Picture Book Perfection #1

Last Stop on Market Street 

Written by Matt De La Pena

Illustrated by Christian Robinson

Published by the Penguin Group in 2015

Genre: Picture Book, Fiction, Children's Literature 

Number of pages: 32

Overview

   CJ and his grandmother take the bus every Sunday after church. One day, CJ starts to wonder why. Why they have to wait for a bus, why they don't have a car, why the man next to them on the bus can't see, and many other "whys". Each question is met with an inspirational and encouraging answer by his sincere grandmother. Throughout their journey, she helps CJ discover what is beautiful and wonderful in their diverse neighborhood. 

   Christian Robinson does beautifully simplistic illustrations. His work shows the colorful and diverse setting around the characters as they ride through town. The illustrations throughout the pages represents many different types of characters; white, black, elderly, young, blind, tattooed, disabled, etc. Students will be able to identify multiculturalism, diversity, and individualism. 
   

“An exceptional book on kindness and the diversity of life, ‘Last Stop on Market Street’ is first-rate.”

—Philadelphia Eagle

“The urban setting is truly reflective, showing people with different skin colors, body types, abilities, ages, and classes in a natural and authentic manner… A lovely title.”

—School Library Journal

Lesson & Activity

Content Area: Literature - Key Ideas and Details

Standards: Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson. [RL.1.2]

Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details. [RL.1.3]
Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media. [SL.1.2]

Model: Read the entire book out loud to students twice with no interruptions.

Guide and Scaffold: After reading the book out loud to the students the first time, ask them about what questions they may still have. Tell them to think about those questions while reading the book to them the second time. 

Discussion: Conduct a picture walk through the book and ask students to discuss what happens in the beginning, middle and end of the story. Have students pair up and retell the story to their partner. Tell them to talk to their partner about people in their life, like the grandmother, who help them to look at the good in every situation. Discuss elements of diversity and multiculturalism.  

Activity: Instruct students to make a "Shutter Book" to show their understanding of the stories elements in a creative and colorful way. Ask them to include characteristics of the characters and settings in the book that make them unique.

Shutter Book example:

Reading Level: Grades 2-4

Interest Level: Grades K-3

Sources: 
https://www.weareteachers.com/second-grade-reading-comprehension-activities/
https://alex.state.al.us/standardAll.php?grade=1&subject=ELA2015&summary=2
http://resources.corwin.com/sites/default/files/Figure_4.8.pdf

The Need for Relationships

   Think back to your years in school. I'm sure many of us can think of only a handful of teachers that really impacted our lives positively and left a long lasting impression. What makes these teachers stand out to us? Their well organized lessons? Their amazing use of the textbook? Maybe, but more than likely this was not what made them so memorable. It was their ability to connect with us and build a relationship with us.

   "We have to make a connection to the heart before we can make a connection to the mind", this quote in The Innovators Mindset, by George Curous, is outstandingly relevant to educators and society as a whole. Without personal human connection, a student, or anyone else for that matter, will be less than willing to open up to you about their interests, goals, and, most importantly, their ability to learn. This can also apply to students who are being bullied. If they do not feel safe and personally related to within your classroom, how will they be able to open up enough to learn?

  This directly relates to Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

   In his theory, people can only excel to their full potential after they are ensured that their basic needs are being met. For example, a child cannot begin to think about having close friends if they do not already feel as though they are secure and safe. If one or two areas of need are thrown off, it can greatly impact other areas of need. 

   While in high school, I experienced bullying by and among peers. This caused me to feel less secure and lacking in the friends and intimate relationships area. Even though my home life provided everything I needed for many of the levels, because of my negative school experiences I still couldn't reach the next levels of needs (esteem needs and self-actualization). 

   To help further translate this into how this applies to teachers, here are Maslow's Hierarchy of needs applied in the school setting: 

1. Physiological Needs = Schools provide food services (breakfast, lunch, snack), clean environments, and clean drinking water.
2. Safety and Security Needs = School is safe and secure (metal detectors, SOR Officers, fire drills, tornado drill, etc.)
3. Belongingness and love needs = School culture is inviting, responsive, and warm (teachers create personal relationships with students, peers are friendly)
4. Esteem needs = Students are valued and respected (student interests and achievements are recognized) 
5. Self-Actualization = Students are encouraged to develop into their full potential

   As you can see, students need so much more than well planned lessons and fancy textbooks to be able to learn and reach their full potential. In order to begin the process of building relationships with your students you need to get to know them. Learn about them. What are their interests? What are their goals? What are their strengths and weaknesses? In high school, I had a history teacher that stood out in the hallway between classes and gave students high fives, asked about their sporting events or extra curricular activities, and even made jokes with them. These simple things have permanently imprinted his efforts to build relationships with students into my memory. 

  To end this blog post and really emphasize teacher-student relationships, here is Rita Pierson in her Ted Talk titled "Every kid needs a champion":

I Didn't Choose Teaching, Teaching Chose Me

    All throughout my life I have been in the "education" environment. My mom was and is an elementary teacher and has always had the kind of fire and passion for teaching that kids immediately respond to. Naturally, you would think that I would respond with wanting to follow in my mother's footsteps and be a great and wonderful educator. Wrong. I couldn't have been more opposed to that idea.
   During my teenage years I assumed I wanted to go into the medical field. How else would I help people and make a difference in the world? However, this notion was quickly aborted when I had a little incident while volunteering in an animal hospital. I found out very fast that the sight of any bodily fluid renders me unconscious rather quickly. After this embarrassing experience I was at a loss for what I wanted my career to be. I knew I wanted to make a difference in the world and I wanted to help others, but I just couldn't make the connection of how I wanted to do this.
   Later, that same year, I joined a program in my high school called the Big Brothers and Big Sisters Program. This program allowed me to become a mentor to a younger elementary student. While being able to spend quality time with this student and help tutor and talk to them, I quickly realized how students need so much more than just a teacher to teach them. Students need love, affection, guidance, care, respect, motivation, and so much more, because you never quite know what is going on in a students life when they're not at school.
   As I watched the student I was mentoring, loving, and motivating start to grow and change into a confident young individual, I started to make the connection with just how much you can impact a child's life and how this can ultimately change their future. This was when the seed of becoming a teacher was planted into my heart. The seed grew roots while I was volunteering to read at my local elementary school and absolutely adored it. The students were so interested and engaged in learning about the topics of my books, I became captivated by their enthusiasm. Lastly, the roots of my metaphorical seed broke through the soil and sprouted into a magnificent flower as I spent my summer as a camp counselor for Camp Sumatanga. Throughout the entire summer I led, mentored, taught, and played with kids of all ages. This was the final determinate of my future as an educator.
   Now, I am more than sure that I want to be an Elementary Educator. I want to help create the next generation of lawyers, doctors, and maybe even the future president. As Malala Yousafzai once said, "One child, one teacher, one book, one pen can change the world" and that is what I want to be a part of.