the Cultural Relevance Rubric created by professors David and Yvonne Freeman to examine and discuss a book’s cultural relevance in the classroom in which it is being used. Choosing Children’s Books: Cultural Relevance Rubric How diverse is your school library collection? Can students find themselves displayed throughout the library? Why does this matter? Ideas from the American Association of School Librarians. ![]() Diversify Your Collection With Student’s Help If you were asked to sum up your classroom library or read aloud collection with five adjectives, what would you say? Would the word “diverse” make the list? Find resources and guidance from Achieve the Core. I've also put together these reading lists you can use to get started.What Makes a High-Quality Diverse Text and How to Get These Texts Into Your Classroom It can be a little tough to find diverse books - here are some resources and places where you can start to find diverse kidlit. To get started evaluating your current classroom library, use this questionnaire from Lee and Low, a blog about race, diversity, education, and children's books. ![]() Ezra Hyland, a member of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), says, "When you have children in school and the literature doesn't look like them, it doesn't sound like them, it does not deal with their issues, you're pushing them out rather than inviting them in." When students read books about their own experiences or identities, they're more likely to feel welcomed into the school environment - and thus their academic performance will improve. Simultaneously, diverse books benefit those students who may have untraditional families, or who are from a different culture than most of their peers, or who identify differently from how they're expected to. By sharing books about experiences not their own with students, you can help them to determine how to react to these types of experiences. The skills of being open-minded and welcoming don't necessarily come naturally to every child. Students come from all walks of life and join one another in the same classroom - and it's important to not only welcome everyone, but to teach them how to be welcoming to one another.Įvery child's lived experiences are unique, but for some children, certain experiences and backgrounds will be more unfamiliar to them. Diversity in the classroom is important, especially when you're working at an international school.
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