WE ARE HERE: Creating a Literary Space for Black Boys and Young Men
  • Home
  • BLOG
  • Books
  • Online Books & Reviews
  • Literacy Programs
  • Research Resources
  • YouTube Channel
  • Podcast
  • About
    • Contact

Blog

Professional Development Post. What are your EXPECTATIONS?

5/30/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
Picture
Research shows expectations influence outcomes.

What are your expectations for you and your students or young library patrons? Are they high or low, in between?

The book, 'Expect the Most, Provide the Best: How High Expectations, Outstanding Instruction, & Curricular Innovations Help All Students Succeed By Robert L. Green, PhD., provides a guide focusing on expectations and how they can affect learning outcomes, especially for Black and Brown students.

Primarily for teachers, this book also works well for those in library or community organizations working with our K-12 young people. The book lists resources, voices from the field, reframing mindsets, and accountability.

Library managers, parents, principals, teachers, and community workers, use this book to reflect on and create discussions around what high expectations look like from your perspective and how to change a 'poverty of spirit' mindset to one of persistence and limitless potential.

If you know someone who is interested in the post or profile please FOLLOW US and share this with those who are interested. Thank you!
​
0 Comments

Comprehending information in print vs. a screen. There is a difference...

4/2/2022

0 Comments

 
Can we talk about how to learn to read with different purposes in mind?

This article has me thinking about how do those who educate about reading teach reading BY FORMAT.

Reading by screen and print may present different levels of concentration AND comprehension.

How do we teach and learn by the format? What tools do you use to get the most out of reading a screen? Are you still a print, highlighter, stick note reader?

Click on the image to read the full-text of the article.

Picture
0 Comments

What does abolition and liberation mean in and for education?

3/18/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
Books:

Parker, Kimberly N. 2022. Literacy Is Liberation : Working Toward Justice through Culturally Relevant Teaching. Alexandria, Virginia: ASCD.

Education for Liberation Network & Critical Resistance Editorial. 2021. Lessons in Liberation : An Abolitionist Toolkit for Educators. Edited by Education for Liberation Network and Critical Resistance (Organization). Chico, CA: AK Press.

Kaba, Mariame, and Naomi Murakawa. 2021. We Do This 'Til We Free Us : Abolitionist Organizing and Transforming Justice. Edited by Tamara K Nopper. The Abolitionist Papers Series. Chicago, IL: Haymarket Books.

The book selection creates conversation about liberation and abolitionism, transforming systems, and what these themes look like in practice.

Use the following works for learning communities, professional development, bookclubs to advance educator and librarian practices.
0 Comments

Building inclusive learning communities to engage Black families for student success.

3/18/2022

0 Comments

 
If a school district, teaching community or library staff is truly interested in inclusive engagement with Black communities, this book is a necessary professional development or learning community tool.

Equitable by Design by Yvette C. Laundry examines opportunities to establish stronger more authentic partnerships among Black families and school/library communities.

This book features theory to practice strategies, reflection, goal setting and action step opportunities.

Request it at and for your local library and school professional development collection.
Picture
0 Comments

Edweek opinion piece:

1/17/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
Click on the image for article access:

​Just some pre-prep for next month as we reflect on MLK Day.

We hear a lot about Black Joy but what does it mean when we are teaching and incorporating Black history in education.

EdWeek posted an opinion piece: Don’t Teach Black History Without Joy
The Black experience is not one-dimensional. Why do we teach it that way?
By Jania Hoover

Share your thoughts of what Black Joy in curriculum and instruction means to you? Whether you're a homeschool teacher, classroom, or school librarian, this is a good article to begin to define what it means to you and the content you tech.
0 Comments

What a voracious, diverse reader!

1/11/2022

0 Comments

 
Dr. Tatum is currently focusing on environmental literacy. We cannot wait to see what comes of this. He is a leading literacy researcher with a focus on young Black males.If you are not familiar with Dr. Alfred Tatum's work, please check out his work in Google Scholar, as well as, some of the books included in this post.

His latest publication is: Teaching Black Boys in the Elementary Grades: Advanced Disciplinary Reading and Writing to Secure Their Futures.

Join us as we collaborate with @mrlitedu for our first Virtual Book Club as we read his latest publication, details in the IG bio.
​
0 Comments

We Are...Gifted!

1/6/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture

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.
0 Comments

Relationship Building & Relevance Outside of the Classroom

12/14/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture

The following titles in this post build student identity, engagement, and literacy practice in classrooms.

How can these ideas be transferred to libraries and community literacy programs?

Both books by Prof. Muhammad and Educator Escoto Germán provide methods literacy advocates and librarians can use to connect young people's cultural identities to history and center children's voices in the literacy and learning process.

Librarians can also use these titles to enhance outreach and relationship building with diverse patrons. Both books can provide strategies to ground diverse programming and collection building.

What were some of the things you've picked up and used from these books in your practice.

Titles:

Muhammad, Gholdy, Love, Bettina L., writer of foreword, and Scholastic Inc., publisher. Cultivating Genius : an Equity Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc., 2020. Print.

Germán, Lorena Escoto, and Paris, Django, writer of foreword. Textured Teaching : a Framework for Culturally Sustaining Practices. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2021. Print.
0 Comments

New Book from Dr. Alfred Tatum!

12/9/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture
"How do we think about high-quality instruction and high-quality text to shape positive life outcome trajectories?"
-Prof. Alfred Tatum

The new publication, Teaching Black Boys in Elementary Grades: Advanced Disciplinary Reading and Writing to Secure Their Futures, is available from Dr. Alfred W. Tatum.

At a critical stage in literacy development, Tatum's book details the expectations and rigorous practices across disciplines to reinvigorate the alignment of intellectual tradition with young Black males.

The book also includes a multidimensional model of reading and writing, student writing samples, multidisciplinary lesson plans, and more.
​
0 Comments

Teacher & Librarian Professional Development Resources

10/21/2021

0 Comments

 
The following two resources featured reflect where education is at this very moment--reckoning with anti-Blackness, the fear and censoring of anti-racist curriculum and instruction, as well as, cultural responsiveness and sustainability practices in education.

What ties the two books is the theme of authentically connecting with students.

'Teaching for Black Lives' using instruction activities, essays, and art, to help educators humanize Black students. This is done by creating opportunities to connect with students through curriculum, teaching, and policy, while also affirming student and collective activism in educational spaces.

Edited by Dyan Watson, Jesse Hagopian, and Wayne Au, 'Teaching for Black Lives' was published in 2018 and is more relevant today for educators in understanding barriers historically facing Black students. This book is beneficial to all educators, especially those who need grounding and inspiration to create an equitable educational system.

The other title, 'We Got This: Equity, Access, and the Quest to Be Who Our Students Need Us to Be', by Cornelius Minor, decenters the teacher to anchor the practice focusing on listening to students. This book provides actionable, supportive learning and inclusive practices. This title uses universal design, lesson plan ideas, graphic organizers, and strategies to expand access to greater learning opportunities.

“Any curriculum or program that we buy, adopt, or create is incomplete until it includes our students and until it includes us” (p. 104). Cornelius Minor
0 Comments
<<Previous

    AuthorS

    WE ARE HERE will provide you book reviews, discussions, news, and programming  about literature and literacy by and about Black males. This site will also feature vlog conversations on topics related to the promoting literacy and voice for Black boys and young men.

    Bookmark this site and check for updates to stay informed.

    Archives

    October 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021

    Categories

    All
    Academic
    Administration
    Adolescent
    Advocacy
    Africa
    Afro Carribean
    Afro Latinx
    Afro-Latinx
    Ananse
    Animal
    Anti-racist
    Art
    Article
    Artist
    Athlete
    Athletes
    Audiobooks
    Authors
    Autobiography
    Award Winning
    Bball
    Beach
    Beginning Reader
    Beginning Readers
    Biography
    Black Joy
    Black Music Month
    BLM
    Board Book
    Book Club
    Book Review
    Bookstores
    Book Stores
    Boy
    Build
    Business
    Chapter Book
    Chicago
    Christmas
    Civil Rights
    Classic
    College
    Comic Books
    Commentary
    Community Orgs
    Conference
    Creative
    Creativity
    Curriculum
    Dance
    Diversity
    Documentary
    Early Elementary
    Education
    ELA
    Elementary
    Employment
    Encourage
    Enslaved
    Families
    Family
    Fathers
    Fiction
    Football
    Gardening
    Gender
    Gender Roles
    Gifted
    Goals
    Graffiti
    Graphic Novels
    HBCU
    High School
    Hip Hop
    History
    Holiday
    Horror
    Human Rights
    Idemtity
    Identity
    Illustrators
    Immigration
    Independent Authors
    Instruction
    Intergenerational
    International
    Interview
    Intruction
    Journal
    K-12
    Kwanza
    Leadership
    Learning
    Lgbt
    Librarians
    Library
    Literacy
    Magazines
    Math
    Middle Grade
    Military
    Movie
    Music
    Muslim
    Non Fiction
    Non Profit
    Non-profit
    Ocean
    Olympics
    Opinion
    Outreach
    Parenting
    Pedagogy
    Picture Books
    Podcast
    Poetry
    Policy
    Preschool
    Presentation
    Professional Development
    Programming
    Protest
    Publishers
    Race
    Read Aloud
    Read-aloud
    Reading
    Reading Strategy
    Refugee
    Representation
    Research
    Reviews
    Santa
    Science
    Scifi
    SEL
    Social Emotional
    Social Justice
    Social Media
    Social Studies
    Special Needs
    Speculative Fiction
    Sports
    Spring
    STEM
    Storytime
    Support
    Teachers
    Text Set
    Upper Elementary
    Video
    Writing
    Ya
    Young Adult
    Youth Leadership

    RSS Feed


©2021 All Rights Reserved

  • Home
  • BLOG
  • Books
  • Online Books & Reviews
  • Literacy Programs
  • Research Resources
  • YouTube Channel
  • Podcast
  • About
    • Contact