Author: Matt De La Peña
Illustrator: Christian Robinson
Illustration medium: collage, acrylic paint, and digital artistry
“CJ saw the perfect rainbow arching over their soup kitchen. He wondered how his nana always found beautiful where he never even thought to look.”
Summary: This children’s book is about a young boy named CJ who travels on the bus with his Nana wishing he was like everyone else who had materialistic things (music player, cars, etc.) compared to him. His Nana reminds him to be thankful and observant of his surroundings to find variations of those desired things. When the reader believes they are the ones struggling and of need, a twist to an ending has the reader reflect on themselves as stereotyping thinkers within society. Though CJ was quick to judge, the reader as well is tested on their judgment of others based on their biases.
According to Rudine Sims Bishop (2016), “When diversity is absent from the literature we share with children, those who are left out infer that they are undervalued in our society, and those whose lives are constantly reflected gain a false sense of their importance, a sense that they are the privileged ‘norm’” (Bishop, 2016, p. 120).
I fell embarrassingly into what Rudine Sims Bishop is describing in the above quote. I assumed that CJ and his Nana were the ones struggling based on their transportation and motion to attending the soup kitchen. I believed they were the ones needing help. I was upset that I fell short in understanding that my experience in literature has affected how I perceive stories.
By incorporating the inclusion of text that children can read that reflects themselves, or other cultures and races, allows for a larger sense of understanding of society altogether. It doesn’t allow non-marginalized populations to make the same biases I made of characters based on outward appearances or stereotyped characterizations. It also allows for students that are part of marginalized or oppressed reflect on literature that reflects people that are like them that go beyond the stereotype.
Reading Matt De La Peña’s acceptance speech of a Newbery Medal, I have a better understanding of his background of reading and writing. His specific details of being labeled based on his ethnicity and not believing he could go anywhere with reading and writing because he himself didn’t feel capable changed the meaning of the book to me. It demonstrated to me that in society we have a lot people that may see black and white. Like there are no in-between of good and bad. You’re either this or you’re that, and society determines these boundaries.
Matt De La Peña’s choice of metaphorical phrases to describe the rain, bus and clothing throughout the book to me reflects how thoughtful he was in choices of words. He wanted the words that were descriptive of events to be more meaningful and expressive. Not only are the words meaningful throughout the book, but the illustrations make the story come to life! Without the images, we wouldn’t know what CJ or Nana looked like and how they related to us as readers. We wouldn’t know what “dirty” place they were surrounded by or that in that “dirty” area there are the words ONELOVE painted on the side of a brick building. All of these details bring the characters to life and make the text more reflective of going beyond stereotypes. Along with this it helps students support their reasoning of the author's and illustrator's purpose and perspective with details.
With these illustrations, students can also reflect on the environment they live in and compare and contrast how their living background influences their reading.
The HOW in the classroom
Reflecting Using Critical Literacy
What is critical literacy? Critical literacy allows for teacher's to purposefully select text that encourages and promotes students to go beyond the written text and pictures. It's great to read a variety of genres, authors, and leveled texts within the classroom, but how does it develop deeper readers?
Critical literacy can be taught in a variety of ways. The strategy below is one way to teach and allow students to develop author's purpose and perspective in a more complex and analyzing way.
Ethnic/Race Switch
Based on the idea that students can reimagine a story allows the reader to analyze deeply the perspective of the author.
Last Stop on Market Street as told by Matt De La Peña demonstrates the perspective of a young African American boy named CJ, and his Nana. As the story continues, the boy talks to his Nana about things he wishes he had compared to others and how he thought it was amazing that his Nana saw the best in the worst things. As a read aloud to a classroom, the teacher can purposefully invite students to discuss the author's perspective and answer questions such as:
-Who is in the text/picture/situation? Who is missing?
-Whose voices are presented?
-What does the author want the reader to think?
(McLaughlin, M. & DeVoogd, G.L., Critical literacy, p. 41)
As a follow up activity after discussing with students these problem posing questions, students should then create a written narrative piece that follows the story of CJ and Nana, but their race is changed. How does this then effect the meaning of the story? How do certain parts of the story change depending on the student's choices?
For example, a student could change the story so that CJ and his Nana are both White. There journey to help feed those in need at the soup kitchen may change depending on a student's perspective. The characters may then think that a change in race would make CJ and Nana drive, talk differently, or dress differently. After students complete each of their own perspective pieces, students can read aloud to a partner and discuss what changed and how this compares to the original story. As a whole class the teacher can choose certain books and then ask students then how biases and perspectives of race or ethnicity affect another's positioning.
References
Bishop, R. (2016). A Ride with Nana and CJ: Engagement, Appreciation, and Social Action. Language Arts, vol. 92, pp 120-123. Retrieved from https://asulearn.appstate.edu/pluginfile.php/393789/mod_page/content/8/Last%20Stop%20on%20Market%20Street.pdf
De La Peña, M. ( ). Last Stop on Market Street.
De La Peña, M. (2016). Newbery Medal Acceptance Speech. Association of Library Services for Children. Retrieved from http://bit.ly/newbery-award
McLaughlin, M., & DeVoogd, G.L. (2004). Critical Literacy: Enhancing students' comprehension of text. New York: Scholastic.