The Appleton Post Crescent sought out expertise from UW–Madison’s Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC) in a recent article highlighting “!0 diverse children’s books with Wisconsin connections.”
The CCBC, which is housed in the School of Education, “reviews the diversity of both content and creators of about 3,500 children’s and young adult books each year,” notes the article. Findings from this review are then documented in the center’s annual Diversity Statistics.
“Children are curious learners, and are most naturally interested in themselves and also in understanding the world they live in,” CCBC Director Tessa Schmidt told the Post Crescent. “Books should offer children the opportunity to see themselves, as well as people in their local and global communities.”
When examining the diversity seen in children’s books, the CCBC team focuses on four main “identifiers”: race and ethnicity, religion, disabilities, and LGBTQ+, Schmidt said.
Check out the full article to learn about the 10 books highlighted with Wisconsin connections.