E is for Eyes That Kiss in the Corners by Joanna Ho, in my Inspiring All Readers with Books from A-Z blog post AND video series. If you are new to this series, I share with you a different story that begins with each letter of the alphabet. In each post, I will share with you some different reading strategies and skills that correlate with the story and discussion questions to ask your students after reading. I also have a FREE reading response journal AND FREE graphic organizers for you to use with each and every book A to Z…keep reading to snag your free copy!
For 26 days, one day for each letter of the alphabet, I will share with you 26 different multicultural books and authors that I recommend, which all have similar themes- each book promotes inclusion, diversity, justice, empathy, compassion, love.
Creating an inclusive classroom starts from day one of the school year and continues to the last day of school. So although these stories and lessons can certainly be used at any time of the year, I recommend that you start reading them on the first day of school, just like I will be with my own second graders! My goal in this books from A-Z series is to create a class community of engaged readers who love to read!
When choosing what books I wanted to read aloud in the first month of the school year, I wanted to make sure that I selected multicultural books that focused on building and establishing classroom routines but also creating an inclusive and welcoming classroom environment.
I have one special book to share with you today, which represents letter E in Inspiring All Readers with Books from A-Z series. But, before I get started, would you rather watch my video instead? If so, click below to watch my YouTube video, where I share all my fun ideas for this book that begins with the LETTER E!
E is for Eyes That Kiss in the Corners, by Joanna Ho. This is a beautiful story to read at the beginning of a new school year to help build a welcoming and inviting classroom environment, but you can also revisit this story during Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Month in May.
This story is about a young Asian girl who notices that her eyes are different from her friends. While her friends have “big, round eyes,” the little girl says, “I have eyes that kiss in the corners and glow like warm tea.” The girl realizes that her eyes are the same shape as her mom’s, her little sister’s, and her amah’s.
The young girl sees the love, stories of the past, hope for the future in their eyes. At the end of the story, the little girl realizes her own beauty and begins her journey to self-love and more confidence. “My eyes that kiss in the corners and glow like warm tea are a revolution.”
After reading the story, some discussion questions include:
- What do you love about yourself? Students can draw and label self portraits. You can use this as an opportunity to learn more about your students and build connections with them!
- How do you think the girl felt at the beginning of the story, compared to the end of the story? Is there a time when you compared how you looked to others? How does that make you feel?
This is also the perfect time to pass out the reading response journal, which is FREE for you, at the link at the bottom of this post!
After writing their response in their reading response journal, students can share with the class during the morning meeting, or another time of the day, to get to know each other better.
Looking for some reading strategies and skills that correlate directly with this story? Check out some ideas listed below!
Teach about the author’s message! The author’s message is what lesson the author is trying to teach the reader, otherwise known as the text’s theme. The author’s message for this book is to love yourself by recognizing your beauty. Talk about mirrors and windows!
- Have students locate text evidence that describes the author’s message.
- Students can draw and label self-portraits to emphasize their own beauty.
- You could have students write reflections about what they love about themselves.
- Connect this text to other texts with the same message. Have you read anything with similar themes this year?
Teach about compare and contrast! Finding similarities and differences between various aspects of the text is an excellent way for students to better comprehend and think deeply about what they read.
- Encourage readers to reflect upon and observe the cultural representation, the characters, the settings, and the events in the story. This encourages making connections to their own cultures and cultures they have seen in society, other books, or in other media.
- Students can make a Venn Diagram as a whole class or independently compare two characters in the story. They could look at personalities, physical traits, or likes and dislikes.
- You could extend by asking students to compare themselves to the characters in the story. Do they notice any similarities or differences? *An important ground rule for this would be to ensure there is no negative talk about differences. Make sure your students know that being alike and different from others is a wonderful thing.*
Teach about character change! This book is great for teaching how a character changes from the beginning to the end of the story. At the beginning of the story, the little girl notices how her eyes are different than her friends. At the end of the story, the little girl realizes that ………….
Use the FREE graphic organizer that I made! Your students can draw what the little girl looked like at the beginning of the story and then at the end of the story. Be sure to encourage your students to write about her thoughts, feelings, and actions at each point in the story. It is also important to have your students identify HOW and WHEN the young girl made the change in the story.
You can snag this freebie at the bottom of this post!
This is a great way for students to get to know each other at the beginning of a new school year!
Like this blog post? Be sure to check back tomorrow! I have 25 more posts where I will share book ideas, free printables, and lesson plan ideas!
Don’t forget to download your free copy of the reading response journal and graphic organizers for each and every story in my Books from A-Z series! Look at the sign up form at the end of this blog post!
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