Over the last few months, the Reading with Relevance authors have been working away at reading brand-new diverse books, selecting the next Reading with Relevance titles, and authoring curriculum to help Grade 2-12 educators explore the rich social and emotional themes at the heart of these incredible new novels with their students. And now, these new titles are available for your classrooms! Learn more about Reading with Relevance.
Introducing Brand New Titles for 2020
These titles use the power of engaging, diverse books to spark meaningful dialogue in American classrooms about timely social and emotional themes — including social justice, immigration, identity, friendship, empathy, resilience, family, and teen parenthood.
Let's explore new Reading with Relevance titles!
wishtree
Grades 3-5
Get to know Red — a very special oak tree living at the center of a neighborhood that has welcomed newcomers and immigrants for many generations. Red tells the story of what happens when Samar, a young girl whose family settles in the neighborhood, is met with conflict and hate because of her Muslim identity; Red is compelled to help Samar feel more welcome in their community.
From the Reading with Relevance authors:
We chose this novel for its empathetic exploration of timely social and emotional themes: welcoming others, resilience, community, and the immigrant experience. Red’s storytelling will inspire students to empathize with Samar’s experiences, and consider who might need welcoming in their own communities.
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Harbor Me
Grades 5 - 7
Meet Haley, Holly, Esteban, Tiago, Amari, and Ashton — six students who are given a space to talk each week without adults in the room. Listen in as these young people open up about their experiences of hardship, marginalization, and identity, developing greater compassion for and understanding of each other, and themselves, through their storytelling.
From the Reading with Relevance authors:
We selected this title for its thoughtful attention to some powerful social and emotional themes: empathy and friendship, grief and loss, immigration and deportation, and racial identity and privilege. This curriculum will help students build connections between the six students’ experiences and their own.
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With the Fire on High
Grades 9 - 12
Told through the eyes of Emoni Santiago, a passionate cook who always puts a little magic in her food, this novel explores the challenges young people face as they inhabit the space between childhood and adulthood: from navigating complex relationships, to balancing the demands of family, school, and a part-time job, to making decisions about life after high school.
From the Reading with Relevance authors:
This curriculum will inspire students to follow Emoni's lead — reflecting on their relationships, considering the significant decisions that lie before them, and navigating their own path into adulthood.
Open Up Resources exists to create equity in education. Social and emotional curriculum is crucial, qualitative learning that compliments a rigorous and high-quality core ELA and math curricula program. Reading with Relevance makes implementation accessible. To learn more about Reading with Relevance, click here.
About Open Up Resources:
Open Up Resources is a 501c3 that exists to increase equity in education by making the highest quality curriculum freely accessible to educators and providing implementation supports to the broadest number of teachers, empowering them to effectively and sustainably improve student outcomes in pre-K-12 English Language Arts and Mathematics. To learn more about Open Up Resources' mission and work, click here.
