As Kenyan scholar and novelist Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o reminds us in his book Writing Against Neocolonialism, African writers who emerged after World War II experienced three defining eras: the age of anti-colonial struggle, the age of independence, and the age of neocolonialism. While political independence spread throughout Africa during the twentieth century, the cultural and linguistic legacy of colonialism remains deeply embedded in many African societies today, with one of th

Beginning at the earliest years of elementary school, children engage in a range of recurrent, goal-directed activities using a particular system of knowledge to meet goals set by their principals and school districts. Children need these rooms to create new narratives about their lives and take on new identities as writers. In these classrooms is where children can begin to tell their own stories and grow into their identities as writers. Indeed, research shows that both tea

On the night of May 10, 1933, in Berlin’s neighborhood of Bebelplatz, thousands gathered, many carrying torches. University students...

In this article, I explore how something as simple, and powerful, as early read-alouds can set children on a lifelong path toward learning, curiosity, and opportunity.