MISelf in Books 2021 Book List - great inclusive books curated by Michigan Association for Media in Education (MAME)

It’s not easy to create an inclusive book collection. That’s because creating a diverse book collection is about more than just making sure X, Y, and Z are represented. It’s not a matter of ticking off check boxes or making sure quotas are filled. For those committed to doing it right, building a diverse book collection requires contemplation, research, and awareness. But the rewards are great: a truly diverse collection of books can turn children into lifelong readers and promote empathy, understanding, and self-confidence. To make things a little easier, we’ve created a checklist to help.

Selection policies are practical tools used by school librarians to guide them in their collection
development plans. This investigation into district-level selection policies examined policies from
80 school districts across the United States. The policies were examined to determine the status
of selection policies in school libraries and if the policies reflect the recommendations of
professional literature. Through content analysis, we determined that most of the school library
selection policies included at least half of the expected key components. However, there is a need
for school librarians to advocate for revision of policies to keep them current and provide
effective guidance for school librarians as they make selections for their collections.

Posters from the CCBC to build knowledge about Intellectual Freedom and book challenges

Slide deck from WEMTA 2022 presentation on how to create a diverse collection, including lots of links to additional resources and an example audit.

Kymberlee Powe, Children and YA Consultant for the Connecticut State Library Division of Library Development, dives into the makeup of the publishing industry. You will learn how to identify the difference between a diverse collection and an inclusive one and walk through the logistics of performing a diversity audit of your collection. The examples and resources provided in this session will focus on youth collections; however, the methodology of performing a diversity audit, and the reasons to do so, are universal to all collections.This presentation is brought to you by the Connecticut State Library, in collaboration with the Indiana State Library, the Library of Michigan, and the State Library of Ohio.

Genrefying a library’s fiction collection is a common practice in school libraries. However,
there is little research to explain the benefits or drawbacks of this practice. Using a withinsubjects/time-series action research design, this study was conducted to understand more about
the impact of genrefying the fiction collection in a single library. This study found that
elementary students could locate fiction books faster and to greater satisfaction with a genrefied
collection than in a collection in which fiction was arranged in a FIC label format, which is
typically seen in standard Dewey Decimal classification.

Guidelines for Choosing Culturally Appropriate Literature About Native American People Mike Mestelle from Lakeland Union High School in Minocqua, WI and Carol Amour from Lac du Flambeau, WI discuss guidelines to help classroom teachers choose literature written by Native American authors or about Native American people that would be appropriate for use in school classrooms. Carol Amour represents the First Nations Traveling Resource Center, she works with the Indian Community School of Milwaukee in Franklin, WI, and has worked with the George W. Brown Museum in Lac du Flambeau, WI.

If you are looking to do a diversity audit or are in need of resources to make your library more inclusive, check out this curated collection. There is also a webinar recording - How to Audit Your Collection and Why found at https://youtu.be/0r4lEMsfTzw

Use this worksheet to analyze your school library book collections and determine where there are strengths and where there are gaps in diversity.

A Mackin collection analysis looks at three paramenters, age, size, and distribution, when determining an "exemplary" library collection. This is a list of professional resources used in factoring Mackin's recommentations.

Bibliography adapted from the October 2018 WLA Program: "No One Checked It Out: Transforming Perceptions of Diverse Books" given by librarians from the Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)

A slide deck with many useful links related to book challenges was created by the New Jersey Association of School Librarians. The shortened URL is bit.ly/njasl21challengehandbook

Native American Literature for High School Grades Mike Mestelle from Lakeland Union High School in Minocqua, WI and Carol Amour from Lac du Flambeau, WI discuss literature written by Native American authors or about Native American people that would be appropriate for use in the high school grade classrooms for grades 9-12. Carol Amour represents the First Nations Traveling Resource Center, she works with the Indian Community School of Milwaukee in Franklin, WI, and has worked with the George W. Brown Museum in Lac du Flambeau, WI.

Native American Literature for Middle School Grades Mike Mestelle from Lakeland Union High School in Minocqua, WI and Carol Amour from Lac du Flambeau, WI discuss literature written by Native American authors or about Native American people that would be appropriate for use in the Middle School grade classrooms for grades 6, 7, and 8. Carol Amour represents the First Nations Traveling Resource Center, she works with the Indian Community School of Milwaukee in Franklin, WI, and has worked with the George W. Brown Museum in Lac du Flambeau, WI.

Native American Literature for Primary Grades

Mike Mestelle from Lakeland Union High School in Minocqua, WI and Carol Amour from Lac du Flambeau, WI discuss literature written by Native American authors or about Native American people that would be appropriate for use in primary grade classrooms. Carol Amour represents the Traveling Resource Center, she works with the Indian Community School of Milwaukee in Franklin, WI, and has worked with the George W. Brown Museum in Lac du Flambeau, WI.

Native American Literature for the Intermediate Grades Mike Mestelle from Lakeland Union High School in Minocqua, WI and Carol Amour from Lac du Flambeau, WI discuss literature written by Native American authors or about Native American people that would be appropriate for use in the intermediate grade classrooms for grades 3, 4, and 5. Carol Amour represents the First Nations Traveling Resource Center, she works with the Indian Community School of Milwaukee in Franklin, WI, and has worked with the George W. Brown Museum in Lac du Flambeau, WI.