To Good To Be True?

Some of my favorite stories of all time are the classic fairly tales which so many children are raised on. I look fondly upon stories such as "Sleeping Beauty", "Snow White", and "Little Red Riding Hood", which were responsible for teaching me much about the world. People worldwide, no doubt, would agree that traditional literature plays a huge role in shaping children's ideas about love, good vs evil, morality, and countless other fundamental principles about life and death. Additionally, such tales or fables often allow kids to use their imaginations to enter a realm of magic, fantasy, and wonder. For these reasons, I will forever be an advocate of children's exposure to traditional fairy tales.

HOWEVER, within recent decades, these popular tales have received a great deal of flack for possibly promoting certain ideals which are less-than-desirable. I think it is important that teachers and parents be cautious regarding certain aspects of this type of literature to prevent unwanted negative influences on their children.

1) Violence- Through a consideration of some of the most popular fairy tales, an individual will find that they contain an overwhelming amount of violence and morbidity. The Joy of Children's Literature refers to such elements as "inappropriate" and "frightening" (Johnson, 122).

2) Sexism- If one examines popular folktales (especially those written by the Grimm Brothers) the reader will see that the stories are incredibly biased against females. The women must either be put in their places or have their identities defined by males. These weak female characters rely on "Prince Charming" to determine their fate and overall happiness.

Although these considerations should not hinder a parent or teacher from allowing their children to read such tales, it is worthwhile for adults to make such considerations.

Read Alouds

As I look back on my childhood, there are few things that I remember enjoying more than cuddling up on the floor or in a cozy chair and listening to an adult read stories to me. This literacy strategy played a big role in the development of my love and passion for reading. Read alouds, when implemented properly, have the potential to reap lasting benefits for all parties involved. The Joy of Children's Literature claims that reading aloud can aid in areas such as:
-increased motivation and positive attitude
-conventions of print
-decoding and reading comprehension (Johnson, 388)
... and many more.
By a teacher reading out loud, he/she models proper speech which children will imitate. Without realizing, children are subconsciously learning about expression, vocabulary, adherence to punctuation, sentence structure, and many more important skills. Teachers could also incorporate explicit instruction by periodically pausing throughout the reading to assess children's comprehension through probing questions. Teachers should also strive to not only pay attention to HOW they are reading, but WHAT they are reading. It is essential that youngsters are exposed to a multitude of texts including: narratives, nursery rhymes, songs, fairy tales, poetry, non-fiction, and other genres. Their acquaintance with various genres will yield more well-rounded individuals as well as possibly spark their interest in a specific type of literature.

Needless to say, I could rant about the effectiveness of read alouds all day, but to state it succinctly: I highly recommend any teacher or parent utilizing read alouds to promote literacy with their children.

Cultural Influences

Throughout my college experience, I have come to appreciate the importance of nurturing students' various cultural identities as well as promoting acceptance of multiple perspectives and viewpoints. The incorporation of multicultural literature in a school's curriculum can do a great deal for the establishment of equality within the classroom. According to the textbook The Joy of Children's Literature, books which are representative of a plethora of cultures "break the monopoly of the mainstream culture and make the curriculum pluralistic" (Johnson, 28). When I become a teacher, I will make it my resolve to provide a large arsenal of such books in order to educate them about individuals who may be of another ethnic background, socioeconomic status, religion, gender, or exceptionality. My goal will be to create an environment which values diversity, respect, and unity.

Some books which I will likely use in my classroom to accomplish such a goal are:

-Whoever You Are by Mem Fox
-The Thing About Georgie by Lisa Graff
-Everybody Bakes Bread by Norah Dooley

Jon Sciezka Author Study

The Author Study assignment has enabled me the opportunity to become a specialist on a magnificent author named Jon Sciezka! I immediately felt a strong connection with him because I admired his bravery and persistence. On his journey toward becoming an author, he received negative feedback from all angles- publishing companies and friends and family alike. They all believed his work to be too strange and sophisticated for the young age group which he intended to cater to you. Despite this, he did not allow himself to become discouraged or stifled. He eventually found a company who had faith in him and agreed to publish his first book: The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs. That book went on to sell over 3 million copies worldwide.

Since then, Jon Scieszka has gone on to become a world-renown, award-winning, children's author. He is also a nationally recognized reading advocate and the founder of “Guys Read”- a web-based literacy program which aims to “help boys become self-motivated, lifelong readers”. Additionally, Scieszka was named the first National Ambassador for Young People's Literature in January of 2008 by the Librarian of Congress. In fulfillment of this role, he traveled the nation for two years raising awareness for the importance of childhood literacy. 

Some of his books which I intend to use in my own classroom include:

-The Stinky Cheeseman and Other Fairly Stupid Tales

-The Math Curse 

-Science Verse 

Needless to say, my study of Jon Sciezka will bring lasting rewards to my future teaching experience.

Goodreads

Recently I have been introduced to an awesome website for literature lovers like myself! Goodreads.com is an excellent tool which allows you to compile virtual bookshelves, gives you recommendations for possible books that may be of interest to you, allows you to connect with a community of other avid readers, and many more exciting functions! Through my exploration of this site, I have been reacquainted with so many of my favorite books from my childhood. Reminders such as this are incredibly beneficial for me because I now have a larger stockpile of books to draw from when I become a teacher. It also provides me with a plethora of suggestions for excellent books which could be utilized in my future classroom. I sincerely look forward to spending more time investigating this awesome resource! I'm sure it will have innumerable benefits throughout my academic, as well as professional career.