Children and Education

How to Befriend the Moon Goddess by Yobe Qiu and Illustrated by Stephanie Teo (faculty)

In this gorgeously illustrated picture book, two young children long to find a way to make friends with the Moon Goddess. Images from Asian lore merge seamlessly with modern rockets as the children devise ways to approach her, including following the jade rabbit.  It turns out that what the Moon Goddess is looking for in a friend is not so different from what we are all looking for.   Asian American children will enjoy this access to their cultural heritage and non-Asian children will appreciate that all kids long for friends who will make them feel they belong.

Are You Nobody Too?

By Tina Cane

Emily, the protagonist of this novel in verse, is the namesake of Emily Dickenson. When her parents named her, they scarcely could have realized how significant their name choice would be to the infant, whom they adopted from China, as she came to consciousness grappling with the problem of identity.  Most of us probably know a person like Emily, who was born in China under the one-child rule and was put up for adoption by parents hoping that a second try would provide a boy.  Godsends to aspiring parents in the US, these girls had to figure out at a very young age how to cope with the racial divide between them and their families. 

Emily has loving parents, but she still struggles with her identity, particularly after financial difficulties require her to leave her nurturing private school to attend a public…

Quiet Violet Finds her Voice by Gabrielle Nidus ’93?  If you were a quiet child or if you are the parent of a quiet child, you will be heartened by this gift of loving kindness.  Violet’s longing to be visible to her peer group is countered by her inherent bashfulness.  She is a talented cook and when her class is assigned a culinary project, Violet really has something to say. The moment a classmate accidently substitutes salt for sugar, all inhibitions melt away, and Violet most emphatically does what the title says.  Shy people everywhere will be empowered!

This is a great book to read to a group.  Quiet children will be emboldened to take a chance on being heard for a change.  Easy talkers might take notice of how they drown out their friends and take to heart what they learn on the playground about sharing. 

Gabrielle…

What is Juneteenth?  By Kirsti Jewel Peters f. This book will put young readers on a path toward reading to find answers to questions.  Now that Juneteenth has become a national holiday, they (and many adults) will wonder why is it so important?  Where did the word “Juneteenth” come from?  How should we celebrate it?  How does it figure in the history of the United States?  This book will answer these questions and empower readers by letting them know that they are big enough to face hard, sad truths and to handle the emotions that these truths arouse. It also shows young readers that the struggles of the past, both through movements and through the valiance of historical figures confronting adversity, merit celebration and joy. 

The book takes us from slavery to the adoption of Juneteenth as a national holiday.  It is the kind of book which would be…