Week 12: Literature for a Diverse Society

The Prince Who Was Just Himself

by: Silke Schnee

Second Grade

• APA Citation: Schnee, S., Sistig, H., & Albertz, E. (2015). The Prince Who Was Just Himself. Walden, NY: Plough Publishing House.

• Description: "The royal couple is looking forward to their third child. “He looks a little different,” muses the king at Prince Noah’s arrival. “He is not like the others,” agrees the queen. Soon they notice what a very special person he is, even though he can’t do everything his brothers can.
  
  When the youngest prince disarms the cruel knight Scarface, the nation’s most dreaded enemy, with an act of compassion, everyone finally realizes how good it is that each person is unique.
  
  This delightfully illustrated fairy tale for children three years and older instills appreciation for children with Down syndrome and other developmental challenges, making it a valuable aid for teaching tolerance in the home or classroom." Retrieved from Amazon.com on November 29, 2017: https://www.amazon.com/Prince-Just-Himself-Noah-Book/dp/0874866820.

• Age/Grade Level: 3-9 years old; Grades 1-2.

• Justification: This book is another example that celebrates uniqueness, and the importance of being kind to one another. Just because someone may be different from you, does not mean that they are any less deserving of kindness and compassion. Students would read this book aloud in small groups, demonstrating CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RF.2.4.B Read grade-level text orally with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings. Then, the whole class will participate in a discussion and reflection time based on what we have just read, demonstrating CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.2.1.A Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.2.1.B Build on others' talk in conversations by linking their comments to the remarks of others, and CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.2.2 Recount of describe key ideas or details from a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media. (English Language Arts Standards >> Speaking & Listening >> Grade 2, Retrieved from Common Core State Standard Initiatives on November 29, 2017: http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/SL/2/.)

• Keywords: Special Needs, Friendship, Kindness, Love

• Review: "A gentle fairy tale about a young prince with Down syndrome who saves his kingdom from a menacing knight.This rather lengthy picture book, first published in Germany, begins with the introduction of the king and queen and their two soccer-playing sons. A third child is born to the family, a son named Noah who “looks a little different.” He is portrayed in cheerful illustrations as a happy child with tilted eyes who moves slowly and seldom speaks, though Down syndrome is not specifically mentioned within the story. While many residents of the kingdom look at Noah in a quizzical or critical way, the family accepts and loves Noah as he is, calling him “the Prince Who Was Just Himself.” When the kingdom is threatened by a knight named Scarface, Prince Noah disarms the invader with an empathetic question and a hug. Though the story is somewhat melodramatic and just a little too sweet, it offers a special needs child in a positive, starring role and can be read simply as a satisfying fairy tale or as a beginning introduction to Down syndrome.
  The author, herself the mother of a child with Down syndrome, and the illustrator ably introduce a difficult subject in a fictional context with a light, sure touch. (author’s note) (Picture book. 4-8)"

• Citation: Retrieved from Kirkus Reviews on November 29, 2017: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/silke-schnee/the-prince-who-was-just-himself/.  

• Awards: Independent Publisher Book Award for Children's Picture Books 2016

Week 11: Informational Books (Nonfictional)

Remember: The Journey to School Integration

by: Toni Morrison

Second Grade 

• APA Citation: Morrison, T. (2004). Remember: the journey to school integration. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.

• Description:  "Toni Morrison has collected a treasure chest of archival photographs that depict the historical events surrounding school desegregation. These unforgettable images serve as the inspiration for Ms. Morrison’s text—a fictional account of the dialogue and emotions of the children who lived during the era of “separate but equal” schooling. Remember is a unique pictorial and narrative journey that introduces children to a watershed period in American history and its relevance to us today." Retrieved from Amazon.com on November 17, 2017: https://www.amazon.com/Remember-Journey-School-Integration-Nonfiction/dp/061839740X. 

• Age/Grade Level: 4-7 years old, 3rd - 8th Grade

• Justification: This book serves a wide range of ages as an excellent tool about and glimpse into what it would be like and what it was like when schools were first desegregated. This is an important topic that occurred in the not too distant past. We can't sugar-coat or ignore that fact, and appropriate materials educating and informing students must be provided. The images are striking and thought provoking, and confront readers with realities faced within the civil rights movement. The captions bring a cohesive picture to life, one that readers cannot ignore. The book humanizes everyone involved, you are unable to separate the humanity from a generalized group of people. This is another tough issue to introduce to a young audience, and this well-written book provides a perfect platform to do just that, and to promote interest in further future study. After reading this book as a class, students will be asked to reflect independently including any questions, comments, and related thoughts. They will also be asked to write about the use of photographs in this book. This will demonstrate CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.7 Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot and CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.7 Explain how specific images contribute to and clarify a text. After independently reflecting, they will participate in a respectful class discussion in which they can ask questions for clarification. (English Language Arts Standards >> Reading: Informational Text >> Grade 2, Retrieved from Common Core State Standard Initiatives on November 17, 2017: http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RI/2/.)

• Keywords: civil rights, desegregation, racial tension, history

• Review: "The photos are electrifying. Beautifully reproduced in sepia prints, the archival images humanize the politics of the civil rights movement. The leaders are shown, but the focus is on ordinary young people and the role they played in school integration. In her eloquent introduction, Morrison talks about what the pictures show: the reality of separate but equal, the 1954 Brown vs. Board of Education decision, the nationwide movement to eliminate racist laws. On the page opposite each photo, however, she imagines the thoughts and feelings of kids in the photos, and the intrusive fictionalized comments get in the way of the visual images ("I think she likes me, but . . .What will I do if she hates me?"). The fiction is not about the angry white mobs; there's no verbal racist confrontation. But there's hatred in the pictures, and children will constantly turn back to the photo notes at the end to find out more. Every library will want this not for the condescending made-up stuff but for the stirring history." Hazel Rochman   Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved           

• Citation: Review from Book List, retrieved from Amazon.com on November 17, 2017: https://www.amazon.com/Remember-Journey-School-Integration-Nonfiction/dp/061839740X. 

• Awards: The Coretta Scott King Award for Authors

Week 10: Historical Fiction & Biographical Fiction

Ragtime Tumpie

by: Alan Schroeder

Second Grade 

 

• APA Citation: Schroeder, A., & Fuchs, B. (1993). Ragtime Tumpie. Boston: Joy Street Books.

• Description: "One of the most colorful periods in American history is vividly brought to life in this stirring account of Josephine Baker's childhood. Tumpie, inspired by the vivacious ragtime music of turn-of-the-century St. Louis, dreams of escaping her life on Gratiot Street and becoming a famous honky-tonk dancer. Her determination, pluck, and exuberance will have children clapping, tapping, and rooting for her from the beginning." Retrieved from Amazon.com on November 11, 2017: https://www.amazon.com/Ragtime-Tumpie-HARCOURT-SCHOOL-PUBLISHERS/dp/0316775045.

• Age/Grade Level: 4-8 years old, 2nd - 5th Grade

• Justification: This book is really inspirational, as it is based on the true story of Josephine Baker, who grew up in poverty and overcame obstacles to follow her dream to become a dancer. Following one's dreams is an important lesson to impart to students, as well as the importance of believing in yourself. After reading this book together with the class, students will reflect on what their dreams and talents are. They will then write and illustrate a short story featuring them following their chosen dream. This will demonstrate CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.2.3 Write narratives in which they recount a well-elaborated event or short sequence of events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure. (English Language Arts Standards >> Writing  >> Grade 2, Retrieved from Common Core State Standard Initiatives on November 11, 2017: http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/2/)

• Keywords: dance, dreams, determination, African-American

• Review: " Full-page paintings in mellow tones of gold and brown, with warm touches of rosy pink, show black Americans in turn-of-the-century St. Louis. Smiling workers, musicians, and housewives surround the small, appealing figure of the young girl who would one day be the famous Josephine Baker. The accompanying text tells how "Tumpie," as she was then called, spent her days picking half-rotted fruit from the freight yards and gathering coal fallen from the hopper cars. At night, Tumpie would go with her mother to the honky-tonks, to hear ragtime music and to dance to the "syn-co-pa-tion" of the drums. When, one day, a traveling peddlar staged a dance contest in the neighborhood, Tumpie won the prize, a shiny silver dollar, and knew that dance would be her life. The story of Tumpie is fiction, based on what is known of Baker's early years, and a brief note describes the entertainer's later career. The book can be used as fictionalized biography to introduce Baker, a black woman who found fame and fortune in Europe earlier in this century. However, its most obvious use, magnificently achieved in the vibrant illustrations, is to present a slice-of-American-life in an urban black community, and to show the capacity of music and dance to enrich the lives of people even in the poorest of material circumstances. --Shirley Wilton, Ocean County College, Toms River, NJ
  Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title." From School Library Journal. Retrieved from Amazon.com on November 11, 2017: https://www.amazon.com/Ragtime-Tumpie-HARCOURT-SCHOOL-PUBLISHERS/dp/0316775045. 

• Citation: Award listing retrieved on November 11, 2017 from: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/27294/alan-schroeder.

• Awards: This was Alan Schroeder's first book, and it was chosen as an ALA Notable Book, a Booklist Children’s Editors’ Choice, and a Parents’ Choice Award winner.

Week 9: Realistic Fiction

Always with You

by: Ruth Vander Zee

Second Grade

 

• APA Citation: Zee, R. V., & Himler, R. (2008). Always with you. Grand Rapids MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers.

• Description: "After her mother is killed by an explosion that also destroys her Vietnam village, four-year-old Kim is alone and afraid. Eventually, she is rescued by soldiers who bring her to an orphanage.
  
  Surrounded by the love of the couple who run the orphanage, the companionship of the children who live there, and her mother's promise, “I will always be with you,” Kim finds the strength and courage to survive.
  
  This picture book for older readers, based on a true story from the Vietnam War, portrays the hope that exists in even the most desperate situations. Poignant illustrations capture the perseverance of the human spirit and the power of kindness." Retrieved from Amazon.com on November 2, 2017: https://www.amazon.com/Always-You-Ruth-Vander-Zee/dp/0802852955.

• Age/Grade Level: 8-12 years old, 2nd - 3rd Grade

• Justification: This story is heart-wrenching and based on a true story. It covers tough subject matter, but will educate students about war and its far-reaching effects, and be impactful as students can undoubtedly relate to feelings of loneliness and being scared to some extent. Kim's mother's love carries her through difficulties, which is something students should be able to relate to, although they have hopefully, probably not faced personal tragedy and devastation to such an extent. As a class we would read the book, and analyze the effectiveness of the illustration style in aiding the words to present a moving story. This will demonstrate CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.7. Explain how specific images contribute to and clarify a text.  (English Language Arts Standards >> Reading: Informational Text >> Grade 2, Retrieved from Common Core State Standard Initiatives on November 2, 2017: http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RI/2/.) We will also have a class discussion on a brief overview of war and what it could mean to live in an area affected by various aspects of war, expanding the content covered in the book. This will touch on CCS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.3. Describe the connection between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, and CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.6. Identify the main purpose of a text, including what the author wants to answer, explain, or describe. ((English Language Arts Standards >> Reading: Informational Text >> Grade 2, Retrieved from Common Core State Standard Initiatives on November 2, 2017: http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RI/2/.

• Keywords: tragedy, loneliness, war, inner-strength

• Review: "Toshi Maruki's Hiroshima no Pika (HarperCollins, 1982) and Eleanor Coerr's Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes (Putnam, 2002) are outstanding examples of books that try to describe the horrors and inhumanity of war in ways that children would understand. On a lesser scale of strength, this picture book takes a tragedy experienced by a four-year-old and makes it a universal story about being alone and afraid. When her village in Vietnam is bombed, Kim remembers her mother's dying words, "I will always be with you." She holds to them when she is struck on the head by a gun; when she is found, hungry and almost blind, by friendly soldiers; and when she is taken to an orphanage where she is cared for and loved. The pencil and watercolor illustrations are admirably suited to the text: Kim's expressions, the gray lines of marching soldiers, and the devastated land do more to deglorify warfare than any amount of adult preaching, just as the sight of her softly weeping in her bed and being reassured by the orphanage house mistress conveys her longing for her mother better than words would. This is a good book to use in classroom discussions of war, of what happens to the children, or, more specifically, of the Vietnam War and how it was that so many Vietnamese came to the United States."—Marian Drabkin, formerly at Richmond Public Library, CA  Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

• Citation:  Retrieved from the School Library Journal on November 2, 2017, listed on Amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/Always-You-Ruth-Vander-Zee/dp/0802852955.

• Awards: