We Are...Gifted!

Upcoming new Professional Development title!

Black Boys Are Lit: Emerging PreK-3 Gifted & Talented Black Boys Using Multicultural Literature and Ford's Bloom-Banks Matrix

By Brian L. Wright, Donna Y. Ford, and James L. Moore

This title advocates for the rethinking of literacies by repositioning White-centered texts that often reflect and represent power and privilege toward centering the brilliance of Black identities of Black children in general, Black boys in particular.

Black boys (of all ages) want to and need to physically see positive images of themselves in books reflected at them. This representation, we argue, . When Black boys see themselves portrayed visually, textually, and realistically in children's books, vital messages of recognition, value, affirmation, and validation are conveyed. Recognition of the sociocultural contexts in which they live is celebrated.

Books for and about Black boys must be rigorous, authentic, multicultural, and developmentally appropriate to allow them to synthesize what they have read, heard, and seen during literacy instruction in authentic and meaningful ways.

Developmentally appropriate books should vary with and adapt to the age, experience, and interests of gifted and talented Black boys to allow them the opportunity to demonstrate critical thinking, textual analysis skills and convey conceptual knowledge.

A book about strategies for instruction of gifted young Black males is long overdue. We look forward to reading this work.