Anchor Book: Feathers
Diversity is a very important topic that should be addressed in schools today. I chose Feathers as my anchor book because I feel like it addresses different types of diversity: race, socioeconomic background, and those with exceptionalities. As a special education major, one thing I would like to focus on with this ladder is that people with disabilities are not so different than those without and that they should not be judged or limited by their disability.
- Mostly Monster by Tammi Sauer (Picture Book)
This book is about a monster who has different interests than her classmates, she is only mostly monster on the inside. I think this book would help address accepting those with different interests and hobbies.
- The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi (Picture Book)
This book is about a young girl who moves to America from Korea. It would be a good tool to use to teach students about immigrants who are joining their classes.
- Wonder by R.J. Palacio (Novel)
This book is about Auggie, a boy with a severe facial abnormality, who when entering middle school has to face bullying and isolation by his classmates. However, after some of the students get to know Auggie, attitudes towards him start to change. This book would be a great tool in helping to explain that children with disabilities should be and want to be accepted by their peers.
- Temple Grandin: How the Girl Who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World by Sy Montgomery (Nonfiction)
This book is the biography of Temple Grandin, a woman with autism that overcame her disability and is known a respected professor of animal science and world-renowned spokesperson for autism. This book shows that those with disabilities can move past their disability to achieve their dreams.
- Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan (Novel)
This book is a great way to introduce Hispanic culture and the lives of field workers. This would be a good tool to help teach students about Mexican immigrants and all they do just to be in this country.