Blog Post 9 - Multicultural Nonfiction - Ruby Bridges: A Brave Child who Made History by Jeri Cipriano

 

Picture of Ruby Bridges, 1960

    The first book I chose is Ruby Bridges: A Brave Child Who Made History by Jeri Cipriano and illustrated by Scott R. Brooks. The book is a biography about a little girl who is 6 years old and she is chosen to be the first black child to attend an all white school. The book talked about the way she was treated as she entered the school and how the parents would not allow their children to be in her class, so she was in a class alone with her teacher. It also talks about how, the following year, the children came back to school and they began to accept her. 

    This is a non-fiction book in the form of a biography. “The term nonfiction describes books of information and fact about any topic.” (Galda, Liang, Cullinan pg.154) This book is nonfiction as it gives information about Ruby Bridges during the time of segregation in schools. 

    Students, especially kindergarteners and first graders, will relate to Ruby Bridges as she was the same age as they are. One thing that a teacher can do is talk about being brave, brainstorm what it means to be brave, and create an anchor chart. Then have the children write how Ruby Bridges was brave in the story. They would be expected to site text evidence in their writing to prove she was brave. The teacher can also have the students write about how they themselves have been brave. This will provide them with even more of a connection to Ruby Bridges.

    I enjoyed this book. The illustrations are colorful and look realistic. Since the story is true, it helps students see what life used to be like during the Civil Rights Era. I would recommend this book for any classroom with students ages 5 and up. It should especially be read during black history month and it should be placed in the classroom library for the children to read at their leisure as well.