NEW YORK, Oct. 24, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Today,
Scholastic announced the Rising Voices Library, a new
collection of books for K–5 classrooms containing high-interest,
authentic texts that celebrate the stories of Black and Latino
boys—some of the historically most underrepresented people in
children's literature. The collection was curated with
David C. Banks, President and CEO
of the Eagle Academy Foundation and Founding Principal of The Eagle
Academy for Young Men, an
all-boys public school educating young men in grades 6–12 in
New York City and Newark, New Jersey. The Rising Voices
Library features nonfiction, biographical, and fiction titles
paired with teaching materials designed to help foster rich
classroom communities through deep discussions about social justice
and identity development, helping students grow as leaders and
independent thinkers.
To learn more about the Rising Voices Library,
visit: http://www.scholastic.com/RisingVoices.
Findings from the Scholastic Kids & Family Reading
Report™ show that only one-third of school-age children say
they have a classroom library that has enough of the types of books
they'd like to read. The same report shared that about half of kids
ages 9–17 and parents overall agree, "I wish there were more books
available that include diversity." The Rising Voices Library
is designed to provide equitable access to engaging texts that
represent the cultures and identities of students. Using Rising
Voices research-based instructional resources, teachers gain
the tools to navigate difficult conversations in the classroom
while helping students reflect on their feelings and the crucial
historical and social contexts they need to understand the world
around them.
"Classroom libraries set the tone for the types of learning
experiences and conversations about books students will have
throughout the school year, said Michael
Haggen, Chief Academic Officer, Scholastic Education.
"It's essential that every child's classroom library contains a
wide breadth of stories, characters, and formats so that children
see themselves reflected in the books they're surrounded by and
have opportunities to learn from the lives and experiences of
others. We're proud to collaborate with David C. Banks to curate the Rising Voices
Library and change the scope of education by bringing positive
role models into classrooms everywhere."
"The success of the Eagle Academy Foundation model demonstrates
that young men of color thrive in academic environments where their
identities are uplifted. When I worked with Scholastic to curate
the Rising Voices Library collection, I wanted to expand the
reach of our educational philosophy to classrooms across America,"
said David C. Banks, President
and CEO of the Eagle Academy Foundation. "Positioning young men
of color to succeed means teaching them that they can dream as big
as the protagonists of their favorite novels. We owe it to all
students to provide them with literature that can elevate their
confidence, love of reading, and curiosity of the world."
The complete Rising Voices Library for grades K–5
features:
- Three hundred total books, including two copies of 25
different titles per grade level, in addition to storage bins and
book stickers for organization. All books are centered on the
Rising Voices Framework, which encompasses five key
themes: Family, Culture, and Community; Someone Like Me/Memorable
Characters; Heroes and Role Models; Strong and Resilient/Problem
Solvers; and Thinking Beyond Today.
- Teacher's Guides, which outline instructional support
for educators of each grade level with implementation strategies
for integrating the texts into book clubs, whole class, small
group, and independent reading. The guide contains suggestions for
supporting English learners and engaging discussion prompts, in
addition to guides for building social-emotional awareness
utilizing the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional
Learning (CASEL) framework, and ideas for conferring and connecting
with families.
- Teaching Cards paired with each anchor text, including
suggestions for exploring the text as an interactive read-aloud,
building vocabulary, practicing reading strategies, and extending
learning through writing, discussion, and art.
For more information about Scholastic (NASDAQ: SCHL), the global
children's publishing, education, and media company, visit the
Company's media room at http://mediaroom.scholastic.com.
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SOURCE Scholastic