THE POWER OF STORY
Story is an empowerment tool and a psychological springboard into a healthier future for all of us. When people are able to access the power of narrative for a purpose and are given a platform that allows these stories to take hold in the collective psyche, the arc of their future changes, as does our collective future. As Iowa high schools, colleges, and universities have begun to adopt our anthologies into their diversity curriculums and communities have used them to facilitate difficult conversations on race and immigration, we have seen this change begin to take effect at an exponential level.
These stories are the experiences of individuals sharing both their sorrows and their joys, and they offer a window into a collective of voices that merit our listening. Our newest residents have much to teach us about the American experience, and with Iowa as the setting, the dimensionality of the heartland begins to shine. Through these stories, we may be able to find threads that help us weave a more authentic representation of modern American life, bringing us closer to her ideals of liberty and justice for all.
COMMON CORE STANDARDS AND READING GUIDELINES
The foundation of our curriculum is the anchor standards for reading listed below, provided by the Common Core State Standards Initiative. We’ve included the guidelines to help students get into the mindset of what they are reading and what they can “listen” and “look” for.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.1 — Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.2 — Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.3 — Analyze how and why individuals, events, or ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.8 — Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.9 — Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.1 — Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
DISCUSSING COMPLEX PERSONAL NARRATIVES
Discussing stories that feature real people of different backgrounds and races along with complex societal issues can be emotional and even challenging. It is expected that readers will have varying views, and the series was designed to create an opportunity to discuss and share ideas. It may be helpful to know, however, that the primary goal of this series is for readers to learn about themselves through what they experience in the texts. By sharing in discussion, readers can see and understand how their own personal histories inform how they experience each piece and allow them to relate to the story. They can see how every reader has similar experiences in some way—a lens of a life through which to view the life of another.
It is helpful to remember that we all have a story and a history. All of our lives are relevant within discussion; however, the beauty of a democracy is that we each are able to have and express our own opinions. For this reason, and also to enjoy discussion as a learning experience for all, it is important that no one dominates the conversation and that all responses are respected and respectful.
Our ultimate goal is to learn from each other.
