References
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34
All About Apps Reviews
All About Apps Review
By: Cari Williams
Invaluable Invitation
5. Rappaport, D., & Collier, B. (2001). Martin's big words: The life of Dr. Martin Luther
Dr. Martin Luther King. Jr. is a symbol of American history. Several countries in the world teach their children about this
amazing man and how he fought
for equality. Dr. King. Jr. has
influenced the lives of minority students in every teacher’s classroom! This award-winning book differs from other literature about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. due to the powerful and touching way the author crafted his words to describe King’s journey. Diverse students can relate to the character and feel valued by the book’s message. This is an efficient resource to enhance student’s cultural identity and self-perspective. Through shared reading, teachers can guide whole class discussions. The students can be asked to write Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. a letter to express their reactions to the text. In my classroom, I paired this book with a video compilation of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’ speeches, as well as the speeches of other African American leaders. After a whole class discussion, each student wrote a short speech about his/her dreams to America. The students presented to the class and I made videos of their speeches to post on the class website.
6. Choi, Y. (2003). The name jar. New York, NY: Dragonfly Books.
The book The Name Jar is a multicultural resource used to connect with Asian students. The main character is called Unhei. She moved from Korea to the
United States. When Unhei starts attending school in the United States, the other children cannot pronounce her name. This makes her to feel uncomfortable, which leads the character to choose an American name. During her search for a new name, Unhei learns about cultural adaptation and self-discovery. One’s name is the most intimate representation of his/her identity. To keep her Korean name represents to keep her cultural background. This is an amazing story of knowing who you are and understanding that to be different does not mean to be more or less than others. This is a beautiful story of the cultural struggle of immigrant children. Deep in meaning, this inspiring story serves as a great conversation starter. Whole-class discussion leads to a group reflection about cultural identity. Teachers can pair this book with Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes to teach about text-to-text connections. It is also a good resource to teach problem and solution, as well as beginning, middle, and end.
7. Coles, R., & Ford, G. (1995). The story of Ruby Bridges. New York, NY: Scholastic Press.
The book The Story of Ruby Bridges is a powerful multicultural resource for first grade classrooms. Based on a real-life story, the text depicts
the courage, determination, and
love that the six-year-old Ruby Bridges demonstrated when faced with hate and prejudice. Bridges was the first African American girl to attend an all-white elementary school in Louisiana. This book introduces the students to a character that is strongly relatable to them. Ruby shows the students that they are not too young to make history and inspire future generations. Ruby Bridges is a role model not only for African American girls, but also to all students who can believe that social change can be achieved through hope and perseverance. Students can look around the classroom and see how their rich and diverse communities were made possible because of the actions of the heroes from the civil right movement. Teachers can use this book to teach comprehension strategies, sequencing skills, as well as to conduct a character study, among other possibilities.
8. Hickox, R., & Hillenbrand, W. (1998).
The golden sandal: A Middle Eastern Cinderella
As the title of the books says, this is a multicultural Cinderella story. The author does not make any political or religious