World View

1. Before Global View Children's Literature

1.1. Mexicans came to the United States to find better jobs and education.

1.2. I had heard of the genocide in Darfur in the Sudan.

1.3. I didn't know where Sierra Leone was.

1.4. I knew about human trafficking and that there is a thriving sex tourism industry.

1.5. I knew that there are regions on the African continent where there are little to no adults. I didn't know why.

1.6. I owned Nadia's Hands

1.7. I thought I had a broad global perspective.

1.8. I had very little exposure to children's literature that wasn't from North America or Europe.

2. After Global View Children's Literature

2.1. I learned that families are tricked into selling their children into sex trafficking, like Lakshmi in Sold.

2.1.1. I learned that it is a custom to shave the heads of sex slaves in Nepal so that if the slaves run away the community will shun them.

2.1.2. I learned that millions of people are trafficked every year.

2.2. I learned that people from Mexico, as well as other Central and South American countries sneak through the Mexican-United States border because they are starving. Their plight is due in large part to our trade policies.

2.3. I learned that although in the United States we focus on individual needs, many cultures focus on the collective needs of a family or village.

2.3.1. I learned that many cultures have multiple generations of family living under one roof.

2.4. I learned that public education isn't available in all countries.

2.5. I learned about the civil war in Sierra Leone.

2.5.1. I learned what homes look like in remote villages in Sierra Leone.

2.5.2. I learned that the reason there are so few adults in some regions of Africa is because soldiers have killed all of the adults. They have then turned the girls into slaves and the boys into soldiers, as depicted in A Long Way Gone.

2.6. I identified a large number of books that I would like to use in my future classroom to support my students' cultural learning.

2.7. I learned that many refugees no longer have families because their families have been killed or died of starvation and trauma while fleeing war torn regions.

2.8. Many public institutions are the first to fall in a war; such as libraries, zoos, and communications.

2.9. I learned that red is the color of celebration in China.

2.10. I learned that being a good neighbor is part of the oath that people take to become a citizen in Canada. This emphasis on being part of a healthy community must be part of why Canada has such a wonderful reputation.

2.11. I learned that the Maasai people of Kenya gave the United States 14 sacred cows to help the journey to healing after the 9-11 terrorist attacks.

2.12. I learned that in Uganda, a simple goat can make a huge difference in the economic stability and nutrition of a family.