Nonfiction Children's Literature

Title:  "Separate is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez and Her Family's Fight for Desegregation"

Author:  Duncan Tonatiuh

Illustrator: Duncan Tonatiuh

Publisher:  Harry N. Abrams

Copyright:  2014

Pages: 40

     This picture book tells the story of Sylvia Mendez from California.  She was an American citizen of who was fluent in English speaking and writing. However, because of her Puerto Rican and Mexican heritage, she was denied enrollment to a school that was only for whites. Sylvia's parents wanted their daughter to have the best opportunities in education. After moving to Westminster in Southern California during World War 2, they decided to advocate and make a difference for all the children in the community.  The family worked with others to eventually help end school segregation in California.  The case Brown v. Board of Education was made possible because of the hard work from the Mendez and other parents. The text is understandable for the young reader while also engaging adults. Tonatiuh has Spanish lines and translations 

     Illustrations from the author display a folklore style.  The artwork gives an excellent view into life during this time. A very talented author and artist, Tonatiuh has created a wonderful piece of literature and art that will benefit multitudes of readers.  He went above and beyond with his essay, photographs, resource list and glossary to extend the learning experience.

     Connection to the classroom: Grades 1-4 (but not limited, this can benefit ALL ages). Students could write a narrative essay expressing their feelings about this topic for a language arts assignment. With the timeline of this story taking place during World War 2 and after, history and social studies could be integrated while students discussed the changes that our nation faced. A lesson about diversity, equality, and the right for everyone to have the best education could also be used with this text.  

                                              

Science Fiction Children's Literature

Title: "A Wrinkle in Time"

Author: Madeleine L'Engele

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (Original date 1962); Square Fish (Reprint 2007)

Pages: 256

Genre: Science Fiction

     Young Meg Murry may seem like an ordinary girl. In this book, her adventures are far from common.  She travels through space and time on a search for her father. Accompanied by her brother and friend, the trio travels to another planet to rescue Mr. Murry. Three magical beings help the children on their journey and give them important information. The three women tell of a evil force who is taking over planets and holding the childrens' father captive. Meg, her brother, and her friend face many challenges and one falls under the power of the evil power. Will they overcome this mysterious force? Will the family be reunited? Read this captivating book to learn how the characters display true courage and overcome unimaginable challenges.

     Connection to the classroom: This piece of literature is for the older students. You could use it for a literature focus unit in 5th or 6th grade. Read aloud with your class to help them stay on track as they move through each chapter. You could divide into small groups and differentiate instruction by giving them various levels of questions to discuss. Peer groups could benefit from learning from each other.

Historical Fiction Children's Literature

Title:  "I Survived the Nazi Invasion of 1944"

Author:  Lauren Tarshis

Illustrator/Design:  Tim Hall

Publisher: Scholastic, Inc. 

Copyright:  2014

Pages: 90

     Max Rosen is a young boy living in a Polish ghetto. His family was forced to leave their home and move to a guarded community. The conditions were miserable and whole families were sharing a bedroom.  German soldiers gave them rules to follow and if broken, they faced horrible punishment. Food was scarce and everyone's health deteriorated. After their father was taken by the Nazis, Mas and his little sister Zena had to take care of themselves. One day while trying to find food to eat, they were taken prisoner. A daring escape forced them into the forest. The story continues to facing the risk of being captured yet again and face harrowing consequences. This book will show you how Max and Zena fight to survive and find who they can trust to help them. With events building up to diminish all hope, will they make it to safety? Will they ever find their family again? The answer lies in the pages, you just have to find it.

     Connection to the Classroom:  Author Lauren Tarshis has written many books that tell of young children surviving historical events from all over the world.  This series will engage young learners and motivate them to read more.  Text features in a literature unit could be introduced. This text has maps, a timeline of the events of World War 2, and a section with common questions and facts. Those features can also accompany a Social Studies or History lesson.  

Picture Book Talk 

https://youtu.be/gaz-CE0loIs
https://youtu.be/gaz-CE0loIs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9KS42imsvE&feature=youtu.be

International Children's Literature

A Game for Swallows: To Die, to Leave, to Return by Zeina Abirached

Title: "A Game for Swallows: To Die, to Leave, to Return"

Author: Zeina Abirached

Illustrator: Zeina Abirached

Publisher:Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.

Copyright: 2007

Number of Pages:

Genre: International Children's Literature

      Imagine being a young child living in a city torn apart by war. Within the pages of this book, author Zeina Abirached opens a window to see what it was like to live in Beirut in the 1980s. This story takes place on an afternoon when the author's parents went to visit their grandmother.  The distance for the visit was only a few blocks away. However, due to the war in the city, there are snipers located outside their apartment building and sounds of bombs are constantly in the background. Abirached and her brother wait with neighbors in their building for their parents to return safely. Although it is a stressful situation, the two siblings still find a sense of normalcy as they play games during the wait. Read to find out how friends help support each other during a trying time while also carrying on with their day. This book portrays the importance and strength of family and community. 
       Illustrations in this book are simple but compelling.  With a color palette of black and white, the author and illustrator has created a comic book style layout.  

Classroom Connection

Suggested grades: 2nd-6th
     This piece of literature could be used to help students have a different perspective by giving a glimpse of life for youth in other parts of the world.  History and social studies could be discussed while learning about the time period the author wrote about.

Diverse Perspectives Children's Literature Book Blog

Title: Paper Wishes

Author:  Lois Sepahban 

Publisher:  Margaret Ferguson/Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Copyright:  2016

Pages: 192
Genre: Multicultural/Diverse Culture's Children's Literature

     Teaching students about the bombing of Pearl Harbor is common in most classrooms in our country. What we might not be doing is giving our young learners a different perspective.  In the book Paper Wishes by Lois Sepahban, the author introduces us to Manami. She is a young girl of Japanese American descent who lives with her parents and grandfather in Washington state. When the United States entered World War II, Manami and her family are forcibly relocated to an internment camp in the desert of California.  Taking only a few of their things, the family is faced with hardships and numerous challenges as they settle into their new lives. In spite of these unfortunate events, Manami and her family work together to overcome adversity with grace and strength.
     Connection to the classroom:  This book would be ideal for the 8 to 12 year old range. Taking the text and reading together would be a good way to help students work through questions they might have. You can integrate history by discussing World War II. Social studies could be introduced by talking about the geography and the different cultures that are mentioned in this text. A writing assignment for language arts could accompany this as well. Students could write on the topic of how they would have felt if they were in a similar situation.

Children's Literature Book Blog #1

Children's Literature Book Blog #1

Title: "You're All Kinds of Wonderful"

Author: Nancy Tillman

Illustrator: Nancy Tillman

Publisher: Feiwel and Friends New York, Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC

Copyright: 2017

Number of Pages: 30

Genre: Picture Books

     Each one of us is created with a unique design. Learning how to embrace what makes us special might take a little time. In the book, You're All Kinds of Wonderful, author Nancy Tillman takes us through a beautiful journey of finding our own exceptional abilities. She shows us that we all have our own "bells and whistles" and not to give up to make those bells ring! It's not as simple as "just be yourself." With each turn of the page, we will see there are trials. However, if we persevere, the end result will be magnificent. Everyone has a story worth unfolding. Read this book to find out more form this beautiful story!

     The illustrations in this book were digitally created in a collage style using various software programs.  The combination of photographs and mixed media is creative and pleasing to the eye. Each page features a child with an animal. From hanging in a tree with a sloth to ballet dancing with a kangaroo, these pictures are sure to please readers of all ages. The author's granddaughter even makes an appearance in this amazing piece of literature!

Grade: Kindergarten-3 (No age limit, appropriate for ALL ages)

Content

     In the classroom, this book could be read to your students. Afterwards, have students write and/or illustrate something unique and amazing about themselves.  This could be as simple as a drawing and caption with younger children. Older students could write a few sentences in their journals. Discuss with students how everyone has their own unique abilities and that all are worthy to be celebrated! This could lead to relationships being built in your community of learners.