Non-Fiction Monday: Deaf Awareness Week

A nationwide celebration, Deaf Awareness Week is celebrated from September 21-27, the last full week of Septmber, to promote deaf culture, American Sign Language and deaf heritage. Activities include library displays, interpreted story hours, Open Houses in residential schools and mainstream programs, exhibit booths in shopping malls with "Five Minute Sign Language Lessons," and material distribution.
-The Teacher's Calendar, 2008-2009

Litchfield, Ada B.
A Button in Her Ear.
1976.
Albert Whitman & Company.

Summary from Barnes & Noble:

A little girl relates how her hearing deficiency is detected and corrected with the use of a hearing aid.

This book is perfect - absolutely perfect to share with a child who has or who will be receiving a hearing aid. It's also the perfect book to use in classrooms to familiarize the classmates of a child with hearing aids. It will show children that a hearing aid doesn't mean something is wrong with a child... that they should be teased. Rather it shows that children have different needs - some wear glasses, that makes them special in their own way... definitely a book I'd like to have on hand for a classroom someday!

McCully, Emily Arnold.
My Heart Glow: Alice Cogwell, Thomas Gallaudet, and the Birth of American Sign Language.
2008.
Hyperion Books for Children.

Summary from Barnes & Noble:

Alice Cogswell was a bright and curious child and a quick learner. She also couldn't hear. And, unfortunately, in the early nineteenth century in America, there was no way to teach deaf children. One day, though, an equally curious young man named Thomas Gallaudet, Alice's neighbor, senses Alice's intelligence and agrees to find a way to teach her. Gallaudet's interest in young Alice carries him across the ocean and back and eventually inspires him to create the nation's first school for the deaf, thus improving young Alice's life and the lives of generations of young, deaf students to come.

I really enjoyed reading this story... and I think children will enjoy the "trueness" of it! It provides a wealth of information regarding the discovery and creation of ASL (American Sign Language). I had no idea that American Sign Language was based loosely from French Sign Language... the creation of sign language is described throughout and I think children will enjoy have a greater appreciation for those who use the language! It might also just inspire them to learn a big of ASL on their own, so that communication with the deaf is possible (and enjoyable)!

If you're interested in finding out more information about any of the books reviewed or if you'd like to purchase the books, click the cover image for a link to Amazon.com.

19th Amendment Ratified

On this day, August 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution was ratified, extending the right to vote to women.

-The Teacher's Calendar, 2008-2009

McCully, Emily Arnold.
The Ballot Box Battle.
1996.
Alfred A. Knopf.
Guided Reading Level: P

Summary from Barnes & Noble:

From Caldecott medalist Emily Arnold McCully comes the inspiring story of Cordelia, a young girl whose relationship with her neighbor, the great suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton, inspires her to a remarkable act of courage.

We often read about these incredible women, who so much impacted the lives of women today, yet we often see the struggles faced by the less-ordinary girls who were fighting their own battles within, dealing with the inner conflicts faced by the laws around them during this time period. Cordelia allows us to see how "being a girl" impacted this young child's life - and I think children will really be able to connect to this story because the character fighting these inner battles is a child! Definitely worth adding to any Women's Rights Movement library!

White, Linda Arms.
I Could Do That!: Esther Morris Gets Women the Vote.
2005.
Farrar Straus Giroux.
Guided Reading Level: L

Summary from Barnes & Noble:

“I could do that,” says six-year-old Esther as she watches her mother making tea. Start her own business at the age of nineteen? Why, she could do that, too. But one thing Esther and other women could NOT do was vote. Only men could do that.

If you have a determined daughter at home, this is the perfect book for her... encouraging young girls to reach for their dreams, rather than sitting back and letting the boys tromp all over her! Not only does the book perfectly depict the way women felt at a time when women's rights were nil, the book realistically portrays the fight for women's rights, most specifically, the right to vote! A must have for young girls and teaching about the Women's Rights Movement!

Stone, Tanya Lee.
Elizabeth Leads the Way: Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the Right to Vote.
2008.
Henry Holt and Company.

Summary from Barnes & Noble:

Elizabeth Cady Stanton stood up and fought for what she believed in. From an early age, she knew that women were not given rights equal to men. But rather than accept her lesser status, Elizabeth went to college and later gathered other like-minded women to challenge the right to vote.Here is the inspiring story of an extraordinary woman who changed America forever because she wouldn’t take “no” for an answer.

This is a third wonderful book to use when teaching about women's voting rights or the Women's Rights Movement. What I liked the most about this was that the book shows women living life the "right" way - Elizabeth continued to do what was expected of her by law, while at the same time lobbying in a respectable manner to try and change not only her life, but the life of all women... the way it was written kind of reminded me of MLK and his non-violent ways!

Related Learning Activities:

• Lesson 3.7: The Ballot Box Battle
• Voices for Vote: Suffrage Strategies
• Elizabeth Leads the Way: Election
• Voting for Change: Based on the Wyoming Quarter Reverse
  

If you're interested in finding out more information about any of the books reviewed or if you'd like to purchase the books, click the cover image for a link to Amazon.com.