I (sadly) was surprised by my own ignorance about the muslim faith and community. I quickly realized that I had a lot to learn and I found the picture books to be helpful and informative just for my own understanding. It seemed that many students in my class had a lot to learn– typically eager to share everything they possibly know (or think they know) about something or someone, there weren’t many hands raised and they were excited to just jump into the stories. They oooed and ahhed at the pictures of Mosques in In My Mosque and were especially delighted by My Friend Jamal. They enjoyed pointing out the ways the two friends were the same and different– in that they were clearly stating learnings about the Muslim faith and community while detailing a great friendship (something we can all relate to!). 

In reflecting on my own ignorance, I am considering what impact the aftermath of 9/11 had on my developing cultural awareness. I was only 7 and living in New York at the time. Even now, I can remember overhearing racial–ethnic slurs that were thrown around so cavelerly, as if justified because of the events of 9/11. I remember being confused about the Muslim faith and noticing that those around me equated the faith and community to terrorism and no grownups in my life did anything to disabuse me of that notion. Twenty-ish years later, I am suspecting that while I haven’t been judgmental or bigoted, the potential for healthy curiosity was stifled during those early formative years and influenced me to shut down rather than open up. I am finding that reading these books is revealing blind spots that I did not know I had. And there is no doubt that the lasting impacts of the vitriol that took place after 9/11 still impacts our communities and young minds today. My deepest hope is that the children I’m teaching, also 7, will not turn away, but instead be curious and welcoming– that these books will be enough to cause them to question others when they may hear a slur, welcome new and old friends, and garner a sense of belonging if they are of the culture that I am reading about.

I still have a lot to learn and this has been a good place to start. The books have been a great jumping off point for teaching. They are so good that I feel I can really lean on them as a resource and investigate the text alongside the students without feeling that I need to be an expert.