My favorite book…

I book I have chosen is “Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher”. I agree with this censorship because it contains topics that can be very strong for young readers. The book is about a young girl who committed suicide. Before her death, she tapes thirteen recordings. Each recording is for the thirteen people and why they made her commit suicide. It is a very dark story for young readers. It is not appropriate for any grade level in elementary or middle school. I would introduce topics about mental health with valuable information and resources. However, this book is not a good example of how mental health should be treated. It does not give a guide on how to deal with mental illnesses. This is already a difficult topic to speak about with our students and this book does not give the right direction on how to cope with mental health issues. A show also came out after the book which has made things much worse. Now, these students don’t have to even read the book, they can easily watch the show from their phones or their homes. A study came out that stated 28.9% increase in suicide rates among ages 10-17 in the US in April 2017 when the show was released. A resource for books about mental health that I would provide for our young readers is “Childmind.org.”  This website is all about how they can make an impact on children’s mental health. There is so many resources on this website! For books, they have an article on fourty-four children’s books about mental health. It has books for every sort of mental health issue and it provides these topics in a way that is positive. I think all the books mentioned are great, however, if a child needs a book about feelings, I would recommend “In My Heart: A book of Feelings”. This tackles those bad thoughts that young readers might experience. As a class, I would introduce one of these books and make this an open discussion. This will give my students an informative, learning experience about mental health. 

Release of “13 Reasons Why” Associated with Increase in Youth Suicide Rates. (2019, April 29). Retrieved from https://www.nimh.nih.gov/news/science-news/2019/release-of-13-reasons-why-associated-with-increase-in-youth-suicide-rates.shtml

Cicero, K., & Parents. (n.d.). 44 Children’s Books About Mental Health. Retrieved from https://childmind.org/article/best-childrens-books-about-mental-health/

I interviewed an elementary school librarian in my town. She has been working there for twenty years. Her library is ages preschool-fifth grade. I asked her a total of ten questions. I first asked her what issue do you see from young readers, for example, in second grade to the fifth grade when it comes to reading? She said an issue she sees is how the children transition through reading. A child goes from books with just pictures and a few words to slowly transitioning to a book with no pictures and then to chapter books. I’ve seen this to be a difficult transition. Another question I asked her how would you incorporate reading into a child’s life who isn’t so fond of reading? She said to include books that have movies, this encourages the reading into a fun activity. So after, they finish reading the book, they can see the movie. I also asked her what type of books would you recommend for children in ages 12-14 years old? She said definitely any books that are a trilogies. Another question I asked is what advice would you give to a new teacher introducing literature in the classroom? She said to really get to know your students and what they would like to read for them to succeed and enjoy reading. In addition, I asked her what issues do librarians today face? She said that children buying books or checking out books has declined due to kindles and being able to buy books on iPad/tablets. Any fears you have about the future of children’s literature? She said children who might not want to read outside of school because their tablets give them enough stimuli and entertainment. This in turn can become an issue with having libraries stay open. Another question I asked what is a current trend in children’s literature for preteens? She said series books are very on trend. And then I asked, how about preschoolers? Picture books that have their favorite super heroes or Disney characters. I also asked what book is a favorite of many readers? She said Harry Potter is a favorite and always asked about. What issue can you incorporate with today’s readers? She said to include to the issue of bullying into the reading. After interviewing the librarian, I noticed many tends are affected the selection of books to use in the classroom. First of all, the selection can be very limited due to the fact that renting out books aren’t very popular due to technology. Another trend effecting the selection of books is having students only wanting certain genres such as trilogies. I read a few sources that was very appealing to this topic. One of the sources stated how a big trend is strong female character leads for children’s picks of books. I really enjoyed interviewing the librarian. It gave me insight on today’s children literature.  

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

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