Resources
Interesting and Useful Links
Schneider Family Book Award
The Schneider Family Book Awards honor an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences. http://www.ala.org/awardsgrants/awards/1/all_years
Click here for the Schneider Family Book Award Manual (PDF)
Bibliography of Children's Books about the Disability Experience (pdf)
Center for the Study of Multicultural Children's Literature https://www.csmcl.org/
CSMCL is among the leading educational research centers in the field of multicultural literature. Their mission is to preserve the richness of the many cultures in the field of children’s and young adult literature. Further, our mission is to provide children, teachers, parents, educators, students, and librarians access to multicultural children’s books with high literary and artistic standards. The primary objectives include: a) to foster an interest in multicultural children’s literature for young people; b) to promote awareness of the Center for the Study of Multicultural Children’s Literature (CSMCL); and c) to generate excitement in the study of multicultural literature.
Books for Littles https://booksforlittles.com/
A great website with books for young children that help promote diversity, equity, and inclusion.
A Mighty Girl https://www.amightygirl.com/
A Mighty Girl is the world’s largest collection of books, toys, movies, and music for parents, teachers, and others dedicated to raising smart, confident, and courageous girls and, of course, for girls themselves!
Evaluating Children's Literature: Is It Culturally Sensititive?
- Evaluates with a color coded system
- Multiple reviews in one place
- Kirkus Reviews
- Use the search tool top right
Bias Checklist - (A Closer Look)
- Invisibility
- Stereotyping
- Omission of Perspectives
- Unreality
- Isolation
- Linguistics / Loaded Words
- Illustrations
- Relationships / Lifestyles
- Author Background / Expertise
- Copyright
Grace Lin Ted Talk: The Windows and Mirrors of Your Child's Bookshelf
What your child reads sets the path for their own self-worth as well as how they see others. Grace Lin is a children's book author/illustrator whose book, “Where the Mountain Meets the Moon,” received the Newbery Book Honor. She shows how the books that are not on your child's bookshelf are just as important as those that are.
Grace is an author and illustrator of books for children and teens. Where the Mountain Meets the Moon was a NY Times Bestseller and a Newbery Honor Book. Ling & Ting, was honored with the Theodor Geisel Honor. Grace's books typically focus on the Asian-American experience. She believes, "Books erase bias, they make the uncommon every day, and the mundane exotic. A book makes all cultures universal." This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community.
We Need Diverse Books
Though more than half of schoolchildren are minorities--people of color, LGBTQIA, and/or people with disabilities--the fact remains that too few of these children see reflections of themselves in the books they read. Books are more than mirrors-- they’re windows as well. The more kids read, the more they understand not just themselves, but the Story of Us All. Matt de la Pena, Jacqueline Woodson, Grace Lin, Cindy Pon, Lamar Giles, Arthur Levine and John Green discuss why we need diverse books. Donate to our campaign at
The Ugly Truth of Children's Books
A mother and daughter do a review and culling of books in a young girl's home library. The results are interesting as the video is narrated with captions about the literature that unknowingly fills many home libraries.
Windows, Mirrors, and Sliding Glass Doors
Rudine Sims Bishop talks about the need for diverse children's books in this short video. She shares that, "We need diverse books because we need books in which children can see reflections of themselves – but also look through and see other worlds."