Children’s Literature

Spring Senior Elective

 Reflect
What stories or books did you grow up with?

What did you learn from them?

How do you think these stories or books helped shape you

as an adolescent?

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 New Course Description
This course focuses on reading and analyzing late 19th century to the present day
writing identified as “Children’s Literature.” Students will read fictional work in the
form of novels, novellas, short stories, folk tales, and poems. This course is designed to
provide college-bound seniors continued practice in reading and writing about
complex fictional texts, characters, and subjects. In addition to looking at the history
and sociology of childhood and a number of different theories of child development,
students will explore themes including innocence versus maturity, self-discovery, good
versus evil, courage and honor, confronting and resolving obstacles, greed, friendship,
as well as the hero’s journey and the need for quests. Students will examine how the
literature reflects the historical and societal changes as well as explore in their writing
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how metaphor and metaphorical narratives can be viewed in argument. The reading,
writing, and analysis in this course will require dedication and a concerted effort
toward success in a challenging academic environment.
 SPring 2020 Children’s Literature
2 sections ‐ Grimms
‐ Through the Looking
Glass
59 students total
‐ Treasure Island
‐ The Wizard of Oz
‐ Peter Pan

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 Current Issues with Children’s Lit
‐ Major lack of - Students struggle to
diversity connect with the
‐ Problematic author literature
background (Lewis
Carroll) and cultural
representations
(Peter Pan)

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 New Children’s Lit Curriculum
Unit 1: Current Teaching Expectations for Children
Unit 2: Grimms Folk Tales / Cultural Folk Tale Exploration
Unit 3: Poetry and Short Stories
Unit 4: Book of Choice
Unit 5: Media and Representation

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 New Children’s Lit Curriculum
Unit Title Length of Culminating
Time Assignment/Assessment

Current Teaching 2 Weeks Reflection on personal experiences

Expectations for Children and current expectation

Grimms Folk Tales / Cultural 3 Weeks Museum-walk style presentations

Folk Tale Exploration with other classes

Poetry and Short Stories 3 Weeks Student-written collection of

children’s poems or children’s stories

Book of Choice 3 Weeks Literary analysis essay

Media and Representation 4 Weeks Research project on different

identities and representation
 Unit 1: Current Teaching Expectations
How do we become readers? Why/how do we lose that?

Looking at trends in children’s literature today, exploring

children’s libraries and local bookstores, interviewing
kids and elementary teachers

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 Unit 2: Folktales
How do we learn morals and values?

Culminating project: Museum walk style presentations

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 Unit 3: Poetry and Short Stories
Examples of texts: Fresh Picked Poetry, Tan to
Tamarind, Honey I Love, Goodnight Moon, Shel
Silverstein

Culminating assignments: Students will write their own

collection of children’s poems or children’s stories

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 Unit 4: Book of Choice
How do books for young readers help kids recognize and understand
social justice issues?
Culminating assignment:
House on Mango Street (1984) Students will write a literary
The Giver (1993) analysis essay regarding the
Holes (1998) social justice issues presented
in each of their books,
Because of Winn-Dixie (2000) addressing how it was
Book of Lost Things (2006) presented in a way that is
One Crazy Summer (2010) understandable and
appropriate for young readers
Amina’s Voice (2017)
 Unit 5: Media and Representation
What is identity formation? Why does representation matter?

What identities do we see represented in children’s literature

and media today?
- Race and ethnicity, sexuality, family structures,
socioeconomic, mental health, disabilities, etc.

Culminating assignment: Research project on different

identities and their prominence or lack of presentation in
children’s literature and media
 “
Why Young Adult literature?

Why not?
 “
These new books present cutting-edge
scholarship in history, critical race studies,
gender studies, queer studies and more.
Accessible and developmentally appropriate,
they insist that young readers deserve to
critically engage with the world around them,
and they model what the engagement might
look like.
Julia Delacroix, “The New YA” Teaching Tolerance, Spring 2020
 “
Questions?
Comments?
Concerns?

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