35
connection. The text is a beautiful example of Middle Eastern folk literature. Students from Middle Eastern backgrounds have very limited exposure to literature that represents their cultural heritage. This book provides teachers with a simple way to bring multicultural literature to the classroom! There are several multicultural Cinderella stories that teachers can read in order to have a study that compare several story elements among the Cinderella stories. Examples of strategies that can be used to enhance student understand are Guided Imagery and the use of graphic organizers, such as Venn Diagrams.
9. Diakité, B. W. (1999). The hatseller and the monkeys: A West African folktale. New
The book The Hatseller and the Monkeys: A West African Folktale provides an African perspective to a popular European folktale—Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler,
Some Monkeys, and Their Monkey
Business. The African Culture is made “visible” through the author’s interesting and unique perspective of the folktale. The comparison between the two books helps students to understand differences and similarities among cultures. Illustration and linguistic styles presented in each book are tools used by people to represent their cultural identities. These books are great resources to teach students about how illustrations enhance meaning. A possible activity would be to read to the students the African folktale without showing the illustrations. Use background music to help students to experience culture, and ask them to visualize the story. The students will create their own mental images or illustrations. Then, they can draw pictures to capture their mental images. After students share their drawings with each other, the teacher can read again the story, but this time the teacher should show the illustrations. In a different day, the same process should be completed with the European version of the tale. Finally, teacher and students can come up with reflective questions to guide their discussions. An example, would be with which story and illustrations did each student identify the most?
10. Coburn, J. R., & Flotte, E. (1998). Angkat: The Cambodian Cinderella. Fremont, CA:
The book Angkat: The Cambodian Cinderella is one of several options for multicultural-Cinderella stories that teachers can use in the classroom. Multicultural-Cinderella
stories can be used as an interesting way to teach students about different perspectives. These books are culturally and linguistically rich resources which can be used to teach innumerous literacy skills such as, compare and contrast, character studies, and story elements, among many other skills in the K-5 classrooms. An example of a standard that would be supported by this book would be to recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text. It is of extreme importance that critical thinkers and globalized learners are exposed to the perspectives of other cultures. This exposure provide students with background knowledge to comprehend international literature as well as resources to expand their creative thinking.
11. Mora, P. (1997). Tomás and the library lady. New York, NY: Dragonfly Books.
The book Tomás and the Library Lady is a valuable resource for teachers who want to reinforce a multicultural classroom environment through literature. The author, Pat Mora, passionately
addresses the Hispanic American culture, specifically the migrant worker lifestyle. She makes the non-fiction story come to life by her word choices. The author writes in English, accompanied by specific Spanish words personal within the Hispanic culture. While reading the book to students, the teacher might highlight the Hispanic words as a way of both linguistic and cultural awareness. Regarding the story, the plot follows a chronological timeline. Tomás, the protagonist of the story, is shown moving from place to