Brianna Carroll

Multicultural Text Set

1. Tar Beach
Description: This is a story about a little girl who dreams of
soaring over Harlem. She dreams of her and her family being rich, with
her father working in a tall building and having ice cream for dinner.
Then, one night one her families roof top her dream comes true. The
stars lift her up and she flies away over the Harlem. This book would be
appropriate for a higher-grade level, such as second or third grade.
This is because of some of the vocab in the book that younger children
might not understand, such as prized possession. Three unique
characteristics of this book that make it good for students to read is
magical, encouraging, and happy. This book is magical, because of a
girl flying over a city looking down on all her family. This gives children
imagination and a chance to believe in something that is not real. It is
encouraging because it shows that dreams do come true, and if you
really want something in life then it can happen. It is happy because
there is no conflict in the story, it is simply about a girl flying over the
city and making up happy thoughts to herself about her life.
Evaluation: The quality of this story is high, I believe. It is
interesting for the children, and it offers things to think about, such as
where would you fly if you could fly anywhere? Why do you think the
character flew where she did? It is age appropriate, and children can
understand it if presented to the right age group. There is not much of
a plot in this story or a problem, though it does utilize different words
style that children can learn. It also includes realistic characters, which
are a girl and her family. The illustrations are accurate and correspond
to the text. They definitely enhance to the story, because the children
can see what the girl sees as she is flying over Harlem. Though this
book provides a different cultural group than usual, it only provides one
culture. The children are also not very much exposed to different
perspectives besides the main character. Though, the lifestyles of this
book are genuine and complex. It talks about the foods she eats and
places she goes in Harlem. The speech represents their culture
somewhat and it also represents the author.
Recommended use: I would recommend this book to introduce
students into different culture. The teacher could talk about how the
different skin color skin of the characters, or the different houses and
foods they have in the book. Also, this book provides a great lesson to
children that you can reach your goals in life if you try. This girl had a
dream that seemed unlikely, and it came true. This can encourage
children to keep trying their hardest in life, no matter what their goal
is.

SOL: The student will continue to demonstrate growth in the use of oral language.
1. a) Listen and respond to a variety of electronic media and other ageappropriate materials.
2. b) Tell and retell stories and events in logical order.
3. c) Participate in a variety of oral language activities, including choral
speaking and reciting short poems, rhymes, songs, and stories with
repeated patterns.
4. d) Participate in creative dramatics.
5. e) Express ideas orally in complete sentences.
2. The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of nonfiction
texts.
1. a) Preview the selection.
2. b) Use prior and background knowledge as context for new learning.
3. c) Set a purpose for reading.
4. d) Identify text features such as pictures, headings, charts, and captions.
5. e) Make and confirm predictions.
6. f) Ask and answer who, what, where, when, why, and how questions
about what is
read.
7. g) Identify the main idea.
8. h) Read and reread familiar passages with fluency, accuracy, and
meaningful
expression.

2. Alvin Ho
Description: This is a story about a little boy who is afraid of
everything, especially school. He becomes so afraid at school that he
never even utters a word. Though, at hoe, he becomes a super hero

named Firecracker man and wishes to become just like his father. I
would also recommend this book to the higher grades, such as third to
fifth grade because of the vocab used in this book that may be a little
advanced for younger students. The words I would use to describe this
book is relatable, because the students can relate to feeling scared at
school, left-out because the boy feels different in school, and fear
because every child can relate to fear.
Evaluation: This story does very well at explaining how other
children form other cultures may feel coming into our culture. They feel
scared, which is why we should try to understand them and understand
why they act the way they do at school. Alvin Ho does not talk in
school because he feels scared and like an outcast in school. It also
talks about his families background in farmer warriors, and being
gentlemen.
Recommended use: I would recommend this book to children
because they can easily relate to being scared. All children feel scared
of something at one point in their life, and this can give them an
understanding that some children may be scared to enter a classroom
full of children not form their own culture. This will also help with
students who are of Asian American culture, showing them that they
are not alone when it comes to feeling afraid or nervous or different at
school.
SOL:The student will expand vocabulary.
1. a) Discuss meanings of words in context.
2. b) Develop vocabulary by listening to and reading a variety of texts.
3. c) Ask for the meaning of unknown words and make connections to
familiar words.
4. d) Use text clues such as words or pictures to discern meanings of
unknown words.
5. e) Use vocabulary from other content areas.
The student will orally identify, produce, and manipulate various units of speech
sounds within words.
6. a) Create rhyming words.
7. b) Count phonemes (sounds) in one-syllable words.

8. c) Blend sounds to make one-syllable words.

9. d) Segment one-syllable words into individual speech sounds (phonemes).
10. e) Add or delete phonemes (sounds) to make new words.

3. The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses

Description: This is a story about a girl who loved wild horses
and she cares for them. Though, one day the horses are startled by a
thunderstorm and stampede while the girl is among them. She climbs
onto the back of one of the horses to stay safe and gets carried away.
The horse who is the leader of the pack welcomes her to live with
them, while her tribe back home search for her. Her tribe eventually
finds her, and asks her to return home. She is sad to leave the horses,
but leaves with her family. She becomes ill with no sign of
improvement and goes back to live with the horses, visiting her
parents each year. When she stops visiting her parents, the tribe spots
a young stallion riding with the herd tat they have never seen before
and assume it is her. This is also a book for children of grades 2-5, for
the content of the book is a little complex. Words to describe this book
would be spiritual, beautiful, and belonging.
Evaluation: This book is about American Indian culture, which
elementary aged children are learning a lot about in their classes. They
can relate this text to other stories they have heard. I believe it to be
interesting to the children and it provides a plot for the children to
understand. The characters in this story represents the cultural group
and gives the student s new perspective of this new culture they are
learning about.
Recommended use: I would recommended this book because it
is interesting for the students, and it also will help them as they learn
about the native American culture. Most children might find the topic
boring, but this is a fun interesting story for children to read and it can
be used as an introduction to Native American culture in the
classroom.
SOL: The student will apply knowledge of how print is organized and read.
1. a) Read from left to right and from top to bottom.

2. b) Match spoken words with print.

3. c) Identify letters, words, sentences, and ending punctuation.
4. d) Read his/her own writing.
The student will orally identify, produce, and manipulate various units of speech
sounds within words.
5. a) Create rhyming words.
6. b) Count phonemes (sounds) in one-syllable words.
7. c) Blend sounds to make one-syllable words.
8. d) Segment one-syllable words into individual speech sounds (phonemes).
9. e) Add or delete phonemes (sounds) to make new words.

4. We Belong Together
Description: This is a book about someone adopting a child and
coming together as a family. It talks about why the two belong
together, and how they make each other happy. I would say this would
be a book for the younger grades, such as pre-k to first grade because
there is only one sentence per page and the vocab is fairly easy. Three
words to describe this book would be, loving, family, and belonging.
Evaluation: Though this book represents many people of
different colors, they are not colors of nature. The colors of these
people are green, purple, yellow, etc. This can be good, because it
shows that anyone can adopt anyone. These illustrations are colorful
and easy for the children to see and decipher. This book can be related
to many students, for there are many students who are adopted in
todays world.
Recommended use: I would recommend this book because
there are many children in the world who re being adopted, and not
every child knows this. If a child sees that another child is Asian, but
there parents are white, they may not understand. So, teaching
students about how parents can adopt their children can be helpful to
children learning about the different backgrounds of other students.

SOL:The student will write to communicate ideas for a variety of purposes.

1. a) Generateideas.
2. b) Focus on one topic.
3. c) Revise by adding descriptive words when writing about people, places,
things, and events.
4. d) Use complete sentences in final copies.
5. e) Begin each sentence with a capital letter and use ending punctuation in
final copies.
6. f) Use correct spelling for commonly used sight words and phonetically
regular words in final copies.
7. g) Share writing with others.
5. I Love My Hair!
Description: This book talks about an African American young
girl with her mother who is doing her hair. The little girl begins to
complain about her hair, until her mother tells her why she is so lucky
to have her hair. She describes the different hair styles she can do with
her hair, then she explains why her hair represents her culture and why
it is important to love her hair. At the end of the book, the girl comes to
love her hair. I would recommend this to early elementary aged
children, around kindergarten or first grade. The three words I would
use to describe this book would be proud, love, and happiness
Evaluation: This book is good at including the African American
culture, and why their hair is different. The characters in the book all
represent the culture, and the illustrations also represent the culture in
a creative way. The characters in the story are realistic and relatable to
students in the classroom. The characters are also genuine and not
oversimplified or generalized. Also, the author is part of the cultural
group being represented.
Recommended use: I would recommend this book to students
in the classroom because there are many African American students.
While some may already be proud of their hair and culture, others with
the same hair may also pick other students may not understand. For
students to be able to feel comfortable with themselves and have

other students understand, this may be a good book for an elementary

school classroom
SOL:The student will write to communicate ideas for a variety of purposes.
1. a) Generateideas.
2. b) Focus on one topic.
3. c) Revise by adding descriptive words when writing about people, places,
things, and events.
4. d) Use complete sentences in final copies.
5. e) Begin each sentence with a capital letter and use ending punctuation in
final copies.
6. f) Use correct spelling for commonly used sight words and phonetically
regular words in final copies.
7. g) Share writing with others.
The student will use simple reference materials.
8. a) Use knowledge of alphabetical order by first letter.
9. b) Use a picture dictionary to find meanings of unfamiliar words.

6. I Lost My Tooth in Africa

Description: This is a story about a young girl in Africa who
wants to lose her tooth while visiting her family. Once she loses her
tooth, she can put her tooth under a gourd for the tooth fairy, who will
then exchange her tooth for two chickens. Once this happens, she gets
her chickens and they lay eggs, and she is worried that the eggs will
not hatch before she returns to America. This book would be
recommended for children in grades pre-k to first grade. The words I
would use to describe this book would be youthful, fairytale, and
relevant.
Evaluation: This book represents the different cultures of Africa,
and the characters accurately represent the people of Africa as well.

What I like about this book is that there is a family from America, our
home country, visiting another country. This gives the students the
same feeling as the character, since they may also have not been to
Africa before. It also provides a lot of insight into the cultural traditions
of this culture, such as the tooth fairy giving the children with lost
tooth chickens, rather than money.
Recommended use: I would recommended this book because
all children can relate to this, because they all know of the tooth fairy.
Though, they get to see how different cultures may experience
differences in the tooth fairy. This is also a good introduction into the
culture of Africa, and the clothes they wear, the food they eat, and the
objects they trade.
SOL:The student will use simple reference materials.
1. a) Use knowledge of alphabetical order by first letter.
2. b) Use a picture dictionary to find meanings of unfamiliar words.
The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of nonfiction texts.
3. a) Preview the selection.
4. b) Use prior and background knowledge as context for new learning.
5. c) Set a purpose for reading.
6. d) Identify text features such as pictures, headings, charts, and captions.
7. e) Make and confirm predictions.
8. f) Ask and answer who, what, where, when, why, and how questions
about what is read.
9. g) Identify the main idea.
10. h) Read and reread familiar passages with fluency, accuracy, and
meaningful expression.

7. Hairs/pelitos

Description: This is a book about a family who has all different

kinds of hair: different color, texture, length, etc. Though, even though
they all have different kinds of hair, they are a family and they still love
each other. I would recommend this book to children around the grade
of first or second grade, because they the vocab is quite simple, yet
too complex for any younger. The words I would use to describe this
book would be diverse, accepting, and family
Evaluation: This book expresses differences among a family,
that it is okay to be different. Again, as seen in the We Belong Together
book, this book represents people of not natural colors such as orange,
pink, green, etc. it does not express the different cultures that goes
with these different hair colors, it just lets the students know that there
are different kinds of hair for different kinds of cultures. I think the
children can all relate to this book, because there are so many diverse
hairstyles in this book.
Recommend use: I would recommend this book for younger
grades, while the students are still learning that everyone is different.
While some children may all be of the same race I their family, others
may not. There are many diverse families in todays world, and
children should be aware of this. And even though in the family they
are all different, they still consider each other family and love each
other despite their differences, which is how it should be for everyone.
SOL:The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of a variety of nonfiction
texts.
1. a) Preview the selection.
2. b) Use prior and background knowledge as context for new learning.
3. c) Set a purpose for reading.
4. d) Identify text features such as pictures, headings, charts, and captions.
5. e) Make and confirm predictions.
6. f) Ask and answer who, what, where, when, why, and how questions
about what is read.
7. g) Identify the main idea.
8. h) Read and reread familiar passages with fluency, accuracy, and
meaningful expression.

8. My name is Maria Isabel

Description: This is a story about a young Latino girl who has a
teacher who insists on calling her Mary because there is another Maria
in the class, instead of her proper name: Maria Isabel. She wants to try
to have her teacher understand that her name is important to her, and
that she does not want to be called Mary. Once the teacher assigns a
paper with the topic: My Greatest Desire she picks her name, and
explains why it is so important to who she is. I would recommend this
story for the higher elementary school grades, at least third grade. The
words I would use to describe this book would be pride, heritage, and
authentic
Evaluation: This captures the culture of the Latinos, which is
also a common culture inside the classroom. Not only does this show
the different cultures, but it shows that the teacher had lack of respect
for her culture. The teacher is constantly scolding Maria because she
does not recognize the name Mary and does not respond to it. Though
towards the end the teacher did make amends, this shows that the
teacher needs to also respect her students and their culture, along
with the students respecting each others.
Recommend use: I would highly recommend this book to
students, because it shows that names can be very important to
certain cultures. Changing a students name can not only hurt their
feelings, but it can disrespect their cultures heritage. It can let children
learn that certain students act certain way because of their culture,
Maria resented the name Mary because she believed it to not be her
name.
SOL:The student will expand understanding and use of word meanings.
1. a) Increase listening and speaking vocabularies.
2. b) Begin to ask for clarification and explanation of words and ideas.
3. c) Use common singular and plural nouns.
4. d) Use vocabulary from other content areas.
The student will use simple reference materials.
5. a) Use knowledge of alphabetical order by first letter.
6. b) Use a picture dictionary to find meanings of unfamiliar words.

The student will expand vocabulary.

7. a) Discuss meanings of words in context.
8. b) Develop vocabulary by listening to and reading a variety of texts.
9. c) Ask for the meaning of unknown words and make connections to
familiar words.
10. d) Use text clues such as words or pictures to discern meanings of
unknown words.
11. e) Use vocabulary from other content areas.
9. Uncle Peters Amazing Chinese Wedding
Description: This is a story about a young girl who has an uncle
getting married. Although, she feels that she will not be her uncles
number one girl if he is getting married to another girl, so she does
all that she can to try and stop the wedding. I would recommend this
book to children in the grades of pre-k to first grade, because I feel
they can understand the story. The three words to describe this book
are silly, joyful, and jealousy.
Evaluation: This story provides insight into the culture of the
Chinese world. It describes the many traditions that they do for
weddings, such as bargaining for the bride, red dresses, tea ceremony,
exchanging good luck money (hungabu) and many more. Children can
get a sense of what it is like to have a wedding in the Chinese culture,
since if they have experienced a wedding it was in the American
culture. Also, children can relate to the jealously aspect of this book,
because many children experience jealously one time or another in
their life.
Recommend use: I would recommend this highly humorous
book to children because it is an entertaining way to introduce children
to the Chinese culture. You could explain the differences and
similarities in the weddings from the book and weddings they have
been to before. There is also a series of this book, so a teacher could
read multiple book from the series to the class and learn even more
about the culture.
SOL:SOL:The student

will expand understanding and use of word meanings.

1. a) Increase listening and speaking vocabularies.

2. b) Begin to ask for clarification and explanation of words and ideas.

3. c) Use common singular and plural nouns.
4. d) Use vocabulary from other content areas.
The student will use simple reference materials.
5. a) Use knowledge of alphabetical order by first letter.
6. b) Use a picture dictionary to find meanings of unfamiliar words.
The student will expand vocabulary.
7. a) Discuss meanings of words in context.
8. b) Develop vocabulary by listening to and reading a variety of texts.
9. c) Ask for the meaning of unknown words and make connections to
familiar words.
10. d) Use text clues such as words or pictures to discern meanings of
unknown words.
11. e) Use vocabulary from other content areas.

10.
When the Shabush Blooms
Description: This book is about a child talking about her
grandparents and how they are connected with nature. As they walk
through nature, they can see their grandparents there as well for they
have walked to same grounds as them. They have seen the same
sceneries as the generations before even though people age and grow
nature is always the same. I would recommend this book to children of
the grades kindergarten through first grade. The words I would use to
describe
Evaluation: This book covers the culture of the Native
Americans and their connection with nature. The Native American
culture finds nature to be essential, and once one passes then they will
be one with nature.

Recommend use: I would recommend this book to younger

children as they are learning about the native American culture and the
important aspect of their culture.
SOL:The student will expand understanding and use of word meanings.
1. a) Increase listening and speaking vocabularies.
2. b) Begin to ask for clarification and explanation of words and ideas.
3. c) Use common singular and plural nouns.
4. d) Use vocabulary from other content areas.
The student will use simple reference materials.
5. a) Use knowledge of alphabetical order by first letter.
6. b) Use a picture dictionary to find meanings of unfamiliar words.
The student will expand vocabulary.
7. a) Discuss meanings of words in context.
8. b) Develop vocabulary by listening to and reading a variety of texts.
9. c) Ask for the meaning of unknown words and make connections to
familiar words.
10. d) Use text clues such as words or pictures to discern meanings of
unknown words.
11. e) Use vocabulary from other content areas.