Discusses the meaning conveyed to children from books like "Babar, the Elephant," and "Pinocchio," and takes a look at the history of public education.

"Children’s literature is a contested terrain, as is multicultural education. Taken together, they pose a formidable challenge to both classroom teachers and academics.... Rather than deny the inherent conflicts and tensions in the field, in Critical Multicultural Analysis of Children’s Literature: Mirrors, Windows, and Doors, Maria José Botelho and Masha Kabakow Rudman confront, deconstruct, and reconstruct these terrains by proposing a reframing of the field.... Surely all of us – children, teachers, and academics – can benefit from this more expansive understanding of what it means to read books." Sonia Nieto, From the Foreword Critical multicultural analysis provides a philosophical shift for teaching literature, constructing curriculum, and taking up issues of diversity and social justice. It problematizes children’s literature, offers a way of reading power, explores the complex web of sociopolitical relations, and deconstructs taken-for-granted assumptions about language, meaning, reading, and literature: it is literary study as sociopolitical change. Bringing a critical lens to the study of multiculturalism in children’s literature, this book prepares teachers, teacher educators, and researchers of children’s literature to analyze the ideological dimensions of reading and studying literature. Each chapter includes recommendations for classroom application, classroom research, and further reading. Helpful end-of-book appendixes include a list of children’s book awards, lists of publishers, diagrams of the power continuum and the theoretical framework of critical multicultural analysis, and lists of selected children’s literature journals and online resources.

A rarely discussed aspect of children's literature--the politics behind a book's creation--has been thoroughly explored in this intelligent, enlightening, and fascinating account.

Reading Children’s Literature offers insights into the major discussions and debates currently animating the field of children’s literature. Informed by recent scholarship and interest in cultural studies and critical theory, it is a compact core text that introduces students to the historical contexts, genres, and issues of children’s literature. A beautifully designed and illustrated supplement to individual literary works assigned, it also provides apparatus that makes it a complete resource for working with children’s literature during and after the course. The second edition includes a new chapter on children’s literature and popular culture (including film, television, and merchandising) and has been updated throughout to reflect recent scholarship and new offerings in children’s media.

In the first full-length study in English of Carlo Collodi's The Adventures of Pinocchio, the authors show how the checkered history of the puppet illuminates social change from the pre World War One era to the present. The authors argue that most Americans know a trivialized, diluted version of the tale, one such source is Disney's perennial classic. The authors also discover that when adults are introduced to the 'real' story, they often deem it as unsuitable for children. Placing the puppet in a variety of contexts, the authors chart the progression of this childhood tale that has frequently undergone dramatic revisions to suit America's idea of children's literature.

Start Seeing Diversity helps teachers recognize and reduce bias in young children by illustrating one community's effort to create a responsive child care program. Developed by teachers at Washington-Beech Community Preschool in Boston, this training handbook provides a framework for understanding bias among preschool children, reorganized for stand-alone use as a student text. Nine detailed chapters treat six areas of bias—gender, age, sexual orientation, race and ethnicity, economic class, and physical abilities—as well as the goals and guiding assumptions of anti-bias curriculum. Accompanying discussion questions encourage readers to examine their own memories and experiences. Perfect for pre-service and in-service teacher training, this helpful guide includes information-rich appendices containing: Guidelines for challenging oppression and responding to incidents involving bias A checklist for creating and assessing anti-bias environments A guide to analyzing children's books Directions for making photograph games like the ones used at Washington-Beech The book also includes sample scenarios, details for classroom implementation, suggested resources, and guidelines for group leaders. Ellen Wolpert is the founding director of the Washington-Beech Community Preschool in Boston. Ms. Wolpert currently works for Education Development Center, Inc., in Newton, Massachusetts.