Last month the Maine Department of Education (Maine DOE) launched a first-in-the-nation project aimed at bringing collections of children’s picture books about race, diversity and immigration into all public schools across the state.
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The initiative, called The Pine Project’s Welcoming Libraries, is a collaboration between the Maine DOE and the Portland-based nonprofit I’m Your Neighbor Books.
“I’m Your Neighbor Books cultivates welcoming behaviors and builds a sense of belonging in all our communities by increasing access to and engagement with Immigrant and New Generation children’s literature,” the nonprofit states on their website.
“We work to diminish stereotypes and false narratives about Immigrant and New Generation communities by increasing access to the rich and growing diversity of stories in children’s literature,” they wrote.
Among the co-founders and board members of I’m Your Neighbor Books are Portland City Councilor At-Large Pious Ali, Somali-American State Rep. Deqa Dhalac (D-Lewiston) and Charles Mugabe, director of migration at Catholic Charities Maine.
Each “Welcoming Library” consists of a collection of 30 picture books centered around themes of race, racism, immigration, diversity and belonging.
Every book included in the collection includes embedded social emotional learning (SEL)-based discussion questions “featuring the experiences of immigrant families and their new generations,” according to the Maine DOE.
I’m Your Neighbor Books says that the discussion questions “help people of all ages and backgrounds have conversations on immigration, welcoming, and belonging.”
The project started with 16 such “Welcoming Libraries” at Maine public schools, but now, through their collaboration with the nonprofit, the Maine DOE has expanded the project to every Maine school administrative unit.
Funding for the project is supported by the federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER), a COVID-19 pandemic relief fund administered by the U.S. Department of Education.
[RELATED: Maine Department of Education Wants to Spend $23,500 on ‘Happiness Expert’ Motivational Speaker…]
“We know the power of a story. We know the power of books to help transport readers and help them identify with others, feel more connected, feel included in their communities, and feel a sense of belonging,” said Maine DOE Associate Commissioner for Public Education Megan Welter when announcing the project in September. “Each story in the Welcoming Libraries: Pine Collections reflects that power of being included.”
“We know that through this initiative, readers will get to immerse themselves in wonderful stories and, at the same time, provide educators with the tools to create an even more welcoming and inclusive environment for all students,” Welter said.
As part of The Pine Project, the Maine DOE also released a series of five professional development modules to assist Maine public school teachers in teaching their students about race, immigration and other themes explored in the picture books.
In the modules, teachers are asked to take a “Race Attitudes Implicit Associations Test” from Harvard University, which the Maine DOE says will help the educators “understand your hidden biases” toward social categories such as race or gender.
“By providing accessible resources that reflect diverse student experiences, we cultivate belonging and support impactful conversations about diverse demographics, “said Pine Project lead Melanie Junkins, a “multilingual and bilingual education specialist” at the Maine DOE, in the first of the project’s modules.
Executive director of I’m Your Neighbor Books Kirsten Cappy says in the professional development course that “picture book narratives become a safe and productive space for educators and students to include race and culture in their exploration of social emotional learning.”
Other topics included in the modules include discussions of racist “microaggressions” and the experiences of cultural and racial minority students in public schools.
“It is our job as educators to center our learning on the history and impact of racism and on the latest classroom anti-racism thinking and actions,” said Pine Project Lead Educator and Portland Schools English language teacher Michelle Amato.
“We will make mistakes, and more mistakes in this work, but the biggest mistake is not educating ourselves and acting,” Amato said. “Our students’ lives and the future of this nation depends on it.”
A full list of the 30 picture books included in each Welcoming Library can be read below:
How about teach them math and basic reading? Leave the brainwashing out of the schools!!! Maine is ranked 50th for a reason and its time to stop indoctrinating these kids!
*gag*
Does anyone wonder why our education system is in such terrible shape?
Follow the money, who in Augusta has their fingers in supplying/producing this unnecessary expenditure? One billion in the red and mills want us to embrace the cause, unbelievable. Impeach this turd now.
Where are the history books ? The math / basic arithmetic books ? The science books ?
Are the “ Gender Queer “ and “ Flamer “ pornography cartoon books that were banned in Florida on the shelves ?
What Non Profit Non Government Office ( friend of Maine ) got the contract for this library of new books ?
More of my tax money pissed away with a smile .
“Among the co-founders and board members of I’m Your Neighbor Books are Portland City Councilor At-Large Pious Ali, Somali-American State Rep. Deqa Dhalac (D-Lewiston) and Charles Mugabe, director of migration at Catholic Charities Maine.”
Three members of Maine’s modern day Trojan Horse.
DEI agitprop.
School choice carpe diem
What ever happened to the Dick, Jane, and Spot books????