Athletes have the power and ability to inspire social action, even though they may face criticism that their work should be “left on the field.” Colin Kaepernick, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, began #takeaknee by kneeling for the national anthem during an NFL football game in 2017. When people questioned him about his intentions, he stated, “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a country that oppresses black people and people of color…”.
There are many different factors behind why anxiety and depression have increased in children in recent years: limitations on free play, social media use, the current state of the political climate in this country, and more. According to a study about the lifetime prevalence of mental disorders in adolescents (ages 13-18) from the United States, nearly one in three fit the criteria for an anxiety disorder. The Center for Disease Control found that 32% of teens reported persistent feelings of sadness and hopelessness in a study that ranged from 2007 to 2017. Mental health awareness is crucial for all of us, and it needs to be discussed with children starting at an early age.
Books are a great way to bring up these topics to let children know that it’s okay to talk about these things, especially through the lens of a beloved character or riveting storyline. Continue reading
Our highly anticipated webinar, “Teaching Tough Topics with Children’s Literature” has been rescheduled for Wednesday, October 3, 2018 at 4:00 PM EDT!
Join us for our timely webinar with panelists Jinnie Spiegler, Director of Curriculum at Anti Defamation League (ADL) and Katie Potter, Literacy Specialist at Lee & Low Books to discuss how to talk to young people about topics such as: bullying, bias, what’s happening in the news, allyship, and action through worthy books and corresponding activities and resources.
At the end of this webinar, participants will receive a toolkit that features book lists relevant to the topics, free resources about these issues, links to relevant websites, and a one-hour professional development certificate.
Date: Wednesday, October 3, 2018
Time: 4:00 PM EDT/1:00 PM PDT
How to Join: You can register here.
Registration is FREE, but space is limited so register today! Even if you can’t attend live, you can still register and we will send a recording of the webinar to all registrants after the webinar takes place.
If you have any questions or particular topics you would like to see covered, feel free to leave them in the comments.
In the second post of our Reading Conferences with Beginning Readers blog, our literacy team discusses leveled texts for Kindergarten and what students should learn at levels A through C. This post is taken from our free, downloadable Reading Conferences by Bebop Books guide.
Don’t miss our first post sharing reading conferencing strategies for beginning readers.
It’s Back-to-School time, which means new educator resources on the Lee & Low blog!
Lee & Low Books is extremely excited to announce our Reading Conferences by Bebop Books Guide! We are proud to feature these new Conferencing Documents as essential resources for teachers in the classroom working with beginning readers.
Our Conferencing Guide includes tips and techniques for conferring with readers at guided reading levels A, B, and C. The Guide also includes “Teaching Cheat Sheets” that feature how to examine a student’s reading behavior, and turn those observations into teaching moments so students can achieve the targeted reading skill.
With the New Voices submission deadline quickly approaching, aspiring picture book writers preparing to submit to the contest may be asking themselves “Am I ready to send off my story?”. If you are a writer grappling with this question, you’re in luck! We’ve assembled a checklist of ten questions you should ask yourself before submitting to the 2018 New Voices Award writing contest:
It can be difficult to talk to children about tough topics. From bullying and prejudice, to discrimination and racism, children’s books have helped to facilitate these difficult conversations in an accessible and meaningful way. Below we’ve compiled seven of our many books that will help children come away with a better understanding of these complex issues and the world around them.
Don’t forget to round out your collection with our list of 10 diverse picture books that are not about oppression!
The start of the school year is a critical time to establish classroom community and shared values of respect, honesty and trust.
With the one-year anniversary of the violence in Charlottesville coming up and other traumatic news constantly making headlines, many educators are left wondering how to discuss difficult current events with their students and to navigate meaningful, age-appropriate discussions on topics like hate, racism, and prejudice.
Join Lee & Low Books in collaboration with the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) for the timely webinar: “Teaching Tough Topics with Children’s Literature” that aims to help address these concerns through worthy books, activities, and resources. Continue reading
Here at Lee & Low, we are incredibly excited about the release of Every Month is a New Year, an amazing picture book from beloved author, Marilyn Singer, and illustrator, Susan L. Roth. This book has a wealth of curricular opportunities, and offers chances for students, teachers, librarians, and families alike to learn all about new year celebrations around the world and share their own cultural and familial celebrations. All of the celebrations have deep-rooted traditions and treasured customs. The collection of sixteen lively poems introduce readers to some of the most fascinating festivities, some well-known and less familiar (depending on the reader!) Continue reading
In this age of rigor, text complexity, and higher standards for younger and younger readers—why do wordless picture books continue to be so popular?
Wordless, or minimal-text, picture books:
Why choose a wordless, or minimal-text, picture book for your next storytime?
