Sharing Wherever I Go by Mary Wagley Copp with a population of diverse students was interesting.  When I read stories about refugees I am always taken aback by all that they go through to leave their homes and find safety and start a new life in a completely new place.  Books about these experiences are so valuable in creating empathy and understanding for refugee stories.  I found this text to be so valuable because it is a picture book that is accessible to younger students and the illustrations by Munir D. Mohammed created an accurate vision for students to see. 

When I read this book to students, they were amazed at Abia’s story and how her family could live in a camp for seven years.  They recognized that to her the refugee camp was the only home she had known.  Some compared it to their own experiences and having to be the new student in a school.  When I explained that some of the students in our school had similar experiences, they were surprised.  But, the illustration of Abia in her new school made it seem more real because they could see her transition from one life to a new life.  In one class, I had a student share his story of coming to the United States. His family came from a refugee camp in Africa and he walked to the US border from Brazil.   I am not sure he had a chance to share his story until he made the connection to the text.  I think it was an authentic way for him to share and the book gave him the entry point he needed to share his story.