WOW Dozen: Language Learning and Communication

By Janine Schall, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, TX

Over half the world’s population speaks more than one language. While many people naturally become multilingual by growing up in multilingual communities, others deliberately learn a second or third language later in life. People learn new languages for many reasons, including to maintain connections to heritage and family, in order to navigate a new country, and to communicate with new friends and communities. Sometimes people even invent their own ways to communicate! In this collection of picturebooks, we find a dozen different examples of people learning a new language or finding a way to communicate. Continue reading

WOW Dozen: Books on Schools and Schooling

By Janine Schall, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Children around the world go to school, but the ways they do so and what happens once they arrive appears very different in diverse places. No matter what it looks like, schools are places of friendship, growth and learning for most children, but they are also situated in a political and cultural context that is worthy of exploration. Continue reading