by Carmen M. Martínez-Roldán, Columbia University
This week we continue with the focus on the use of international children’s and adolescent literature in classrooms. Today I share an interview with Prof. Deanna Day from Washington State University at Vancouver, who shares how she incorporates international literature in her reading class. In her responses, she focuses on books on immigration.
by Carmen Martínez-Roldán, Columbia University
This week Dr. Denise Dávila from The University of Georgia shares her experience using Tofu Quilt by Ching Yeung Russell with preservice teachers.
Nominated for multiple awards and included on many notable book lists (ALA, IRA, NCTE) this Asian Pacific American Library Association Honor Book (2010) offers a stunning collection of poems. Together, the poems tell the story of Yeung Ying’s childhood and education
in Hong Kong in the 1960’s, a time when educating girls was not a priority for some members of Chinese society. Continue reading
by Carmen Martínez-Roldán, Columbia University
I’m Dr. Martínez-Roldán, Associate Professor at Teachers College, Columbia University. During March I will be inviting educators, teachers, and librarians to share their experiences using international children’s and adolescent literature in their teaching. Each week I will feature the experience of an educator and hope that the reader will feel inspired to share her/his own experiences as a reader of the featured books. In this first blog, Dr. Jo-Beth Allen from the University of Georgia tells us how she uses literature in her university writing courses. Continue reading
By Andrea García, Hofstra University
During the weekend of March 8 and 9, 2013, Tucson will host one of the biggest gatherings of children’s authors and illustrators during the Tucson Festival of Books. In thinking about writing the last blog entry for the month of February, and in keeping with the idea of cultivating relationships with readers and books, we cannot forget the importance of meeting authors and illustrators as part of our lives as readers. Continue reading
By Andrea García, Hofstra University
Every November, I look forward to attending the Annual Convention of the National Council of Teachers of English, and browsing books at the exhibits in order to build my professional and personal Spanish-English bilingual children’s library. I know that I am always able to find interesting new books after visiting Cinco Puntos Press , or Arte Público Press. This past November, I also visited West End Discovery Press and found a couple of wonderful books I couldn’t wait to share with my students and my family. Continue reading
By Andrea García, Hofstra University
One of the graduate courses I teach in Literacy Studies is an introductory course in bilingualism and biliteracy for teachers who are seeking certification as Literacy Specialist. While this course provides a broad overview of many aspects of language and literacy development in multilingual contexts, it also offers opportunities for in-service teachers to consider issues of cultural and linguistic identity, race, and power, as experienced by immigrant and transnational families. Continue reading
By Andrea García, Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York
As we begin the month of February, it is difficult to escape the constant push for celebrating friends and loved ones with chocolates and diamond hearts. And in thinking about the idea of appreciating the important relationships in our lives, I decided that celebrating our relationships as readers can offer an alternative for framing the conversation. For this reason, I have selected to focus this month’s blog on inviting you to celebrate the relationships we forge as readers through our sharing of books and stories. As Giorgis, Bedford, and Fabbi (2008) describe, “Literature can… provide an impetus for strengthening relationships-such as that between a parent and child, or a teacher and student, or within a community of learners. Additionally, many readers form instant and lifelong connections to books, returning to these texts and re-reading them throughout their lives” (p. 5). Continue reading
by Kathy G. Short, University of Arizona
The Common Core State Standards put a major emphasis on the close reading of texts, recommending that students find and cite evidence in the text as they discuss key ideas and details, craft and structure, and knowledge and ideas. Text analysis is viewed as bringing rigor to reading with an emphasis on higher level critical reading skills. Any text read to or by students is used for instructional purposes, to teach something. If students respond to a text by talking about what it reminds them of from their lives, teachers are to steer students back to the task and ask them to talk about what the story is about—to get the details and to support their statements by citing evidence in the text. Text-dependent questions and evidence, not connection, are valued. Continue reading
By Kathy Short, Director of Worlds of Words
One aspect of the Common Core State Standards that has received a great deal of attention is the increased focus on informational texts. The CCSS document calls for 50/50 split between informational and literary texts in kindergarten, gradually increasing to a 70/30 split in high school.
Continue reading
By Kathy G. Short, University of Arizona
The Common Core State Standards have focused attention on text complexity, arguing that students need to engage with texts that gradually increase in difficulty of ideas and textual structures, based on the belief that schools have not been rigorous in providing difficult texts. This focus on rigor in reading is based on the goal that students understand the level of texts necessary for success in college and careers by the time they graduate from high school. The problem is that decisions about text complexity in schools are often based in misconceptions.