MULTICULTURAL RESOURCES

April 2013 By: Deanna Middleton Echols

CHILDRENS LITERATURE
The following children's books are based on diversity of culture, socio-economic status, ethnicity, abilities, etc

The Name Jar

Choi, Y. (2003) The Name Jar. CITY, ST: Dragonfly Books.

This is the story of a Korean immigrant who is scared to reveal her real name in her new American school. This story depicts her struggle to be accepted in a new culture.

The Crayon Box that Talked

DeRolf, S. (1996). The crayon box that talked. New York, NY: Scholastic. This story, about crayons who cant get along, talks about ignorant prejudice and diversity. This book teaches children that we may be different, but we can work together to create something beautiful.

Mrs. Katz and Tush

Polacco, P. (1992) Mrs. Katz and Tush. New York, NY: Bantam Doubleday Dell.

A young boy named Laurnel asks his neighbor, Mrs. Katz, to adopt a kitten. The two become close and Mrs. Katz shares stories of her heritage as a Jewish woman from Poland.

Leo the Late Bloomer

Kraus, R. (1971). Leo the late bloomer. New York, NY: Scholastic.

This story is about a late bloomer lion named Leo, who is not able to do the same things as the other children his age until a little later. This book depicts the struggle of children with developmental delays or even learning disabilities.

Tight Times
Hazen, B.S. (1983). Tight times. CITY, ST: Puffin Books. This story is about a family struggling during tough economic times. The main character finds a kitten on the same day that his dad loses his job. This book is centered around socio-economic status and economic hardship from the viewpoint of a child.

Big Mamas
Crews, D. (1998). Big Mamas. CITY, ST: Greenwillow Books.

This story is about an African American man who recalls the summers of his childhood spent at this grandparents house in the country. This book deals with the diversity within a race. The characters compare their life in the city to the rural lifestyle of their grandparents in Florida.

Abuela
Dorros, A. (1997). Abuela. CITY,ST: Puffin Books.

This story is about a Hispanic American girl who uses her imagination to make a day with her grandmother into an adventure. Her grandmother tells stories of her Hispanic heritage, using Spanish words and phrases as well.

Silver Packages
Rylant, C. (1997) Silver packages. New York, NY: Scholastic.

This is the story of a boy who waits every year for the Appalachian Christmas Train, a train bringing gifts to boys and girls in the Appalachian coal towns and mountains. This book depicts life in the Appalachian region and the hardship that is associated with this region.

TEACHER RESOURCES
The following resources and activities are used to incorporate multiculturalism into the classroom

Reading /Language Arts

Resource: Smolen, L.A., Oswald, R.A., eds. (2011) Multicultural literature and response: affirming diverse voices. CITY,ST: F. Isabel Campoy & Alma Flor Ada. This book offers ways to incorporate multicultural literature into instruction practices. The section used for this activity is incorporating literature into reading instruction.

Activity
Read Mrs. Katz and Tush Compare and Contrast Larnels and Mrs. Katzs heritage and lifestyles using a graphic organizer. Answer critical thinking questions about the two characters using the graphic organizers.

Materials
Thinking Questions
Mrs. Katz Larnel 2. How are Larnel and Mrs. Katz stories similar? 3. What tradition does Larnel ask to join Mrs. Katz in? 5. What characteristics go along with the tradition that make it unique (record students responses on the board)? 6. Do you know anyone who practices this? What similarities/differences do you see? 7. What tradition does Larnel continue after he has grown up?

Math
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Science
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Social Studies
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WEB RESOURCES
These resources are helpful websites to use for incorporating multiculturalism into the curriculum

Web Resources
Digital History- http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/
This site uses videos and interactive activities to use in lessons on different cultures and ethnic groups throughout history.

Electronic Magazine of Multicultural Educationhttp://www.eastern.edu/publications/emme/current.html

This site is the Electronic magazine of Multicultural Education, with links to articles and issues of the publication, filled with resources for educators. This site has thousands of full text on-line children's books in 40+ languages from around the world. Web-Quests, lesson plans and resources sorted by content specialty or ethnicity

International Childrens Library- http://en.childrenslibrary.org/

Multicultural lesson Plans and Resources-http://cloudnet.com/~edrbsass/edmulticult.htm

Project L.E.A.D.- http://www.childrenlead.org/

Providing multicultural educational resources to teachers, students and trainers from the organization children l.e.a.d.. A Peace Corps sponsored site with lesson plans for grades 3-12. This site is useful in helping teachers integrate global education in to daily activities.

World Wise Schools http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/

RELIGIOUS BELIEF SYSTEM:

INSTRUCTIONAL IMPLICATIONS

Judaism- implications for the classroom

Beliefs
Jews believe in God as the only Deity. The religion is based on relationships between God and humans, God and the Jewish people, Jews and Israel, and Humans with each other. Orthodox Jews refer to the Torah for their religious education, scriptures, and commandments. Jews celebrate holidays such as:
Yom Kippur (Holiest day- Day of Atonement) Chanukah /Hanukah- (Rededication of the Temple) Purim (celebration of deliverance from Persian Empire- time of Esther) Passover (celebration of deliverance from Egypt)

Challenges as teacher
Diet- Kosher foods may not be served at the school Ceremonies at the synagogue might interfere with school time Christmas and Easter may not be celebrated Fasting during school

Strategies to use
Communication with parents Allowing parents/student to teach class about celebrations such as Chanukah Teaching using childrens literature that reflects diversity and mentions Jewish Culture

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