Educator Toolkit TK-12 Educator Resources to Support the 2023 Companion Children & Teen Books
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About this Toolkit Dear Educators, Welcome to the 2023 Silicon Valley Reads Educator Toolkit. This toolkit is designed to support you and your students with this year’s children/teen companion books focused on a “Journey to New Beginnings.” For each book, you will find a brief summary of the text, potential discussion questions, as well as tools to support literacy, social emotional connections, as well as cross curricular connections in the areas of science, arts, and social science. There are additional resources and supports around: literacy, language production, social emotional theory, as well as identity, culture, & tolerance. We hope this provides you with a robust set of tools to engage students this year’s fantastics children & teen companion books. We hope you and your students enjoy this year’s selection! With warm regards, The Silicon Valley Reads Team
Contents What is Silicon Valley Reads?
Page 3
Children & Teen Companion Books
Page 4
Map of Texts’ Representation, Context & Culture
Page 5
Educator Resources Coquí in the City
Pages 6 - 7
Sugar in Milk
Pages 8 - 9
When Stars are Scattered
Pages 10 - 11
Furia
Pages 12 - 13
Literacy Strategies & Supports
Page 14
Additional Resources
Page 21
A Letter to Families
Page 22
What is Silicon Valley Reads? Mission To encourage reading and discussion of selected books as a way to open community dialogue about provocative themes relevant to our region.
Vision As a result of reading the same book(s) and engaging in discussion, the diverse Silicon Valley community experiences new perspectives and understanding of important issues and values.
Goals ● Promote reading, literacy, and the appreciation of literature among all members of the community including non-traditional readers and those with limited literacy skills ● Build community through open and lively dialogues about the ideas and themes of a selected book ● Support education and lifelong learning, critical for Silicon Valley to maintain its leadership in creativity and innovation Silicon Valley Reads is a community engagement program that features books and an annual theme to bring people together by providing more than 100 free, public events each year in February and March. Events for all ages include author talks, book clubs, art/music events, community activities, arts and crafts, movies, and creative events or activities based on the theme each year. The 2023 season signifies the 20th Anniversary of Silicon Valley Reads! It has been an inspiring and dynamic two-decade journey as Silicon Valley Reads identified themes and books that resonated with the community at the time. Over the last two years, when the world experienced a global pandemic, Silicon Valley Reads gave people hope for the future with themes like “Connecting” and “The Power of Kindness, Resilience and Hope.” Our community has persevered and is ready to move forward. For 2023, Silicon Valley Reads will set off on a “Journey to New Beginnings.”
Children & Teen Companion Books Coquí in the City By Nomar Perez
Grades: PK-2 Genre: Picture Book, Fiction Cultural Experiences: Latinx, Puerto Rican
Sugar in Milk
By Thrity Umrigar Grades: PK-5 Genre: Fairy Tales/Folklore, Realistic Fiction, Picture Book Cultural Experiences: Immigrant/Refugee, Iranian
When Stars are Scattered
By Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed Grades: 4-8 Genre: Biography, Nonfiction, Graphic Novel Cultural Experiences: Immigrant/Refugee, Disability, African
Furia
By Yamile Saied Méndez Grades: 7-12 Genre: Realistic Fiction, Sports Cultural Experiences: Women/Girls, Latinx, Argentinian
A heartfelt picture book based on the author-illustrator's own experiences, about a boy who moves to the U.S. mainland from Puerto Rico and realizes that New York City might have more in common with San Juan than he initially thought. Educator Resources A young immigrant girl joins her aunt and uncle in a new country that is unfamiliar to her. She struggles with loneliness, with a fierce longing for the culture and familiarity of home, until one day, her aunt takes her on a walk. As the duo strolls through their city park, the girl's aunt begins to tell her an old myth, and a story within the story begins. Educator Resources Heartbreak, hope, and gentle humor exist together in this graphic novel about a childhood spent waiting, and a young man who is able to create a sense of family and home in the most difficult of settings. It's an intimate, important, unforgettable look at the day-to-day life of a refugee, as told to New York Times bestselling author/artist Victoria Jamieson by Omar Mohamed, the Somali man who lived the story. Educator Resources At home, she is a careful daughter, living within her mother’s narrow expectations, in her rising-soccer-star brother’s shadow, and under the abusive rule of her short-tempered father. On the field, she is La Furia, a powerhouse of skill and talent. Filled with authentic details and the textures of day-to-day life in Argentina, heart-soaring romance, and breathless action on the pitch, Furia is the story of a girl’s journey to make her life her own. Educator Resources
Publisher descriptions retrieved from Google Books.
Representation, Context, & Culture About Puerto Rico
About Iran/Persia
Languages Spoken: Spanish with Taíno words & English
Language Spoken: Farsi/Persian
Largest City: San Juan
Music Styles: Radif, Guitar Jazz & Rock, Pop, & Hip Hop
Music Styles: Bomba, Salsa, Reggaeton Common Foods: Arroz con Gandules, Mofongo, Pasteles, Sorullos, & Jibaritos Popular Sport: Baseball
Largest City: Tehran
Common Foods: Lavash (flat bread), Polow, Kebabs of various meats, Baklava, & Pomegranates Popular Sport: Soccer
About Argentina
About Somalia
Languages Spoken: Spanish, English, Italian, Arabic
Languages Spoken: Somali, & English
Largest City: Buenos Aires
Largest City: Mogadishu
Music Styles: Tango, Cachengue
Music Styles:
Common Foods: Asado (Argentine barbecue), Empanadas, Locro, Humitas, & Alfajores
Common Foods: Pita bread, Humus, Falafel, Laas, Sambusa, Bariis, Baklava
Popular Sports: Soccer & Basketball
Arabic,
Popular Sports: Soccer & Basketball
Coquí in the City By Nomar Perez
Grades: PK-2 Genre: Picture Book, Fiction Cultural Experiences: Latinx, Puerto Rican A heartfelt picture book based on the author-illustrator's own experiences, about a boy who moves to the U.S. mainland from Puerto Rico and realizes that New York City might have more in common with San Juan than he initially thought.
Discussion Questions -
Who is part of Miguel’s family? What adventures do Miguel and Coquí have together? How is Miguel’s home of Puerto Rico like New York? How are they different? What sounds make you feel like you’re home? How does it feel to be welcomed into a new place? How could we welcome new students into our classroom? Social Emotional Connection
Literacy Connection Use a Story Map to identify the main parts of the story. Use a Venn Diagram to compare Puerto Rico with New York.
Build empathy by identifying Miguel’s emotions and adding them on the story map.
Stories set in Puerto Rico Frog Books for Early Learners
Showing that You Care Creating Community Challenge & Toolkit
Science Connection
Music & Arts Connection
Social Science Connection
Tadpole to Frog Read Aloud Video
Coquí, the Little Frog
Mini Book
Frogs in a Pond Frog Life Cycle
Song & Music Lesson
All About Puerto Rico
A Google Earth Road Trip of Puerto Rico
“Miguel whispered a quiet coquí, coquí to himself and thought about his Coquí and all the people and places he loved in Puerto Rico. They would always be close to his heart, no matter where he was. Some things were definitely different in New York, but some things were just the same.”
Sugar in Milk By Thrity Umrigar
Grades: PK-5 Genre: Fairy Tales/Folklore, Realistic Fiction, Picture Book Cultural Experiences: Immigrant/Refugee, Iranian A young immigrant girl joins her aunt and uncle in a new country that is unfamiliar to her. She struggles with loneliness, with a fierce longing for the culture and familiarity of home, until one day, her aunt takes her on a walk. As the duo strolls through their city park, the girl's aunt begins to tell her an old myth, and a story within the story begins.
Discussion Questions -
Why might the young girl feel so alone? Why do you think the auntie told the girl the story about the Persians who traveled to India? How did the story change the girl’s feelings? How might we help others who feel alone, or are new to our community? What might it mean to “make things sweeter” where we wander? What might be some ways to do that? Social Emotional Connection
Literacy Connection Use a Story Map to identify the main parts of the story or of the folktale. Use a Venn Diagram to compare the experience of the girl and Persian travelers. Stories set in Iran & Stories set in India 21 Multicultural Fairy Tales
Build empathy by identifying the young girl’s emotions and adding them on the story map. Help students make sense of emotions that might happen in new and unfamiliar places. 5 Picture Books: Immigrants, Refugees, Migrants
Science Connection
Music & Arts Connection
Social Science Connection
Mysterious Mixtures
Persian Tiles Art Project
Mini Book
Lessons about dissolving, mixing & combining
Make Ice Cream
Measure, mix, and use science to make ice cream! Add saffron, rose water, and chopped pistachios to transform it to a Persian flavored, Bastani like, treat
Decorate real or paper tiles in a Persian style Persian Tiles: Additional educator resources
Persian Music Clips Listen to Persian songs played on traditional instruments
Lessons about Iran
Iran ● Interactive Maps Teaching about Refugees
Artist: SuperColoring This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 License.
“The next day, when I left the house, I asked Auntie for a packet of sugar. I kept it in my pocket to remind me to make things sweeter wherever I wandered . . .”
When Stars are Scattered By Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed Grades: 4-8 Genre: Biography, Nonfiction, Graphic Novel Cultural Experiences: Immigrant/Refugee, Disability, African Heartbreak, hope, and gentle humor exist together in this graphic novel about a childhood spent waiting, and a young man who is able to create a sense of family and home in the most difficult of settings. It's an intimate, important, unforgettable look at the day-to-day life of a refugee, as told to New York Times Bestselling author/artist Victoria Jamieson by Omar Mohamed, the Somali man who lived the story.
Discussion Questions -
How did Omar grow and change over the course of his life story? Who do you think had the biggest impact/most influence on Omar’s life perspectives? How did that person influence him? Which person in Omar’s story did you relate to the most? Why? How has your perspective on school/refugees/relationships changed?
Social Emotional Connection
Literacy Connection Use a Story Map to identify the main parts/events of the story. Use a Venn Diagram to compare Omar’s experience with that of one of his friends. Authors’ Resources & Penguin Classroom Portal
Build empathy by identifying Omar’s emotions, adding them onto the story map with evidence from the text. Connect Omar, Jeri, Maryam, or Nimo’s short & long term goals to students’ personal goal setting using the Reach for the Stars! activity.
Science Connection
Music & Arts Connection
Social Science Connection
Constellations
Female Artist Creates an Image of Peace
Kenya ● Interactive Maps
Constellation Location Interactive Sky Chart Star Wheels
Read an article about a female Somali artist
The Impact of Arts & Culture Activities
Examine art being created Somali residents, then have students create their own Photovoice collection or Body Mapping Project
Teaching about Refugees Refugee Stories Dadaab Complex
“But we are not one star. We are millions. Not one background, but millions. To the untrained eye, the night sky is a scattering of stars, a chaos of light and dark across the universe. And yet, the stars are not lost. They form patterns. Constellations. If you know how to look, there are stories woven into the very essence of stars. Be like a star. Shine your light. Shine your story. For stories will lead us home.”
Furia
By Yamile Saied Méndez Grades: 7-12 Genre: Realistic Fiction, Sports Cultural Experiences: Women/Girls, Latinx, Argentinian At home, she is a careful daughter, living within her mother’s narrow expectations, in her rising-soccer-star brother’s shadow, and under the abusive rule of her short-tempered father. On the field, she is La Furia, a powerhouse of skill and talent. Filled with authentic details and the textures of day-to-day life in Argentina, heart-soaring romance, and breathless action on the pitch, Furia is the story of a girl’s journey to make her life her own.
Discussion Questions -
Why might someone to live a double life like Camila/La Furia? How common do you feel this is for teens today? How does the Argentinian barrio setting affect the story? How might this story be different if it was set in another location? The author portrays sexism in modern day Argentina, how does this compare to sexism here in the USA? How does this compare across different cultures? Social Emotional Connection
Literacy Connection Use a Story Map to identify the main parts of the story. Use a Venn Diagram to compare the teen experience in Argentina with the USA. Or to compare Camila with La Furia.
Discuss Camila’s pursuit of her goals and Help Teens Set Effective Goals. This book makes reference to domestic violence & toxic relationships. The following are resources on this topic.
CDC’s Dating Matters® Violence Prevention Center Talking to Youth about Domestic Violence
Science Connection
Music & Culture Connection
Social Science Connection
Football (Soccer) in Science Teaching
Thirsty for Yerba Mate
Argentina ● Interactive Maps
Aerodynamics of Soccer How Smoothness of a Soccer Ball affects curve!
What Are Alfajores? FIFA World Cup 2022™ Official Soundtrack
features reggaeton artist Maluma referenced in the book
Madres de Plaza de Mayo Social Justice Issue
Examine the Human Rights Watch (HRW) World Reports for Argentina and the United States. Analyse the similarities and differences in the current social justice issues.
Artist: Dora Alis, Mandalas Collection. Retrieved from: https://www.supercoloring.com/coloring-pages/geometric-mandala-with-hexagons
“When we played, we were all the same. We were all one.”
Literacy Strategies & Supports Story Maps Story Maps are graphic organizers that support students with making sense of the actions and key events within the narrative. Using this strategy, during and after reading the text, helps students to identify the main characters, plot, setting, problem, and resolution. This toolkit contains 3 levels of Story Maps: Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced
Venn Diagrams Venn Diagrams are a graphic organizers that help students compare and contrast people, places, ideas, even stories. Using this strategy helps to make abstract thinking concrete and provides a scaffold for students as they move towards expressing their ideas orally or in writing.
New Vocabulary Support The Frayer Model is a graphic organizer that helps students make sense of and develop a deeper understanding of new words they encounter within texts. This strategy can be used and revisited at various points in the reading process and it can support visible thinking when combined with pictures, images, doodles, etc. This toolkit contains 2 formats: 2 words and 4 words
Setting
Conflict
Story Map Characters
Climax
Resolution
Story Map Setting: Time & Place(s)
Conflict
Problem
Characters: Use a ☆ to identify main character(s).
Climax
Outcome
Resolution
Story Map Setting: Time & Place(s)
Conflict
Characters: Use a ☆ to identify main character(s).
Climax
Resolution
Rising Actions
Falling Actions
Your Favorite Moment Themes
Book Review
Venn Diagram
Definition
Non-Examples
Characteristics
Examples
Definition
Non-Examples
Characteristics
New Vocabulary
Examples
New Vocabulary Definition
Characteristics
Definition
Characteristics
Examples
Non-Examples
Examples
Non-Examples
Definition
Characteristics
Definition
Characteristics
Examples
Non-Examples
Examples
Non-Examples
Additional Resources Supporting Students Language Production English Learner Toolkit of Strategies : California Educators Together Scaffolds to Support English Language Learners in Writing and Discussion Jeff Zwiers’ Tools for Academic Conversations, Literacy, and Communication Sentence Frames Accountable Talk Frames to Support Language Functions 100 Sentence Starters to Engage Students in Every Subject 26 Sentence Stems For Higher-Level Discussion In The Classroom
Social Emotional Resources CDE’s Transformative Social and Emotional Learning Toolkit Teaching Children Empathy Using Social-Emotional Learning 90+ Free Social Emotional Learning Activities Moving Forward Toolkit to Help Navigate Uncertainty Gratitude Curricula CASEL The Teen Depression Toolbox
Identity, Culture, & Tolerance Culture Is Like an Iceberg Iceberg Concept of Culture Images & PDFs Strategies for Teaching Tolerance in Your Class Learning for Justice Classroom Resources Facing History and Ourselves Resource Library Elementary Lesson: Words Can Hurt Middle & High School Coming-of-Age in a Complex World Planning Toolkit The Purpose Challenge
A Letter to Families Dear Families: How can we build a culture of resilience and hope for ourselves and our community as we journey to new beginnings? How do we develop empathy for those who struggle on their unique journeys? Over the last two years, when the world experienced a global pandemic, Silicon Valley Reads gave people hope for the future with themes like “Connecting” and “The Power of Kindness, Resilience and Hope.” Our community has persevered and is ready to move forward and apply these learnings as we set off on a “Journey to New Beginnings.” We are pleased to share an exciting opportunity to have a variety of youth activities and FREE author visits from our 2023 Silicon Valley Reads Child & Teen Companion Books. Prior to attending the author visits, we encourage you and your child/children to the read beautiful, and inspiring curated book selection from Silicon Valley Reads. Virtual author visits will take place as follows: ● Elementary: Sugar in Milk author Thrity Umrigar, March 2nd at 9am ● Middle School: When Stars are Scattered authors Omar Mohammed & Victoria Jamieson, March 23rd at 9am ● High School: Furia author Yamile Saied Méndez, March 2nd at 3:30pm Students in TK-12 grade are invited to listen to the author’s stories, ask questions about their journeys, and engage in dialogue with their peers to develop resilience and hope for their own journey and empathy for the unique journeys faced by others. The Silicon Valley Reads team has also created a Family and Community Engagement Toolkit that is designed to enhance your 2023 Silicon Valley Reads experience. We look forward to seeing you at the upcoming events. Please visit www.siliconvalleyreads.org for more information about this year’s books, resources, and events. Sincerely, The Silicon Valley Reads Team
Notes & Ideas
The Santa Clara County Office of Education would like to thank our partners in the effort to increase readership.
If you have any questions regarding the lesson plans, please contact Tara Sikorski at
[email protected].
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