Kids and their Stuff

I was amazed although not really surprised to read how much tweens value their material posessions. It seems clear that they believe that having certain "hot" items will help their social lives and self esteem, but I wonder why more of them do not realize that things do not solve problems. It was powerful to read about praise that helps them devalue the material stuff, but how can we as adults in their lives implement that praise in a meaningful and comprehensive way? I try to do my part with the kids I see every day, but does praise from me help kids who are constantly criticized at home? I think it's hard to gauge.

There was a great article in the New York Times Sunday Magazine that addressed gay youth, specifically tweens starting to come out to their peers and parents. This phenomenon is a cry for support from the adults who are meaningful in their lives. By accepting them for who they are we can take a giant step towards giving them the self concept and self esteem they need to let go of the material obsession and grow into productive, thoughtful adults. One school in California was a great example: the teachers came together to shun gay bashing and demoralizing comments and within a couple years many students came out to their classmates, friends, teachers and parents. They also started a Gay Straight Alliance that has become the most popular club at the school. Acceptance, even if not demonstratively vocalized can be a powerful tool to promote kids' self concept and self esteem.

The Evolution of Graphic Novels

It is fascinating to see the origins of today's comic books and graphic novels because it reflects a significant shift in our literacy to one that is more visual and multi-faceted. The political cartoons of the nineteenth century marked a starting point in American culture where we began to demand visuals from the media. Although, communicating through pictures is an ancient technique the political cartoons marked a change in how that form of communication was utilized. The funnies and comics in the newspapers provided entertainment AND often social commentary, which is what graphic novels now do encased in their own bindings. The shift illustrates that each generation has become more visually oriented than the previous, with the current youth population completely ruled by a series of screens and imagery. In some ways it allows the popular culture to be disseminated to them faster and allows it to contain more complexities, but it is certain that the visuals that we are surrounded by every day (especially in the city) are constantly affecting how tweens interact with each other and the world around them. Their communication with others and interpretation of the world that they inhabit evolves as the culture becomes better at communicating visually. This doesn't mean that the written word is less important, but that it is now a part of a larger literacy machine that uses pictures, videos, music and words together.

Diary of a phenomenon

It is amazing how popular the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series has become with tween readers. The books are well designed for that age group and the illustrations are playful and have a powerful draw on reluctant readers, but there is something about Greg Heffley that is almost universally relatable. Many protagonists of tween literature are presented as model students and examples for them to follow, but Greg is not. Instead he is almost painfully average and kind of mediocre. He doesn't always make good decisions and there aren't always consequences for his negative actions. In short, he is normal! If those character traits are combined with the typeface that looks like handwriting and the embellished stick figure illustrations, it makes for a tween reading sensation that spans into teen and younger child age groups. I can't wait for the newest one to come out next month!