Multicultural Children’s Literature

Janine D. JamisonNorth Carolina Central UniversityFall 2010Children’s Resources & Services

Theme & artwork for the 2011 Collaborative Summer Reading Program for children in most public libraries.

• Multicultural literature is important for children to understand, because it allows them to embrace the culture of others, as well as teach them about the ways and customs of other cultures.

• Most multicultural literature includes the native language of the particular culture, allowing children to learn various phrases in another language.

• Children must understand that the world is made up of a diversity of people from all walks of life.

CULTURAL GROUPS

• JapaneseFaithful Elephants: A True Story of Animals,

People, & War- Yukio Tsuchiya

• HispanicBread is for Baking- David & Phillis Gershator

• ChineseIn the Snow- Huy Voun Lee

The following books do not present any stereotypical generalizations aboutthe ethnic group being presented.

Yukio Tsuchiya tells the true, sad &powerful tale of three elephants: John,Tonky, & Wanly of the Ueno Zoo inTokyo, Japan who were sentenced todeath during World War II. BecauseTokyo was being bombed daily, citizensfeared that zoo animals would becomedangerous, leaving the zookeepers nochoice but to poison & later starve theselast animals of the zoo. Tsuchiya said hewrote this story “to let children knowabout the grief, fear, and sadness warproduces, and that war affects not onlyhuman beings, but also innocent animalsthat don’t understand war. “

This story has been read annually since1951 over Japanese radio to commemoratethe surrender of Japan in World War II.

Appropriate for children ages 9-12.

How can children relate?

• Able to empathize with the death of the animals.

• Allows them to see ALL aspects of war.

• Able to use this book to teach about World War II from the Japanese perspective.

• Allows them to relay their feelings about war.

Americans David & Phillis Gershatortell the Guatemalan tale of a youngboy & his mamacita. Mamacita istrying to teach the young boythrough song the importance ofcleaning his plate, eating hisBread, and not being wasteful. SheConstantly sings in Spanish:

“El pan es para comerEl pan es para la vidaNo tires el panAy, ay! Vida mia.”

Which means, the bread is to eat forlife & nourishment.

*The Gershator’s were inspired to write this book from a Spanishsong with the phrase “no tires pan” which means clean your plate.

Appropriate for children ages 3-7.

How can children relate?

• Can rhythmically learn Spanish from the bilingual text.

• Can learn the importance of eating all your food, and not being wasteful.

• Able to embrace Hispanic culture through colorful, imaginative illustrations.

• Sheet music to Spanish phrase repeated throughout the story is on last page with the words and music created by the authors.

Huy Voun Lee writes abouthow a young boy, Xiao Mingand his mother go for a walkon a snowy day. Xiao Ming’smother takes a stick from atree and teaches him to writeChinese characters in thesnow. She teaches himfour basic words: tree, snow,sun, & moon. Xiao Ming isexcited to learn thesecharacters, because to him,the Chinese words look likepictures in the snow.

Appropriate for children ages 4-8.

How can children relate?

• Introduces children to one of the oldest picture-languages in the world.

• Offers pronunciation of traditional Mandarin Chinese.

• Children can attempt to recreate the writing of the Chinese characters.

• Allows children to embrace traditional Chinese culture.

RESOURCES

Gershator, P. & G. (1995). Bread is for eating. New York: Henry Holt & Company, Inc.

Tsuchiya, Yukio. (1951). Faithful elephants: a true story of animals, people, and war. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.

Voun Lee, H. (1995). In the snow. New York: Henry Holt & Company, Inc.

THANK YOU FOR VIEWING MY PRESENTATION.

All comments are welcomed!!!