I read a lot of children’s books for class
assignments during 2010 - thus the life of an aspiring elementary educator! For one assignment, for my Empowering ESOL Teachers class, I
had to read and compile a list of 25 books that would express the idea of
multiculturalism. Of course, the main thing to include was books that were
about different languages and cultures, but, I went further and included books
that contained topics such as adoption, disabilities, and different folktales.
The following were ones I enjoyed reading, ones I knew kids would enjoy reading too, and
ones I could see myself having in my classroom library (providing I had the funds and
actual classroom for the library)! I also suggested grade levels and content area in which they could be incorporated into the classroom curriculum.
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1.
Castaneda, O.
S. Abuela’s Weave. (1993). New York:
Lee & Low Books Inc.
Abuela’s Weave is a story about a young girl (Esperanza) and her
grandmother (Abuela) creating special items and attempting to sell those items at the
village square, in the midst of other sellers. It’s a great picture book for a
lesson on Guatemala. Grade: 3. Content Area: Social Studies.
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2.
Cheng, A.
(2000). Grandfather Counts. New York:
Lee & Low Books Inc.
Grandfather Counts is a story about a grandfather (Gong Gong) moving
in with his daughter’s family in America and bonding with one of his
grandchildren (Helen). Together, through counting, Gong Gong and Helen put aside the
language barrier and learn each other’s language. It’s a nice story about
adapting to a different language and overcoming the obstacles through simple
things. It's a great story when doing a lesson about people from China coming to
America and finding simple ways, like counting, to make things simpler with language. Grade:
3 – 4. Content Area: Language Arts.
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3.
Chocolate, D.
(2009). El Barrio. New York: Christy
Ottaviano Books.
El Barrio is a story of a young boy who gives a tour of his
neighborhood and shares the town’s Latino culture while everyone gathers to
celebrate his sister’s quinceanera birthday party. This story is good for
discussing the Hispanic culture all around us. Grade: 2 – 3. Content Area:
Social Studies.
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4.
Chocolate, D.
(1995). On the Day I Was Born. New
York: Scholastic Inc.
On the Day I Was Born is about the birth of a newborn baby boy, and the
traditions his family did to celebrate the news of his birth. This short
picture book is great for grades K-2. Because the book is about African traditions,
it would be good for a social studies lesson on customs. Grade: K-2. Content
Area: Social Studies.
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5.
Choi, S.N.
(1997). Yunmi and Halmoni’s Trip.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Yunmi and Halmoni’s Trip is about a young girl (Yunmi) who travels back to
Korea with her grandmother (Halmoni) for a quick visit. At first, she enjoys
seeing relatives and playing with cousins, but she soon fears that her
grandmother will enjoy staying in Korea and will not want to go back to New
York to live with her and her parents. Grade: 3. Content Area(s): Language
Arts/Social Studies.
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6.
Choi, Y.
(2001). The Name Jar. New York:
Alfred A. Knopf.
The Name Jar is about a young girl (Unhei) who feels
embarrassed about using her Korean name in America because she feels that
people will make fun of her. On her first day at school, she tells her
classmates that she has no name, therefore her classmates decide to use a glass
jar and fill various names in it for her to choose one as her new name.
Considering each one, she soon realizes that she likes her regular Korean name
and, with the help of a new friend (Joey), she decides to keep it and embrace it. This is a great book that teaches the value of our given names. Grade:
3. Content Area: Language Arts.
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7.
Cook, M.
(2009). Our Children Can Soar: A
Celebration of Rosa, Barack, and the Pioneers of Change. New York:
Bloomsbury U.S.A Children’s Books.
Our Children Can Soar is a short picture book which celebrates several
African American victories as ways of paving the way for each other. Several
people mentioned in the book are George Washington Carver, Jesse Owens, Jackie
Robinson, and President Barack Obama. This special book would be good for
lessons on any of the select people mentioned in the book, or for a social
studies lesson during February’s Black History Month. Grade: 2-4. Content
Area: Social Studies.
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8.
Dahl, M.
(1998). Countries of the World: China.
Minnesota: Capstone Press.
Countries of the World: China is a short nonfiction book about the country of
China. The book gives the reader a tour of the country by showing certain sight
seeing places, information about the home and school life of children, information about the
currency and the flag, and even learning words spoken in Chinese. It is a good book
for a lesson on China. Grade: 2-3. Content Area: Social Studies.
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9.
Friedrich, M.
(2004). You’re Not My Real Mother!
New York: Little, Brown, and Company.
You’re Not My Real Mother! is about a small girl who tells her adoptive
mother that the mother is not the girl’s real mother because they have different skin colors (the girl is either African American or Hispanic, while the mother is
Caucasian). The mother then responds by giving logical reasons why, even though
she doesn’t look like her daughter, she is the girl's real mother, because of all things she does for the girl, and because the love is real. While
this book is appropriate for grades K-2, in celebration of uniqueness and
diversity, I would have to check with the parents before sharing it to the
class - in the event that there could be children in my classroom who are adopted
but whose parents never mentioned it. Grade: K-2. Content Area: Language Arts.
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10.
Geeslin, C.
(2007). Clara & Senor Frog. New
York: Schwartz & Wade Books.
Clara and Senor Frog is about a young girl (Clara) who thinks her
mother’s boyfriend looks like a tall frog (whom she refers to Senor Frog). However, as time goes by, she and Senor Frog bond with the shared ambition of painting.
It is a nice book to integrate Latino art into an art lesson or language arts
lesson. Grade: 2-3. Content Area: Language Arts/Art.
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11.
Girard, L. W.
(1989). We Adopted You, Benjamin Koo.
USA: Albert Whitman & Company, Niles, Illinois.
We Adopted You, Benjamin Koo is a loveable story about a boy (Benjamin Koo
Andrews) who narrates his life up to fourth grade. He discusses the issue of finding
out he was adopted and came from Korea, being made fun of at school because of
his appearance, and gaining a sister from Brazil. This great picture book is
great to have when discussing a lesson about Korea and how sometimes kids are
adopted from different countries. Grade: 3-4. Content
Area: Social Studies.
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12.
Guback, G.
(1994). Luka’s Quilt. New York:
Greenwillow Books.
Luka’s Quilt is about a small girl (Luka) whose grandmother
(Tutu) makes a quilt that displeases the girl because it has no color on it. The displeasure continues until Tutu decides
to add a special gift to the quilt, and Luka decides to love the quilt with and
without the added colors. It is a good book when discussing the Hawaiian
culture. Grade: 2-3. Content Area: Language Arts/Social Studies.
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13.
Hector, J.
(2008). The Little Matador. New York:
Hyperion Books for Children.
The Little Matador is about a young matador whose ambition is to draw
instead of being a bullfighter. This cute short picture book is good to show
that all children have a purpose and should follow their goals, the things they
are good at doing. Grade: K-1. Content Area: Language Arts/Social Studies/Art.
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14.
Kroll, V.
(1992). Masai and I. New York: Four
Winds Press.
Masai
and I is about a small girl who
imagines what her life would be like if she were in the Masia tribe in East
Africa. In the story, she imagines how her home and environment would be like,
what she would eat, what kind of jobs her parents would have, etc. I think this
book is good for teaching a social studies lesson on Africa. Grade: 3. Content
Area: Social Studies.
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15.
Mannis, C.D.
(2002). One Leaf Rides the Wind. New York:
Viking.
One Leaf Rides the Wind is a picture book of Japanese haiku seen through
the eyes of a small Japanese girl. The reader is shown several surroundings
(ten total, with each page a numbered location) of Japanese culture as the girl
shares special places within her garden. It is great for grades K-2: a grade K mathematics
lesson, and grades 1-2 language arts lesson. Grade: K-2. Content Area:
Mathematics/Language Arts.
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16.
Mara, W.
(1999). Countries of the World: Cuba.
Minnesota: Capstone Press.
Countries of the World: Cuba is a short nonfiction book which explores the
country of Cuba by giving information of the country’s flag and currency, the
home and school life of Cubans, particular foods and animals, and cities and
customs within the country. This book is good for a lesson on the country of
Cuba. Grade: 2-3. Content Area: Social Studies.
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17.
Miller, J.
(1996). American Indian Games. USA:
Children’s Press.
American Indian Games is a short nonfiction book about the kinds of activities
young American Indian children participate with their friends and family. The
book explores the classic toys and games from pastime, and shows the kinds of
games American Indian children play today. This is a great book on Native
American culture. Grade: 2-3. Content Area: Social Studies.
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18.
Patz, N.
(2003). Who Was the Woman Who Wore the
Hat? New York: Dutton Books.
Who Was the Woman Who Wore the Hat? is about a narrator wondering about a particular
hat at the Jewish Museum, and guessing what kind of person the wearer of the
hat could have been. This would be a good book when doing a subject on the
Holocaust. Grade: 4-5. Content Area:
Language Arts/Social Studies.
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19.
Recorvits, H.
(2003). My Name is Yoon. New York:
Frances Foster Books.
My Name is Yoon is a story about a small
Korean girl who moves to America with her family and struggles to make friends
and accept that her name is written “Yoon” in English. In retaliation, she
chooses to write her name as CAT, BIRD, and CUPCAKE (things she finds
interesting) in school until she learns to value the use of written English,
and makes new friends at school. This picture book is great when discussing
Korea or teaching about the special meanings of our names in different
languages. Grade: 1-2. Content Area: Language Arts/Social Studies.
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20.
Seuss, Dr.
(1961). The Sneetches and Other Stories.
New York: Random House.
The Sneetches is a classic Dr. Seuss
tale about two different groups (Sneetches with stars on their bellies, and
Sneetches without stars on their bellies) who compete to be superior and
unique. When their attitudes create chaos, they realize that they need to
accept each other and cherish the unique features they both share. The book is
perfect for a lesson on togetherness and diversity. Grade: 1-5. Content Area:
Language Arts.
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21.
Shally, C.
(2007). Since We’re Friends: An Autism
Picture Book. Arkansas: Awaken Specialty Press.
Since We’re Friends is about a boy who
has a friend (Matt) with autism. The boy narrates their friendship and shares
certain moments that causes Matt’s behavior to change into small fits of
emotion. This book is good when teaching diversity in race and in disability. Grade:
2. Content Area: Language Arts.
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22.
Thomas, P.
(2000). Don’t Call Me Special: A First Look
at Disability. New York: Barron’s Educational Series, Inc.
Don’t Call Me Special takes a look at several kinds of disabilities that
children may have (from physical to mental) and
questions the reader to reflect about themselves and if they can relate
to the situation. This picture book is good for teaching about diversity. Grade: K-2.
Content Area: Language Arts.
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23.
Volavkova, H.
(1993). …I Never Saw Another Butterfly:
Children’s Drawings and Poems from
Terezin Concentration Camp, 1942-1944. New York: Schocken Books.
I Never Saw Another Butterfly is an intimate compilation of drawings and poems
of the Jewish children who were kept in the Terezin concentration camp. This
would be a good book when doing a subject on the Holocaust, though I probably
would inform the parents before choosing to read a few selections. Grade: 4-5.
Content Area: Language Arts.
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24.
Walker, A.
(2007). Why War is Never a Good Idea.
New York: Harper Collins Publishers.
Why War is Never a Good Idea is a
serious story about how war is a universal language, and that no matter which
part of the world war happens, war is destructive. It is a great book, with a great
message, but because of the seriousness of the message and content, I would
share this book only after notifying the parents beforehand. Grade: 4-5. Content
Area: Language Arts/Social Studies.
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25.
Wojciechowska,
M. (2007, republished). Shadow of a Bull. USA: Aladdin Books.
Shadow of a Bull is about a young boy
(Manolo Olivar) who wants to be a normal boy who has no fears, but the whole
town of Arcangel expects him to become a great bullfighter like his late
father. I think this novel can be used during a lesson about the
country of Spain or revolving around its importance of bullfighting in their
culture. Grade: 4-5. Content Area:
Language Arts/Social Studies.
