Mavericks READ Across America
Welcome to the Madison Place Read Across America website outlining our year long reading campaign.
Meet the Madison Place Community
The Madison Place Elementary school library serves a population of 450 students of varying socioeconomic background. Situated in the southernmost part of Olathe in Johnson County, 18% of students are economically disadvantaged and 9% are classified as English Language Learners. Additionally, 68% of students are white, 9% are Black, 12% are Hispanic and 11% other. The school population is 48% female and 52% male.
2020-21 Reading Campaign
Objectives:
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Readers will learn about the many people groups and cultures that make up the United States.
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Readers will see themselves and those from other cultures and backgrounds in books.
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Readers will be inspired to read books from various authors.
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Readers will discuss books with their classmates and families.
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Readers will become more familiar with the US map and be able to locate some states.
Read Across America - Rationale
We see the need for all children to see themselves in the books they read.
Rudine Sims Bishop, Professor Emerita of Education at The Ohio State University, states that her “ assessment was that historically, children from parallel cultures had been offered mainly books as windows into lives that were different from their own, and children from the dominant culture had been offered mainly fiction that mirrored their own lives. All children need both.” She “ also recognized that a window could be a barrier, allowing children to look in but not be a part of the observed experience— hence, the sliding glass door of the title, a way to suggest that a book can offer what Rosenblatt (1978) called a lived experience for a reader.” (Bishop, 2012)
We see the need for all children to be exposed to other people and cultures through books.
“If children are not exposed to the lives, cultures, and languages of children from around the world, they miss the opportunity to learn how to function in a culturally pluralistic world. Global understanding is part of being culturally competent.” (ALSC, 2014)
Since we want children to see themselves and those from other cultures in books, we will be "Reading Across America."
During out year long reading campaign (September-April) we will take Maverick Readers on a trip across America! The books that we will read will be: about the people of America, by authors from across the US, set in one of our fifty states, or about one of our fifty states. As we travel across America we will access a diverse set of books in which readers will see themselves and those from other cultures.
#MavericksAreReaders
