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USING CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE BOOKS IN YOUR CLASSROOM A Guide by Dr. M. Ann Levett
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Scholastic Inc., 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012
CONTENTS
Introduction ...................................................................................................... 4
The Need for Diverse Children’s Books ................................................... 6
Representing a Variety of Identities and Experiences ......................... 8
Selecting Culturally Responsive Books ................................................. 10
Empathy and Perspective-Taking ............................................................ 12
The Power of Seeing Yourself in Books ................................................. 14
Preparing for Reading ................................................................................. 16
Facilitating Classroom Discussions ......................................................... 18
The Awareness Gap ................................................................................... 20
Connecting Books to Real-World Experiences ................................... 22
Activities and Extension Ideas ................................................................. 24
Sustaining a Culture of Diversity in Reading ....................................... 26
To Find Out More ......................................................................................... 28
Book Audit ..................................................................................................... 30
Bibliography .................................................................................................. 32
Introduction As a reader, ask yourself: When was the first time you felt truly connected to a book? Can you think of a book you’ve read that’s reflected your identity or your experience? We live in a world that is a tapestry of cultures and multifaceted identities. The books our children read need to reflect our world. By motivating readers to select and discuss a variety of texts, and demonstrating a love of reading, children can grow up loving to read. And children who grow up loving to read and thinking deeply about the books they read become adults who love to read. In 1990, Rudine Sims Bishop published an essay, “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors,” about the importance of providing young readers with diverse books. This phrase emphasized the need for all children to experience diverse stories through the characters and real-life subjects they read about in books. In her essay, she identified that “when children cannot find themselves reflected in the books they read, or when the images they see are distorted, negative, or laughable, they learn a powerful lesson about how they are devalued in a society of which they are a part.” She went on to discuss further the different reading opportunities all children should have, and the problems that could arise when they don’t have these opportunities. • Mirrors: When children read books that serve as mirrors, they see aspects of their own experiences and cultures reflected in texts. • Windows: When children read books that serve as windows, they gain insights into the world beyond their own personal experiences. • Sliding Glass Doors: When children read books that serve as sliding glass doors, they are intrigued and encouraged to step into the world of the story. By curating an engaging and culturally rich classroom library, you are ensuring that all students are able to experience these mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors. Traditionally, there have been far fewer books published by and about people of color. And while the number of books is increasing, especially as it becomes easier to self-publish or independently publish, it still requires effort to seek out and acquire the best of these books and get them into classroom libraries. Adding curated culturally responsive collections to your classroom ensures the best of these books find their way into the hands of young readers. It is important to note that diversity does not only reflect race and ethnicity; when curating a classroom library, one should be mindful to include books about all people whose identities, voices, and experiences have been traditionally underrepresented—like people with physical disabilities, neurodiverse people, LGBTQ+ people, or people belonging to religious minorities. In this guide, you will explore how to help readers understand, select, and learn to engage with culturally responsive books in the classroom and beyond.
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Selecting Culturally Responsive Books Culturally responsive teaching is teaching that is respectful of the backgrounds, home languages, and cultures of students. When selecting diverse resources for your classroom library, it’s important to identify books that offer authentic representation and avoid stereotypes. Culturally responsive texts highlight authentic and diverse experiences and perspectives. Criteria for Selection A culturally responsive classroom library is successful when it includes a range of many protagonists and reflects a variety of lived experiences. A diverse classroom library will not only reflect cultural diversity, but also represent a variety of regions and geographic locations, individuals with physical disabilities, neurodiverse protagonists, and LGBTQ+ people. Diverse, culturally responsive books should be at the core of your literacy instruction. Your readers will want to read about characters and subjects that are different from themselves, but they will also be eager to read about characters and subjects whose experiences resonate with their own. Consider these tips while curating your collection: • Books should explore a variety of cultures, languages, and perspectives. • Books should have high-quality text and engaging illustrations, as well as a good story. They should not exist only to teach a lesson (Wanless, 2016). • Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors: Choose books that help children see themselves. Include books that mirror different aspects of identity (like ethnicity, setting, or beliefs) of children in the class, so that they can imagine themselves in the story. These books will also allow other students to see their classmates in the starring role. • Include both fiction and nonfiction titles that introduce readers to new people, places, or concepts that they may not yet have encountered in books or in their daily lives. • Subscribe to newsletters or check in with your local library regarding new titles. New titles are published all the time! By giving attention to overarching messages in the books in your classroom library, you can determine whether your collection includes nuanced diverse representation. Types of books to consider include books that depict diverse characters thriving or triumphing in a variety of circumstances; books that depict or celebrate cultural institutions or traditions; books that depict characters striving and surviving in the face of oppression; books that provide lessons from history, including folktales; books that depict cross-group relationships and characters of different backgrounds interacting with each other; and books that feature “every child”: when characters from underrepresented backgrounds star in a story where their background isn’t central to the story being told.
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Promoting Empathy Through Reading How do readers develop empathy for a character as they read? When readers are moved by a story, they may find themselves “hooked” into a book’s character. Without necessarily even noticing, the reader may begin to imagine what it might be like to be that character, and to compare that character’s reactions to how the reader may have reacted to situations in the past, or may react to situations in the future. As readers learn more about characters in books, they are also learning more about themselves as well, including how to handle challenging feelings (Sheldon-Dean, 2023). By prompting students to think about the characters or subjects of the books they read, they can build emotional awareness and empathy. Comments and questions like “Imagine how this person feels,” or “What do you think this experience feels like?” draw students away from only thinking about themselves. Instead, these comments and questions challenge students to “insert themselves into a different world and consider a different point of view” (Scholastic Parents, 2022).
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A GUIDE BY DR. M. ANN LEVETT
The Power of Seeing Yourself in Books
“There will be times when you walk into a room and no one there is quite like you until the day you begin to share your stories.” —Jacqueline Woodson, award-winning writer As equally important as the books that act as windows—books that enlighten readers by showing them different perspectives—are books that act as mirrors, reflecting the readers’ own experiences back at them. Readers feel validated when they find their own identity—or facets of their own identity—in the pages of a book. When students have the opportunity to see themselves in books, it helps them form a connection to the book on another level. Identifying with the characters or subjects in a story allows for a deeper comprehension of the text because students are making text-to-self connections. (For more on text-to-self connections, turn to page 22 of this guide.) Affirming Identity When students see themselves in books and school materials, they are more engaged and motivated to read. This increase in engagement from representation leads to improved academic outcomes like heightened critical thinking skills and even increases in standardized test scores (Marshall, 2023). Studies have also shown that reading for pleasure increases students’ knowledge of themselves and other people, which leads to greater levels of self-esteem, confidence, and social interaction. Other research has shown students have demonstrated improvements in imagination, focus and flow, and mood regulation (BOP Consulting, 2015). It’s important to remember that messages are embedded in all books. When students do not see themselves in texts—or worse, see only distorted or stereotypical reflections—they can internalize negative cultural views. Likewise, students who only see themselves reflected in texts may develop an egocentric view of the world, rendering the experiences of others invisible. The Commitment to Quality Literature Literature opens the door to understanding the human experience, especially those experiences that reflect our lives, our realities. Through literature we can see authentic and aspirational representations of ourselves, understand our self-worth, and know the power of belonging we all crave. Books also often introduce us to characters who are different from us with experiences beyond our realities and imaginations, allowing us to see the world from new perspectives. Such understandings are necessary for all children, as they are critical to the development of a global and well-rounded citizenry.
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Book Audit Use this chart as a reference to create your own book audit tally. What do you notice about the books in your collection? What kinds of books would you like to add? Note that authentic representation means when authors write stories that mirror an important aspect of their own identities.
AUTHENTIC REPRESENTATION
TITLE
AUTHOR
ILLUSTRATOR
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Bibliography Aronson, K. M., Callahan, B. D., and O’Brien, A. S. (2018). “Messages Matter: Investigating the Thematic Content of Picture Books Portraying Underrepresented Racial and Cultural Groups.” Sociological Forum. Vol. 33(1). Bernstrom, D. (2022). “New book out today!” Retrieved from https://www.danielbernstrom.com/newsletters/songinthecity BOP Consulting (2015). “Literature review: the impact of reading for pleasure and empowerment.” The Reading Agency. Retrieved from https://readingagency.org.uk/news/ The%20Impact%20of%20Reading%20for%20Pleasure%20 and%20Empowerment.pdf Chiaet, J. (2013). “Novel finding: reading literary fiction improves empathy.” Scientific American . Retrieved from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/novel-finding- reading-literary-fiction-improves-empathy Colorín Colorado (2021). “Why diverse books matter: windows and mirrors.” Retrieved from https://colorincolorado. org/article/why-diverse-books-matter-mirrors-and-windows Data on books by and about Black, Indigenous and People of Color published for children and teens compiled by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center, School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison. (2022). Retrieved from https://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/literature-resources/ccbc- diversity-statistics Duffy (2019). “The power of perspective taking.” Psychology Today . Retrieved from https://psychologytoday.com/us/ blog/the-power-personal-narrative/201906/the-power- perspective-taking Hobson, M. (2014). Color blind or color brave [video]. TED. Retrieved from https://ted.com/talks/mellody_hobson_color_ blind_or_color_brave Kids & Family Reading Report, 7th Edition. (2019). Scholastic Inc. Retrieved from https://scholastic.com/content/dam/ scholastic/site/KFRR/KFRR_7th%20Edition.pdf Learning for Justice (2023). “Making connections during read aloud.” Retrieved from https://learningforjustice.org/ classroom-resources/teaching-strategies/responding-to-the- readaloud-text/making-connections-during Lin, G. (2022). “Windows, mirrors, and glasses: Grace Lin on seeing the world through diverse books.” Publishers Weekly. Marshall, T.R., Ph.D. (2023). ”The search for more complex racial and ethnic representation in grade school books.” The Education Trust.
Najarro, I. (2023). “Researchers find need for more high quality, culturally relevant curriculum.” EdWeek . Retrieved from https://edweek.org/leadership/researchers-find-need- for-more-high-quality-culturally-relevant-curriculum/2023/09 National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). (2022). “Digest of Education Statistics, 2022: Table 203.60.: Enrollment and percentage distribution of enrollment in public elementary and secondary schools, by race/ethnicity and level of education: Fall 1999 through fall 2030.” U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/ programs/digest/d22/tables/dt22_203.60.asp?current=yes Partnership International (2023). “Why is cultural diversity important?” Retrieved from https://partnershipinternational. ie/why-is-cultural-diversity-important Reid, C. (2020). “Three authors examine diversity in books for young readers.” Publishers Weekly . Retrieved from https:// publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens- industry-news/article/83714-three-authors-examine- diversity-in-books-for-young-readers.html Scholastic Parents (2023). “How to create a positive attitude towards reading.” Retrieved from https://scholastic.com/ parents/books-and-reading/raise-a-reader-blog/positive- attitude-towards-reading.html Scholastic Parents (2022). “How to talk to kids about empathy.” Retrieved from https://scholastic.com/parents/ books-and-reading/raise-a-reader-blog/teaching-kids- empathy-books.html Scholastic Teachers (2021). “Classroom libraries.” Retrieved from https://teacher.scholastic.com/education/classroom- library/pdfs/Classroom-Libraries.pdf?esp=TSO/ib/202104//// label/card/classroom/classroom///// Sheldon-Dean, H. (2023). “Why is it important to read to your child?” Child Mind Institute. Retrieved from https://childmind. org/article/why-is-it-important-to-read-to-your-child/ Tucker, N. (2019). “Pablo Cartaya, in English and Spanish.” Library of Congress National Book Festival Blog. Retrieved from https://blogs.loc.gov/national-book-festival/2019/08/ pablo-cartaya-in-english-and-spanish Wanless, S. (2016). “Reading your way to a culturally responsive classroom.” NAEYC. Retrieved from https://naeyc. org/resources/pubs/yc/may2016/culturally-responsive- classroom
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