Diverse Learners Text Set: Religion K-2
Identification Information:
Title: Many Ways: How Families Practice Their Beliefs and Religions Authors: Shelley Rotner and Sheila M/ Kelly Ed. D. Photographer: Shelley Rotner Publisher: Millbrook Press ISBN-13: 978-0-7613-2873-5 Number of Pages: 31 Reading Level: K-2 Genre: Nonfiction Year of Publication: 2010 |
Summary of Text:
Many Ways: How Families Practice Their Beliefs and Religions teaches children that although every religion is unique, everyone has something in common and deserves to be respected and valued. This text provides students with photos of different practices in different religions, showing the students examples of ways their peers may practice religion. The conclusion states that love and care for one another, as well as our Earth, are very important.
Critical Review:
Strengths: A strength of this book is the live photos taken by the author. When children can see photos of something in action, they gain a better idea of what that action may look like. The diversity of the photos is largely important because it increases the audience of the book, appealing to many practicing religions. Another strength of this book is the simplicity of each page, with a couple photos and a sentence or two. This allows the students to not become overwhelmed with text, but focus on the teacher's direction of the story and how the story applies to them.
Weaknesses: A weakness of this book is the lack of labels on the pictures, in order to help students understand which picture goes with which religion. This would require the teacher to be prepared to understand and answer questions about each picture if the students ask. Labeling the picture could help the students understand that all though each picture corresponds with a different religion, the people in the photos have things in common and are deserving of kindness and respect. There is, however, a page in the back of the book that describes each photo and I would encourage a teacher to utilize that information when teaching.
The author's perspective and expertise is unique because she has included photos of her experiences with the people practicing the religions referred to. She references Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, and Sikhism. She does a wonderful job of showing the everyday life of an individual and the role their religions plays in their life. She mentions how families do similar activities. such as setting the dinner table, or going to the grocery store. Then she proceeds to write about how prayer, a place of worship, a book, and a symbol of worship looks different for everyone, The details and diversity in her photos make the book one that could be read for a wide range of students.
I believe the author found a wonderful way to avoid stereotyping in this story. She was able to focus the story on the truth of each religion and include accurate pictures of differing practices of religion. The author is not condescending, but rather she shows respect for every religion and encourages her reader to do so. She included photos of clothing, food, and musical instruments in order to show the depth of each religion and keep from simplifying a religion to one aspect.
Shelley Rotner and Sheila M. Kelly added a special touch to this story when they added the concluding page of the book. The page refers to each page and describes what photos were on that page. The cultural details are crucial and I am very thankful they included them for both the teacher and the reader. The information is accurate and shows no bias. They spoke truth onto the pages and guided the reader toward understanding different characteristics of the religions they referenced.
The storyline absolutely brings diverse characters together in a realistic way. She does a wonderful job of beginning the book with everyday activities that every student in the classroom can relate to. Then she connects the varying religions by showing the students that despite the differences of the book, every religion studies a book. Despite the differences in prayer, religion prays. Despite the differences in tradition, every religion has them. She encourages the readers to recognizes the differences and celebrate them, as well as the similarities. This helps children develop an open mind to something they may not practice, but their peers do.
Classroom Connections:
Main Themes: The main themes of this text is that everyone deserves respect and kindness in every moment. We are all unique and have characteristics about us that make us special. The differences between us should be celebrated and explored, and no one should feel like they are not being heard or represented.
Possible Activities: An activity the students could participate in after reading this book would be to ask each student to think of a special tradition they have in their family. This tradition can be anything from having dinner together, to praying together. Once everyone has thought of their tradition each person will draw their tradition on a 5x5 piece of paper. Once finished, I will put all the squares together and make a "tradition quilt" so the students can see that they are unique and add something special to the world around them.
Additional Resources:
1. https://proudtobeprimary.com/teaching-kindness-classroom/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=pinterest&utm_campaign=tailwind_tribes&utm_content=tribes
The link above is a page titled "Teaching Kindness in the Classroom", and it provides lots of activities that encourage kind behavior for your students.
2. https://www.thereligionteacher.com/religious-education-activities/
The link above takes you to a page with lots of lesson ideas for religious education activities. For example: seasonal activities, popular activities, and worksheets associated with religion.
3. https://www.tolerance.org/classroom-resources/tolerance-lessons/every-family-is-the-same-every-family-is-different
The link above takes you to a lesson plan for teaching students the importance of diversity within families. It teaches children that every family is different and contributes something unique to the society as a whole.
Many Ways: How Families Practice Their Beliefs and Religions teaches children that although every religion is unique, everyone has something in common and deserves to be respected and valued. This text provides students with photos of different practices in different religions, showing the students examples of ways their peers may practice religion. The conclusion states that love and care for one another, as well as our Earth, are very important.
Critical Review:
Strengths: A strength of this book is the live photos taken by the author. When children can see photos of something in action, they gain a better idea of what that action may look like. The diversity of the photos is largely important because it increases the audience of the book, appealing to many practicing religions. Another strength of this book is the simplicity of each page, with a couple photos and a sentence or two. This allows the students to not become overwhelmed with text, but focus on the teacher's direction of the story and how the story applies to them.
Weaknesses: A weakness of this book is the lack of labels on the pictures, in order to help students understand which picture goes with which religion. This would require the teacher to be prepared to understand and answer questions about each picture if the students ask. Labeling the picture could help the students understand that all though each picture corresponds with a different religion, the people in the photos have things in common and are deserving of kindness and respect. There is, however, a page in the back of the book that describes each photo and I would encourage a teacher to utilize that information when teaching.
The author's perspective and expertise is unique because she has included photos of her experiences with the people practicing the religions referred to. She references Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, and Sikhism. She does a wonderful job of showing the everyday life of an individual and the role their religions plays in their life. She mentions how families do similar activities. such as setting the dinner table, or going to the grocery store. Then she proceeds to write about how prayer, a place of worship, a book, and a symbol of worship looks different for everyone, The details and diversity in her photos make the book one that could be read for a wide range of students.
I believe the author found a wonderful way to avoid stereotyping in this story. She was able to focus the story on the truth of each religion and include accurate pictures of differing practices of religion. The author is not condescending, but rather she shows respect for every religion and encourages her reader to do so. She included photos of clothing, food, and musical instruments in order to show the depth of each religion and keep from simplifying a religion to one aspect.
Shelley Rotner and Sheila M. Kelly added a special touch to this story when they added the concluding page of the book. The page refers to each page and describes what photos were on that page. The cultural details are crucial and I am very thankful they included them for both the teacher and the reader. The information is accurate and shows no bias. They spoke truth onto the pages and guided the reader toward understanding different characteristics of the religions they referenced.
The storyline absolutely brings diverse characters together in a realistic way. She does a wonderful job of beginning the book with everyday activities that every student in the classroom can relate to. Then she connects the varying religions by showing the students that despite the differences of the book, every religion studies a book. Despite the differences in prayer, religion prays. Despite the differences in tradition, every religion has them. She encourages the readers to recognizes the differences and celebrate them, as well as the similarities. This helps children develop an open mind to something they may not practice, but their peers do.
Classroom Connections:
Main Themes: The main themes of this text is that everyone deserves respect and kindness in every moment. We are all unique and have characteristics about us that make us special. The differences between us should be celebrated and explored, and no one should feel like they are not being heard or represented.
Possible Activities: An activity the students could participate in after reading this book would be to ask each student to think of a special tradition they have in their family. This tradition can be anything from having dinner together, to praying together. Once everyone has thought of their tradition each person will draw their tradition on a 5x5 piece of paper. Once finished, I will put all the squares together and make a "tradition quilt" so the students can see that they are unique and add something special to the world around them.
Additional Resources:
1. https://proudtobeprimary.com/teaching-kindness-classroom/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=pinterest&utm_campaign=tailwind_tribes&utm_content=tribes
The link above is a page titled "Teaching Kindness in the Classroom", and it provides lots of activities that encourage kind behavior for your students.
2. https://www.thereligionteacher.com/religious-education-activities/
The link above takes you to a page with lots of lesson ideas for religious education activities. For example: seasonal activities, popular activities, and worksheets associated with religion.
3. https://www.tolerance.org/classroom-resources/tolerance-lessons/every-family-is-the-same-every-family-is-different
The link above takes you to a lesson plan for teaching students the importance of diversity within families. It teaches children that every family is different and contributes something unique to the society as a whole.