Jenifer Frank’s article in Teaching Tolerance discusses the work of Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, an associate professor in University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education, who has examined and compiled a database of 170 children’s books about slavery.
“Many children’s books about slavery, [Thomas] argues, are less about teaching children our nation’s history and more about ‘absolving the nation for what actually happened.’ All too often, stories about slavery are framed within a false narrative of continuous racial progress and the enduring American Dream. Reaching for a happy ending, they leave the truth of slavery behind.”
Thomas adds ” ‘[E]ducators interested in using literature to teach children about slavery must be ready to consider ‘the psychological dimensions of enslavement as well as the collective trauma of black readers.’ ”
The article includes titles for books at the elementary, middle, and high school level.
To read the article, click here.
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