On the podcast: Raising children's voices

We’ve just released a new podcast episode! This week's episode is all about raising children’s voices. First, we’re joined by Carmen Agra Deedy, the author of The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet. Carmen shares her incredibly moving story of coming to America as a Cuban refugee and discovering her love of books. (Spoiler alert: The book that turned her into a reader? Charlotte's Web.) She discusses her new picture book and talks about what she sees as the moral of the story: that children are born with the instinct to speak up for what they think is right, and we should never try to silence that.

She says, "the feeling that you can and should speak your mind when your conscience urges you to begins as a child." Then, bit by bit, we learn to temper our opinions and quiet our voices. But there are always those who resist being silenced and who have the courage to speak their truth, no matter the consequences.

 

Next, we talk with second grade teacher Dana McDonough, the 2016 New York State Teacher of the Year. Dana shares how she works to make every child feel heard in her classroom.

 

You can listen to the episode here, or by subscribing to Scholastic Reads on iTunes!