What are effective strategies for promoting diversity and inclusion in your reading curriculum?

Diverse texts are a must! Roald Dahl and Michael Morpurgo are not the only authors worth reading ;) We need to read extensively and not limit students to what was read to us. Here are some amazing diverse books and authors: Malorie Blackman (Noughts & Crosses, Boys Don't Cry, Cloud Busting), Alexander Kwame (The Crossover Series), Jacqueline Woodson (Brown Girl Dreaming, Locomotion), Christopher Paul Curtis (Elijah of Buxton, Bud, Not Buddy, The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963), Rita Williams Garcia (One Crazy Summer), Jessica Kim (Stand Up, Yumi Chung!), Pam Munoz Ryan (Esperanza Rising), Sandra Cisneros (The House on Mango Street)... It's time to challenge the literary canon and bring a diversity of voices into our classrooms.

As you audit your libraries, check out the following publications: 1) Beyond Chopsticks and Dragons: Selecting Asian-American Literature for Children by Valerie Ooka Pang, Carolyn Colvin, MyLuong Tran, and Robertta H. Barba 2) Critical Indigenous Literacies: Selecting and Using Children’s Books about Indigenous Peoples by Debbie Reese 3) Windows and Mirrors in Latino’s Children’s Literature: A History and Analysis of the Latino Cultural Experience by Priscilla K. Delgado 4) Guide for Selecting Anti-Bias Children’s Books by Louise Derman-Sparks As you go through the process of auditing books in your classroom library, please keep the end goal in mind, which is to integrate the histories of BIPOC people into the curriculum.

"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." - William Butler Yeats In promoting diversity and inclusion within your reading curriculum, selecting diverse texts is a foundational step towards fostering empathy, understanding, and appreciation for different perspectives. By offering students access to a wide array of authors, genres, themes, and characters from diverse backgrounds, we not only enrich their literary experience but also cultivate a more inclusive learning environment. To effectively implement this strategy, I suggest leveraging online resources like We Need Diverse Books, which provides comprehensive recommendations and reviews tailored to various grade levels and subjects.

Algunas ideas, están especialmente dise?adas para facilitar la accesibilidad cognitiva del alumnado: -Cuentos adaptados con material multisensorial - Cuentos sin texto, únicamente con pictogramas - Audiocuentos, para personas con discapacidad visual

Agreed expose your students to a variety of authors. Authors representing different backgrounds, cultures, ethnicities, and genders. By doing this you will enrich the lives of your students and help prepare them for an ever changing world.

Ask yourself, whose perspective is excluded? Who is centered and why? How does that shape the narrative? Our failure to be curious in these ways paves the way for the deficit in critical thinking we see in our world. Engaging in multiple perspectives give your students a much more well rounded understanding and education.

Next, it's important to incorporate multiple perspectives into our curriculum. Encouraging students to explore different viewpoints and interpretations fosters empathy, critical thinking, and a deeper understanding of the world around them. By exposing students to a variety of voices and narratives, we empower them to appreciate and respect diverse perspectives.

Think about the students that you serve and ask them what they do and don't know about their ancestry. Then think about how those experiences connect to those of other racial and ethnic groups, and explore them with your students. Push your young people to follow their curiosity and explore the perspectives, ideas, and experiences of those that come before them to help explore and understand the diverse nature of our world contrary to the dominate narratives often taught in our schools.

Promoting diversity and inclusion in the reading curriculum involves including authors and works that represent different cultures and experiences, as well as addressing themes of social justice and equity. For example, including books written by diverse authors and discussing issues of identity and representation in the classroom.

For students who may find traditional participation challenging, such as those with ADHD, autism, or introverted personalities, offering alternative forms of engagement can make a significant difference. This could include written reflections, online forums, or smaller group discussions where they might feel more comfortable sharing their insights. It's also important to be mindful of the pacing and sensory aspects of classroom activities to ensure neurodiverse students can fully participate without feeling overwhelmed. Creating inclusive discussions means being intentionally inclusive of all voices and learning styles.

To create inclusive discussions, foster a safe environment where all students feel valued and respected, encourage participation from everyone, and address different perspectives equitably. For example, establish rules of mutual respect and encourage active listening during discussions.

Creating inclusive discussions is key to promoting diversity and inclusion in the classroom. Facilitating open and respectful dialogues where every student's voice is valued and heard cultivates a sense of belonging and community. Embracing diverse opinions and experiences enriches the learning environment and encourages students to engage with complex topics from multiple angles.

Use a variety of assessment methods that reflect students' diverse skills and perspectives. For example, you can use essays, oral presentations, and collaborative projects to assess students' understanding and engagement.

Assessing student learning through diverse and inclusive measures ensures that all students are given the opportunity to demonstrate their understanding and skills. By incorporating assessments that accommodate different learning styles and preferences, we create a fair and inclusive evaluation process that honors the diversity of our students.

Your inner lawyer will rise up to your defense anytime you push yourself for growth. Remember that no one is immune to bias. The human mind is programmed to make snap judgments about people and to categorize them. It’s up to us to disrupt this thinking and then create opportunities for our students to do the same.

Reflect on your practice through self-assessment and student feedback to identify areas for improvement and maintain continuous development. For example, you can review your teaching strategies, adapt instructional materials, and seek professional development opportunities.

By selecting texts or materials for our students we should be able to contribute to the formation of political-historical-aesthetic persons that recognize and value diversity and inclusion as ethical and democratic principles.