"I Never Thought About It That Way"
Considering the Life Experiences of Others Through Children's Literature
Dr. Vicki Sherbert College of Education Kansas State University April 12, 2014
Why Children's Literature? "When we enter the sound and images of a story - led by a writer's vision and voice - we live within a blend of our own experiences and those in the book."
-Penny Kittle, Book Love: Developing Depth, Stamina, and Passion in Adolescent Readers, (p. 22)
Why Children's Literature?
"The three essential components [of a reading workshop] include the literature itself, response to literature through the language arts, and literature conversations."
-Marjorie Hancock, A Celebration of Literature and Response: Children, Books, and Teachers in K-8 Classrooms (p. 50)
Selecting Children's Literature • Look for books that allow us to see the world through the character's perspective. • Look for books that portray accurate information. • Look for books that convey value and respect for the characters and their life experiences. • Look for beauty.
Presentation Book List
Disabilities and Challenges
Draper, S. (2010). Out of my mind. New York: Anthem Books for Young Readers. Erskine, K. (2010). Mockingbird. New York: Puffin Books. Lord, C. (2006). Rules. New York: Scholastic Inc. Palacio, R. J. (2012). Wonder. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
Racial & Ethnic Diversity Say, A. (2011). Drawing from memory. New York: Scholastic. Burg, A. E. (2009). All the broken pieces. New York: Scholastic. Curtis, C. P. (1999). Bud, not Buddy. New York: Delacorte Press. Mason, M. H. (2011). These hands. New York: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children. Nelson, K. (2013). Nelson Mandella. New York: Katherine Tegen Books. Peete, H. R. & Peete, R. E. (2010). My brother Charlie. New York: Scholastic. Taylor, M. D. (1976). Roll of thunder, hear my cry. New York: Puffin Books. Weatherford, C. B. (2006). Moses. Jump at the Sun/Hyperion Books for Children.
Presentation Book List Military Families Cooney, C. B. (1992). Operation: Homefront. New York: Bantam Books. Holmes, S. L. (2009). Operation Yes. New York: Arthur A. Levine Books. Parry, R. (2009). Heart of a Shepherd. New York: Random House Children's Books. Williams, S. M. (2009) Bull Rider. New York: Margaret K. McElderry Books.
Family Struggles Hunt, L. M. (2012). One for the Murphys. New York: Scholastic. Grimes, N. (2005). Dark sons. New York: Jump at the Sun/Hyperion Books for Children. Knowles, J. (2012) See you at Harry's. New York: Candlewick. Shafer, A. (2006). The mailbox. New York: Delacorte Press. Turner, A. (2006). Hard hit. New York: Scholastic.
Presentation Book List Professional Resources
Atwell, N. (2007). The reading zone: How to help kids become skilled, passionate, habitual readers. New York: Scholastic. Beers, K., Probst, R., & Rief, L., Eds. (2007). Adolescent literacy: Turning promise into practice. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. Hancock, M. R. (2007). A celebration of literature and response: Children, books, and teachers in K-8 classrooms (3rd Ed.). Boston: Pearson. Kittle, P. (2012). Book love: Developing depth, stamina, and passion in adolescent readers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. Miller, D. (2009). The book whisperer: Awakening the inner reader in every child. San Francisco, CA: JoseyBass