Literacy Matters Winter 2022

students’ understanding, and often ignite further inquiry. Shipp (2017) notes, “by infusing ideas, arguments, and texts that are culturally relevant, educators create and expand opportunities for students to think critically about the world and themselves and to formulate ideas that promote civic engagement” (p. 36). These texts can also offer springboards for critical conversations as students make connections, disrupt the master narrative, and unlearn and relearn. We recommend gathering a collection of culturally relevant multimodal texts to support content area learning such as social studies, science, and math. Read Alouds in Social Studies In social studies, students learn, discuss, and evaluate five main areas: geography, history, civics, economics, and government (Parker & Beck, 2017). Read alouds can help students develop a deeper, more meaningful understanding of these topics. For example, a read aloud of a first-hand account could supplement a lesson about South Carolina history. For instance, in her memoir, Brown Girl Dreaming, Jacqueline Woodson shares her experiences as a young Black girl living in Greenville, SC, during the 1960s. She describes how she witnessed the remnants of Jim Crow through “White Only” bathroom signs that had not yet been taken down. The poems found in Brown Girl Dreaming could be used to acknowledge the historical context as well as to model the author’s craft. For instance, the first poem beginning with “I Am Born…”moves from the specific date and place of when the author was born to broader contextual information of the history of African Americans. This technique of broadening the lens helps the reader understand the world from the perspective of an African American in 1963. Students can use a similar craft to write about the context of the world and their own community for the year in which they were born. Other examples of read alouds to share a historical event or time period from a South Carolinian’s perspective are Ron’s Big Mission by Rose Blue and Dave the Potter by Laban Carrick Hill. These books share the unique stories of Black Americans who made and achieved extraordinary things. For instance, Ron McNair, one of America’s first Black astronauts who was tragically killed during the Challenger explosion in 1986, faced discrimination in racially segregated South Carolina. As a child, he took a stand and refused to leave the public library when he was not allowed to check out a book simply because of the color of his skin. The story of Dave the Potter is about an artist, poet, and potter enslaved in South Carolina in the 1800s. When learning about history, geography, and different cultures, the introduction of multiple perspectives, viewpoints, and lifestyles through critical conversations around a collection of texts can help dismantle harmful stereotypes (Norris, 2020). For example, the book Fry Bread by Kevin Noble Maillard embraces the complexity of the Native identity by illustrating diverse Native people with varying skin tones and hair colors. By reading and discussing this book along with the information in the author’s note, students can learn about the complexities of Native identities to push beyond a “single story” and stereotyped portrayal of indigenous people as “primitive” and “uncivilized” and no longer existing (Reese, 2016).

As they navigate through these text sets, students will make connections, explore themes and big ideas across texts, and delve deeper into the topic being examined through reading, listening, and viewing a collection of layered texts. Reading a collection of carefully curated texts makes learning more connected and meaningful and increases student engagement (Bachelor, 2019; Lane &Wright, 2007). For sample text sets curated around different themes and topics, visit www.bookbuzz.blog. Text sets with common themes expand students’ perspectives, open their eyes to new ideas, and challenge them to see beyond their knowledge. Text sets provide opportunities for students to learn more about issues outside their own experiences (Bachelor, 2019). Layered text sets make learning more accessible for all students through a more intimate exploration of complex topics from diverse perspectives and modalities, including images, videos, etc. Culturally relevant text sets deepen students’ understanding and ignite further inquiry. When students are exposed to unfamiliar stories and new ideas, their minds are opened to a world of new possibilities. The intentional selection of collections of text helps us move beyond a single story which may result in tokenism or stereotyping. Shipp (2017) notes, “by infusing ideas, arguments, and texts that are culturally relevant, educators create and expand opportunities for students to think critically about the world and themselves and to formulate ideas that promote civic engagement” (p. 36). When considering topics for curating multimodal and culturally relevant text sets, begin by centering students’ interests, identities, passions, and inquiries. Thematic collections can easily address current events and various standards across the curriculum (Norris, 2020). Lane andWright (2007) recommend for teachers to “match read-aloud texts to curriculum goals and consider how the book fits into the unit being studied” (p. 670). Culturally relevant texts can include a range of complexity, making them accessible for all readers. This is particularly noteworthy since many textbooks are written two grade levels above, making them difficult to comprehend. Additionally, content in many textbooks is oversimplified, provides limited perspectives, and lacks the depth of information to cover a vast breadth of content (Demoiny & Ferraras-Stone, 2018; Vacca, Vacca, & Mraz, 2011). To make up for the inadequacy of textbooks, intentionally curated text sets can support content-area learning by providing a wide range of reading levels and different perspectives that textbooks do not. Integrating Read Alouds Across the Curriculum Carefully selected read alouds have immense academic benefits, including integrating content knowledge across subject areas. The teacher read alouds and layered multimodal text sets can be easily integrated throughout the instructional day. These practices can be used to teach the required standards while offering entry points for critical conversations. Carefully selected read alouds can provide content aligned with the curriculum, clarify misconceptions, provide counter-narratives, deepen

Literacy Matters Feature Article

Literacy Matters | Volume 22 • Winter 2022 | 9 |

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