Mirror, Mirror, On the Shelf

This post is featured on Confianza's website: Honoring Students' Stories: Identity Texts to Write and Diverse Texts to Read

We all know what a mirror is. We all have them and we all need them. Collins dictionary defines a mirror as a flat piece of glass which reflects light so that when you look at it you can see YOURSELF reflected in it. 
Sometimes we like what we see, sometimes we don't.  Perhaps you remember the mantra of Snow White's evil stepmother: 
Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who's the fairest of them all? 
This evil queen had a mirror that will always reflect what she wanted to see...but on many occasions, it revealed things she didn't want to see so she'd do something about it. 

We can apply this same concept to books. 
Books as mirrors is not a new concept. The idea that a book reflects readers' identity and experiences was presented to us a few years ago. The problem I see is the lack of access to diverse books for students to actually see themselves reflected in books. This is worrisome because "when children cannot find themselves reflected in the books they read, or when the images they see are distorted, negative, or laughable, they learn a powerful lesson about who they are devalued in the society of which they are a part of." (Read more)  This is how the danger of a single story begins! 

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Considering Our Classroom Library

So now that we know how detrimental it is for our students to not see themselves reflected in text, our job is to make it tangible. Stand in front of your classroom bookshelf and ask:

• Mirror, mirror, on the shelf, would these books make my students be seen and understood?
• Mirror, mirror, on the shelf, would these books honor and validate my students' culture?
• Mirror, mirror, on the shelf, would these books reflect my students' story?
• Mirror, mirror, on the shelf, would these books inspire them to be the authors of their own story?
• Mirror, mirror, on the shelf, would these books reflect my students' experiences?
• Mirror, mirror, on the shelf, would these books redefine who and what my students can be?

You see, I wholeheartedly believe that in order to make our students be passionate readers, it is imperative for them to make connections with the text. Our classrooms are more diverse today than they have ever been. Our classrooms and the books available for students need to be as diverse as they are.  Here is a great poster with 10 reasons to read diversity! 

The true meeting takes place when the book opens, and a stranger reads about — and comprehends — a stranger.
–Amit Majmudar

The books you choose as a mentor text for your lessons are very important as well. I understand that we have a standard we need to cover. However, there are books out there available for us to not only teach the necessary content but also validate and represent students sitting in our classrooms who long to be seen and understand for who they are. 

Here you have a few resources to help you find diverse books to use as mentor texts:

• The Ultimate Guide to a Multicultural Library
• Diverse Mentor Text by Genre and Grade Level: K-1 Band;  2-3 Band;  4-5 Band
• No Longer Invisible: Resources for teachers seeking to use more diverse texts
• Link to Twitter moment with a lot of resources

This is my sixth year in the classroom; Every year I try different methods to make sure I have diverse books available for my ESL students. It is my responsibility to empower them with the tools to know that they matter. Perhaps, they'll be inspired to be the author of their own personal story because now they know that they are worth being the main character in a story.

This is our ESL classroom library with diverse books. Every day my students take a book home...I tell them that they can borrow a book but they get to keep the ideas...but if they keep my book...

I rather lose a book than a reader ~ Donalyn Miller 

If you have any resources or ideas you'd like to share with me, please let me know in the comments! 

Thank you for reading!