JAN 308-01 - J is for Justice: Early Childhood Books for a More Just World

Dates for on-campus class meetings: TBA

Level:  300-level

Course Times:  12:00pm - 2:40pm

Course Materials Fee:  $20

Instructor(s):  Mary Raygoza   

Email:  mcr13@stmarys-ca.edu

This course engages a sociocultural analysis of early childhood literature- books for children age 0 through 8. We will begin by exploring our own early childhood experiences with books in relation to our intersecting social identities, acknowledging that our lived experiences shape our perspectives. We will center issues of representation and power, engaging social justice literacy frameworks and examining the historical and present day status quo of early childhood literature. We will read and analyze a variety of children’s books that uplift characters of marginalized identities and focus on themes such as empathy, inclusivity, intersectionality, solidarity, mindfulness and care for the wellbeing of all, activism for social and environmental justice, and children’s own capacity to make change in the world. We will investigate current efforts around the country to ban such children’s books and resistance to these bans. The course will include children’s book author and librarian guest speakers and a field trip to the local library. Students will apply their knowledge from the course to host a Social Justice Storytime at Saint Mary’s on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The culminating assignment of the course will be for students to author their own children’s book.

Prerequisites & Notes
SEM 250 or SEM 327

Credits: 3