Category: Multicultural

Counting Books: “This Jazz Man” & Caldecott Winner: “Ten, Nine, Eight”

A high energy, retelling of the classic children’s song, “This Old Man.” It introduces readers to several famous black musicians and does it in a fun and appealing way. The catchy tune reverberates in your mind’s ear–or better yet, in your read-aloud voice as you sing the text to life…. “Ten, Nine, Eight” illustrations depict Daddy and daughter together. Many books feature moms and their children. When one shows an involved dad, it is always welcome! The scenes depicted have a gentle, nurturing tone that follow the little girl from bath time to bedtime. A sweet, relaxing book, it would be an excellent choice not only for multicultural families but for any family.

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12/07/2015

“You Can Do It!

I believe this book transmits an important message for kids who were adopted. Because information is frequently missing, they may have to struggle harder to recognize and appreciate their talents. The belief which others have in our ability fuels one’s own courage, willingness to try and persist through to success. This is especially true for children. They need our focused attention and thrive under the positive expectations of parents and teachers. (Equally true, kids who constantly hear negative, discouraging or demeaning messages, absorb those as well. They soon learn to expect little of themselves.) The self-fulfilling power of expectations is well documented.

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11/30/2015

Libraries Open Worlds and Conversations

Lola at the Library portrays three strong messages. The most obvious: the library is a fun place to visit. Second, Books captivate Lola’s imagination and she loves choosing and reading. Third, mother certainly values reading. After all, she’s spending her time and energy to take Lola to the library and to read her selections to her. A fourth important, although more subtle, message is that mother values reading for herself too. Young readers will intuit this because each time mother and Lola visit the library, mother also selects her own reading material.

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10/18/2015

One Family

One Family by George Shannon and Blanca Gomez presents a fascinating introduction into counting with a twist. The reader meets many types of family; each is one example of one kind of family. We discover that a family can include

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09/07/2015

Making Dreams Come True

Michaela’s story is one of resilience in the face of adversity and dogged persistence of an important goal. Inspired by her dream, she allowed nothing to prevent her from realizing her heart’s desire. This book clearly shows that her success did not come easily. It resulted from her hard work augmented by collaborative resources and a team of people who supported Michaela.

Her story exemplifies another important adoptee lesson in trust: to rely on others, to depend on their support and to believe that they will be there when needed. Many adoptees have an abiding fear of rejection. This can tempt them into hiding their true wishes and/or replacing their own dreams with the wishes of others. Michaela’s story provides an inspiring model for following one’s own path. It also shows that success is usually a team effort. Many people supported Michaela along the way. She had to agree to let them in, to expose her innermost dream and be vulnerable to their response.

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08/18/2015

EVERYBODY’s Got Talent

School is one environment where kids makes rapid–and inaccurate–conclusions about their abilities. They decide if they are smart or not, capable or not, interested or not … AQ* Lens: Encouraging and nurturing competence is an essential part of parenting–especially adoptive parenting. Grief and loss issues chip away at self-esteem. It requires intentionality to build confidence, pride and capability on evidence that kids can believe and trust. One tiny step at a time, parents can help children build experiences of success onto success. It takes time to establish this resilient attitude.

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07/07/2015

Water Transforms and Connects

Water Rolls, Water Rises by Pat Mora and illustrated by Meilo So offers a delight for the senses. Lavish watercolor illustrations bring to life imaginative poetic images about water in all stages of the amazing water cycle. The poetry and illustrations are each gorgeous and perfectly complement each other. All humans share the need for water. We use and enjoy its many states for health, recreation and we delight in it’s transformative beauty.

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04/13/2015

From Korea to America, Now Who Am I?

The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi is a book that has an interesting, yet subtle adoption connection. Although it features a Korean girl, she is NOT an adoptee. Unhei moves from Korea to the United States. The Name Jar also

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02/24/2015

I Had a Favorite Dress

Clothing plays an important role in expressing our individuality. It’s the packaging we use to present ourselves into the world. So it is no surprise, to some children, clothing is a Big Deal….As always, I like to put on my AQ* glasses and view the book through the lens of Adoption-attunement. This book is a fun romp through creative problem-solving. It models a resilience to change without beating kids over the head with the message. (As adoptive parents, we are very familiar with how challenging change can be for our kids!)

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02/16/2015

Valentine Lullaby

This lovely book beautifully captures the intimacy of a bedtime ritual. The text is melodious, soothing and accompanied by pictures in the perfect palette of soft hues of blues, purples and aqua. First, in contrast to the “color blind” approach often advocated, the poem highlights the baby’s race: “My little black baby/My dark body’s baby.” Color is a point of connection, of joy, of beauty. Race is not erased; it is celebrated.

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02/09/2015