Critical Conversations
I am a former elementary teacher who is now a teacher educator in a university located in the Mid-West. In my various literacy courses I introduce pre-service teachers to books that allow us to have deep conversations about life in the world of the 21st century. I invite pre-service teachers, practicing teachers, and students to participate in ongoing critical conversations.
Although the quality and quantity of children’s literature about race and class is on the rise, teachers and librarians remain unsure about whether or not conversations about these topics are important and appropriate for children in schools. Many teachers I work with are quick to say that issues of class are “not us,” or “not in our school.” That may be true, but all of our students and the pupils they work with could tell their own stories of exclusion and victimization. My aim is to engage educators and students in what I call “critical conversations” with responses to literature, bringing issues of violence, religion, sexuality, race, and homelessness into classroom reading and conversation.
In this blog I discuss children’s books that depict social issues surrounding children and cultures in conflict and show how these books can be used to open critical conversations in the classroom. My intent is that this blog will help teachers and librarians deepen discussions with students in non-threatening and positive ways, while also establishing and building classroom community.
Labels: critical conversations
posted by Tammy Everett @ 2:01 PM
20 Comments:
I just read the Breadwinner by Deoborah Ellis and 14 Cows for America by Carmen Deedy. Both of these stories moved me to the core. It is amazing what a story can do to a person. As a teacher making sure these stories are shared with my students is very important to me. A lot of students may not know how other children in the world have to live or the value of cetain things. I want my students to be aware of the cost of our freedoms and look on at what we have as a blessing.
I too just read The Breadwinner and Parvana's Journey by Deborah Ellis. I think that having conversations with students about critical issues such as; sexuality, race, culture, etc., is extremely important to the students. The students(generalizing) normally need and/or like to relate to other people.They want to know they are the same and different, how, why and what makes them different or the same. I think that bring the conversations and issues together can help students grow and excel in reading. Knowledge is power and the only way to gain such power is to learn how to think for yourself. These critical conversations get people thinking and comparing background knowledge. Students then get into their "upshifted" mode and stay in their critical thinking process. Learning happens in this process. These conversations help students and myself(teacher) move information into my long term memory. This helps students to pull from their "filing cabinets" and present this background knowledge at a later date.
-Shay Herder
I too just read The Breadwinner and Parvana's Journey by Deborah Ellis. I think that having conversations with students about critical issues such as; sexuality, race, culture, etc., is extremely important to the students. The students(generalizing) normally need and/or like to relate to other people.They want to know they are the same and different, how, why and what makes them different or the same. I think that bring the conversations and issues together can help students grow and excel in reading. Knowledge is power and the only way to gain such power is to learn how to think for yourself. These critical conversations get people thinking and comparing background knowledge. Students then get into their "upshifted" mode and stay in their critical thinking process. Learning happens in this process. These conversations help students and myself(teacher) move information into my long term memory. This helps students to pull from their "filing cabinets" and present this background knowledge at a later date.
-Shay Herder
Hello this is Karla Arnold (created an account but just in case!)
I read the "Breadwinner" by Deborah Ellis and "Listen to the Wind" by Greg Mortenson. As I read both books it enlightened me to the culture of Afghanistan and the plights forced on the people because of the Taliban. As an adult it has opened a window of awareness and regard for the general welfare of others. Therefore, I believe that children should have that same opportunity.
As an educator, I believe it is critical for me to encourage my students to open books and turn pages pertaining to issues, such as, political, social and religious warfare. I want my students to not only be aware of issues outside of their back yard but become willing to become forces to help rectify problems.
I believe that introducing students to text sets can aid them in looking through the lenses at the life of others. By looking through those lenses it may prompt them to want to help address social issues and some day those efforts may help to develop a social consciousness which may increase world peace.
I, as many others did, read "Parvana's Journey" and "The Breadwinner" by Deborah Ellis. I really enjoyed reading both of these books as they were immensely eye opening and moving stories. Even as an adult, I was not aware of such tragedies which others are experiencing in countries such as Afghanistan.
It is to my belief that our children should be exposed to such topics as these because of how eye opening it can be for them. Children need to know the social issues which are going on in the world and they also need to learn about experiences which make them more grateful for what they have. This goes for not only books about social issues, but for books pertaining to violence, religion, sexuality, race, and homelessness and so on.
It is not wise to keep our children in the dark about such issues until they simply find out on their own. It would deeply benefit them to really learn about and become aware of such powerful issues.
I chose to read Mud City written by Deborah Ellis in the book, Shauzia dreamed of seeing the ocean and eventually making a new life in France, but it is hard to chase the dream with the conditions of the Afghan refugee camp that she lived in. Shauzia dressed like a boy, as her friend Parvana did, to earn money to buy passage out. But her journey became a struggle to survive as she was forced to beg and pick through garbage, eventually landing in jail. Mud City is the final book in the acclaimed trilogy that includes The Breadwinner, and Parvana's Journey. The book shows the life in refugee camps, where many children around the world are trapped, some for their whole lives. But it also tells movingly of these kids' resourcefulness and strength, which help them survive in these horrible circumstances.
I think that it is good for the children to read this book and see the struggles that other children face to have freedom, while we often take things for granted.
I read The Breadwinner and Parvana's Journey. These books taught me about life as a child and women in Afghanistan. These books have given me a perspective of living in a war ridden country and the struggles they must live through. These are two great resources to use in my classroom to teach students about culture, gender, and social issues. I know from experience it is difficult to relate to people when you do not have knowledge of their culture. Students need back ground knowledge in order to be more considerate of others.
This is Temily, just in case it doesn't show up.
I read the Breadwinner and Parvana's Journey. These books taught be a lot about the Afgan culture, and what has happened to their culture. These books have given me a different perspective of what a war ridden country is like. These would be great resources for students in the classroom. It would help teach the students what a country that is under the control of the Taliban would be like. It would help teach the students culture, gender, social issues, and war.
I read the book "The Breadwinner" by Deborah Ellis as well as the book "Why War is Never a Good Idea" by Alice Walker. These were two very different books and showed two very different depictions of war and the life of those involved. Both were very touching books that I found to be remarkable stories of life. "The Breadwinner" was a book that showed the life of a family living in the middle of a war. "Why War is Never a Good Idea" gave more examples of just how greatly war affects people. After reading both books I feel that it would be a great way to show different authors with the same purpose to your students. These books are wonderful and I believe that "The Breadwinner" would be more appropriate for older grades where as "Why War is Never a Good Idea" could be read to with some explanation to younger students as well.
Deanna Snider.
I read the book The 9/11 Report. Now days in school we tin not to talk about issues because we think a parent or student will get upset if we are talking about them. I believe that our students are seeing way more than what I did when I was in elementary. If we can get the issues out to our students and provide a way to deal with problems at an earlier age we might be able to change the young generation. 9/11 was a big part of my teenage years, and it will be something I remember for the rest of me life. Learning about something that has happen to our country and the changes it cause, is important issue to talk to out students about. I am a an army brat and i have lots of friend, and a very close cousin in the army right now. The book "Breadwinner" talks about life in a war and how it affects their family. My cousin is getting ready to go to Iraq in January, so i know what the feelings family get when their love ones are at war. I can relate to "Breadwinner" and "The 9/11 Report" both books are important for our students to read and learn about.
I believe it is very important to talk to our children about the issues happening around the world. Some of the children I teach will be able to relate to some of the characters emotions in the books they read. The students will be able to develop a deeper meaning and learn on a deeper level when they make connections to the stories they read. I hope that the students I teach will be able to gain a level of empathy for the people they read about in the stories from around the world. I could not imagine living in a building that is half rubble. I cannot imagine having to disguise myself as a boy just so I can work and walk on the streets. It seems so crazy and unrealistic to me; but it happens. When my students read stories like "The Breadwinner" and "Parvana's Journey", both by Deborah Ellis, I want them to try put themselves in the place of the people in the story.
I really enjoyed Deborah Ellis's writing. She has a very beautiful and simplistic way of telling a story.
Hannah Mulvey
After finishing The Breadwinner and being so moved by Deborah Elli's portrayal of a refugee family, I chose to continue with Parvana's Journey. I was not disappointed. I was as deeply moved by the additional characters in this sequel as I was in the first. I believe both of these books would help open the eyes of children to the reality of life being more than sports, computer games, cell phones and time with their friends. As an adult I was humbled by Asif and Parvana's sacrifices for the little Hassan and Leila. These children were not absent of feeling but rather struggled with jealousy and anger yet continuously showed love and compassion.
Anger can be a useful motivator, as Parvana demonstrated by hauling water. It can also be destructive and rob us of the energy needed to do what needs to be done, as Asif did in the cave when his anger wore him out. These examples from the book could lead to discussions about how to best deal with emotions, which are so strong during the preteen/teen years. Maybe learning how to best funnel emotions while young could possibly lead to a generation of thinkers who prefer discussions over bombs.
After reading The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis, my eyes were open to the importance of reading books of different countries and various cultures. By reading a variety of text sets I am able broaden my knowledge which will help me educate my students. The world is a big place and the more we are informed of what goes on all around us the more we can understand people and they struggles they may face. The Breadwinner was a great book that showed the strength of individuals powering through when placed in a tough situation of the Taliban taking over. After I read that I chose to read the book The Librarian Of Basara by Jeanette Winter. I feel this book was written for younger children and would be a good starter to begin to understand the damages war can cause. This book was a about a librarian who loved her books so much and wanted to protect the 30,000 that she had. With the war hitting Iraq, she began moving her books to her house and her friends houses and restaurants for fear the library would catch fire. I related this story to The breadwinner because of the love Parvana and her father had for books. It also made me realize that through all the struggles the characters in these stories faced, they all have things they want to hold on to. In this case it was the books because they have bonds and memories to them. No matter what the struggles, people want to hold on to something special for comfort. It was good to read books about places of the unknown for me to open my eyes and live in reality. It is important to share these stories to students so they too can broaden their background knowledge of the world around them.
Hello! My name is Sabrina Brazeal. I am very much on board with getting critical conversations about race, religion, violence, homelessness, etc. into the classroom. With all of these topics a part of the world around us, it doesn't make sense to simply read about happy, middle class, white people and leave out the harsh realities of the world around us. Kids are resilient and able to endure a lot more than we would like to admit. For example, Parvana in the "Breadwinner" and the continuation of her journey in "Parvana's Journey," by Deborah Ellis. Both of these stories are gut wrenching at times and give feelings of sadness, anxiety, but most of all hope and love. After reading "The Breadwinner" I had to know the rest of her journey and was glad that there were more books so that I could see what other endeavors she overcame and she persevered. So i chose, "Parvana's Journey" from the text set. Parvana's bravery in the time of such trials is just beyond anything that I think I could endure. I think these books teach such great lessons about the differences that people around the world face as well as the importance of hope, love and perseverance. The lives of children "on the other side" of a war that we are all very familiar with is something that can bring great discussions, deep discussions into the classroom. There are so many stereotypes and ideologies and these types of books (text sets) can shine light on a the other side of the story. These pieces of literature are also great in that they are non-threatening and allow students to connect with the characters on a level that was nonexistent prior to reading. It's a wonderful way to help students retain what is being taught because it is such a great tool to connect personally to a book/topic.
Hello!
I have read The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis as well as 14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy. I would definitely read these stories to my class. I LOVED 14 Cows for America! It was beautifully written and the illustrations are great. I would read these in order to fuel the critical conversation of cultural differences and how lucky and privileged we are as Americans to live how we do and experience freedom. And how we need be able to empathize with other cultures and understand our similarities and celebrate them. American students should not be blind to other cultures.
Great conversation starting books!
I read The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis yesterday and 14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy today. The two books are so powerful. The Breadwinner setting in Afghanistan brings new light to the people of this country. The views that I had on these were very belittling to the good men and women of this country. The book 14 cows for America shows what love that the people of Kenya have in their hearts. Once again a different culture that doesn't have much but wants to give something! I love how it will show students the different cultures and how not all people are bad. I think media gives different cultures a bad reputation when really not all people are bad just the ones they are portraying in the media. I think these would be great books for my students to give them a good lesson on culture and culture in many different parts of the world. Many students don't understand how lucky we are to have the freedoms that many men and women have fought for years after years. The biggest lesson that I took from the book The Breadwinner is that women are strong even when they are beaten down they can still come back and WILL come back! The biggest lesson that I took from the book 14 cows for America is that many people care about us even if we don't know it. The kind gestures of men who have never been to America is so amazing.
I have read Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis and Oliver Chin's 9 of 1: A Window to the World. Both books convey messages that give the reader a deeper understanding of their cultures. The messages need to be understood by students in a classroom to enable them to have a better understanding of what their actions and words convey to other people. This point is brought out in the book 9 of 1: A Window to the World, when a teacher at a school in Union City, California asks his students to interview strangers about their differing perspectives of the 9/11 attacks. The students all come back with different accounts from their various interviews. The interviews then are presented to the teacher; come to find out, different cultures viewed the 9/11 attacks differently (Celeste with Usha, Xavier with the Japanese American, Wahid who talks of being Pakistani, etc.). The Breadwinner also portrayed a story that Americans aren't used to. In America we haven't ever had an opposing force (the Taliban in the book) make an impact on the way that we live our lives. The Breadwinner and 9 of 1: A Window to the World are both books that cause the reader, assuming the reader is American, to think of life in different ways and from different perspectives. I believe that in the classroom talks of race, and understanding race and cultures, are avoided due to not wanting to offend anyone. Yet, if the topic is not talked about and is suppressed than is it doing more harm than good? Students need to be able to talk about these touchy subject so that they are able to overcome different situations that will arise in their lives. In my high school there was a lot of segregation between the students (the jocks, Samoans, cowboys, African-Americans, etc.). The students would not go into a part of the school that wasn't their cliques 'area.' I overcame this obstacle by becoming friends with everyone because I did not believe that the divide was right. However, the majority of the other students just stayed within with their cliques. I believe that if books like the two I have read, were talked about in a class with the students that I went to school with, then there wouldn't have been such a divide and so much hostility towards one another. It is essential to have critical conversations in the classroom about these subjects as it will bring awareness and hopefully tolerance. As a future educator, I can see where bringing these subjects up for discussion within the classroom could be difficult for some. It is at that time when a teacher needs to talk to other teachers and collaborate to learn ways to easily bring these critical conversations into their classrooms.
Hello,
I just recently read the book called "The Breadwinner" by Deborah Ellis. The Breadwinner is an amazing read because it allows children from all over the world experience how other children in different countries are treated. Our student's will be able to gain so much knowledge about all societies and how countries have extremely different morals and values. However, it will not only help our student gain knowledge but appreciate the things that our soldiers fight for everyday. The book is an easy read for students and because the main character Parvana is 11 years old it will allow the students to relate to her on a personal level. I chose to continue Parvana journey by reading "Parvana's Journey" which is about Parvana after she leaves Kabul in search for her family members.
It is crucial to have critical conversations in the classroom because it will allow students to come together not only as friends but a family. The subject about wars and etc. are saddening but they are important to discuss because they are real and they are happening. Critical conversations will allow students to speak their opinions and exoress how they feel about all situations and if students feel comfortable enough to discuss hard situations then having these conversations are a success. Lastly, not everyone knows what students go through at home and if students are able to open up without being judged it may even help student come closer and prevent bullying in the classroom community.
One of the most challenging and rewarding parts of teaching is leading a thoughtful and meaningful critical conversation. Learning from other students and their unique points of view and experiences is the best way to engage and excite learners. It also is difficult because often the subjects can be mature and controversial but as long as the rules and a framework for the discussion is in place then it should be smooth and meaningful. "The Breadwinner" by Deborah Ellis brings up many issues that could lead to wonderful and enlightening conversations. War, gender roles, race and religion all play a part in the novel and give many opportunities for older elementary students to discuss these. A good companion text to this could be "The Librarian of Basra" by Jeanette Winter. This would give students the opportunity to discuss the similarities and differences between the two wars and also gives them another relatable story. The librarian in the story works desperately to save the books in her beloved library just as Parvana tries to hold on to her family and traditions in Afghanistan.
I chose to read The Breadwinner and also Parvana’s Journey both by Deborah Ellis and I have just purchased the third book in the trilogy. I am twenty-three years old, and I learned so much about the Middle East that will be very beneficial in my future classroom. I think it is important for elementary teachers and librarians to work together to find books that are based on other children from different cultures and race. It is so important to educate our youth on people of different class, culture and race because children are capable of understanding that there are different kinds of people in the world and we should all treat each other as equals. I do not think it is fair for educators to say “not us” and “that’s not in our school,” because even though that may be the case, that will not be the case when those children leave that school. I think elementary education is important for obvious reasons and it is important for all students to graduate high school, but I think it is equally important to teach and shape our youth to be socially educated about the world and all of the people that live here too. I think this would be a great series to introduce to a classroom, because The Breadwinner series is so easy to connect to and also, children love trilogies. Any type of book that leaves kids wanting more is a great book.
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