We were lucky enough to be a recipient the 2023 My Library Is… Grant for School Libraries. This money was used to create a staff book club that focused on building empathy for and understanding of diverse communities. The books chosen included fiction, nonfiction, and graphic novels. Their purpose was to communicate stories and experiences of individuals who are Latinx, African American, Asian, Indian, and more. These books will become windows, mirrors, or sliding glass doors for the participants, enabling them to reflect, discuss, and connect with others in a deep and meaningful way.
The entire focus of this project was equity, diversity and inclusion through literature. Schools across the country are dealing with discipline and behavior issues that partly stem from a lack of understanding of diversity. By increasing awareness and helping others recognize and acknowledge diversity, we are taking positive steps to increase appreciation and understanding within our schools. We wanted our teachers to use best practices to create culturally responsive and inclusive lessons for their classes. We also wanted students to feel that they are represented in their classes, which leads to a positive learning environment for them.
The hardest part was narrowing down what books we wanted to include! Below is a list of what we decided to purchase.
- A Face for Picasso: Coming of Age with Crouzon Syndrome by Ariel Henley
- Frizzy by Claribel A. Ortega
- Front Desk by Kelly Yang
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
- I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sanchez
- Melissa by Alex Gino
- Merci Suarez Changes Gears by Meg Medina
- New Kid by Jerry Craft
- Red, White, and Whole by Rajani LaRocca
- When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson
- Button Pusher by Tyler Page
We met three times over the summer to discuss that month’s books. This was intended to be a fun, no-stress book club. Teachers were told that they could participate and attend all three meetings, or they could pick and choose what worked for them and their schedule. The feedback that we received was positive. Teachers loved the book recommendations and the no-stress, no-prep element. We plan to run the book club again this summer to see if additional teachers want to participate.
Today's blog post was written by Carrie Upjohn, Troy CCSD 30C.
This project was made possible by the My Library Is...grant.
