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Reading Rockets' children's literature expert, Maria Salvadore, brings you into her world as she explores the best ways to use kids' books both inside — and outside — of the classroom.

A new era begins

November  7, 2008

The seemingly endless elections are over and a new family — a young president with young children — is heading to the White House.

Like with most new beginnings, there's palpable optimism. Hope is a word that I'm hearing — and feel myself — in conjunction with the future of the United States and its citizens.

Hope. It's a short word with a big meaning. I know I personally like to spend time around people who see the glass as half full rather than half empty; they're the people who tend to be positive, optimistic, hopeful.

So what does this have to do with a blog about books? Well, I am convinced that books offer readers of any age — especially children and young adults — hope in less obvious ways.

Books whether shared or read independently offer readers coping tools even before there's the need to draw on them. Stories offer a glimpse into other ways of looking at things big and little. They provide vicarious experiences, information, other ways of seeing issues. They provide hope.

Long ago, Katherine Paterson suggested that the difference between books for young readers and adults was the presence of hope in books for young readers. (Sorry, Katherine, I don't know where or when you said this, but it's stayed with me!)

Hope is presented in books that make things work out or offered in a way that generates discussion.

A depth of meaning and feeling is presented through handsome photographs and rich text in Lauren Thompson's Hope is an Open Heart (Scholastic) — much as Barbara Kerley does in her books that combine ideas presented in words and image, A Little Peace and You and Me Together (both National Geographic).

Hope. Let's share it. Let's live it. And let it be a real force in the lives of our kids.

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Note: Comments are owned by the poster. We are not responsible for their content.

I totally agree!

Posted by: JH  |  November 12, 2008 08:32 AM

No wonder I am drawn to children's books!

Posted by: Lindsay  |  November 15, 2008 11:41 PM

I agree with you that books are a great coping tool for students. Many times, students are going through different situations in their lives and they need to find something familiar to help them cope with it. Times are tough now, and we need to find books to help students cope with their situations. There are a wide variety of genres out there that we need to include in the classrooms. Too often we look past what are students really need in reading materials. We look at what is “popular”, but don’t get books according to our students needs. We as teachers need to identify what are student’s likes and dislikes are and accommodate their needs. I like how you included titles of books that you believe talk about hope. There are so many books to find and it helps that you have listed the few that you think are important. I believe we as educators need to utilize technology more to share our resources. Teachers have many good ideas that need to be shared across many classrooms. Now that we have the technology to share, we should do it more often.

Posted by: Molly  |  November 16, 2008 06:52 PM

Let me know if you have others to add!

Posted by: Maria  |  November 24, 2008 01:47 PM

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