Using Picture Books to Mitigate Climate Anxiety

     I wrote a picture book manuscript as LA burned.  When the fire broke out on January 7, it had been a wonderfully blustery day due to the Santa Ana winds.  I spent the morning with my kindergarten students, flying kites.  Children chasing and laughing.  Pure joy.  

Then, on a dime it changed.  By lunchtime, the principal called us all back into our classrooms.  As it turned out we were 3.7 miles from the evacuation line.  We watched helplessly as the smoke plumes rose from the nearby mountains, then continued to burn for days.                          

To watch video click here

                                                            https://youtu.be/CqMYP6uoiWA

                                                             

      Our community experienced trauma.  After the fires were extinguished, students from an affected school began enrolling in our school.  The students arrived in my classroom and school confused, unstable, and affected.  Their entire school community had been torn apart. We welcomed them into our community paying special attention to the fact that they were most likely experiencing trauma and most importantly needed a community and sense of belonging.       As a class, we gave them a place to belong.

      I don’t know anyone who doesn’t know someone who lost their home in one of the two fires that burned simultaneously. Both UCLA and Yale University have noted that climate change contributed to the conditions that fueled the fires.  And yet, we don’t talk about it.  I suspect climate anxiety plays a big part.  And so, as a kindergarten teacher and kidlit author, I believe that we must be the ones to start the conversation.  This last post from me explores Using Picture Books to Mitigate Climate Anxiety. 

     I have the deepest respect for children and believe that they are capable, curious, and creative thinkers.  I worry that as adults, our own climate anxiety prevents us from having open and honest conversations with them about this growing existential threat.  Not having these conversations will not make the problem go away.  So, how can we push through our own anxiety to engage our young people in discourse that can mitigate their anxiety and support their capacity to engage in climate activism.  How can we lead by example?  I believe picture books are a valid portal to enter past our own resistance. As kidlit authors, we can write stories that lead children past the fear of the adults around them and into discourse that can leads them to be changemakers. 

I like to read stories to my kindergarten students to provoke discourse.  I don’t care what their conclusions are.  I just want them to connect and engage. I find that stories, rather than affirmation books or books where adults tell children how and what to think keep my students riveted.  

     Stories and experiences in nature help students build relationships with the outdoors which I believe builds the conditions for conservation to emerge.  We can’t expect children to want to push beyond climate anxiety through to climate activism if they have no reason to. 

     I often begin with picture books like Sea Bear written and illustrated by Lindsay Moore about a lone polar bear’s journey across sea ice in the Arctic, The Octopus Escapes written by Maile Meloy and illustrated by Felicita Sala about an octopus who escapes from an aquarium and returns back to its natural home, and my picture book Hello, Little One: A Monarch Butterfly Story illustrated by Fiona Halliday about a fictional intergenerational friendship between a monarch caterpillar and a monarch butterfly.

     As I’ve written in my previous blog it’s important that stories are not only told through the lens of the white dominant culture (which often include animal stories) but rather offer multiple perspectives from diverse protagonists. I include Fatima’s Great Outdoors about a family's first camping trip written by Ambreen Tariq illustrated by Stevie Lewis and We Are Water Protectors about the Dakota Access Pipeline protests written by Carole Lindstrom illustrated by Michaela Goade.  I lean heaviest on No World Too Big edited by Lindsay H. Metcalf, Keila V. Dawson and Jeanette Bradley illustrated by Jeanette Bradley with non-fiction stories about youth climate activists.

     As picture book authors, we are tasked with the opportunity to move beyond our own climate anxiety and support our youth with the picture books we write.  Our children need your books as they make their way in a world where climate change is impacting where we live in different ways.  Our books can help children make sense of their world and move beyond their  anxiety to better cope with our changing world. Our books can make a difference. We owe it to this next generation.

By Zeena M. Pliska

     Zeena M. Pliska spends her days immersed in the joy of 5-year-olds.  She is a public school kindergarten teacher by day and a children’s book author by night in Los Angeles, California.  A progressive public-school educator, she believes that the most important aspect of teaching is listening to children. A social justice activist and organizer for over 30 years, she brings race, class, and gender analysis to everything she does.  She is half Egyptian and half Filipino.  A lifetime storyteller, she has facilitated stories as a theater director, visual artist, photographer and journalist and most recently as a short film screenwriter/producer/director.   Her debut picture book, Hello, Little One:  A Monarch Butterfly Story from Page Street Kids came out May 12, 2020.  Her second picture book Egyptian Lullaby from Roaring Brook Press came out April 18, 2023. Two board books in the Chicken Soup for Babies series from Charlesbridge came out in the fall and winter of 2023.  Egyptian Lullaby was awarded the 2024 CABA award from Howard University.

     Her blog posts can be found at  www.teachingauthors.com and on social media, Instagram @zeenamar, X (formerly Twitter) @zeenamar1013, Bluesky @zeenamar, and on Facebook @Zeena M. Pliska or Zeena Mar.  For more information you can go to www.zeenamar.

 

 

  

Using Picture Books to Help Children Understand Our Diverse World

 

In this exploration of Using Picture Books to Help Children Understand Our Diverse World, let me begin with a quote that many of us are familiar with:

“Books are sometimes windows, offering views of worlds that may be real or imagined, familiar or strange. These windows are also sliding glass doors, and readers have only to walk through in imagination to become part of whatever world has been created and recreated by the author. When lighting conditions are just right, however, a window can also be a mirror. Literature transforms human experience and reflects it back to us, and in that reflection, we can see our own lives and experiences as part of the larger human experience. Reading, then, becomes a means of self-affirmation, and readers often seek their mirrors in books. (1990, p. ix)” Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop, Professor Emerita of Education at Ohio State University and a pioneer in multicultural children’s literature research.

My picture book Egyptian Lullaby was released in April 2023. I wrote Egyptian Lullaby to normalize Arab culture because Hollywood and the media had done such a bang-up job of demonizing Arabs.

I often present at teacher’s conferences on Using Picture Books to Decenter White Culture and Re-center Diversity. When I present, I ask teachers to evaluate their classroom libraries. I invite them to:

Identify their 10 favorite picture books that they read to their class every year. Who are the protagonists? What percentage of the picture books have non-white or Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) protagonists? What percentage have animal protagonists that tell their story through a white/dominant culture lens? What percentage have white protagonists?

After we explore teacher’s choices, we look specifically at context so I ask:

Of the picture books that they read to their class each year, featuring BIPOC protagonists…What percentage highlight universal themes i.e. human experiences, friendship or family relationships? What percentage focus on the struggle, trauma, resistance, or resilience of BIPOC people?  What percentage are about culture as expressed through food, holidays, traditions or rituals?

The hope is that their libraries become more balanced, showing BIPOC people as whole people living rich and full lives.

I know that my fellow teachers as well as myself, come to our classes with internal biases. It is impossible to not. When we examine the picture books we read to young students, we have a better chance of not reinforcing stereotypes and assumptions which are transferred subtly. If we consciously shift the way we center marginalized cultures and not reinforce the dominant culture, we have the power to normalize true diversity and create a lens through which children see a world where many different peoples and cultures live equitably.  In addition to racial equity, we must value all stories that include LGBTQIA protagonists, main characters with disabilities, stories that honor gender in all its forms and non-binary characters, as well as stories that look at the patriarchal system, etc.

It is imperative that children not in the dominant culture, see themselves in books.  If they don’t, they develop without understanding their value.  They miss the opportunity to connect with their true, authentic selves. They grow lacking the understanding of who they are and who they will become in the world.  And they move through a world where they don’t belong. Because preschool and primary school teachers use picture books to introduce and teach content to our younger students, access to children’s books that center currently marginalized voices make a profound difference. It creates an awareness where young students belonging to communities experiencing marginalization can now see themselves as valued in the same way young students belonging to the white community do.

With diverse picture books, students identifying as white can see themselves as part of a community without the limitations, that devaluing others brings.  Providing a balanced view of the world for young children is imperative to promoting equity. Afterall, if we keep reinforcing that Eurocentric cultures have more value to our young children through the literature we read, we cannot be surprised when adults who are in the dominant culture are unable to recognize their privilege. Ultimately this is a disservice to children in the dominant culture because it puts undue expectations on them and creates an unbalanced world for them to navigate. They lose the opportunity to learn and grow with others not like them.  In short, nobody wins.

As a community of authors, we must make space for the diversity of books.  I am not suggesting that we stop creating stories.  I am suggesting that we be mindful and understand the context in which we are creating. I am suggesting that we create a culture of abundance rather than a culture of scarcity. If teachers and librarians, can choose from a greater variety of books, we can consciously shift the way we center marginalized cultures and not reinforce the dominant culture, only.  We can create a lens through which children see a world where many different peoples and cultures live equitably.  A world where we can address the unequal power dynamics.  A world where we demonstrate valuing all people and most importantly bring marginalized people out of the margins. Valuing stories about many different and diverse protagonists, helps motivate the publishing industry to create and value the stories of currently marginalized peoples. It creates opportunities for writers and artists to tell their stories that may not otherwise get told. And it influences what book stores choose to carry and market. It helps motivate the publishing industry to create and value the stories of people not in the dominant paradigm.

Of particular concern, is the current political climate that encourages book banning. Banning books discourages books that act as what Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop refers to as "mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors." Encouraging the simple, doable act of thoughtfully choosing a wide variety of books that decenters dominant culture leads to change.  Banning books blocks this change.  And perhaps this is the purpose.  I think most authors understand that this is what makes this movement nefarious and dangerous.

Sometimes, a small subtle change, a slight shift in our awareness away from the dominant culture, a small choice can make a world of difference and open a whole new way of being for children, families, and ultimately communities. While authors, teachers, and librarians can't completely change the world, we can help shape and contextualize the world our children experience through the literature we provide for them, thus creating equity and justice for both the entitled and unentitled. We can help our students reimagine our world and see it as the diverse place it is, especially in the United States. We can all deconstruct the dominant paradigm.  

By Zeena M. Pliska

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Zeena M. Pliska spends her days immersed in the joy of 5-year-olds.  She is a public school kindergarten teacher by day and a children’s book author by night in Los Angeles, California.  A progressive public-school educator, she believes that the most important aspect of teaching is listening to children. A social justice activist and organizer for over 30 years, she brings race, class, and gender analysis to everything she does.  She is half Egyptian and half Filipino.  A lifetime storyteller, she has facilitated stories as a theater director, visual artist, photographer and journalist and most recently as a short film screenwriter/producer/director.   Her debut picture book, Hello, Little One:  A Monarch Butterfly Story from Page Street Kids came out May 12, 2020.  Her second picture book Egyptian Lullaby from Roaring Brook Press came out April 18, 2023. Two board books in the Chicken Soup for Babies series from Charlesbridge came out in the fall and winter of 2023.  Egyptian Lullaby was awarded the 2024 CABA award from Howard University.

Her blog posts can be found at  www.teachingauthors.com and on social media, Instagram @zeenamar, X (formerly Twitter) @zeenamar1013, Bluesky @zeenamar, and on Facebook @Zeena M. Pliska or Zeena Mar.  For more information you can go to www.zeenamar.

Using Picture Books to Explore Uncomfortable Topics

 In this post, I’d like to have a look at Using Picture Books to Explore Uncomfortable Topics. As a teacher, I believe that uncomfortable topics surface organically when students feel heard.  

Deep topics come up often without warning and at random times.  For 5-year-olds, they can range from what might seem like mundane issues for adults to problems that are recognized as trauma.

Young children are just beginning to explore and make sense of a larger world.  It can be joyful, wonder-filled, and scary.  Relationships are new.  Friendships are complicated.  Control and power are tools that young children are just starting to experiment with.  Questions emerge like:  Who has power? How do I get power? What do I do with it when I get it? 

Moving through relationships with limited tools can be confusing.  What happens when my best friend wants to play with someone else? What happens to my best friend when I want to make a new friend? Simple goodbyes can be excruciating. Transitions can upset.  Fairness is an ongoing theme.  What is fairness? It doesn’t feel fair when others don’t want to play the game I want to play in the way I want them to play it. I want the toy that the other child has.  It’s not fair that they won’t give it to me. What does it mean to share?  

When uncomfortable topics emerge, I lean into picture books with stories where students can see themselves for support.  Stories can provoke discourse and inquiry, which can be expanded by introducing more picture books.  I look for stories with protagonists who are going through similar experiences, situations, or feelings that allow students to find a relevant relationship.  Stories help us connect with others.  They help students navigate difficult events, trauma, or topics that are uncomfortable.  They help students know they are not alone, alienated or marginalized.  They help connect students with each other who might have the same concerns so that they can support each other.  It helps build community. I find that one picture book leads to another.  Picture books soothe.  Picture books comfort.  Picture books can gently and safely acknowledge the wounds to help begin the healing.

When you’re five, the world is beginning to change.  Many go to formal school for the first time.  Topics that are difficult for children include moving, divorce, bullying, inclusion, exclusion, social cues, making friends, keeping friends, fairness, power, grief, loss, pet loss, losing friendships, different forms of families, domestic violence, gun violence, police violence, alcohol/drug abuse of family members, cognitively declining grandparents, death, racism, disability rights, LGBTQIA+ rights, losing your home, immigration, and natural disasters. 

In addition to using picture books to help students explore subjects that are challenging and difficult for them, parents and teachers can also use these stories to make palatable, topics that are uncomfortable for adults.

Children are honest and raw.  They say what they want to say often without filters.  They speak from the heart and often don’t mask their true feelings. This can be uncomfortable for the adults in their lives.  Parents and Teachers may struggle to support topics like LGBTQIA+ questions, grief, racism, disability rights, etc. Picture books can help scaffold and support adults.   Picture books can give the words and context.  Stories can help adults find access points for children.  They may even provide multiple points of access for extremely challenging topics, creating many different conversations.  Picture books can help adults gain new insight as well, possibly leading to more empathy for young children who are trying to make sense of their world. 

By Zeena M. Pliska

Zeena M. Pliska spends her days immersed in the joy of 5-year-olds.  She is a public school kindergarten teacher by day and a children’s book author by night in Los Angeles, California.  A progressive public-school educator, she believes that the most important aspect of teaching is listening to children. A social justice activist and organizer for over 30 years, she brings race, class, and gender analysis to everything she does.  She is half Egyptian and half Filipino.  A lifetime storyteller, she has facilitated stories as a theater director, visual artist, photographer and journalist and most recently as a short film screenwriter/producer/director.   Her debut picture book, Hello, Little One:  A Monarch Butterfly Story from Page Street Kids came out May 12, 2020.  Her second picture book Egyptian Lullaby from Roaring Brook Press came out April 18, 2023. Two board books in the Chicken Soup for Babies series from Charlesbridge came out in the fall and winter of 2023.  Egyptian Lullaby was awarded the 2024 CABA award from Howard University.

Her blog posts can be found at  www.teachingauthors.com and on social media, Instagram @zeenamar, X (formerly Twitter) @zeenamar1013, Bluesky @zeenamar, and on Facebook @Zeena M. Pliska or Zeena Mar.  For more information you can go to www.zeenamar.

A Report on Kidlit Con 2010

It's no secret that the key to successful blogging is community. But mostly that community communicates from their keyboards--posting, commenting, and emailing from the privacy of their own home offices or neighborhood coffee shops.

So it was a rare treat that 80 or so bloggers (myself included) emerged from behind their keyboards to converge on Open Book in Minneapolis for the annual Kidlit Con.

Here are a few key points I learned (or was reminded of) throughout the weekend:


1) An online presence truly can make a career.

The weekend started off with a terrific Friday night panel by the Merry Sisters of Fate (Maggie Stiefvater, Brenna Yovanoff, and Tessa Gratton) during which they discussed their tremendous critique trio relationship (mostly done via Google chat), an illustration of how online communication of can impact the career of an author.

Maggie underscored this idea in her Saturday morning keynote, describing how blogging helped her career as an artist and writer living in middle-of-nowhere Virginia. "Blogging can be good for you professionally and good for the soul," said the New York Times bestselling author who's toured the likes of Lithuania recently. "Ten years ago, my career arc would not have been possible. Blogging made it happen." (Note: I'd rather be reading Maggie's book LINGER than blogging right now. It's calling to me from my nightstand.) An example: Instead of sending her on tour during fall when school visits would precede bookstore event--and bring in teen readers--her publisher sent her out during the summer, banking on her blog presence to bring in fans. It's worked beautifully.

2) Community means participation.

The kidlitosphere is a community and you can't be part of a community if you're a hermit. You've got to read other people's blogs if you want them to read yours. You've got to leave comments. You've got to tweet and facebook links to other posts you like by other bloggers. You cannot blog in a void. You've got to make friends.

3) There's strength in numbers and 3b) There are voids to be filled.

Elissa Cruz and Kurtis Scalleta offered a great session on the birth of their ginormous group blog From the Mixes Up Files...of Middle Grade Authors.

Elissa had the idea to start a blog by MG authors focusing on MG books, posted her idea on a message board, and was overwhelmed by the response. There are currently 30 writers and illustrators participating in Mixed Up Files. A group blog such as this offers plenty of bloggers to share the workload, a big talent pool to draw on, and lots of varied expertise within the group.

And In middle grade, Elissa found a hole that needed filling in the world of kid lit blogs. Mixed Up Files got great traffic right out of the box and is likely to become the go-to spot online for the MG gatekeepers--teachers, librarians, and parents--for reading lists, interviews, and all things MG.

4) Book review bloggers are a powerful and far-reaching bunch.

During Kidlit Con, I was thrilled to have the chance to chat with with Pam Coughlin of Mother Reader, Jen Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page, Sarah Stevenson of Finding Wonderland, and Liz Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace and A Tea Cozy also heard them participate in a panel about the Cybil Awards (given to books in a number of categories and judged solely by kidlit bloggers).

This year their call for potential judges yielded 200 volunteers for 100 open spots. (Yours truly is a second round YA fiction judge!) During the book nomination period, an unnamed publisher wanted to nominate their entire list. Authors like Jane Yolen and Lee Bennett Hopkins were talking about the Cybils on facebook.

Beyond the popularity of their award, they hold an annual blog book tour, and publishers seem happy to offer them review copies (based on a panel of marketing folks from Lerner, Flux, and Harper). These reviewers are reaching the gatekeepers, and publishers are aware of that.

5) Skype is cool.

During a panel on virtual school visits, Kidlit Con was joined via Skype by Nick Glass of TeachingBooks.net. (I likened this virtual panelist to The Giant Benevolent Wizard of Oz with headphones.) With a laptop and a projector (and no IT or AV professionals), Nick was able to fully participate in the panel, offering information and answering questions. Authors should really consider using this technology for virtual visits.


I've got lots more to share, but not today, dear readers. In the meantime, if you'd like more on Kidlit Con 2010 check out this stuff:

• Greg Pincus (who did not attend the event), has created a full transcript of #kidlitcon tweets. (Thanks, Greg!)
• Conference co-coordinator Andrew Karre continues to update the Kidlit Con blog with links to conference-goers' recaps. (Click here, and here for particularly good ones.) Conference PowerPoints will follow.
• You can check out the official Kidlit Con 2010 Flikr page (and add photos if you have them).

Kidlit Con 2011 will be held in Seattle.

Kidlit Con 2012 will be held in New York City.

If you're a blogger, you should come!