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RE: How much do we tell the children
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From: Nancy Bo Flood <wflood_at_hotmail.com>
Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2011 15:11:47 -0700
"How much are we telling the children?" is indeed a key question. Ellen Le vin states that one in three women will experience abortion. Where are the books - and imagine, the picture books - that show this experience? The c hallenge is to not avert our gaze, to not look away from reality, but t o offer truth - with sensitivity not sensationalism. Because a good story offers understanding to the reader who has experienced the trauma and equa lly important, a good story offers insight and understanding to the reade rs who have not.
My interest is in books that show war as it really is. This includes how w ar affects children, families and communities as well as soldiers. We hav e been at war in the Middle East for over ten years. If you were a child , ten years could be your entire life. Thousands of children displaced b y war are now refugees in our country. Too often their experience is one o f taunting, teasing and exclusion. Their classmates have no idea what the se children have experienced, so of course, a common response is fear r ather than compassion. Deborah Ellis in CHILDREN OF WAR gives voice to ch ildren who are refugees and their reality of being an unwanted "guest." Ir onic that refugee children are often from the very countries to which we ha ve sent our soldiers to fight for their protection. In one interview from Ellis's book, the reader hears Michael explain, "I have nothing in comm on with American children, except if there is an American kid whose fathe r has died, who house is destroyed, and who is forced to live in a fore ign country that doesn't want them." Karen Lyn Williams shows in her pictu re books, MY NAME IS SANGOEL and FOUR FEET, TWO SANDALS, an appropri ate and effective level of information about what it means to be a refugee. Shaun Tan's LOST AND FOUND and THE ARRIVAL are amazing examples of pictu re books that speak to any age. A reader will take from these books what i s understandable. Nancy Bo Flood
www.thepiratetree.com blog site focused on social justice issues and child ren's literature www.readerkidz.com Beyond Boundaries, books that open global windows
To access the archives, go to: http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/ccbc-net and enter the following: username: ccbc-net
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Received on Tue 22 Nov 2011 03:11:47 PM CST
Date: Tue, 22 Nov 2011 15:11:47 -0700
"How much are we telling the children?" is indeed a key question. Ellen Le vin states that one in three women will experience abortion. Where are the books - and imagine, the picture books - that show this experience? The c hallenge is to not avert our gaze, to not look away from reality, but t o offer truth - with sensitivity not sensationalism. Because a good story offers understanding to the reader who has experienced the trauma and equa lly important, a good story offers insight and understanding to the reade rs who have not.
My interest is in books that show war as it really is. This includes how w ar affects children, families and communities as well as soldiers. We hav e been at war in the Middle East for over ten years. If you were a child , ten years could be your entire life. Thousands of children displaced b y war are now refugees in our country. Too often their experience is one o f taunting, teasing and exclusion. Their classmates have no idea what the se children have experienced, so of course, a common response is fear r ather than compassion. Deborah Ellis in CHILDREN OF WAR gives voice to ch ildren who are refugees and their reality of being an unwanted "guest." Ir onic that refugee children are often from the very countries to which we ha ve sent our soldiers to fight for their protection. In one interview from Ellis's book, the reader hears Michael explain, "I have nothing in comm on with American children, except if there is an American kid whose fathe r has died, who house is destroyed, and who is forced to live in a fore ign country that doesn't want them." Karen Lyn Williams shows in her pictu re books, MY NAME IS SANGOEL and FOUR FEET, TWO SANDALS, an appropri ate and effective level of information about what it means to be a refugee. Shaun Tan's LOST AND FOUND and THE ARRIVAL are amazing examples of pictu re books that speak to any age. A reader will take from these books what i s understandable. Nancy Bo Flood
www.thepiratetree.com blog site focused on social justice issues and child ren's literature www.readerkidz.com Beyond Boundaries, books that open global windows
To access the archives, go to: http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/ccbc-net and enter the following: username: ccbc-net
password: Look4Posts
Received on Tue 22 Nov 2011 03:11:47 PM CST
