Building Community

As thoughts of a new school year begin to swirl, so does the mental list of all that needs to be accomplished in the first weeks of school. Most forefront in my mind is establishing the kind of classroom climate that immerses students in safety, support, and joy. Therefore, our first read-alouds are intentionally selected to inspire a love of books and to begin to cultivate our new group identity.

One of our first focus lessons is Reading the Pictures. As we build independence for Read to Self, we want to circumvent the lament “I don’t know how to read.”

I Walk with Vanessa: A Story About a Simple Act of Kindness by Kerascoët is a brilliant wordless book that proclaims the influence we can have if we step in to help when we see someone getting bullied. It is a perfect choice for reading the pictures and planting the seeds of kindness we want to harvest.

The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig is a moving story of a lonely boy made all the more powerful by Patrice Barton’s fabulous illustrations. Rich conversations may follow about how students have been included or been the includer both in the classroom and outside of it.

A Hat for Mrs. Goldman by Michelle Edwards is an endearing book about friendship, selflessness, and caring for one another. A debrief about author’s purpose will help students zero in on the qualities of stamina and persistence, which will be highly valued in our time together, too.

Be Kind by Pat Zietlow Miller examines the question “What does it really mean to be kind?” Jen Hill’s illustrations add rich depth to the thoughtful text. After hearing this book, students often begin collecting their own examples of kindness from the classroom, lunchroom, and recess.

Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson will take readers through a strong range of emotions and, ideally, cause them to examine how their own actions might affect others. It may have been too late for Chloe to apologize to Maya, but it isn’t too late for us to learn this important skill to maintain healthy relationships in our classroom.

The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson. I work in the sixth most diverse school district in the United States, and I am quite sure students in our school have felt exactly like the narrator in this book. Then this beautiful moment happens: “And all at once in the room where no one else is quite like you, the world opens itself up a little wider to make some space for you.” Don’t forget to notice the rulers sprinkled throughout the book. When we measure ourselves against other people, we may miss how amazing and wonderful we are, and that our uniqueness is a gift to the world.

Finally, starting with our first shared book, we keep track of our read-alouds on these sheets. I model the first few entries, and then students volunteer to enter the data. These serve as a great resource when students want to revisit a favorite. And at the end of the year, we delight ourselves, counting by tens (each sheet holds 10 titles) to see how many books we shared together in one year.  

May this year be rich in joyful literacy for you.

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