Who I am matters:

1. 1 Who I am matters: Myla Lee Marcella Kehus, Ph.D V.���� Title���������� Who I am matters:� Multicultural literature as necessary and often sufficient for readers of diverse backgrounds�VI.���� Description of Presentation����� This dynamic teacher and researcher team will share materials and results of their literature based curriculum that engages students from diverse backgrounds in classroom reading.� Beginning with high quality multicultural literature and thematic units, their student-centered discussions focus more on making meaning and text-to-self connections when the literature itself reflects their own cultures and heritage.� Moreover, teaching from a global yet local perspective allows young readers to begin with individual ideas such as, "What's in a name?" and move to more group-centered problem-solving�concepts such�anti-bullying as they discover that language and stories matter when it comes to exploring big ideas such as one's identity.� �V.���� Title���������� Who I am matters:� Multicultural literature as necessary and often sufficient for readers of diverse backgrounds�VI.���� Description of Presentation����� This dynamic teacher and researcher team will share materials and results of their literature based curriculum that engages students from diverse backgrounds in classroom reading.� Beginning with high quality multicultural literature and thematic units, their student-centered discussions focus more on making meaning and text-to-self connections when the literature itself reflects their own cultures and heritage.� Moreover, teaching from a global yet local perspective allows young readers to begin with individual ideas such as, "What's in a name?" and move to more group-centered problem-solving�concepts such�anti-bullying as they discover that language and stories matter when it comes to exploring big ideas such as one's identity.� �

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3. 3 About Us �

4. 4 The Planning Selecting Engaging Theme Choosing Quality Literature Integration with curriculum expectations Student-led Book Clubs

5. 5 Basics of Book Club

6. 6 Book Club vs. Literature Circles Book Club Vygotsky perspective Learning happens as primarily social and dialogic All members take on multiple roles naturally Literature Circles Harvey �Smokey� Daniels (20 years ago) Cooperative Learning Perspective Role Sheets Problem: students do only what they are told their individual roles are Last five years, Harvey Daniels dropped role sheets and calls his literature circles, �Book Clubs�

7. 7 Thematic Teaching Good Themes: provide for in-depth learning are worth discussing are not age-specific use framing questions that have no right answers connect and motivate are universal investigate gray areas of life address values and culture

8. 8 Throughout Book Club� Address problem areas immediately (i.e. same day in Closing Community Share) Give students ownership, use their words, their work as examples, their ideas Keep ongoing posted charts in student language such as "A good Book Club Discussion�," "Literary Terms we know & use," etc. Avoid burnout by interspersing other units of study between Book Club units or other activities within Book Club units Empower students with choice

9. 9 Book Club teachers believe in� Heterogeneous groups Apprenticing youngsters into literacy by lending them the language and allowing them to use it in meaningful contexts Literature as having important content Teaching youngsters to read more deeply and analytically An emphasis on constructing meaning, responding to texts and engaging in literate discourse

10. 10 Teacher Tips Where Book Clubs are held: Members must face & hear each other, yet not interfere with other groups Classroom Library: Have books related to themes at various reading levels Teach Oral Language/Social Skills: Take advantage of this opportunity to explicitly teach oral language and social skills. Observe groups unobtrusively: Look at one group while listening to another

11. 11 More Teacher Tips 3 leaps: If a group might be off-task, they need to try to explain in 3 leaps how they got from the book to their present topic Length of Book Club discussion = roughly their age-equivalent in minutes (eventually 9-year-olds can carry on a 9-minute conversation) but varies based on the reading for that day, too Remember, the biggest problem with reading today is alliteracy; work on attitudes & real reasons for reading

12. 12 Why Multicultural Book Club? Monocultural Classrooms Diverse Classrooms Color Blindness and Denial

13. 13 Why Multicultural Book Club?

14. 14 Why Multicultural Book Club? Maslow�s Basic Needs (1970)

15. 15 The Benefits of Book Club: The Overall Results

16. 16 The Benefits of Book Club: Three Students� Stories

17. 17 The Benefits of Book Club

18. 18 The Benefits of Book Club

19. 19 A Final Letter

20. 20 Book Club Resources