Coloring Between the Lines

Anhong.If you like Korea, please watch their wonde...

2012-05-22T16:40:48.373-04:00

Anhong.If you like Korea, please watch their wonderful TV Drama on Dramafever.com
I watch now the episodes of Fashion King.

Thanks for this response, Nicole. It's such ...

2012-05-17T22:43:33.031-04:00

Thanks for this response, Nicole.

It's such an important reminder that there's no one approach that will work for every child and every situation, and that it's essential to always be adapting the work with sensitivity to the particular children involved.

When there's an "only" child of any race, it's crucial not to increase their sense of difference, visibility and isolation by spotlighting it in an activity like this, essentially asking them - as you note - to be the lone representative of their race. In a classroom with only one child of color, I wouldn't lead with the skin color exercise.

Based on my memories of being the only black kid i...

2012-05-16T17:29:52.444-04:00

Based on my memories of being the only black kid in my class - sometimes the whole grade - I would have been horrified to see my skin tone picked out as a piece of paper, or being singled out as different based on how I looked in any way.

What I could not explain then, is the feeling that I was being forced to represent something based entirely on something I could not control - my race.

I would have preferred to be singled out by my personality, or what I could do - things I could control such as drawing, running, or spelling. Things that I could control.

When I read "Why Do All The Black Kids Sit Together in the Cafeteria" it was eye-opening for me. It was a relief to know that my discomfort was psychological, not because I was somehow not proud enough of being black.

Thanks again for another thought-provoking post!

Oh, I'm so impressed that the teachers conside...

2012-05-16T10:05:08.109-04:00

Oh, I'm so impressed that the teachers considered the adopted children before starting and involved families in the planning. If only all teachers were so aware of these issues. (FYI readers... I'm an educator... this isn't a dig on teachers. I believe it's a matter of not knowing rather a matter of malicious intent).

As you know, Annie, this is a topic that is near and dear to my heart, for a variety of reasons. One alternative to "family Trees" is to create "Family Orchards" which remove the implication of biological relationships. Instead of asking students to create a timeline of their entire life starting from birth, they could be asked to create a timeline that focuses on some important aspect if their lives such as "My Life though Sports" or "My life as a violinist" or whatever else a child can dream up.

I blogged about this topic back in January. In that post, I provide links to other blogs of interest and a guide for educators. I hope interested readers will hop over to learn more.
http://tinyurl.com/89s497l

Great question, Michelle, and thanks for raising i...

2012-05-14T17:32:09.310-04:00

Great question, Michelle, and thanks for raising it. I forgot to mention that the teachers said that there were adopted children in the class and the teachers knew in advance that those children had information about their names to share. The activity was done in collaboration with the families.

You raise a really important issue: sometimes activities like this - family trees, baby photos, etc. - which are intended to be inclusive, end up emphasizing the difference of and isolating children who've experienced adoption, war, or other family disruption. It's essential that the activity be designed with a particular group of children in mind and tailored to their needs.

Any other tips from your experience about adaptations to make such activities welcoming for children who are adopted?

These are all interesting ideas. I have one conc...

2012-05-14T14:22:39.359-04:00

These are all interesting ideas.

I have one concern about the name assignment... What about the children who were named by a birth parent and later adopted? How do they explain their names?
That could be a painful assignment, not unlike being asked to bring in a baby picture when you were adopted at 2 or 5 or older and none exist.

Looking forward to Part 2. Just tweeted this one.

2012-05-07T14:56:09.671-04:00

Looking forward to Part 2. Just tweeted this one.

Thanks so much for the support, Mama C! We just re...

2012-05-05T09:56:41.159-04:00

Thanks so much for the support, Mama C! We just returned from the International Reading Association convention, where everyone who heard about the project responded with enthusiasm.

Next step - funding!

I am adding this "I'm your neighbor"...

2012-05-05T06:58:32.245-04:00

I am adding this "I'm your neighbor" to my blog roll, and just so happens I am reading the Good Braider book now! YES! Such a cool project--and of course you are in the core of it!

I haven't seen it. I'll check it out. Than...

2012-04-27T12:35:27.529-04:00

I haven't seen it. I'll check it out. Thanks Emma, via Annie!

Thanks for the link, Michelle! I read the article ...

2012-04-26T23:25:14.052-04:00

Thanks for the link, Michelle! I read the article and left a comment.

Although we seem to be moving glacially slowly towards remedying the problem, at least the lack of diversity in children's books is a frequent topic of conversation in the field these days!

Have you seen the CBC Diversity blog? Emma, who attended the "Color Your World" workshop Saturday, told me about it.

Did you see this today? http://www.theatlanticwir...

2012-04-26T21:51:11.653-04:00

Did you see this today?
http://www.theatlanticwire.com/entertainment/2012/04/ongoing-problem-race-y/51574/

Thought of you the whole time I was reading it.

Did you see this Lee and Low list? It's a wond...

2012-04-12T11:29:34.813-04:00

Did you see this Lee and Low list? It's a wonderful collection of multi-cultural books with "Passover Themes." One is titled "A Song for Cambodia."

http://pinterest.com/leeandlow/books-with-passover-themes/?timeline=1

Thanks so much for your appreciations, Tania and B...

2012-04-11T20:45:26.402-04:00

Thanks so much for your appreciations, Tania and Betsy. This journey of this book is such a rich one so far - and I'm learning so much.

Tania, I appreciate deeply the privilege of connecting with the girls.

Betsy, you and I have a lot of overlapping circles in our lives!

What a beautiful post! Thanks Anne, and thanks aga...

2012-04-11T09:14:39.349-04:00

What a beautiful post! Thanks Anne, and thanks again for A Path of Stars. Happy Khmer New Year!

Anne, I love everything you've written here! ...

2012-04-10T19:53:33.050-04:00

Anne, I love everything you've written here! As a mom to Asian daughters, good friends to Tania and Sophia, neighbors to the Sens, and as an illustrator with a genuine investment in multicultural children's literature, I thank you so very much for your sensitivity and honesty.

Annie and others: Have you seen this TED talk? It&...

2012-03-29T14:02:38.185-04:00

Annie and others:
Have you seen this TED talk? It's 23 minutes long but really worth your time.
http://tinyurl.com/7lf2phb

Thanks, Katie. An important point and not off topi...

2012-03-27T12:56:24.891-04:00

Thanks, Katie. An important point and not off topic at all.

Part of the legacy of racism is the pervasive impression that a broad section of American readers (especially white people) won't identify with a dark-skinned character. (There's also the offshoot of racism called Colorism - the preference for lighter skin over dark - seen around the world among all races.)

Sadly, the reactions of some fans this week to the casting of black actors for "The Hunger Games" - for characters who are in fact described in the book as dark-skinned - seem to prove the point. For too many Americans, it's still true that dark skin=Other.

To further this discussion with your daughter, you might want to check out the book Shades of People, which I reviewed in an April 27 post last year.

Hi Anne, This may be off your subject and you may...

2012-03-27T10:16:51.975-04:00

Hi Anne,

This may be off your subject and you may have already addressed this topic, anyway, for years I have noticed, as I'm sure many others, that the various advertising with both children and adults of color are of light skin tone. My daughter who is 7 and I we're looking thru a "national" company ad. She mentioned on her own, look Mom, her skin is dark like mine. This is a rare happening, though it is about time fo other children to adults of darker skin tones to be able to see themselves as they and we see them. Katie

Thanks, Matt. I just discovered your blog at http...

2012-03-21T18:10:31.863-04:00

Thanks, Matt.

I just discovered your blog at http://goodmenproject.com/author/matthew-salesses/

I love how you explore the between space without trying to pin it down or figure it out, just letting the complexities bump up against each other.

And then there's the beautiful baby, who (though I've just begun reading) emerges immediately as a full person - I'm sold.

And there's your new story on KoreanAmericanStory - whew! It offers a window on the adoption experience that I've never imagined. Strange, brave stuff.

With appreciation,
Annie

Dear Anne, Thank you for writing your essay. I...

2012-03-21T12:08:11.320-04:00

Dear Anne,

Thank you for writing your essay. I'm a Korean adoptee who married a Korean girl and had a traditional-style wedding. And it was so interesting to see your identification with Korea.

Best,

Matt

I read the first two of those graphic novels and l...

2012-03-06T01:18:48.845-05:00

I read the first two of those graphic novels and loved them (The pig's expressions in Hereville were priceless). I'll have to check out the third. Another kid's graphic novel I read and loved last year was the Secret Science Alliance and the Copycat Crook. If you get a chance, you should definitely check it out.

Congrats Mama, Ally, friend, voice of reason and s...

2012-03-05T21:59:19.400-05:00

Congrats Mama, Ally, friend, voice of reason and strength and champion to many!

Congrats AGAIN super Mama writer advocate champion...

2012-03-05T21:58:09.308-05:00

Congrats AGAIN super Mama writer advocate champion!

Looks great. Can't wait to read it!

2012-02-26T20:05:36.172-05:00

Looks great. Can't wait to read it!