Post #1

My name is Paula Wade and I am a junior at Michigan State University majoring in Special Education-Deaf Education with a focus in Language Arts.

I am interested in diverse literature because students are not always introduced to literature that focuses on religion, cultural differences/similarities, and races. As a future teacher, I want to have background knowledge of how to introduce and teach diverse literature to students. It is important that students have an understanding of cultures other than their own because in life students will meet people who are different from them everyday and they need to have an understanding and way to deal with differences and even a way to realize that even if we think there might be only differences that we are similar in ways too.

I am interested in exploring how different (diverse) books might be able to shape the idea of other cultures, religions, and lifestyles for children who might not necessarily have the opportunity to actually experience all the population groups in and outside the United States.