My Last CRT Lesson Before Retiring.
Calling it CRT mocks the idea that I taught legal curriculum in an elementary school
As a school librarian I encouraged a love of reading among my elementary age students. The library was a fun place to visit and find new books.
Except when I couldn’t. American public schools do not do students any favors by giving them a long summer break. Among the experiences students miss out on, is a weekly (or more) trip to a school library.
At the end of the school year, I shared information about the public library and their summer reading programs. I hosted librarians from the nearest branch so they could promote their services.
One of materials I used to make the point on the benefits of our public libraries was the book by Patricia McKissack and illustrated by Jerry Pinckney, Goin’ Someplace Special.
In this book Tricia Ann’s grandmother allows Tricia Ann to go to Someplace Special on her own. Tricia Ann is a young Black girl who navigates 1950s segregated Nashville to get to Someplace Special. When she arrives there, past all the places that restrict her presence, she arrives at the public library- Someplace Special- which has engraved along its facing “All Are Welcome.”