Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale

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Title: Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale

Author(s): John Steptoe

Illustrator/Photographer: John Steptoe

Publisher and Year: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books 1987

Number of pages: 28

Tags/Themes: Allison Henry, Award Book, Family, Culture, Picture Book, Fiction, 2-3, 4-5

Genre: Fiction

Descriptive Annotation:  Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters is the story of Nyasha, the nice sister, and Manyara, the mean sister. One day, the King sends out a proclamation that he is looking for a wife and all eligible women need to report to the palace. Manyara sneaks out of her home at night to be the first woman to meet the King and on her journey, she is rude to many people. Nyasha follows the next morning with her father, Mufaro, and is kind to everyone. When she arrives at the palace, the King reveals that he was all of the people that she was kind to on the journey and takes her as his wife. Students would benefit from knowing how to pronounce the various African words in the text. The illustrations in the book are incredibly detailed and take up the entire set of pages. They appear to be done in colored pencil. This book is a Caldecott Honor Book.

Classroom Application: This book could be used in a social sciences lesson on African cultures. In the front cover, the author mentions that the story is based off a folktale first published in 1895 by G. M. Theal in his collection of African folktales. The illustrations are based off of ancient ruins found near Zimbabwe. This book could also be used to teach Social Emotional Learning Standard 2, “Use social-awareness and interpersonal skills to establish and maintain positive relationships.” The students could compare and contrast the two sisters and discuss their interactions, including ways to improve Manyara’s interactions with others.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: As mentioned above, this text is based off of an African folktale and the illustrations are based off of ancient ruins found near Zimbabwe. This text could be used in a unit on African cultures to enrich the students’ knowledge. It mentions some crops that are grown in Africa, “Nyasha kept a small plot of land, on which she grew millet, sunflowers, yams, and vegetables.” The illustrations are very detailed and show what the clothing looked like, how they traveled, what kinds of plants there are, and what animals live in the area.

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Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters

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Title: Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters

Author(s): Barack Obama

Illustrator/Photographer: Loren Long

Publisher and Year: Alfred A. Knopf 2010

Number of pages: 29

Tags/Themes: Allison Henry, Diversity, Family, Non-fiction, Picture Book, K-1, 2-3

Genre: Non-fiction

Descriptive Annotation:  Of Thee I Sing is a letter from former president Barack Obama to his daughters, Sasha and Malia. Throughout the story, Obama brings up many of the positive character traits that the girls have, and then introduces them to a historic American who also has that character trait. On the left side of each pair of pages is an illustration of Malia and Sasha looking to the right page at an image of a historically important American. Joining them on the page is a younger version of the individual being portrayed and the younger versions of each individual that has been featured in the book previously. Under the large illustration of each individual is a couple sentences explaining why that person was influential in American history. The last page shows all of the younger versions standing together facing the reader, with text that begins, “Have I told you that America is made up of people of every kind?” The illustrations are done in acrylic and at the end of the book is a page with brief bios on each of the individuals featured in the book. A knowledge of influential people in American history would be helpful for students to fully understand this book, but it is not necessary. Students should know what the various character traits mentioned in the book are, to understand why the individuals were influential.

Classroom Application: This text connects to many different academic areas and a Social Emotional Learning Standard. The individuals featured in the text’s occupational areas range from fine arts to science, math to social sciences and everything in between. This book could be used in early or late elementary to meet SELS 1.B, “Recognize personal qualities and external supports.” The character traits in this book are positive characteristics that students should develop throughout their lifetime. This book could be used to introduce a project where students pick someone influential from history that they have something in common with and then compare themselves to the historical figure.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This book represents many cultures. Some of the historical figures featured in the book include: Jackie Robinson, the first African American baseball player; Sitting Bull, a Sioux leader; Maya Lin, a Chinese American who designed the Vietnam Veterans Memorial; Martin Luther King Jr., who fought for the civil rights of African Americans; and Cesar Chavez, a Mexican-American who fought for farm worker’s rights. This book shows that valuable contributions have been made to American history by people of all races and that America is great because it has such a diverse population. On the last page it says, “People of all races, religions, and beliefs. People from the coastlines and the mountains. People who have made bright lights shine by sharing their unique gifts and giving us the courage to lift one another up, to keep up the fight, to work and build upon all that is good in our nation.”

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Drawn Together

Posted on November 29, 2018 by | Comments Off on Drawn Together

Title: Drawn Together

Author(s): Minh Lê

Illustrator/Photographer: Dan Santat

Publisher and Year: Disney-Hyperion 2018

Number of pages: 32

Tags/Themes: Allison Henry, Culture, Diversity, Family, Fantasy, Fine Arts, Graphic Novel, K-5

Genre: Fantasy

Descriptive Annotation: Drawn Together is the story of a little boy and his grandfather realizing that they don’t need to use words to connect to each other. In the beginning of the story the grandfather and the grandson struggle to understand each other, as the grandfather speaks Vietnamese and the grandson speaks English. One day, the boy is drawing at the table and the grandfather pulls out a sketchbook filled with amazing drawings. The grandson and grandfather begin creating stories together, using only their drawings, no words. There are not many words in the story, so a student reading this book needs a background knowledge of how to read graphic novels, or at least the critical thinking skills to figure out how to read graphic novels, to understand the story. According to the copyright information, the illustrations were done in a variety of materials and then rendered on a computer.

Classroom Application: This story has connections to fine arts and the Social and Emotional Learning Standards. This story shows that art can cross many barriers in communication. One page says, “Right when I gave up on talking, my grandfather surprised me by revealing a world beyond words.” A few pages later it says, “All the things we could never say come pouring out” in response to the newly-discovered shared love of drawing. It can also be used to show the art styles of the Vietnamese culture, and begin an inquiry into different styles of art in different cultures. Social and Emotional Learning Standard 2 talks about building positive relationships and this story is an example of building positive relationships without being able to talk to one another.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: Both characters in the story are Vietnamese Americans. The grandfather is more Vietnamese, and the boy is more American. It can generate discussion on many aspects of different cultures (i.e. language, food, art) and ancestry. There are many panels in the beginning of the story that show both American and Vietnamese items for comparison. Many of the grandfather’s drawings are done in what appears to be traditional Vietnamese style.

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The Dot

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Title: The Dot

Author(s): Peter H. Reynolds

Illustrator/Photographer: Peter H. Reynolds

Publisher and Year: Candlewick Press 2003

Number of pages: 28

Tags/Themes: Allison Henry, Fiction, Fine Arts, Picture Book, K-1

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: In The Dot, Vashti, a young girl is frustrated during art class because she believes that she can’t draw. Her art teacher challenges her to “just make a mark” and Vashti angerly makes a single dot on the page. The teacher has her sign the page and hangs it in the classroom. Seeing her art on the wall sparks something in Vashti and she begins to paint many different types of dots, eventually passing her love of art onto a young boy. A knowledge of art related words (i.e. colors, line types) would be beneficial to a read, but the images provide support to figuring out these words. The illustrations are done in tea, ink, and watercolor.

Classroom Application: This story is connected to fine arts and to the Social and Emotional Learning Standards. The entire story is about a girl developing a love of art. She paints many different colored and sized dots. Her artwork hangs on the wall in the school’s art show that “made quite a splash.” It also connects to the 3rd Social and Emotional Learning Standard. Vashti contributes to the school community by showing her art in the art show. She also helped the young boy to discover his love of art.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: The cultural diversity in this story lies in the main characters name. According to names.org, Vashti is a Persian name meaning “beautiful.” One of the Queens of Persia was named Vashti. This story could apply to many different cultures, as many different cultures value art. This book could be used to begin a student’s inquiry into different art forms and the ways that different cultures create and view art. In the illustrations, the characters are simply shaded, they are not shown as being any specific race. This allows all students to see themselves as Vashti, and see that they are capable of creating beautiful art.

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Golden Domes and Silver Lanterns: A Muslim Book of Colors

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Title: Golden Domes and Silver Lanterns: A Muslim Book of Colors

Author(s): Hena Khan

Illustrator/Photographer: Mehrdokht Amini

Publisher and Year: Scholastic Inc. 2012

Number of pages: 21

Tags/Themes: Allison Henry, Culture, Family, Fiction, Holidays, Picture Book, Poetry, K-1, 2-3, Social Science

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: Golden Domes and Silver Lanterns follows a young girl as she explains the what the colors in her world are. Each page talks about a color and what object in the young girl’s religion are that color. A background knowledge of Muslim terms would be helpful, but there is a glossary in the back that defines many of the words. Each page is two sentences long and the sentences have end rhyme.

Classroom Application: This text can be used in the social sciences when talking about different religions. It could also be used to explain part of the culture of a student that is Muslim. This book could be used to introduce a unit on different religions and/or holidays, because it does talk a little about both Ramadan and Eid.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: As stated in the classroom application section, this text can be used to teach students about the Muslim religion. It is a brief introduction, so it could prompt students to look deeper into this religion or prompt them to ask questions and potentially research other religions. It can also be used in a unit on holidays as it says, “Brown is a date, plump and sweet. During Ramadan, it’s my favorite treat.” It also talks about Eid, “Purple is an Eid gift just for me. I open it up and love what I see.”

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My Family, Your Family

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Title: My Family, Your Family

Author(s): Lisa Bullard

Illustrator/Photographer: Renee Kurilla

Publisher and Year: Lerner Publishing 2015

Number of pages: 21

Tags/Themes: Allison Henry, Diversity, Family, Fiction, Picture Book, K-1, 2-3

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: My Family, Your Family is a story that also has little bubbles with facts on each page. The story part follows Makayla as she travels around her neighborhood spending time with the various families that she knows. Makayla is about to have a little brother and she is very concerned that it will change their family. She sees, through the different families in town, that every family is great, and her new baby brother will make her family better. The fact bubbles include information about languages spoke at home, divorce, step-parents/siblings, and adoption. Young readers would be able to read and understand this book, and there is a glossary at the end that lists words mentioned in the story that relate to families. In addition to the glossary, there is a section titled “Make a ‘”One Great Thing”’ Poster” that provides step-by-step instructions for students to make a poster that shows one thing that makes their family great.

Classroom Application: My Family, Your Family can be used to show students that different types of families exist, and that they are all valid. It can be used to help teach Social and Emotional Learning Standard 2, by showing relationships different from the students. It also shows various ways that families maintain those relationships, such as communication and cooperation. This text could be used in an early education classroom to introduce the idea of differences in families.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This book represents many different family types. Makayla herself is part of a mixed-race family. She meets a family that speaks Spanish, a lesbian couple, a girl and her divorced dad who are Asian, a boy who lives with his grandparents, a gay couple and their adopted son (also a mixed-race family) and has dinner with her single aunt and three cousins. Every one of these families is spoken of positively and the focus is on the family dynamic, not necessarily who is part of the family. When meeting Parker, the adopted boy with two dads, Makayla says, “And Parker’s two dads knew he was meant to be their little boy.” The emphasis is that the dads love Parker, not that they are gay. In the bubble on that page it says, “Some children who are adopted were born in the United States. Some were born in other countries. Either way, their adoptive families fell like they were meant to be together.” This is validating the families, showing that no matter how they came to be a family, they still love each other.

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Bravo!: Poems About Amazing Hispanics

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Title: Bravo!: Poems About Amazing Hispanics

Author(s): Margarita Engle

Illustrator/Photographer: Rafael Lopez

Publisher and Year: Henry Holt and Company 2017

Number of pages: 38

Tags/Themes: Allison Henry, Culture, Diversity, Poetry, Picture Book, K-5, Non-fiction, Social Science

Genre: Biography

Descriptive Annotation:  Bravo! is a biographical story that highlights many influential Hispanics (this is the term the author uses; however, the story does include individuals from countries other than Spain. A better term would be Spanish-speakers). The individuals in the text range from poets to doctors, musicians to astronauts, pilots to cowboys. At the end of the story is a list of many more influential Spanish-speaking people and a more descriptive paragraph about each of the individuals featured. Most of the words in the story are easy words, any students reading this would benefit from a general knowledge of history, although it is not strictly necessary. This story is written in free-verse poetry and the illustrations are done in pen, ink, watercolor, construction paper, and acrylic on wood.

Classroom Application: This text can be used to talk about social science and Spanish-speaking individuals’ contributions to many different fields. Many of the stories mention wars, slavery, injustice, and immigration. The stories of specific individuals can be used to supplement lessons and/or units on events such as the American Revolution, Civil Wars, music, medical advancements, and even minorities in baseball. This book could be introduced by asking students what they know about Spanish-speaking individuals’ contributions to history and then building off of their answers.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This book can be used to highlight important people in the different Spanish-speaking cultures. A variety of cultures are represented in the book, so this text can be used when talking about many different cultures. On the page highlighting Julia De Burgos, it says, “I struggled to become a teacher and a poet, so I could use words to fight for equal rights for women, and work toward meeting the needs of poor children, and speak of independence for Puerto Rico.” Another page highlights Arnold Rojas, a cowboy, and says, “My Mexican ancestors included Yaqui and Maya indios, people who fought to stay free and live in their own traditional ways.” These quotes show just two of the many cultures represented in the text.

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Freedom Over Me

Posted on November 29, 2018 by | Comments Off on Freedom Over Me

Title: Freedom Over Me

Author(s): Ashley Bryan

Illustrator/Photographer: Ashley Bryan

Publisher and Year: Antheneum Books for Young Readers 2016

Number of pages: 44

Tags/Themes: Allison Henry, Culture, Diversity, Emotion, Family, Historical Fiction, Picture Book, Poetry, 2-3, 4-5, Social Science

Genre: Historical Fiction

Descriptive Annotation:  Freedom Over Me is the story of eleven slaves. It provided a narrative of each of the slaves’ duties on the plantation and then describes their inner thoughts while they are working. In the back of the book there is an Author’s Note that explains the history behind this story. The author collected many documents relating to slavery, including an appraisement form for an estate. This form listed eleven slaves with their name and price. The author wanted to craft these names and prices into people to show that slaves were humans, too. This book is written in free verse poetry and the illustrations are done in pen, ink, watercolor, and copies of historical documents.

Classroom Application: This book could be used in a unit on slavery. It provides a different perspective that shows a little bit of the slaves’ side of the story. This text could be used to show students how slaves were treated like animals when they were sold. The author includes the appraisal form in the book and it shows the slaves’ names next to cattle and other farm animals.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: The pages that include the slaves’ thoughts provide a brief description of what their lives were like in Africa before they were taken. It includes mentions of African art, history, and music and how those things are passed down through generations. Mulvina, the oldest slave, says, “Years of driven labor have not driven the ancestral thoughts out of me. My memory of teaching-surrounded by children, singing songs of our people, the stories of our history-lives always within me.” Betty, a middle ages woman says, “We remember our African cultures, our traditions, our craftsmanship. Within us lives this knowledge, this undefeated pride.” This book could be used in the classroom by having the students compare this story to a story about slavery from the perspective of the owner. There would be a discussion on power and how perspectives shape our idea of the world around us.

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My Heart is on the Ground: The Diary of Nannie Little Rose, a Sioux Girl

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Title: My Heart is on the Ground: The Diary of Nannie Little Rose, a Sioux Girl (Dear America series)

Author(s): Ann Rinaldi

Illustrator/Photographer: N/A

Publisher and Year: Scholastic Inc. 1999

Number of pages: 171

Tags/Themes: Allison Henry, Culture, Diversity, Chapter Book, Emotion, Historical Fiction, 4-5, Social Science

Genre: Historical Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: My Heart is on the Ground is written in diary format. At the end of the book is a section on the events happening in the United States during 1880, the year that the book takes place. There is also a section of pictures, a note about the author, and a list of the other books in the Dear America series. My Heart is on the Ground is the story of Little Rose, a Sioux girl who gets sent to a school set up by white people to force Native American children to forget their heritage and become the white people’s idea of a perfect citizen. Little Rose struggles to remember where she comes from while also making her teachers proud.

Classroom Application: This book could be used in a series of lessons on Native Americans. It shows what these children went through in an age appropriate way. It can also be used during a lesson on writing styles, as an example of epistolary writing. The students could read this book, put themselves in the position of a child in any point in history, and then write a range of diary entries.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: My Heart is on the Ground paints an accurate picture of the life of a Native American child at an Indian School. This book could be used to start a conversation on appropriate treatment of groups, dominant culture, and/or Native American culture. Little Rose talks about many aspects of her home culture quite often in the book. One instance of the cultural differences is shown when one of Little Rose’s peers dies from a disease. “I know some of the boys and girls wanted to tear their garments, cut their hair, cover themselves with mud, and slash at their arms because the Death Angel took Horace. But we were made to stand in citizens’ clothing, clean and quiet” (44). This book could also be used to build confidence in student’s writing skills. As Little Rose learns the English language, she makes many mistakes in her writing. If students read passages like, “The teachers had a new bed bring brought to our room” (69), they can recognize that it is ok to make mistakes in their writing.

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El Deafo

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Title: El Deafo

Author(s ): Cece Bell

Illustrator/Photographer: Cece Bell

Publisher and Year: Amulet Books, 2014

Number of pages: 233

Tags/Themes: Allison Henry, Animals, Award Book, Fiction, 4-5, 6-8, Family, Graphic Novel

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Descriptive Annotation: El Deafo is the story of a young girl, Cece, navigating elementary school and all that entails, while deaf. After contracting meningitis at age 4, Cece loses all ability to hear. She receives hearing aids and a Phonic Ear to use in school. In order to cope with being different, Cece creates an alter-ego, El Deafo. This book is a graphic novel, therefore there are many illustrations in the text. Students would need to have background knowledge in basic school situations, a middle to upper elementary level vocabulary, and the knowledge of how to read a graphic novel.

Classroom Application: I would use this text to address the Social Emotional Learning Standards for late elementary. This book could be used for Learning Standards 1.A., 2.A., 2.B.2.b., 2.C., and 2.D. These standards refer to explaining emotions, identifying social clues and describing them, identifying differences and overcoming them, and cooperating with friends and other groups. All of these topics are addressed in El Deafo, where the situations are presented, Cece chooses a course of action, and then the consequences are shown.

Linguistic and Cultural Diversity Analysis: This book is about a child that is deaf. This story presents many situations that students that are deaf and their classmates could find themselves in. This book could be used to start a discussion about treatment of peers that may be different from themselves. This book was published in 2014, therefore it is up to date in the vocabulary that it uses to describe the situations and the treatments used to assist the student that is deaf. This book could be introduced by explaining to the students that sometimes, people have different abilities. It could also be explained that, just because someone may have different abilities, does not mean that they are in need of assistance. It can be used to start a discussion on appropriate treatment of peers, addressing both bullying and trying to be too helpful. On page 34, Cece is teased by a friend for mishearing a question. Her friend, Emma, says, “No-not supper-summer! Summmmmm-mmmmmer! Supper! HEE HEE!” This part of the story focuses on Cece being teased by her peers and how see feels when this happens. Later in the story, Cece makes a friend that is too helpful. In response to Ginny, her friend, saying, “CEE-CEE. DOO YOO WANT MYYY PEEA-NUT BUTT-ER SAND-WICH?”, Cece thinks, “I really, really like Ginny. She’s funny. She’s weird. We love all the same things. So what’s the problem? It’s the wat she talks to me… “(67).

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