Diverse Books Archives - Jebeh Edmunds

From the Podcast Archives: My Conversation with Instructional Coach Mrs. Nita Creekmore

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

Welcome to the Cultural Curriculum Chat, Jebeh Edmunds here, and I’m sharing my impactful conversation with Mrs. Nita Creekmore. Nita is an instructional coach who resides just outside Atlanta, Georgia. She has been in education for 18 years with a Bachelor’s in English Master’s in Elementary Education and is an educational specialist in supervision and leadership. Nita believes that relationships always come first and building relationships is foundational. She also believes in the importance of self-care and diverse reading habits, allowing students of all ages and backgrounds to transform the world. I am so excited to share this transformational chat with you all!

Nita’s Background in Multicultural Education

Before Nita began her teaching, as a student teacher, she collected a lot of books and at that time, multicultural education was only taught through learning history, but Nita believes that books are the gateway to helping us learn things. She read a book on dance by Debbie Allen and began to look at children’s books and literature critically. As her career went on, she began to want to learn about her students’ identities more, where they came from, and to value and celebrate them, which in turn, became a habit.

Nita’s Take on the Current State of the System

Even now, Nita notes that there is still a lot of work to be done in multicultural education. She says that educators must understand that “it’s not just something we add onto the plate; this is the plate. It’s the thread, it’s the threat that builds our kids’ confidence.”

Nita also noticed how especially in Georgia, teaching about colonialism, dressing up the part, colonial outfits and hats and aprons, but there are still under or non-represented cultures; what about Native and Indigenous People? What was happening at that time, where were your people and ancestors at this time? Schools aren’t teaching the voices of everyone, educators are still teaching the majorities rather than the minorities of these periods. And this is where literature is the key, literature is the connection from kids to other cultures and other worlds, teaching them how to be empathetic human beings.

The Role of Teachers

Nita says that teachers have to get out of their comfort zone. Educators need to ask their kids the question, ‘Whose voices aren’t heard?’ despite how uncomfortable it may be. Educators are just as responsible for bringing up these issues as kids, who rely on educators like us to bring these topics to them and ask them, ‘How do you feel about this? Why is there no representation here?’

Nita says that teachers should also be in a constant state of learning, learning about new cultures and new worlds to bring back to their students and impact students and communities alike. That is where everyone becomes threaded and together in multiculturalism. When we thrive, our students thrive.

Nita also shares with us her brand, Love, Teach, Bless, with a tagline that says Inspired Educators Inspire Educators. She shares with us that after 13 years of teaching, she began sharing the things that inspired her. The tagline comes from a community standpoint, as sometimes in a journey when your spark goes dim, who is there but your community to keep that fire going?

Nita’s Book Recommendations

Literacy is Liberation: Working Toward Justice Through Culturally Relevant Teaching by Kimberly Parker discusses working toward justice through culturally relevant teaching.

Street Data: A Next-Generation Model for Equity, Pedagogy, and School Transformation by Shane Safir and Jamila Dugan which makes you reimagine how you take data and what data you take for your students and the book centers equity. Nita says she chose these books because when educators are taking data and assessing tests, they are looking at it through a singular lens. When it comes to multicultural education, it needs to be looked at through a multicultural lens to obtain multicultural data.

If you want to learn more about Nita, follow her and her brand on Instagram at Love, Teach, Bless.

Thank you so much for listening to this installment of the Cultural Curriculum Chat. 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!

You can find more information about Nita Creekmore below:
https://love-teach-bless.com/

Nita Creekmore on Instagram @loveteachbless

https://www.buzzsprout.com/1495555/11941863-season-3-episode-1-my-conversation-with-instructional-coach-mrs-nita-creekmore.mp3?download=true

From the Podcast Archives: A Conversation with Author Tiffaney Whyte

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

Welcome back to the Cultural Curriculum Chat podcast, my name is Jebeh Edmunds, and I am so excited to introduce you all to Tiffaney White, a wonderful teacher who today is sharing experiences infusing inclusion and multicultural educational practices that we can learn from in our everyday lives.

About Tiffaney

Tiffaney Whyte is a Brooklyn-born author, elementary special education teacher, business owner, and mother of two who now lives in Atlanta, Georgia. She is passionate about spreading joy and positivity in the classroom. She created her brand, D’Avian Blu Innovations, to empower and motivate fellow educators as they cultivate young minds. Tiffaney’s motto is “Do what makes you happy, create joy for yourself; when you find that, keep going and don’t stop.” In 2014, Tiffaney started her Teachers Wear Yellow on Monday campaign, an initiative that promotes joy and positivity among educators by having them wear yellow each Monday.

Growing up in Brooklyn, Tiffaney grew up and went to school in a predominantly West Indian community. When she went to high school, she experienced that her educators were of very diverse backgrounds. She had many teachers in high school who were of Caribbean descent, which gave her a sense of belonging and being part of the community.

Tiffaney’s Career

Tiffaney touches on her role as a fifth-grade educator and how it’s okay to make mistakes, and sometimes it’s even necessary. You have to take learning curves which is something that I personally resonate with as someone who believes that as educators, we are life-long learners who can’t run from mistakes; it’s a part of learning and growing. Tiffaney also shares that she’s taught from kindergarten all the way up to a year in high school, but she feels the best teaching fifth grade; as though it’s her calling.

I personally also loved teaching fifth grade, as it’s a transitional grade from middle school to junior high. Educators play a huge role in the lives of their students and build their confidence, so it’s wonderful to be able to talk to them and see their confidence grow because of the content an educator shares.

Tiffaney’s Relationship with Music

During this interview, Tiffaney also touched on her love of music and how she feels as though it bridges everyone together because of how universal it is. Music is something that can cross any barrier between people. Tiffaney comments that she incorporates music into her daily work, from her morning commute to even during her school day in the hallways. She tries to incorporate different cultures of music as her school’s culture isn’t as diverse as hers was growing up.

Nicole and the Fifth Grade Desk

Tiffaney’s latest book, Nicole and the Fifth Grade Desk is inspired by her students and her niece, who had a hard time in her transition from fifth to sixth grade. And so, Tiffaney came up with the idea of a talking desk that tells students all about the fifth grade that also touches on the ideas of figurative language to add a bit of educational value. Nicole and the Fifth Grade Desk isn’t just for fifth graders but for those who may be nervous or even scared at the beginning of the school year; it’s a book for everybody.

Thank you for listening in to this week’s Cultural Curriculum Chat with Tiffaney Whyte. Be on the lookout for Nicole and the Fifth Grade Desk and her brand D’avion Blu Innovations. If you enjoyed this episode and want 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!

If you’d love to listen to this podcast episode. Click the link her

https://www.buzzsprout.com/1495555/11874324-season-2-episode-21-a-conversation-with-author-tiffaney-whyte.mp3?download=true

Tiffaney created her brand “De’AvionBlu Innovations to empower and motivate fellow Educators as they cultivate young minds.

You can purchase Tiffaney’s products on these links below:

https://deavionbluinnovations.com/

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

FROM THE PODCAST ARCHIVES: MY CONVERSATION WITH AUTHOR SILVANA SPENCE

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

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

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

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!

Hair Love Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

I’m so excited that you are here with us today. And I’m going to share a poignant heart tugging gives you all the feels picture book titled hair love, written by Matthew A. Cherry and illustrated by Vashti Harrison. The reason for picking this book is that the main character Zuri, Swahili, is beautiful, and she is getting ready for her day. And she has a lot on her mind, but it just talks about how she revels in her natural hair in her coils. And in the story, she loves having her hair and different styles.

For example, She loves her funky braids and beads and feels like a princess. She says her daddy tells her she’s beautiful, which makes her feel so good. It’s so reaffirming. And it shows how even her hairstyle is more sir into a different persona. For example, she feels like a superhero when her hair’s in two puffs to Afro pub. And some days, she hangs out to have magical moments on Sundays when she gets up for her daily routine. She’s going to figure out how I am going to do my hair. And she’s looking online for tutorials and things like that. But her Daddy needs to help. And the beautiful thing about this book is that she wants her hair to look good to make her feel good about herself. And this dad has no idea. Bless his heart. And he’s trying his hardest.

And he’s trying to see what kinds of ways I can help my daughter Zuri. And Zuri is just like, Whew, okay, let’s see how this will go down. Dad’s trying, you know, and it reminds me of the one time I could remember my core memory. When my Father, the late Emmett Metzger, tried to do my hair. And I remember he had all my hair slides and ties, pulling and pushing. And I ended up with one braid. Off the top of my head just stuck straight up to the sky. But he tried, and it reminds me of Zuri’s dad of him trying as hard to get his daughter’s hair done to enjoy and make her feel so good on the inside and outside.

And we even did his homework. And that’s what I think is neat because I didn’t want to give away too much when mom was away at a time. It was nice to see that Dad took the time to cultivate in making sure that Zuri’s hair was protected and still regal at the same time. And why I picked this book for your audience is so many of us in the BIPOC community with our natural hair, we need to have you all understand that it takes a lot of time. Our hair is very delicate. It’s easily breakable, and we use ways to protect our hair.

So it can grow and thrive in some things where people might be asking, wow, Jeb, you had braids in your hair one day. And now you have it in twists, or now you have it in puffs, or you have it out natural as a little mini Afro a TWA. And there are some things that we love to change it up. We love to change our hairstyles. But we also know that it takes a lot of care and patience with our hair. And I think educators can use this book to show all of our kids the different styles in the BIPOC community with our hair and our natural hair care. But it also shows the importance of how we value our hair.

There’s an old African American saying that says our hair is our crowning glory. And my touch on that is in a crown should be seen and not touched. So when you are an elementary school educator, and you are reading this book to your students, please reiterate to your students, especially your African American students in your classroom, that it does not permit anybody to touch their hair. Their hair is their crowning glory. I can’t tell you how many times I was a student, people would want to touch my hair and put sand in my hair. or felt like I was on display. And even as an adult, even as a teacher, some colleagues would come up to me and ask to touch my hair.

I felt very tokenized when I had colleagues coming up and wanting to touch my hair. So having books like hair love opens up that conversation of the respect of natural black hair and opens the door for all kids to see the different hairstyles and the pride that comes with it. So I highly recommend this book, Hair Love by Matthew Cherry, illustrated by Vashti Harrison. They also have an animated short that goes along with it. And what I love about this animated short, it doesn’t have much dialogue.

Still, you can see in their nonverbal cues and communication how the Father loves his daughter and his determination to get the hairstyles just right, just like the mom did. And so, I highly recommend reading the book first and then showing the animated short; you’ll love both of them. So highly recommend this book. Please share this blog post with people that love their natural hair, and share it with a friend who might be curious about natural hair and the different styles that go with it. Thank you so much.

Juneteenth for Mazie Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

Welcome back to my blog. This book is excellent for students to understand the historical significance of the holiday of Juneteenth. And the title of this book is called Juneteenth for Mazie, and it’s written and illustrated by Floyd Cooper. I picked this book because Floyd Cooper is a fantastic artist. In his words about this little girl staying up late getting ready for the big celebration of Juneteenth and how her father sits her down and talks about her great grandparents that were slaves. And I quote, great, great grandpa, and great, great grandma, mosey and how they crossed into liberty, a lot of formerly enslaved people when it was around this time, right after the Civil War.

This was this vast celebration of liberation when we were all freed two years after the Emancipation Proclamation, and that’s how it became on June 19, hence Juneteenth. And so the story talks about her ancestors, showing pictures and depictions of them in the fields, looking up at the North Star, and trying to envision a life of freedom and solitude. And it just gave them that freedom of bondage and liberation and peace. What I love about this is this story, it goes back to that fateful day in Galveston, Texas, when that announcement was made, and it shows how African Americans weren’t even. They weren’t even recognized as Americans at this time and were shouting and jubilation in celebrating, and they knew they had a long road ahead. What I wanted you to share with your students when you are reading this book is to talk about how the misconception that once the slaves were free, everything was all right. Everything was perfect. Everybody was equal.

The story opens up this discussion that it took years, and many things aren’t equal even today. And so I would be grateful if you could read this book. It talks about how from that emancipation time, after Juneteenth, how people still African Americans voted, lobbied the cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge Bloody Sunday events, you know, it has a beautiful timeline depiction of why Juneteenth should be celebrated and why it should be remembered, and showing the descendants of those formerly enslaved people and how they forgave how they moved forward, and how they excelled and achieved. They became heroes and quote, so it’s just a beautiful book. It talks about celebrations with Strawberry Pop. I will challenge educators to examine the historical significance of why African Americans drink Strawberry Pop and have red velvet cake on Juneteenth. That’s a bonus question for you. And that’s something that you all can look up.

Trust me, there are some delicious recipes for red velvet cake, but there’s a historical significance to that.

There are so many books about Juneteenth and many great picture books out there, and I will have my favorite list of Juneteenth books and antiracist books that you can start getting into your libraries. And I found through my work alongside the Duluth Area Chamber of Commerce; they also partnered with a local independent bookstore. And I will also put in the link below—their list of curated books in honor of Juneteenth. So, my challenge for you is to find out after you read the book Juneteenth for Maisie about the historical significance of Strawberry Pop, as we say in the Midwest, pop or soda if you’re not from Minnesota—the historical importance of red velvet cake that’s my challenge for you. So happy Juneteenth, take the time to go out. There are lots of events this weekend coming up.

I know in Duluth, Minnesota, where I live, we have two events. Everybody is welcome to attend in honor of Juneteenth by our local African American chapters and affinity groups. You don’t have to be a bipod person to rebel and celebrate liberation for all people. And I also wanted to share with you that we have lots in store with Jebeh cultural consulting. I have a digital course on my website if you would love to learn more self-paced work in your cultural competency game and understand people in my lived experience, how we navigate, and how we can be better authentic colleagues and neighbors with our BIPOC friends. Be sure to share this blog post with anybody you think is interested in diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as friends interested in more culturally diverse literature for their students and their children.

The Kindest Red Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

My name is Jebeh Edmunds, and welcome to my blog if you’re new here. I’m an educator and love sharing my insights on Multicultural Education.

Speaking of sharing, got to love that segue. I am so excited. I have created. A self-paced, self-guided digital course title. How to be a culturally competent leader. You’ll have four weeks of self-paced work, quick, 15-minute videos, and a couple bonus podcast episodes.

And a digital guidebook and a certificate that shows all your hard work. This is something that I created and that will help you in your busy life. Understand our diverse society. What to say, what not to say, what to read up on, and with this guidebook, you get to journal and self-reflect with the prompts I have for you. So there’s more information in the show notes below.

Be sure to check it out here:

https://jebeh-edmunds.mykajabi.com/offers/LMwntaji/checkout

It is so important that we read authors from diverse backgrounds to better understand their cultures. Their traditions and understanding them as human beings, especially in our daily lives. So I wanted to share with you another great title. The Kindest Red was written by Ibtihaj Muhammed and S K Ali.

Art by Hatem Ali and Ibtihaj Taj wrote a book that I showcased last year. Titled The Proudest Blue, and this is her second, don’t quote a second story from this dynamic team; it follows these sister characters and their journey.

Now the premise of this story, I don’t want to give away too much. But it talks about these two sisters, again, Faizah and Asiya. And they’re getting ready for picture day. Of these two sisters, Faizah has a hijab on, and, Asiyah doesn’t have one yet. But she is rocking her red dress. And what I love about this story is that it talks about how our educators write about what they would love for our students with these open.

Questions of what would you like to see the world? As educators, we are eager to write down all our students’ responses and try to get as many answers as possible on our boards. So what I love about this book, it parallels that excitement; it parallels children in their minds of what they view the world as should be.

And how they would feel in that world. I really want you to talk about this book with your students. It has excellent references to representation. Ms. Ramirez is the educator. So you have a teacher of color and a very diverse classroom. And you see the similar games that you probably grew up in elementary school playing tag.

And solving problems and talking things through. The tradition of picture day and the excitement behind picture day in elementary school, especially. Um, yeah, my youngest son wore his Phy Ed uniform for picture day. So yeah, I wasn’t pleased about that.

But this talks about the excitement of picture day. And the choice of color and being oneself. How. The color red makes you feel and how you would like the world to portray you. And. What I love about these two sisters and their bond. Faizah has always looked out for her little sister. But it also showcases how everyone else looks out for each other. And that is the goal of an educator in their classroom community.

I just remember being that. Little black girl in my elementary school and getting excited about a new dress. My mom got me and my hair done. Just that pride of me in this particular grade every single year.

And, you know, smiling big and also that boost of confidence.

Everybody helping you feel like your best self is an excellent illustration of how this little girl’s world wants to be like an Asiyah.

If a person only knows. People of a particular cultural group, especially the Islamic community. , need to continue to educate themselves more. The negative biases are kept at bay on these diverse characters and their attributes. Everyone can relate to picture day when we’re looking at these stories. Especially at school, everyone can relate to playing at recess. Everyone can relate to solving problems together and writing what our view is.

Points of what we see and writing our hopes for the future of what we would like to see our world. I remember when I taught, we had an extensive list of our hopes and dreams our personal. And community goals in the classroom. So these are just some excellent examples of The Kindest Red. I highly recommend it.

This book is perfect for Kindergarten to Third grade, and I even enjoyed The Proudest Blue. I highly recommend both titles if you want to have both in your classroom library or even in your home library collection. They both have a charming message. And also showcases and validates the Muslim American experience.

That’s all that I have for you today. Just a quick, short episode. Have a really great book. The Kindest Red, written by Ibtihaj Muhammed. And S K Ali illustrated by Hatem. Ali, check it out.

Cultures of Belonging Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

Another great book for your professional development is titled Cultures of Belonging: Building Inclusive Organizations That Last by Alida Miranda-Wolff

When we are talking about diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. Belonging is the next step of sustainability. In your DEI work, Alida just really crafts this in a way where she talks and walks you through what belonging actually looks like? She even goes further into who the stakeholders in your organization are and how you can get from point “A

To point B”. No pun intended. When I’m talking about being and belonging. So one of my most important things is when you’re talking about inclusion, you really have to get to that foundational piece of what it means to include and trust me, people that look like me and other BIPOC
folks, we can see the BS from a mile away.

So make sure you have the best intentions authentically, and Ali’s book will help you walk through that. When we’re talking about cross-cultural connections and building them stronger, she talks about. To make your own onboarding team. As you can see, I’ve got things dog-eared, and I’ve referenced her work because it is so well done in my own research, and she also talks about people who could resist this movement in your organization.

Remember, there’s gonna be a lot of push. When you have some folks, but if you talk about them and the buy-in and why it’s important to have everybody feel culturally and psychologically safe, they’ll get on board. And this book is a tool to get you there. As I said, it really does showcase the leader’s work in how you.

Definitely work with her research findings with her ethos work, as well as think about the policies you already have in place and how to audit it to make them more inclusive, so people feel like they belong in your workplace. She does definitely walk the walk in this book. Be sure to order her book wherever books are sold.

I found this online. As I said, it was even printed in 2021. So this is the most cutting-edge research-based book you can find to help sustain your thriving organization. Remember that I’ll send you a new find in this multicultural educational space every week. That’s all that I have for you today. Have a great one

Bella the Scientist Goes to Outer Space Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

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/

Just Like Me Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

Another great Vanessa Brantley Newton book is called Just Like Me, and this title is really a book of her poems, and it is very self-affirming with students. She really captures self-confidence. She’s got titles like I Am a Canvas. The day I decided to become sunshine, Warrior. That’s a really good one.

Altogether, girls talk about being proud of their bodies and even pimples that come into the mix. She has a poem titled City and Country Dreams, and the duplicity about it talks about young girls having friendships, bonds, dreams, and ambitions.

Being ourselves in the poem Weird that’s one of my favorite ones. There are so many great poems here. She really does capture things down to detail. You can even see newspaper print on the bottom of the drums. She’s got down to the stitching, ah, Meemaw’s MA’s wisdom.

Also, another favorite poem is titled Memawh’s Wisdom, thinking about your own elder and having those face-to-face conversations and the bond you have. Everybody’s Memaw is unique and kind, and it just brings back fond memories, talks about feelings, and is one of my favorite ones. Like I tell you, I have them all.

But even sharing the poems, Hair and My Crown. It’s just beautifully done. And what I love, this last one, that culminates everyone together, is called paper chains and how it talks about everybody uniting together. We can only do it once everyone joins, once we are all invited.

Won’t you be a link in our paper chain for the change end quote? Beautifully done. Vanessa. And remember to share and subscribe so I can share more books like these with you.

Get this book, Just Like Me, by Vanessa Brantley Newton. Wherever books are sold. There is a lot of great content that you and your students can analyze in your poetry units. So be sure to check it out. You know you’re gonna love it.

Becoming Vanessa Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

Hello there! I’m a happy educator today, and I cannot wait to share with you all again another great book review, and it is titled Becoming Vanessa. It was written and illustrated by Vanessa Brantley Newton. I had the pleasure of interviewing Vanessa a few weeks ago, and definitely check out her podcast episode with me on The Cultural Curriculum Chat.

I will have that link down below. Now to get started with this book. It is a coming-of-age book on the first day of school. Everybody has those jitters, especially the teachers, but we don’t wanna spill that kind of tea. Okay? So becoming Vanessa is her self-titled character, and she talks about getting ready for the first.

School, her mommy and daddy ask her, what are you gonna wear that special today? And as you can see, I got my little particular leper print cardigan on because we all have to enjoy our inner childlike energy. And what I love about Vanessa’s attention to detail. She’s got it down to the hair textures of her parents.

Even how things just come to life. Even the fashion, the feather boa that little Vanessa does. What I also enjoy in this book, it even has a mommy and a hair tie. Okay. It shows all walks of life that Vanessa brings to the pages. She even talks about her name and how long it takes to write it when everybody else is done with the day.

And you know, as a teacher, we all have those students that have those beautiful, unique, long names that take a while, but she talks about how she gets into her name. Feels in the beginning that her name isn’t that special, but her mom walks her through and tells her the true meaning of her name. You will just choke up with joy and see how this beautiful little girl takes that pride in herself.

And she sits a little taller, like I say, and talks about how her beautiful name has meaning and how she portrays herself and honors who she is just beautiful. So definitely check out this book. It’s one of my favorites. And just how colorful, bright, and childlike Vanessa has this in her book.

It’s very well done. As you can say, Vanessa is a beautiful person inside and out. And you are going to enjoy this book. I highly recommend this book, kindergarten to about third grade, for the beginning of the school year, but, Check it out now. In honor of Black History Month, she is one of the most well-known illustrators in our children’s books universe.

So definitely get this book Becoming Vanessa wherever books are sold. You can learn more about this fantastic author here: https://www.vanessabrantleynewton.com/

Barack Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

In honor of President’s Day, I’m going to share a great book about our first African-American President, Barack Obama.

This book, titled Barack, is a beautiful biography for students written by Jonah Winter. Illustrated by AG Ford. This story is beautiful and impactful, and it talks about our first African American president. Um, it talks about how Barack went on his own unique journey. Self-identity and belonging.

We’ve been talking a lot about diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, and this really does share and showcase what it means to belong. AG Ford has some beautiful illustrations about Young Barack as a baby, where he was born and grew up in Indonesia, and it parallels Barack Obama’s. He wrote a memoir called Dreams of My Father, but that’s for more grownups now.

Also talks about reuniting with his father at the age of 10 and belonging to that self-identity that many children of color have to go through. It talks about where he found himself in the community and his campaign to become the first African American president, the 44th president. So I would love for you to get this book in honor of Black History Month and to showcase another true trailblazer as our first African American president, Barack Obama.

If you’d like to learn and order more lesson plans that are culturally appropriate for your classroom, be sure to stop by my website, jebehedmunds.com/shop. You can find many multicultural activities that are companions to many lessons I’ve learned.

The ABCs of Black History Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

Today I’m gonna chat more about this book, The ABCs of Black History, written by Rio Cortez and illustrated by Lauren Semmer. This is a wonderfully made book inspired by the late great James Baldwin.

You can see. “History is not the past. It is the present. We carry our history with us. We are our history.”- James Baldwin. I just love this. Whenever we talk about black history, it’s more than just the month.

Throughout the year, we must learn about all our country’s innovators, explorers, organizers, artists, engineers, scientists, and diplomatic people. I always did that in my classroom, and I know you can do it for educators. It starts with A is for Anthem, lifting our voice strong, and it does ring true to the black national anthem.

It continues and the illustrations that Lauren has created. It reminds me a lot of Faith Ringold. I loved her book Tar Beach and Dinner at Aunt Connie’s house, which I believe was the one. Also, another black history book, one of my favorites from back in the day. Rio also talks about the diaspora, what that means, um, and it continues through.

F is for folklore, and H is for Harlem. If you’ve never been, I highly recommend it. My husband and I went to Harlem on our honeymoon, eh, another H word. It’s a beautiful neighborhood. It even talks about J’ouvert and Juneteenth, how the people organized and marched and stood up for themselves, and the different queens throughout Africa and our American history.

Just wonderfully done. Ooh, this is such a well-done book. Talks about, like I said, our scientists, our astronomers, our writers. It’s a good launching pad. For your research studies, every year when I taught, we did African American biographies throughout the year with my students, and I would have a list of African American contributors from the past president in the future, and my students got to pick, and this is a great launching pad to start that project as.

And then it ends with Z for Zenith, the highest peak always reminded me of Dr. King’s speech. I’ve Been to the Mountaintop. Another beautiful one is that we’ve got much more to do, grow, and thrive. Love this. It even has a glossary people of the terms and the. And figures from this book. Very well done.

I am so proud of this book, and I recommend you get it as soon as possible to kick off your learning for Black History month and beyond.

Nicole and the Fifth Grade Desk Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

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

All Are Welcome Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

All are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold and Suzanne Kaufman is a New York Times Bestseller. It comes with the cutest poster in the jacket I used to put up in my classroom.

I love how this book even starts inside the author. Suzanne got inspiration from her daughter’s school Kimball Elementary where I love that she wrote about where diversity and Community are not just protected but celebrated. I love how this book shows the excitement in the energy that families, students, and parents are also excited that I love about it. The ending sentence of each prose says, “All are Welcome Here,” for example, and I quote. “Pencil sharpened in their case. Bells are ringing. Let’s make haste.”

It’s a new family created every single year, and I feel that energy when I am with my students, so this one was fantastic to show the illustrations. They’ve got mothers in hijabs and dads wearing their religious Sikh Garb and parents of all shapes and combinations; it’s just such a joyful book. It talks about how far everyone comes, how everybody starts their day no matter how you start your day, and I quote, “What you wear when you play” it just shows that inclusivity is at the forefront of where our society is going. I love how the illustrator Suzanne’s imagery.

She’s got beautiful kids with human colors in their hair that are different textures and different styles. You know, children even wear yarmulkes in there. It was starting so students would see representations of themselves which is a very, very powerful talk about how people celebrate all cultures. You see dragons in the Asian Pacific culture and dancers in the gym. You see Lil darlings with backpacks on and getting excited about getting home to rest and starting the next day again. I would love that if more of us had these books in our classrooms. Children would be able to identify with students that maybe not reflect their own identity but show that other identities and cultural lenses exist. All people are welcome. Thank you so much, Suzanne and Alexandra, for creating an excellent book. This book is one of my favorite books.

I suggest sharing this book at the beginning of the school year and whenever you get a new elementary school-aged student in your classroom.

My 3Cs of Cultural Competency

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

Today we’re going to talk about all things Cultural Competency, what it is, and my famous 3 C’s to keep us all in check so we can better relate to our community members of color. I can’t wait to share tips on understanding my 3cs of Cultural Competency so you can get to work.

What is Cultural Competency?

Cultural competence is the ability to comprehend, interact, and communicate with individuals regardless of their cultural background. Cultural competency includes:

An awareness of one’s cultural views.
Working at and developing positive attitudes towards cultural differences.
Knowing varying cultural worldviews and practices.

Typically, cultural competency regarding work environments, school systems, or some other kind of organization, where such knowledge is transformed into specific policies, standards, and practices to increase the environment and create better outcomes.

3 Mrs. E’s 3 C’s of Cultural Competency

1) Check

2) Correct

3) Connect

“Strength lies in differences, not in similarities” Stephen R. Covey.

Check

1. Remember the term Checking for Understanding when we’re building instruction? The same applies. We need to check our understanding of other cultures,

2. How do you interact with other cultural groups, including immigrant groups?

3. Have you learned from each other who their family is? If their kid plays with your kid at the baseball field?

4. Have you attended a cultural festival with which you don’t identify?

Correct your own bias

1. We all have biases, and we know that there are systems in place in our nation that allow biases to solidify and amplify discrimination.

2. We are all going to step into it. Have you had the feeling, oop, I shouldn’t have said that or, man, why did I ask that question?

3. Researching methods Dr. Maura Cullen “Most times, knowing what is right is the easy part; it is in the doing that tests our courage.”

4. The last C in my method is Connect- By connecting with others who have multiple perspectives than you will help you advocate for them. There are so many hurdles for people of color and people of immigrants that hinder them from living out the American dream. Once you connect, we can speak up and say something.

Your Name is a Song Book Review

Posted on by Jebeh Edmunds

This book is amazing. It is a love between a mother and her daughter on her first day of school. And I have to tell you, I can relate to this little girl because she gets picked up from school by her mother. And she is upset. Is she mad and frustrated because of how her teacher made her feel about her name? She told her mommy she choked when she said my name, and the other kids in my class chuckled. I was that little girl. And I remember the day my mom picked me up, and I had that experience. Now my mom is also an educator, and knowing her and my father, when they named me Jebeh, after the chief of our tribe, who was my great aunt Chief Jebeh.

And this book also depicts the same love and confidence that this mother only pays to her daughter. She has it in a lyrical rhythm that your students can tap into the syllables of each name. And the names that the author picked are names spoken throughout the world. Some names are in Arabic. Some names are in Vietnamese, and some names are Nigerian and Ghanaian. Some names are African American. And what I love about this book is that it has a glossary at the back. Before reading this book out loud to your students, I recommend you read the love glossary and practice the names because when you’re reading the book out loud.They’re gonna sit up taller. They’re gonna feel proud. They’re gonna love that their name is actually in this book. Hey, I must admit, the day I have my name written in a book, I am going to fall over with joy. Hopefully, it’ll be a name I wrote myself because I am also a writer. But I want you educators to take this book and read it. Like I said, it will be music to your ears. It is a beautiful, well-written story.

I’m going to share just a couple names in the book that you have to read because once you read it, you can feel the rhythm of The fire the stars. In this story. We have Lamika, Kwaku, Born on Wednesday, and Ghanian names. I have Ta’ Jae, and I also have Ngozi. Have a cousin named Ngozi, Ngozi girl, your name is in this book, she’s gotta love that too. Also, you’ve got names, like I said or done. And you’ve got Ha, that is Vietnamese. Another thing that I want you to see at the end of this book is she shares her name in a song. She is practicing her classmates’ names in a song and how that teacher changes her attitude towards this girl is also very powerful. The name she is in this book is about the little girl. Her name is Kora-Jalimusu. Now the meaning Kora-Jalimusu is after the harp instrument played by a female griot. A griot is a West African storyteller.

Not everybody gets the honor to become a griot in their tribe in the western part of Africa. So for her to have that name of a harp, Kora, the harp is just beautiful. And if it wasn’t for my mother and my father giving me the name of my great aunt, I don’t think I would have felt as strong and important and validated with the identity that I do now. It takes your parents and your community around you to learn your name and understand your identity and take pride in that. And it also depicts the beauty of names that, although you’ve never heard of them or are unfamiliar with these names, names are so beautiful, and they are music to everyone’s ears. So when you’re reading a story the first time, enjoy it, learn from it.

You might not have a student in this book that will go, “oh my goodness, that’s me!” It is beautiful. And I tell you, I cannot wait to meet this author and say thank you to all the children out there. I cannot wait to personally find the author and thinker because I am one of these names in this book, feeling despair at first and discouragement. And then my mother and father brought that pride back into me because I was named for a reason.

My name is also a beautiful song. It is titled Jebeh, written and performed by the African icon Miata Fahnbulleh, so look it up and listen to Jebeh. The melody of the son of Jebeh is owned by son Jebeh, which means my heart is pleased to meet you. I play the song in front of my students every year I have taught. I even played it and performed it in my community. My name is a song. Your name is a song. And we need to have our symphony of names together, united and understood; Jamilah, I hope to meet you one of these days because I am a huge fan of your work. Educators, please get this book on your bookshelves.

Study the glossary for others like myself; you need to learn how to say our names correctly, like Jebeh. I can’t tell you how many times my name was mispronounced by my teachers growing up, and some of them practiced really hard. Some of them didn’t. So please don’t be those who didn’t teach and read this book to your students. I am so excited that I also have a companion lesson plan with this book. So check it out on my website to order the lesson plan and more information on where you can find Your Name is a Song written by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow, Illustrated by Luisa Uribe