Building Bridges Not Walls Between Us: Teaching With Interactive Read-Alouds in Early Elementary Classrooms

• In Event: Action Research: Lessons Learned in K–12 Settings

Abstract

The demographic imperative of the 21st century requires classroom practices that build bridges and foster relationships between students. In this practitioner action research study, I argue that the interactive read-aloud may offer a tool to disrupt destructive narratives of “otherness” that perpetuate suspicion and fear and instead develop empathy and value for difference. The purpose of the research is to explore teacher development, as well as student learning, as we used the interactive read-aloud as a catalyst for discussions about agency and empathy with early elementary, diverse, urban students. The following question framed this study: How does engaging in an interactive read-aloud unit focused on Care Awareness inform teachers’ instructional and reflective practices and impact student learning?

Author

• Shea Gregory, Hayward Unified School District