In Santiago’s Road Home, Alexandra Diaz tells how twelve-year-old Santiago makes it across the border between Mexico and the U.S. only to be captured by the Border Patrol and placed in a detention center. Santiago has a traumatic family history as an orphan who is passed between his grandmother who abuses him and an aunt who is unkind. When the aunt sends him back to live with his grandmother, Santiago decides to live on the street. Fortunately, he meets Maríe Delores who gives him food and offers to take him to the U.S. with her and her young daughter, Alegría, since Maríe Delores has a sister in the U.S. and plans on living with her. Santiago is able to help the two as they journey to the border. Their relationship develops and he comes to consider them his sisters. Continue reading
Poet Laureate Projects from the Library of Congress
By Mary L. Fahrenbruck, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM
This week WOW Currents makes a slight change from featuring resources available from independent publishers to featuring Poet Laureate Projects sponsored by the Library of Congress. Teachers and families can access poetry projects and interactive ideas from eight Poet Laureates including Tracy K. Smith, Juan Felipe Herrera, and Joy Harjo, the current Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. Continue reading
Literacy Resources Available through Cinco Puntos Press
By Mary L. Fahrenbruck, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM
This week WOW Currents features teacher and family literacy resources available through Cinco Puntos Press, an independent publishing company located in El Paso, Texas. Bobby and Lee Byrd, owners and publishers, opened Cinco Puntos in 1985 and have been publishing “great books which make a difference in the way you see the world” ever since. Continue reading
Enchanted Lion Books
By Mary L. Fahrenbruck, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces NM
This month WOW Currents features literacy resources that educators and families can bring into their virtual learning spaces. This week WOW Currents focus on The ELB Book Club, and Instagram resources available from Enchanted Lion Books. In a recent interview with Claudia Zoe Bedrick, the publisher, editor and art director of Enchanted Lion Books, I asked her to talk about the resources available to educators and families. Continue reading
Worlds of Words Presents Imagination Fridays
By Aika Adamson, Worlds of Words
Worlds of Words and the Tucson Festival of Books partner to bring excitement and fun to children with our limited series, Imagination Friday. Watch as an author or illustrator appears virtually to discuss their books live with children in classrooms and at home. These bestselling creators do a brief presentation, lead activities and answer questions. This periodic webinar series occurs during the school day on Fridays from 1:00-1:45 PM from September to December 2023 so teachers can share in their classroom. You must register for the webinars to attend and will receive a link to click on and join each webinar. The webinar will be recorded and those who register will receive that link to watch the recording if unable to join us live. Registration links are on the Tucson Festival of Books and on Worlds of Words. Registration is free! Continue reading
Imagination Fridays
By Mary L. Fahrenbruck, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM
Each week in November, WOW Currents will feature an online resource that teachers and families can access to support literacy instruction in their virtual learning spaces. This week’s post features Imagination Friday hosted by Worlds of Words: Center of Global Literacies and Literatures and Tucson Festival of Books. WOW offers many amazing resources for teachers and families, and Imagination Friday is no exception. Continue reading
WOW Recommends: Hands Up
Each scene in Breanna McDaniel’s picturebook Hands Up! depicts an everyday life event accompanied by text that ends with the phrase “hands up.”
“Morning, baby. Time to get dressed, hands up.”
Gotta get clean. Reach for the sink, hands up.
“It’s all right, baby girl, I’ll help, hands up.”
Author’s Corner: Thanhhà Lai
Susan Corapi, Associate Professor, Trinity International University, Deerfield, IL
Photo Credit: Steve Puppe
MTYT: The Rabbit Listens
We conclude this month’s exploration of picture books that put emotions front and center with The Rabbit Listened, a book that explores the many unique ways we each have for expressing our emotions and the healing power of a friend who can truly see and hear what we need.
MTYT: Rabbit and the Motorbike
Dorea Kleker, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, and Patricia Castrodad, Caguas, Puerto Rico
In addition to the many ways we have all experienced the loss of loved ones, this year of turmoil has brought collective death front and center. From Black lives taken by police brutality to those lost in recent fires, hurricanes and other natural disasters to the approximately 1 million lost worldwide to Covid-19, death surrounds us. This week, we continue to look at books that put emotions at the heart of their stories. Rabbit and the Motorbike offers a gentle yet poignant look at what happens when we lose a loved one and the many feelings we face in moving forward.
