From the Podcast Archives: My Conversation with Author, Illustrator Vanessa Brantley Newton

Welcome back to the Cultural Curriculum Chat podcast. I am Jebeh Edmunds and today, I am sharing my conversation with author and illustrator Vanessa Brantley Newton, whose energetic prose and art will motivate and inspire. 

 

About Vanessa Brantley Newton

Vanessa was born during the Civil Rights Movement and attended school in Newark, New Jersey, in a diverse, tight-knit community. During such turbulent times, Vanessa learned the importance of acceptance and empowerment in shaping a young person’s life. When she read Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats, it was the first time she saw herself in a book, which became a defining moment in her life and has made her into the artist she is today. As an illustrator, she includes children of all ethnic backgrounds in her stories and artworks. Her goal is for children to see their unique experiences reflected in books they read so they can feel the same sense of empowerment and recognition she experienced as a young reader.

 

Vanessa’s Early Life

As a child, Vanessa says she attended predominantly white schools where she was the only black child within the classroom and would often ask her mother if she was invisible because she wasn’t granted books where she saw other representations like black children. She continues to relay her experience of never seeing black hair textures, skin colour or her parents within children’s books because her parents also didn’t spend money on books that reflected her identity. However, Vanessa fondly remembers Mrs. Russell, who noticed and acknowledged that Vanessa was different she allowed her to read Snowy Day for the first time, and it was the first time she ever saw another black child, especially within a book. And she found herself and peace within that book and still reads it to this day. 

 

Vanessa’s Takeaways

Vanessa touches on the power of names and how she feels so strongly about how important and significant the act of naming your child is. She talks about her own daughter Zoey and how proud she is of her becoming her name. Vanessa also talks about how when she was a child, she didn’t like her name, and her parents told her that her name meant her favourite thing to draw, which at the time was butterflies; she said she even got teary-eyed and overwhelmed with pride. 

Lastly, Vanessa’s message for educators is that they are appreciated by her, and she acknowledges how hard it is to put lessons together.

 

Thank you for listening to this week’s episode of the Cultural Curriculum Chat. If you’re interested in Vanessa’s books, they can be purchased through Amazon, Penguin Books, Barnes and Noble and, of course, her website at https://www.vanessabrantleynewton.com.  If you enjoyed this episode and want to hear more, subscribe to my YouTube channel at Mrs. Edmunds’ Cultural Corner for more podcasts, videos, and other multicultural and educational content. 

 

See you next time!

Bella the Scientist Goes to Outer Space Book Review

I cannot wait to share my passion for another fantastic multicultural educational read, and today I can’t wait to share with you all. It is titled Bella, the Scientist goes to Outer Space. It’s written by Silvana and Isabella Spence, her daughter, and it’s illustrated by Darwin Marfil.

I love this book because it talks about two sisters, Bella and Vicky, and Bella and Vicky have this love and passion for all things science. And the cool thing about it is that these two sisters go on an adventure, and they’re trying to find different roles for other scientists out there.

I love the illustrations and how it shows these beautiful African American girls and their natural hair. And it also talks about looking over a list of various sciences you could become. Savannah and Isabella do an excellent job in these girls venturing into outer space. I’m not gonna give away too much because I want you to get this book, and it even talks about the planets in actual scientific facts.

So your students can also get involved in taking notes and, Oh, a teacher’s dream. Of course, cause you know, US educators love extra resources at the end of this book. She even has a rocket vinegar experiment. So you and your grownup at home, educators, can do this in the science lab at school to take this book to another level. Another cool thing is that she even talks about the scientific method in the book, as well as using the scientific method alongside your rocket vinegar experiment.

Love it. Love it, love it, love it. Keeping that going and having those fun facts about the solar system are also included at the end of this book. So I can’t wait to share more. Silvana is a fantastic educator that I had the pleasure of meeting and interviewing on my podcast. She and her do extraordinary adventures throughout Florida in that love and passion for science and experience.

Ms. Silvana Spence. Another favorite educator of mine, I will have in my notes and description below all things you can do to purchase this book wherever books are sold, as well as follow this excellent educator’s journey in her classroom on Instagram. You can follow Sil’s journey below and order her book here: https://silsteps4success.com/

Everyday MAGIC Book Review

Hello everyone. I can’t wait to share another excellent book for Personal Development written by Mattie James, influencer extraordinaire. The title of her first debut book is Everyday Magic, The Joy of Not Being Everything, and Still Being More Than Enough. This is a beautiful personal development book, and in this book, I really love how she. Her message of MAGIC into her own acronym, and it means meaningful, aesthetically pleasing, goal-oriented, intentional, and consistent. How Mattie lays this book out, its efficient strategies, and the system you can do and elevate it into a new task.

Sometimes we get so overwhelmed. , even our to-do list has a to-do list. And how Maddie crafts this book makes you think about the people you’re serving daily, your family, your work, and your children. And I quote, think about the ideas that matter for herself, her family, home, life, and work.

And she says, the ideas that are meaningful to me, or someone who matters to me. And that is the goal that she’s going to take. And that’s a goal that we all can take. Maddie is a successful mother and influencer and c e o of her own business, and this book shows a culmination of her tips and tricks. On her Instagram, as well as all of her other social media platforms of practical strategies from fashion and how you dress in your go-to Blazer.

I even have my go-to Blazer and even meal planning for the week. So many of us have these big ideas and what we’re gonna do, and then we end up getting stuck by our fridge, right? So what I really want you to do is think about your prior. While you’re reading alongside this book, think about what you can do to make those magical changes.

See my little pun there and also contribute to it. Finding things to get rid of. Start to find prune things that are just taking up space. Taking up space in your mind, closet, or home life.

When you’re starting off a new year and starting a new plan, think about those things that matter. And I really love that. Mattie talks about her family life, her husband and beautiful children, her traditions with her parents, and their rituals. Saturday evenings with their family traditions and how she ties that into her new generation.

I can’t tell you enough. This book is such a great read. Anybody can read this book and put this book into practice, and she lets you take that breath. 

Thank you, Maddy. Girl, you let us take that breath because sometimes when we’re in the thick of it, you know, me as a brand new entrepreneur, working, you know, on my own, raising a family as a wife, and trying to deliver and do all the things, this book maps it out just perfectly. I’m going to have to buy a new charcuterie board. 

. So remember, get this wherever books are sold. I found this book in my tiny little town in Duluth, Minnesota. So you can see this book wherever books are sold. 

You can learn more about Mattie James’ work here:

https://mattiejames.com/about/

Nicole and the Fifth Grade Desk Book Review

I’m here to share another great book for your classroom and homelife: Nicole and the Fifth Grade Desk by Tiffaney Whyte, Illustrated by Christina Rudenko. 

First of all this book is really well written it talks about a little girl named Nicole who is all ready for the first day of 5th grade but still a little nervous to start a new grade. She meets her teacher who greets her with a smile and on her face Nicole feels like she could be ready but she’s just so nervous to get started.The book is perfect because it talks with a talking desk and the desk guides Nicole into what to expect in this new grade in 5th grade. It talks about lots of affirmations that are true to her as a 5th grader how she is, I quote, “special unique and beautiful” and how she will accomplish great things in life.

 What I love about this book is the desk even gives her insights of what to expect in fifth grade as far as figurative language. Which is one of our 5th grade standards for understanding what similes and metaphors would be like and helping her know even the events that she’s going to be going through, dressing for Success day and school fundraisers and fun, engaging activities that she’s going to be learning alongside her classmates. 

 Jitters and. I remember talking to Miss Tiffaney Whyte on my podcast. Go back and check it out, season 2, episode 21 and listen to my conversation with Tiffaney. 

You can listen to the episode right on the link below.

https://www.buzzsprout.com/1495555/11874324 

  Let’s face it, everybody has jitters no matter what grade level you’re going through, and I love how Tiffaney writes in this book that it’s a celebration of starting a new grade. You can begin this book with a new student that comes into your classroom because that new student is going into a class that already has their routines and norms set up significantly in the middle of the school year. Educators, I’ve had students come in the last week of school, and it’s always very intimidating to be the new kid on the Block, but this is a great tool to start that conversation of what to expect in fifth grade. You could read it and any grade-level to open up that conversation. I recommend ordering the book Nicole and the fifth-grade desk, written by Tiffaney Whyte and illustrated by Christina Rudenko. You can purchase this book at the link below. 

https://www.amazon.com/Nicole-Fifth-Grade-Tiffaney-Whyte/dp/B0B8BPKFZ6