Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I'm a fifth grade elementary school teacher and work in a black neighborhood. Recently our theme for the week was the biography of the famous ballet star, Evelyn Cisneros.Unfortunately, our school library did not have any information on Cisneros at the time. Instead, our media specialist read this wonderful book by Debbie Allen of "FAME" fame. Well, let me tell you, my students never laughed so hard during a book. They just simply loved it.
Put-downs are a fact of life, especially (and unfortunately) in elementary school. I think the students really got the message loud and clear and in a fun and interesting, not preachy, way. As a class, we discussed how people are different and we need to accept others without making fun of them. It was also clear that we sound horrible when we tease and taunt each other, too. There were really great points of discussion above and beyond ballet and dancing.
Debbie Allen is truly talented and not just as a dancer! My students learned about the world of ballet, which was new to them. They were engaged while being read to and afterwards enjoyed talking and laughing about this book. I found it to be a tremendous teaching tool in that it opened up many topics of discussion that week and students connected to this book in an exciting way. It spoke to them in their own language and that's a difficult thing to do! My students can be hard to reach through books and yet Debbie Allen accomplished it with ease.
The pictures were a delight, very expressive. I will buy this book now and use it in my classroom every year. I strongly recommend this book as a teaching tool, in all neighborhoods. I hope Allen writes more for children soon.
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Dancing in the Wings
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