Book Clubbin
This week’s
readings were very eye opening! The first one was a speech delivered by James
Baldwin, who was a novelist, playwright, and activist. He is mainly known for
his essays on black experiences in America and his work with racial social
issues. In his speech he talks about the self-image of the African American children
growing up in the 1960’s in America. The other two readings where about
establishing book clubs in our classroom and what that means for our children,
and how they benefit our children as well.
You may be asking yourself how these
three articles all fit together right? I’m going to pull them together with one
quote from Critical Book Clubs: Reimagining Literature Reading and Response “we
believe that student-led book clubs can empower readers and writers to critique
the world around them and advocate for social change”. These readings dove into
the importance of these student-led book clubs. They allow students to read and
analyze these texts with each other and gain insights into each other’s
thoughts and ideas from the texts.
There were some worries noted in the
readings as well. Some students may take advantage of the lax style that a book
club offers. It can be challenging for one teacher to supervise a few different
groups of students to ensure that they are all on task and gaining the proper
experience that is wanted from the book club as well. One option that was
suggested in this was having roles set up in the book clubs and setting up
these parameters in the beginning to keep everyone on task with what they
already agreed upon.
Tips for
book clubs!
·
Allow
the students to choose from a list of books
·
Don’t
put books on the list that don’t mean anything to the students (for example you
wouldn’t as your urban class to read Charlotte’s Web)
·
Choose
text options with social justice issues that matter to your classroom
demographic, ask your students what sort of issues matter to them!
·
Help
them navigate these new forms of critical interactions with the texts and with
their peers.
·
Allow
students to have an input in their response formats as well (reading logs,
blogs, journals, student directed discussion, etc)
The readings this week challenged my
thoughts about how vital the roles of, not only book clubs, but working
together to construct meaning from the complex texts we bring out in our
classrooms. We learn more than from the texts we read. We learn from diving in
deeper and engaging in group discussions to learn how everyone views the world.
The readings also reinforced my
thinking on the importance of teaching for social justice. The speech was
written in the 1960’s but as I was reading it, it still rung true to this day.
American’s who are anything but white face a backlash from other citizens.
While other people of color were ostracized then as well, it rings more true
today. With social media people can preach their hatred and thoughts publicly
for everyone to see. They express their hatred for immigrant families, and “thugs”.
It’s still important today to teach our
citizens of color how important and valued they are. Just like James Baldwin
said in his speech we need to teach our students of minorities that the things people
say they are, are not true. That they have worth and value and bring a lot to
the table.
Questions to
further your thinking:
1. When it was stated that “book clubs
can support students’ abilities to imagine and empathize with the thoughts,
feelings, and intentions of others” it meant with their peers as they discussed
the book or with the characters in the book? Or perhaps both? How do you think these
book clubs help students to do those things as well?
2. The speech was written in the 1960’s.
How much of that do you think is still true to this day? How much has it
differed from then to today?
3. How would you use book clubs in your classroom
to help teach social justice issues?
4. How would you help instill in your classroom
that everyone has value, despite what the media says?
Hi Bailee, I was thinking about your first question. I think the author's were talking about both the connection you can make with the characters to the stories you read and they were talking about the connections that students make through book club with each other. I think back to when I was little, yes, a very long time ago :). Little House on the Prairie was a tv show and a series of books. I connected with the main character Laura. I wanted to know everything about the world she lived in, the time period, the area, and some of the struggles that impacted her life. She was very different then me but at the same time, we were both little girls. I was able to connect with some of her feelings. The connection I had with her helped me recognize that there were other little girls growing up in a much different time and place, but fundamentally we both had feelings and wants and needs. I think the authors were talking about this because it opens up the window in your mind to have empathy and compassion for someone who is different. That is very important when teaching about equity, power and social justice. I also think the authors were talking about the ability to empathize with the students around you. The book clubs provide the opportunity to find similar connections to the readings as well as learning something from someone else perspectives. I think this space provides the atmosphere where students can make connections with each other, learn how to recognize that others perspectives can be valuable, and eventually learn how to have interpersonal relationships that are positive.
ReplyDeleteHi Dee!
DeleteThank you for your input on this. I also remember reading books when I was younger and I never could "see" myself in them or relate to them in any way. This caused me to leave behind my reading which also caused me to fall behind and require some extra help in school to get back on track. Once I was exposed to more books that I could relate to more I discovered my love of reading again! It's more fun to talk with others about the books we are reading too. To see what other people think of when they read things and the connections they make.
I also agree that we can learn a lot from the authors in the books we read.
Thank you for your thoughts and feedback!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIn the speech I feel like some of the dynamic has changed when it comes to the way American's view America. One of Baldwin's ideas was that Americans had created a myth of a righteous city on a hill where the dominate culture (white America) presented itself as the byproduct of other great societies that were the main contributors to culture and humanity and that Africa Americans had historically had no contributions to humanity except being dominated by White Americans. Many White Americans still feel that they are special in some way because some important person in history hundreds of years ago just so happened to share the same skin color as them, but I feel as if the idea of America as this morally superior civility has slowly eroded away. More American are becoming in-tuned with the awful historical realities of the founding of the nation, and that the modern post-9/11 political climate has made Americans grow more cynical. I think we as teacher have a chance to create a vision of an honest America by being aware of delusional mythos America has created about itself.
ReplyDeleteParker,
DeleteI agree that as teachers we have a chance to help create a vision of an honest America like you mentioned. I tend to disagree with you on the part of saying America has become more in-tuned with the not so nice history we have. Yes we are more aware of our past and we acknowledge its wrong and everyone is created equally. But do we really? Racism is still prevalent in today's society. Not just towards African Americans (which it seems was hinted more at with your comment and the article about slavery) but all people of color in America.
How do you feel about the stance of this speech compared to more minorities than just the African American population noted in the speech?
I totally agree with your main points of discussion throughout this blog post. In my experience with having to do book clubs in my previous classes, I have always seen it as busy work. I thought this because I never felt like we were truly dissecting the text at hand. This also goes into why I totally agree with you about how teachers believe that book clubs have such a "lax" style. It can definitely be easy for kids to take advantage of this style of literacy learning, however, I do think that if it is done "correctly" your students can learn a lot from participating in a book club. This brings me to answer your third question on how I would use a book club to help teach social justice issues. I would definitely want to keep up on the current social justice news so that I can pull from a relatable range of texts. Because I know that some social justice issues are "old" or not as relatable to the current group of students. If a book can allow your students to feel like they can relate to the characters of the text, it makes them more likely to want to think critically about what they are reading. To answer your last question, I think it is important to find ways to break down each social justice topic of the book. Because when we think about racism, it is hard to think about ways to combat it, but if you can break it down with your students it makes it more palatable. This way you can show your students that their voice matters because there is something that they are able to do to help this social justice issue be addressed.
ReplyDeleteAubrey thank you for your feedback!
DeleteI agree in the past I defiantly took advantage of book clubs when I was in school. But for me it came down to not being interested in the book. When we did our book clubs last semester and were allowed to pick our books for our groups I was very interested in reading the story and was able to stay on top of my readings and group assignments for the book we read.
I agree though, when done correctly book clubs can really make a difference in the classroom!
Your first and fourth questions stood out to be and got my thought juices a flowing, so I’m going to respond to those!
ReplyDeleteFor the first question, I think that students can relate to others in the book as well as each other. I think book clubs can help students think, share, and react to other students who may feel the same way they do. I feel this way especially if they get to pick their own book club book right off because there is already a common ground to all the students who signed up to read the same book. This can start a connection on a friendship level and eventually an emotional level where students can relate to the ways they are feeling with each other. I have also heard people who have experienced a lot of trauma say that books are a great way to escape because they are able to put themselves in the book as a character. This is also a great way for students to empathize well and to learn how to empathize well in the first place. If they plug themselves in as a character, then right off they are feeling the emotions of that character.
For the fourth question, I just want to say I hate that the media tries to label people as a generalization. Not all of one race, ethic group, gender, religion, etc. should be labeled good or bad. Labels are where people get in trouble. People aren’t labels, they are human beings. Anyway, I think the best way to let students know they are all important and have value is to represent them and their culture/who they are in every possible way we can think of. This means including posters on the walls, pictures in our assignments or curriculum, how we teach our curriculum, the kinds of books we include in our classroom library, etc. If we treat all students with respect and lift them up in our classrooms and schools, then I think this could help overrule any media article who makes a generalization of who they are. If those closest to them feel they have value, then hopefully that can help encourage them to take on the world in a way the media would never guess or portray!
Dani thank you for your thoughts on this. I never thought of how by choosing the same book it might help develop relationships among students reading the book. That is an excellent insight to the topic at hand. I also think it proves the validity of book clubs and learning from each other through it. I had not seen it that way before and since you shared it with us all we all now have that knowledge of what book clubs may accomplish.
DeleteI also agree that teaching our children that they have value and that they are more than the media says is very important! The books, pictures in our classroom/schools, assignments, etc do play a big role in how our children view themselves. We can't expect them to learn who they are and relate to the subject matter if we're having a classroom full of minoritiy students, who have never been to a farm, read Charlotte's Web. We need to make the content and the community meaningful to all of our students to feel valued.
I agree with your initial quote the student-led book clubs empower kids as readers and writers. I think it is very important for kids to learn how to critique what they read and the world they live in. I think it is necessary for us to have these student-led book clubs because like you said they are working together and making meaning of what they are reading. I think I would use a variety of social issue picture books and have students get into book clubs and dissect what they are reading. I think I would want them to do more research on the issue on their own to have a better understanding. I want to bring all different cultures, races, disabilities, classes and so on into my classroom so that students can learn to respect others that are different them. I want them to grow and see the people around them as individuals with their own stories.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your thoughts Abby. I 100% agree that we need to empower our students. If students don't learn how to critique what they read and the world around them they will always live in complicity. Never questioning anything! And learning is all about asking questions.
DeleteI really liked your first question, so I’m going to touch on that a bit. I think that book clubs can help students both empathize with characters in the stories that they’re reading and also with their peers. When I was in elementary school, I know we all ended up reading the same books, and we never really went into the book clubs talked about today like Project Onee. It wasn’t really accepted in my classes to challenge the way other students were thinking, something that is going to happen to students as they get older. Allowing students to pick their books can help them find things in common with peers that they may not have understood before, giving them something to connect with on a deeper level. Also, books are a great way to relate to characters, and learn how to empathize with characters who are going through trauma. I know I used Harry Potter as an escape when I was younger, being able to relate to a lot of the characters. I think books like that not only helped me learn how to empathize with others, but with myself as well. Having books clubs can help students talk about some of these bigger issues that they may not feel comfortable talking about with adults or people in their life.
ReplyDeleteIt's Emily. Not sure why it's showing my name as unknown.
DeleteI liked your idea about helping students learn how to empathize and learn about trauma that the characters are going through. That is an excellent idea. I try to expose my daughter to things as they arise. For example, when my cousin passed away we gave her the opportunity to go to the funeral and be exposed to this new idea of death to her. It doesn't happen often where you get an organic situation to expose your child to something new in a safe way. Though reading about different experiences and how that makes the character feel can defiantly help a student learn about these new experiences in a somewhat organic way. It can help them learn about the emotions involved behind it too.
DeleteGreat thoughts Emily! Thank you!
Seeing as I am a fan of literature, I'd like to touch on the first thought provoking question. I believe that the answer is that book clubs support empathy both in terms of characters and peers. This kind of social interaction is perfect for understanding one's peers on a deeper level. No book ever written has instilled the same thoughts across its board of readers. Have 5 people read the same book or poem, and you're likely to get a variety of interpretations and thoughts. That's one of the things I love about literature! You get a glimpse into a person's values and beliefs that might not surface in other scenarios.
ReplyDeleteThe characters assist with this as well. Books allow people to observe situations that they (the readers) themselves may not experience in their own lives. It's important to be exposed to unfamiliar situations, even if they are fictional. That's how we learn about people and the world. Not to mention the difference in the characters' personalities, values, motivations, etc. I think that it's just as important to empathize with those who are not amongst one's peers, and characters are a good place to start.
I loved your tips for the book club! Asking what the kids want to read about is a fantastic idea. From there, gather books around those topics and then let them chose from the list. This way the students will be engaged and care about the topic they chose and are more likely to be focused and on task which is one of the concerns with this design. I also loved how you mentioned "We learn more than from the texts we read". I think it is so important for the students to be able to think critically and also share and further discuss their findings. Kids can benefit so much more from their ideas being challenged by other students, in a respectful way of course! Also learning how to discuss in an appropriate manner is also an important life skill to obtain. People can learn a lot from other peoples lived experiences. The students should be heard in the classroom and this book club idea gives them the platform to do that as well as allows them to delve deeper and think critically about other important topics.
ReplyDeleteYou mentioned the relevance of Baldwin's message, and I wanted to touch on that a bit! Although this was delivered in the 1960's, I do see some similarities to today. He presented some pretty blatantly evil acts, like segregation, that were visible to the public eye, but some of the disparities that are present in society today are more hidden, therefore more easily overlooked or excused. Baldwin emphasizes something pretty remarkable in his message though. He says that "The purpose of education, finally, is to create in a person the ability to look at the world for himself, to make his own decisions, to say to himself this is black or this is white, to decide for himself whether there is a God in heaven or not. To ask questions of the universe, and then learn to live with those questions, is the way he achieves his own identity," (1). Regardless of the time period that his message was written, this statement will always stand true. Students should be encouraged to become critical thinkers of the world around them, as should we. School in the past has been made into a system that tells children how to reason and how to make sense of things, but I believe that one of the main long-term goals of our career should be to teach our students how to receive and analyse what they have been taught in order to critically think on their own. As Mara wrote in her blog, book clubs can create a space for this critical thinking by allowing students to hear different perspectives and gain different understandings than their own. I agree that the text itself does not teach this- it is the act of discussing and analyzing the text together that builds up these critical thinking skills and exposes students to truths outside of their comfort zone.
ReplyDelete