Value in the Margins: Critical Peritextual Analysis in Books for Young Readers
Presenter Bio
Rebekah Degener is an Associate Professor in the Elementary & Literacy Education department at Minnesota State University, Mankato. Her research covers topics of critical literacy, diverse children’s literature, anti-racist teacher preparation, and environmental justice literacy in the elementary grades.
Nithya Sivashankar is an Assistant Professor at Texas State University. Her research on South Asian, Asian American, African and African American children’s and young adult literature has been published in the form of peer-reviewed journal articles in Bookbird, Children's Literature in Education, Research on Diversity in Youth Literature, The ALAN Review and Journal of Children's Literature; and several edited collections.
Sarah Jackson is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Early, Middle, and Exceptional Education at Millersville University, where she teaches courses on Early Childhood, Emergent Literacy, and Creativity. Being interested in both the content within and the mediation of children literature, she researches topics including critical literacy, anthropomorphism, young children's dramatic engagement with stories, and diverse literature.
Session
Workshop: Value in the Margins: Critical Peritextual Analysis in Books for Young Readers
Start Date
29-6-2024 11:00 AM
End Date
29-6-2024 12:15 PM
Abstract
As a response to the legislation and criticism schools face as they work to promote social justice, educators need resources for intentionally engaging children with such topics in developmentally accessible ways. In this presentation, we call for children’s literature scholars, educators and young readers alike to value and critically engage with the peritext as one way to promote justice-oriented readings of books for young readers. We present an interdisciplinary framework grounded in critical literacy that we refer to as “Critical Peritextual Analysis” (CPA). By focusing on some of the most under-valued elements of children’s books, CPA encourages scholars and educators to emphasize the cultural, historical, relational, personal, and sociopolitical values in the margins and bring them to the center stage.
Value in the Margins: Critical Peritextual Analysis in Books for Young Readers
As a response to the legislation and criticism schools face as they work to promote social justice, educators need resources for intentionally engaging children with such topics in developmentally accessible ways. In this presentation, we call for children’s literature scholars, educators and young readers alike to value and critically engage with the peritext as one way to promote justice-oriented readings of books for young readers. We present an interdisciplinary framework grounded in critical literacy that we refer to as “Critical Peritextual Analysis” (CPA). By focusing on some of the most under-valued elements of children’s books, CPA encourages scholars and educators to emphasize the cultural, historical, relational, personal, and sociopolitical values in the margins and bring them to the center stage.