FInal Project Idea

For my final project I think I am going to focus on disbailities. Before taking this class, I hadn't seen many children's books that include characters with disabilities. Therefore, I want to investigate the topic myself. I am particularly interested to see if there are a number of books involving Down Syndrome and at what quality those books are written. I think that it is really important for books to be written involving children with disabilities so disabled children have something to relate to and so abled children are able to learn about disabilities.

Schneider Family Book Award

There is not an official website for the Schneider Family Book Award, but there are other resources that provide information about the award; such as www.ala.org/ala/awardsbuket/schneideraward/schneidercriteria.htm and www.ala.org/ala/awardsbuket/schneideraward/schneiderawardmanual.doc . The second link is a manual. It answers questions about the history of the award, discusses the responsibilities of the members of the committee, and provides insight to their ideas about what to look for in a good book. This is a newer award and has only been given out since 2004. It was started by Dr. Catherine Schneider, who has been blind since birth. She wanted to sponsor an award that would show that the disability is a part of the character’s life, not the focus of their life. The Schneider Family Book Award honors an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child or adolescent audiences. Three annual awards are given in birth through grade school (age 0-8), middle school (age 9-13), and teens (age 14-18). The disabilities can be physical, mental, or emotional. The most important piece of criteria of the award is that it is not aimed to have the audience sympathize with the characters. Instead, it is aimed to portray their perspectives and everyday life experiences. Some books that have received this award are: Dad, Jackie, and Me, written by Myron Uhlberg and illustrated by Colin Bootman and Looking Out for Sarah, by Glenna Lang. You can look up past award winners at www.ala.org/ala/awardsbuket/schneideraward/schneiderawardrecipients.htm

Habibi Controversy

I was surprised when we talked about Habibi being banned in the West Bloomfield school district because when I read the book, I did not think about the fact that it could make put a bad mark on the Jewish culture. I read the book from Liyana's perspective; therefore, I didn't take into consideration how the text might make a Jewish child feel. However, the topic interested me, in part because I live in Commerce Twp which is right next to West Bloomfield.

The article in which Dr. Rabens says that the book bashes Jews was particularly eye opening for me. I understand that the book is one-sided, but I thought that was the point of Habibi. It was from the perspective of a young Arab American, so the characters would almost have to have a Palestinian view point or the book would be unrealistic. In my opinion, this book should not be used solely on its own to represent the conflict because children might come away with a negative opinion toward Jewish people. However, with careful discussion, and books that present the opposite view point, I think Habibi is an excellent book. It gives children a sense of what the culture of Arabs is like from the view point of an American child. I think that children can relate to the characters and some aspects of the story.

Overall, I enjoyed reading Habibi. However, I also think that a child needs careful explanation of the events in the book, making sure their opinion about Jewish people is not skewed.