And our November pick is...
My Powerful Hair written by Carole Lindstrom, art by Steph Littlebird
November Pick -- My Powerful Hair
We're so excited to announce our November MOSS Kids Book Club pick! Join us this month as we celebrate & educate during Native American Heritage Month with the power of our hair.
Our ancestors say our hair is our memories,
our source of strength and power,
a celebration of our lives.
Follow our young protagonist as she journeys through her family's history discovering the power, self-expression, & identity through hair. Her mother never had long hair--she was told it was too wild. Her grandma couldn't have long hair--hers was taken from her. But she can't wait to grow her hair long: for herself, for her family, for her connection to her culture and the Earth, and to honor the strength and resilience of those who came before her. From Carole Lindstrom, author of the New York Times bestseller and Caldecott Medal winner We Are Water Protectors, and debut illustrator Steph Littlebird comes an empowering and healing celebration of hair and its significance across Indigenous cultures.
Below you will find our monthly craft; printable activity sheet; and our community outreach activity where we will be educating ourselves & our youth on whose land we reside & reaching out to our local Indigenous community to see what we can do to give back. Don't forget to check out our full Indigenous book list to celebrate & educate for Native American Heritage Month (board books, picture books, middle grade, & young adult):
We really hope you enjoy this month of book club as we try to keep our nationwide book club free & accessible for all. Each book is intentionally handpicked with each activity and outreach curated to engage and enrich our youth's experiences. Through these diverse and inclusive reads, working and playing together, and giving back to their own community, we hope to instill empathy, understanding, & kindness in our kids. If you didn't receive a copy of the book, don't fret. Below is a reading of My Powerful Hair, read & recorded by Stories with Pam:
Let's Craft: collage self portraits
Grab some materials -- whatever you have on hand & allow your child to create a collage of themselves. We knew after reading this book that we wanted to craft a collage with our hair as a focal point. We're inspired by the artwork of Jess Owens-Young, check her out here. We sat down with our son, who has long hair, and we asked him what he loved most about himself -- he said his hair. He gave us the idea to bring out a mirror while we crafted so we could see ourselves, see our ancestors, see our culture, see our identities, see the beauty for ourselves. The more, I (Kara), looked into the mirror while crafting, the more uncomfortable I felt. But the more my kids looked into the mirror while crafting, the more they loved themselves. So parents, caregivers, teachers: please do this activity alongside your youth. We may learn a little something. We are providing a printable affirmation sheets for you & your kids to read aloud. Maybe even add to your portrait collage.
This craft is working primarily on fine motor development as we draw, cut, paste. We're also developing bilateral coordination (using both hands simultaneously) & visual motor skills. I think most importantly, we're working on recognizing ourselves -- our facial features, our expressions, part of our identity.
Materials:
Construction paper, cardstock
Magazines
Scraps -- fabric, yarn, beads, buttons
Scissors
Glue (may need hot glue, depending on materials)
Markers/crayons
Modifications:
Easy: Allow child to draw parts of face/use materials. Adult to cut & hot glue as necessary. Child can glue when able.
Moderate: Allow child to draw parts of face/use materials. Assist when necessary to cut/glue.
Hard: Allow child to create independently.
Instructions:
Gather materials to use for portrait collages. Print affirmations.
Bring mirror out for kids to use while crafting.
Allow child to collage their portrait, encouraging to make hair the focal point. See examples below.
Example 1:
Example 2:
Remember: After you are done reading the book (if you received a copy from us!) & making your crafts, please have your kids sign the library card located in the back of the book (first names only!). BUT WAIT. We ran out of library cards so this month we are encouraging your kids to *make* one. Let's bring back a little bit of fun from our childhood. An index card fits perfect! Also, please donate your book to your local public library, to your school library, or to a little free library in your area so more kids can enjoy a new diverse & inclusive read.
printable activity sheets:
This month we created a printable affirmation sheets for you to use while crafting. Cut each affirmation & hand out one to each child. Or allow each kid to pick their own. Or show them these as examples & have them come up with their own affirmation. The possibilities are endless. We also created an all about me worksheet, similar to our worksheet for Nigel and the Moon. This time we are encouraging our kids to think about how they honor the land & why, they believe, their hair is powerful.
Community Outreach:
This month's community outreach activity we're celebrating & educating. We are researching & acknowledging whose land we reside on. The first thing you need to do is read this article by Britt Hawthorne, author of Raising Antiracist Children: A Practical Parenting Guide. The bare minimum of this community outreach is to acknowledge the land. There are several websites you can use to look up the territories, languages, and treaties of the land’s history and the Indigenous peoples’ histories. Native Land’s interactive map is a great resource that provides information to help you and your child unpack your land’s history of colonialism and forced removal. As you learn about the people who live there, both past and present, research the tribes, languages, cultures, and histories. After researching, make an event of going out into the land to truly connect. Take a silent walk in a local park. The most important point is to honor and acknowledge the contemporary existence of their local Indigenous communities. Locally, we will be connecting with our local Indigenous communities to see what we can do. We will also be compensating and donating to Indigenous peoples.
It is extremely important to ensure Indigenous stories are being read all year long, not just in November. Here's the link, again, for our Indigenous booklist.
Please do not skip this activity. We truly believe this outreach activity is a vital part of childhood & an opportunity to raise kind kids. Teaching our youth about the importance of giving back & standing up by showing their support, especially for strangers, is necessary to raising the kind of kids that will help shape this society into something we are all proud of. It is vital that our youth understand the value of acknowledging the *actual* history of settler colonialism (displacing, even eliminating existing residents and causing the destruction of their society) and acknowledging the importance of supporting Indigenous communities.
YAY! Another MOSS Kids Book Club pick, craft, printable sheet, and community outreach activity. We would love to see when you receive your books and all the beautiful crafts your kids create. You do not need to share kid's faces. Please be sure to tag us on Instagram @mosskidsbooks & use #mosskidsbookclub. Sharing about MOSS Kids Book Club is a way for your community to learn more about what MOSS Kids has to offer & for them to know where they can find the book you're donating. By doing so, we can reach & help more kids across the country. We'd also love to hear any feedback you may have, please email us at hello@mosskidsbooks.com. We appreciate you all so much for taking the initiative to bring kids together to read diverse books & hopefully learn vital life skills to help make our world a better place.
did you miss out on a chance at the book this month & want to sign up for next month?
All you need to do is fill out the google doc below & you'll be entered to win next month's book. TEN lucky winners will receive a copy for their book club to read together every month & then donate to their local school library, public library, or a little free library in their area!
want a copy of our book club pick monthly sent to your door to keep & add to your shelves + more?
Join our $25 Patreon tier & every month we will ship you a copy of our MOSS Kids Book Club pick of the month AND a MOSS Mystery bundle (secondhand blind date with a kid's book) AND you will be entered into our monthly Patreon-only giveaway! Your support goes directly to purchasing new diverse & inclusive books for kids in underserved communities.
Don't Forget: We Have 4(!!) Local moss kids book club locations in eastern north carolina!!
Thursday, 11/9: MOSS Kids Book Club at Larema Coffee House in Rocky Mount at 430pm
Friday, 11/17: MOSS Kids Book Club at Books and Beans in Rocky Mount at 11am
Monday, 11/27: MOSS Kids Book Club at Wilson County Public Library in Wilson at 430pm
Tuesday, 11/28: MOSS Kids Book Club at Country Feedback Vintage & Vinyl in Tarboro at 4pm
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