It is Multicultural Children’s Book Day! 60+ bloggers (teachers, librarians, parents, authors!) are joining together to share multicultural books from around the world. I got to read an exciting Persian chapter book about a little girl, and how her curiosity led to a discovery right in her own backyard.
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Recent census data that shows that the demographics of the US population consists of 37% people of color– yet only 10% of children’s books published have diversity content! The reasons to share multicultural literature with our kids are endless.
Founders of the Multicultural Children’s Book Day, Mia and Valarie are on a mission to not only raise awareness for the kid’s books that celebrate diversity, but to get more of these types of books into classrooms and libraries. Another goal of this exciting event is create a compilation of books and favorite reads that will provide not only a new reading list for the winter, but also a way to expose brilliant books to families, teachers, and libraries.
Anyone how cares about seeing more diversity on book shelves can help us celebrate by reading all about these multicultural books. I was thrilled to co-host again this year! I read Naji and the Mystery of the Dig by Vahid Imani, a beginning chapter book packed with Persian culture.
This book is set in 1950’s Iran, and tells the story of 8 year old Naji. Her curiosity is piqued when she discovers workers digging a hold in her garden for a new septic tank. After imagining numerous scenarios of what they might find, a surprise is discovered in the hole. Bits and pieces of Persian culture permeate the story: food, clothing, housing details, manners, folklore, and more. It’s a wonderful window into a culture you might not be familiar with!
Author Vahid Imani shares Persian culture on the web site Naji’s Adventures. the author has put together a fantastic website that explains more about the Persian culture and what was under the dig. The book itself comes with a glossary, study projects, a map and discussion questions.
Welcome to our 4th Multicultural Children’s Book Day!
- Link up your diversity book reviews
- Win diversity book bundles at our Twitter Party tonight! We’re giving away 100+ children’s books from 9pm to 10pm EST. RSVP here. Use hashtag: #ReadYourWorld.
- Get your a copy of Read Your World: A Guide to Multicultural Children’s Books for Parents and Educators
. It’s FREE today through January 31st!
Read Your World: A Guide to Multicultural Children’s Books for Parents and Educators
Alex Baugh of Randomly Reading
Amanda Boyarshinov of The Educators’ Spin On It
Valarie Budayr of Jump Into a Book
Erica Clark of What Do We Do All Day?
Rebecca Flansburg of Frantic Mommy
Anna Geiger of The Measured Mom
Svenja Gernand of Colours of Us
Michelle Goetzl of Books My Kids Read
Jennifer Hughes of The Jenny Evolution
MaryAnne Kochenderfer of Mama Smiles
Marie-Claude Leroux of Marie Pastiche
Katie Logonauts of The Logonauts
Stephanie Meade of InCulture Parent
Leanna Guillén Mora of All Done Monkey
Becky Morales of Kid World Citizen
Carrie Pericola of Crafty Moms Share
Jodie Rodriguez of Growing Book by Book
Melissa Taylor of Imagination Soup
Mia Wenjen of PragmaticMom
and authors…
Finally, did you get our free Classroom Kindness Kit? It includes Be a Hero Be Kind poster by Jarrett Krosoczka, a diversity kindness book list for ages 2 through 12, and classroom kindness activities.
Diversity Book Lists & Activities for Teachers and Parents
Our Diverse World Book Lists for Kids (this is a general book list)
It’s also broken out by country/geographic area:
- Our Diverse World: Africa
- Our Diverse World: Asia
- Our Diverse World: China
- Our Diverse World: Japan
- Our Diverse World: Korea
- Our Diverse World: India
- Our Diverse World: Armenia
- Our Diverse World: Australia
- Our Diverse World: Latin America
- Our Diverse World: Mexico
- Our Diverse World: Middle East
- Our Diverse World: Scandinavia
Diversity in Children’s Books Presented as Every Day (this is a book list)
Books on World Religions for Kids (this is a book list)
It’s also broken out by holiday and/or religion.
- Diverse Thanksgiving Books for Kids
- Diverse Christmas Books for Kids
- Muslim Books for Kids
- Jewish Books for Kids
- Hindu Books for Kids
- Buddhist Books for Kids
- Confucianism & Taoism Books for Kids
- Baha’i Books for Kids
- Day of the Dead Books for Kids
- Las Posadas Books for Kids
Seeing Yourself in Children’s Books
- Special Needs Books for Kids
- LGBT Book Lists for Kids of All Ages
- African American Books for Kids of All Ages
- American Indian Books for Kids of All Ages
- Asian American Books for Kids of All Ages
- Hispanic American Books for Kids of All Ages
Diversity Books By Genre
- Diverse Board Books
- Diverse Picture Books
- Diverse Easy Readers & Early Chapter Books
- Diverse Chapter Books
- Diverse Biography Picture Books
- Diverse Graphic Novels
- Diverse Fantasy and Science Fiction for Kids
- If You Like This: Read This Diversity Book for Kids
- Bilingual Books for Kids
General Diversity Book Lists (this is a book list)
What do you think? I love to hear from my readers:).