Literacy Matters Winter 2022

framework (2019) demonstrates how to move from selection to connections, reflection, and ultimately action. As Hass (2021) notes, “We cannot spin our wheels teaching about social justice when what we really need to be doing is teaching for social justice” (p. 149). While reading and engaging in critical conversations is an important and foundational aspect of elevating students’ voices within the classroom setting, it is important to move from talking to action. As classrooms become increasingly diverse, it is essential to create spaces where all voices, identities, and cultures are celebrated (Kelly et al., 2020b). When we center students’ identities and cultures as strengths and a foundation for learning, we foster a student-centered approach to teaching that empowers students intellectually, socially, emotionally, and politically (Ladson-Billings, 1994). “Culturally relevant and sustaining teaching begins with a conscious effort on the part of the teacher to develop and maintain cultural competence and foster a more inclusive environment for all” (Kelly et al., 2020a, p. 156). “Each child’s voice must be valued in the curriculum and teaching—along with her ways of making sense of and in the world” (Souto-Manning & Martell, 2016, p. 7). Teachers can develop the knowledge and confidence to foster more culturally responsive and culturally sustaining pedagogy (Sealy-Ruiz, 2021). By fostering learning spaces where critical conversations and explorations occur regularly, critical inquiry becomes a regular practice and way of thinking and meaning-making.

agreements helped establish buy-in and shared ownership in the class community where students can participate without fear of judgment. When conversations explore sensitive topics such as race, class, and gender, we can remind students of class agreement statements such as “speaking our own truths” and “listening with compassion” previously established and agreed upon by all stakeholders. The classroom agreements collectively constructed and established at the beginning of the school year can facilitate respectful conversations that provide opportunities for critical thinking and expand students’ perspectives beyond their own experiences. A space created in this way gives students a voice, empowers them with confidence, and provides them the agency to make their own decisions. It also actively prepares students to become engaged citizens by embracing and practicing democratic values, active listening, articulating ideas to others, working together to reach a compromise, and respecting others’ views. Conclusion The intentional selection of read alouds to honor and center students’ and their families’ identities while also offering opportunities for readers to see beyond their own lived experiences can serve as powerful shared experiences to foster community and critical conversations. Laminack and Kelly’s instructional

Literacy Matters Feature Article

References Allen-Hughes, L. (April 2013), The Social Benefits of Morning Meeting: Creating a Space for Social and Character Education in the Classroom . https://login.libproxy. furman.edu/login?auth=shib&url=https://search-ebscohost-com.libproxy. furman.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=ED541211&site=ehost-live

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Created in consultation with Edith Campbell, Molly Beth Griffin, K. T. Horning, Debbie Reese, Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, and Madeline Tyner, with statistics compiled by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center, School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison: https://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/literature resources/ccbc-diversity-statistics/books-by-about-poc-fnn/. Retrieved from https://readingspark.wordpress.com/2019/06/19/picture-this-diversity-in childrens-books-2018-infographic/.

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