Final Post For TE 448

Over the course of this semester, I feel I have learned quite a bit about diverse literature that I did not get out of TE 348. I felt like I connected with the literature and got a deeper insight into diverse literature because of this class. I liked that our teacher picked books from different cultures, not just different genres or picture books, novels, etc. I am pretty sure that is the reason I did not like TE 348, was because it focused more on different types of books; picture books, novels, etc. instead of diverse literature itself, dealing with diverse characters and different cultures. I learned how to pick books with different cultures by reading up to see if the author is an insider or outsider and the course pack will also help me evaluate books that I am considering bringing to my classroom someday.

My favorite part of the semester is obviously when we discussed books with characters who have disabilities. My main focus for children's literature and even adolescent literature will focus mostly on children who are deaf or hard of hearing. I did not realize there is such a wide, amazing variety of books with these characters in them and I am anxious to bring more of these to my collection of children's books.

Overall, I feel I have learned something in TE 448 about choosing diverse literature to suit all students instead of just looking at books for the type of book they are. I felt like I learned a lot about how literature can be more integrated in my classroom to better fit the students I will be teaching and will help me be a better teacher. If I have books in my classroom with characters and/or story lines that my students can relate to, they will feel more confident in my classroom knowing they are not alone in how they feel.