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The CLA Blog

Season's Greetings & Winter Hiatus Announcement

12/20/2024

 
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Dear readers of the CLA Blog,

Thank you for reading the CLA Blog throughout the year. As schools and universities are moving into their winter breaks, the CLA Blog will take a winter hiatus until the second week of January.

We extend our wishes to you and yours for a lovely holiday season, full of the celebrations you cherish. May the new year be one of joy, peace, and humanity.

See you in January!

Warmly,

The CLA Blog Editors

Illuminating Children’s Literature Research: 2025 CLA Online Research Conference

12/10/2024

 

By Miriam Martinez and Jennifer Slagus on behalf of the CLA Online Research Conference Committee

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Imagine this: Spending an entire day immersed in the latest research on children’s literature. If you’re used to attending literacy conferences, you might think that’s not something that usually happens! So, how can you access such an experience? By attending the Children’s Literature Assembly Online Research Conference, of course!

This inaugural conference, sponsored by the Children’s Literature Assembly and the Mary Frances Early College of Education at the University of Georgia, promises a full day dedicated to Illuminating Children’s Literature Research in Theory and Practice.
Mark your calendars: The CLA Online Research Conference is scheduled for Friday, February 21st, 2025, from 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM ET.
Organized into three strands--research in theory, research in practice, and policy and politics—the conference will offer a rich array of the latest research in children’s literature. The keynote presentation will be given by Dr. Kathy Short, a leader in the field of children’s literature for three decades. Throughout the day, participants can choose from 20 different sessions featuring a wide range of international presenters. There will also be a journal editors session where attendees can meet with editors, learn about their publishing preferences, and discover upcoming calls for papers.

Whether you’re a faculty member planning your Spring syllabi for undergraduate or graduate classes, or a literacy leader planning your Spring professional development, or a teacher committed to using children’s literature in the classroom, the CLA Online Research Conference is a meaningful addition to those plans. Encourage your colleagues and students to attend. The discounted student registration rate is just $15.

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Registration is now open on the conference page on the CLA website, or at tinyurl.com/CLAonConf. The regular registration rate is $30, with a discounted rate of $15 for students.

We are excited to offer an accessible and affordable opportunity for students and established researchers to gather and learn about current children’s literature research in theory and practice. And we can hardly wait to see you on Friday, February 21st for an illuminating day of learning and rich discussion about research in children’s literature!
Please share the downloadable pdf flier widely! 
Your browser does not support viewing this document. Click here to download the document.
Miriam Martinez is a Professor Emerita of Literacy Education at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She is chair of CLA's endowment committee. 

Jennifer Slagus (they/she) is a doctoral candidate at Brock University in Ontario, Canada and a Visiting Assistant Librarian at the University of South Florida. They are the Chair of the CLA Student Committee.​

President's Message for the Fall 2024 Issue of the Journal of Children's Literature

11/19/2024

 

By Xenia Hadjioannou

As I am writing this letter, it is early fall in Pennsylvania. Though short sleeves are still in order, the leaves are beginning to turn, signaling changes that are just around the corner. By the time the editorial process of this fall issue of the Journal of Children’s Literature is completed, copyediting and design are finalized, and the finished journal is published on the CLA website, weeks will have gone by, and we will be a breath away from the 2024 NCTE Convention in Boston, Massachusetts.

The 2024 annual NCTE Convention will mark a significant anniversary for CLA, as fifty years prior, during the 1974 NCTE Convention in New Orleans, Louisiana, “a plan was made to form a Children’s Literature Assembly” (Gleason, 1975, p. 4) and a formal proposal was submitted to NCTE for its establishment. The proposal was accepted in 1975, and the assembly began its work as a formalized group. However, as journal issues take significant time and require a lot of hard, dedicated work by many people to develop and bring to the public, so did establishing the Children’s Literature Assembly. As Amy McClure (2015), our CLA historian, notes in an article commemorating and reflecting upon CLA’s forty years, the formation of the assembly was decades in the making. She adds,
It is a story that transcends geography, professional role, age, ethnicity, and gender (Kromann-Kelly, 1986). It is also a story of passionate commitment, hard work, stimulating ideas, and determination— all for the purpose of ensuring that both teachers and librarians have the knowledge and dedication to share high-quality, intellectually engaging, culturally responsive, and pleasurable books with children. (p. 69)
In recognition and appreciation of the dedicated commitment of the many people who have contributed to CLA both prior and since its establishment, in NCTE 2024, we will kick off a year of celebrations of CLA’s fifty years and of reflective engagements with our assembly’s past and future. Visit the CLA Booth in the Exhibit Hall (Booth #235), which is hosted by the Ways and Means Committee, to catch a glimpse of the amazing artwork included in this year’s Art Auction and to browse the commemorative fundraising items we have created for CLA’s fiftieth. Also, save spots on your conference schedules for the CLA-sponsored events: the Notables Session during which members of the Notables Committee and book creators will talk about books on the 2024 Notables list; the CLA Expert Class, which will explore biographies and their rich potential in the classroom; and the CLA Breakfast, which will feature Lesa Cline-Ransome and James Ransome as keynote speakers.

In February, join us for the inaugural installment of the Children’s Literature Assembly Online Research Conference CLA is cosponsoring with the Mary Frances Early College of Education at the University of Georgia. The conference, which aims to be a forum for researchers of children’s literature to share their work and exchange ideas, is supported by the CLA Endowment Fund. Save the date for Friday, February 21, 2025, and visit the CLA website for conference information and updates.

In concluding my fourth and last President’s Letter for the Journal of Children’s Literature, I wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude to all who have been part of CLA’s journey along, and before, its fifty years of existence. CLA has remained a thriving organization because of the passion and dedication of everyone who has been a member, everyone who has contributed to our programming in any way, everyone who has read and learned from JCL, and everyone who has attended our events and returned to their classrooms, libraries, and homes and made sure that great books made it into the
hands of children.

In gratitude,

Xenia Hadjioannou
CLA President
References
Gleason, G. (1975, March). Reprise. CLA Newsletter, 1(1), 1–4.

McClure, A. (2015). The Children’s Literature Assembly: 40 years of passionate commitment to children and their books. Journal of Children’s Literature, 41(2), 69–76.
Xenia Hadjioannou is associate professor of language and literacy education at the Berks campus of Penn State University. She is president of the Children’s Literature Assembly of NCTE and NCTE representative to the USBBY Board.

CLA @NCTE 2024

Notables Session
CLA Art Auction
Expert Class
50th anniversary commemorative items
2024 CLA Breakfast
Membership raffle

Attending NCTE 2024: Reflections from the Recipients of the Vivian Yenika-Agbaw Student Conference Grant

11/11/2024

 

By Amber Moore and Joshua Palange

EDITORIAL NOTE

Children's literature scholarship and teaching praxis are at the heart of the Children's Literature Assembly. Undergraduate and graduate students who engage with children's literature are vital contributors to conversations in the field and to our future as a disciplinary community. To facilitate student participation in the assembly, CLA offers discounted memberships to students and has established the CLA Student Committee. The committee is exclusively composed of CLA student members and contributes substantively to CLA programming and other work. Each year, the CLA student committee organizes webinars whose recordings are available in the members-only section of the CLA website, recommends student representatives to standing CLA committees, and contributes volunteers to CLA's activities at the annual NCTE Conference.

Recognizing the significance of attending and presenting at national conferences for our student members' careers and aware of the financial burden conference attendance can pose, CLA has created the Vivian Yenika Agbaw Student Conference Grant. Named after the late Vivian Yenika-Agbaw, notable children's literature scholar and editor of the Journal of Children's Literature, the grants help defray registration and travel costs for the NCTE conference. They are managed by the CLA student committee and are awarded yearly dependent on available funding.

This year's grant recipients are Amber Moore, Ph.D. student at North Carolina State University, and Josh Palange, Master's in Library Science student at the University of Southern Mississippi. Below you will find their reflective notes on their upcoming travel to Boston for the 2024 NCTE Conference.

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  • Annual Student CLA Membership: $20
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The Vivian Yenika-Agbaw Student Conference Grant is supported by donations. Every donation makes a difference.
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2024 Student Conference Grant Recipients: Amber Moore & Josh Palange

At the Intersection of Gratitude and Hope

Boston, Massachusetts, "The Walking City." When NCTE announced their conference location this year, my heart leaped. Walking has always been my meditation, my way of processing the world one step at a time. That was until October 17th, when a car struck me in a crosswalk while walking my dog. While he emerged unscathed , I found myself navigating an unexpected landscape of fear and, surprisingly, profound gratitude.
 
There's a particular kind of fear that settles into your bones after an accident – the kind that makes you flinch at passing headlights and hold your breath at every intersection or car honking. But there's also a particular kind of healing that happens when you're surrounded by a community of literature teachers, those who understand that every human story carries both shadow and light.
 
This isn't a story about toxic positivity or rushing past the hard parts. Instead, it's about the way words and people can hold us when we're broken, how literacy becomes a bridge back to ourselves and each other. It feels fitting that NCTE's theme this year is "Heart, Hope, and Humanity" – three things I've found in abundance in my academic family. And so, I’d like to use this word-count to express my thanks to those who have had a pivotal role in reigniting my excitement to attend the conference this year.
 
To Dr. Angela Wiseman: You've taught me that vulnerability isn't just about being seen – it's about creating spaces where others feel brave enough to be seen too. Your brilliance is matched only by your compassion, and you've shown me how to wear both with grace.
 
To Dr. Crystal Chen Lee: You embody what it means to create belonging. Your heart-centered approach to scholarship reminds me daily that academic work is, at its core, human work.
 
To Samantha Duke: In letting me step back, you've helped me step forward. You've shown me that control isn't always about holding on – sometimes it's about trusting enough to let go.
 
To Callie Hammond: In your understanding, I've found reflection. In your friendship, I've found refuge.
 
As I prepare to walk the streets of Boston (more cautiously now, but still determined), I'm reminded of why we teach literature in the first place. We teach it because stories help us make sense of our wounds and our wonders. We teach it because every student carries within them a universe of potential, waiting to be recognized and realized.

When we dream about change, we're really dreaming about connection – the kind I've found in this community of literacy teachers and readers of the world who rallied around me. They remind me that education at its best is an act of hope, a belief that through words and understanding, we can build something better than what we inherited.

So thank you to these women, these scholars, these keepers of stories and hope. Through you, I've learned that our strongest moments often come not in our independence, but in the gentle acceptance of our interconnectedness. I cannot wait to walk the streets of Boston with you!

Amber Moore

NCTE Scheduled Sessions:
  • Current Conversations about Young Adult Literature in the Classroom- "Turning Pages, Nurturing Hearts: YA Literature as Shepherds through Grief, Loss and Mourning." with Dr. Angela Wiseman | Nov. 22, 9:30-10:45
  • "Preserving Dignity through Memory and Critical Literacy with Honor to the Japanese American Experience during WWII-Era Incarceration" with Dr. Crystal Chen Lee, Dr. Cathlin Goulding of the Yuri Education Project, and author, Emily Inouye Huey | Nov. 24 10:30-11:45

A Note of Thanks

Going to NCTE this year is really special. I've just recently transitioned careers toward librarianship, (I graduate with my MLIS in December!) after working as a children's writer and an English educator for several years, so I'm excited to look at the conference from a different perspective and lens. It's also special to have the opportunity to hear Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson speak at the conference, among other social justice activists. We live in a trying time, and staying organized and always striving for equity in our stewardship is important.

I'm thankful for The Vivian Yenika-Agbaw Student Conference Grant which is giving me the opportunity to attend, I can't wait to explore the conference and the great city of Boston.

Josh Palange


CLA @ NCTECLA @NCTE

2024 Notables Session
Expert Class session
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Cards and Tote bags celebrating CLA's 50th will be availabe at NCTE 2024

Get Ready for the CLA Art Auction-November 22-24

11/5/2024

 

By Ally Hauptman on behalf of CLA's Ways and Means Committee

As the NCTE Conference approaches, we want to give you every detail about the CLA Art Auction, so you are ready to bid and acquire an amazing piece of art! Every year we work with publishers and illustrators to collect original pieces of artwork from children’s books or rare prints for purchase through the auction. 

The auction is important because CLA uses the funds raised to support the major goals of the organization:
  • Promoting the use of high-quality children’s books in classrooms (PreK-8) 
  • Supporting research focused on children’s literature
Now more than ever it is essential to recognize and get quality children’s literature in the hands of students and teachers.  We feel our work in this area is critical, not only for the literacy growth of children but also for the continued love of language and story.

This auction spans starts Friday, November 22 at 10 AM EST and concludes on Sunday, November 24 at 8:45 AM EST at the end of the 2024 CLA Breakfast. These beautiful pieces will be on display at the CLA Booth (Booth #235) and then at the CLA Breakfast on Sunday morning.

2024 CLA Art Auction Preview

 Visit our Art Auction page for a better view of the stunning pieces of artwork that could be yours and to read their individual descriptions!
Now that you have seen the pieces and know what you want, let’s talk about how you can bid! You can find detailed information about our auction procedures in our Bidding FAQs or see below for directions on how to bid and get started on November 22nd.

How to Bid
  1. To get to the CLA 32Auctions page follow the URL www.32auctions.com/CLA2024  or use the QR Code. 
  2. If you do not already have a 32Auctions account, follow the Create an Account link to establish one.
  3. Click on "View All Items" to see all the pieces of art available
    • Use the heart icon to add items to your watch-list.
  4. Click on an artwork that interests you and type in a bid that is higher than the previous one by at least $10.
  5. Revisit the platform during the bidding time frame and make new bids as you see fit.

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www.32auctions.com/CLA2024

Each year, the CLA Auction is made possible thanks to the generous support of publishers, book creators, and other children's literature people who donate art for the auction.

Thank You!

Amy Beaudoin @ Simon & Schuster
Avery Cook @ Nosy Crow
Elissa Gershowitz @ Hornbook
Anne Irza-Leggat @ Candlewick Press
Mimi Rankin @ HarperCollins
Donna Spurlock @ Charlesbridge
Jennifer Steinhagen @ Sourcebooks

Sarah S. Brannen
Lesa Cline-Ransome
Rob Dunlavey

James Ransome
* Listed alphabetically.
Ally Hauptman is Assistant Dean for Teacher Education and the lead faculty for Instructional Practice at Lipscomb University. She is a member of CLA's Ways and Means committee and serves of the award committee for CLA's Notable Children’s Books in the Language Arts.

CLA at NCTE 2024

CLA is celebrating its 50 years. Fundraising celebratory items available at NCTE 2024
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Celebrating the 2024 Notable Children's Books in the Language Arts

10/28/2024

 

Patrick Andrus on behalf of the Notables Committee

Notables Session at NCTE 2024: Saturday, November 23rd, in room 157C of the convention center
The lazy days of summer are behind us, and the excitement of a new school year in September has come and gone. Teachers, students, and readers have settled in with their favorite new books over the course of October. As November approaches, so does the anticipation of the annual NCTE Convention, and this year, attendees will head to the literary city of Boston.

The NCBLA (Notable Children’s Books in Language Arts) Committee is eagerly preparing for our presentation during the convention. The seven-member committee, along with several award-winning authors, will present the top thirty titles chosen for the 2024 Notables list in the genres of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.

On the afternoon of Saturday, November 23rd, in room 157C of the convention center, committee members and authors will share the best of the best, hoping that teachers, educators, authors, and readers of all kinds will leave the presentation with a list of thirty titles they can use and share in their classrooms on the Monday after the convention.

Here are the authors who will be presenting alongside the committee:
  • James Bird, author of No Place Like Home
  • Shelly Brown, author of The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry
  • Elaine Dimopoulos, author of The Remarkable Rescue at Milkweed Meadow
  • Dana Kramaroff, author of The Do More Club
  • Jessica Lanan, author of Jumper (A Day in the Life of a Backyard Jumping Spider)
  • Kari Lavelle, author of Butt or Face? (Can You Tell Which End You’re Looking At?)
  • Jarrett Lerner, author of A Work in Progress
  • Katherine Pryor, author of Home is Calling:  The Journey of the Monarch Butterfly
  • Traci Sorell, author of Mascot
  • Charles Waters, author of Mascot
James Bird, author of No Place Like Home
Shelly Brown, author of The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry
Elaine Dimopoulos, author of The Remarkable Rescue at Milkweed Meadow
Dana Kramaroff, author of The Do More Club
Jessica Lanan, author of Jumper (A Day in the Life of a Backyard Jumping Spider)
Kari Lavelle, author of Butt or Face? (Can You Tell Which End You’re Looking At?)
Jarrett Lerner, author of A Work in Progress
Katherine Pryor, author of Home is Calling: The Journey of the Monarch Butterfly
Charles Waters, author of Mascot
During the seventy-five-minute presentation, titles from the NCBLA 2024 list will be shared. Each book will be presented by a committee member and/or the author. Short summaries will be provided, along with ideas on how the books can be used with young readers. The presenting authors will share their relationship with the selected title, as well as insights into their writing craft and how the stories were constructed. There will also be time for audience questions for the panel of authors.

A highlight of the presentation will be the raffle at the end of the session. All attendees will have a chance to win one of the thirty titles being presented. The excitement of the winners is always palpable and makes for an excellent way to close the session.

About the Notable Children’s Books in the Language Arts Award

The seven-member national committee's charge is to select 30 books that best exemplify the criteria established for the Notables Award. Books considered for this annual list are works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry written for children in grades K-8. The selected books must:
  1. Deal explicitly with language, such as plays on words, word origins, or the history of language.
  2. Demonstrate uniqueness in the use of language or style.
  3. Invite child response or participation.
  4. Have an appealing format.
  5. Be of enduring quality.
  6. Meet generally accepted criteria of quality for the genre in which they are written.

A Special Preview Treat:

Here are some special book highlights from two authors that are unable to share their award winning books at the conference.

DK Ryland shares her book
Giraffe is Too Tall for This Book

Amanda Hill shares her book
Once Upon a Family

If you're interested in applying for the next award season, please contact Patrick Andrus, the current Chair, at [email protected]. New committee members will be selected in March 2025.


The committee members and authors are excited to share these incredible, strong, and important stories with young readers. See you in Boston!

Patrick Andrus is a fourth-grade teacher in the district of Eden Prairie, Minnesota.  He is currently in his thirty-fourth year of teaching.  He is the current chair of the Notables Children Books in Language Arts committee (NCBLA).  Patrick also served three years on the Charlotte Huck Book Award Committee. 
2024 Notable Children’s Books in the Language Arts Selection Committee Members

Fran Wilson, Chair, Madeira Elementary School, Ohio
Patrick Andrus, Eden Prairie School District, Minnesota
Dorian Harrison, Ohio State University at Newark
Ally Hauptman, Lipscomb University, Tennessee
Joyce Herbeck, Montana State University
Laura Hudock, Framingham State University, Massachusetts
Lynette Smith, Walden University, Pennsylvania

Other CLA Events @NCTE2024

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Exploring Heart & Hope with Biographies: The 2024 CLA Expert Class

10/21/2024

 

By Mary Ann Cappiello, Sara K. Sterner, and Kathy Short

Saturday, November 23, 2024 from 5:45 PM - 7:00 PM EST  Room 102 A, Boston Convention & Exhibition Center
Official Session Link: Children’s Literature Assembly Expert Class: Exploring Heart & Hope with Biographies
The Biography Clearinghouse
The Children’s Literature Assembly (CLA) has sponsored a Master Class at the annual NCTE Convention since 1994. This guaranteed session provides K-12 teachers and teacher educators with the opportunity to gain insight about the use of children’s literature through interactions with leading scholars, authors, and illustrators in the field. In 2023 at our 30th Annual session, we debuted our new name: the Expert Class.
 
In collaboration with The Biography Clearinghouse, an affiliated project of The Children’s Literature Assembly, the 31st annual Expert Class, “Exploring Heart & Hope with Biographies,” showcases the many ways in which picturebook biographies can be used across the curriculum for a range of purposes. This is an exciting opportunity to expand engagement with biographies as well as increase participants' biography related repertoire in their classrooms.  
 
The concept of “a biography clearinghouse” began at the 2018 NCTE convention in Houston, when author Barb Rosenstock asked what could be done to go beyond genre study and elevate the role of biography in classrooms across the curriculum. Ideas began to percolate amongst Barb, former members of NCTE’s Orbis Pictus Committee, and fellow author Tonya Bolden, and while sheltering at home at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the team created “The Biography Clearinghouse.” Readers of the CLA blog may already be familiar with the work that appeared here 2020-2023.

The Biography Clearinghouse believes that:

  • High-quality, well-written biographies are multidimensional and multi-layered. As students explore the ways in which the book operates, and the decisions the author and illustrator made, they also use the biographies as vehicles for learning about the world.
  • Because of the increasing diversity of subjects, biographies are one of our best tools for diversifying the curriculum K-8.
  • Biographies can infuse the language arts, science, social studies, math, and integrated arts curriculum with models of agency and perseverance.
 
To help facilitate this work in K-8 classrooms, the Clearinghouse created a three-part framework: Investigate, Explore, and Create.
Inverstigate, Explore, Create Framework
This year’s class provides a unique opportunity for rich discussions about and experiences with picturebook biographies. After an initial introduction to the Investigate-Explore-Create framework, participants will rotate between four roundtables to experience activities and conversations rooted in each component. At one table, Barb Rosenstock and Scott Riley will focus on “Investigate,” and engage in conversation about the process of researching and writing biographies. Participants will “Explore” content and disciplinary thinking with Amina Chaudhri at one table and socio-emotional learning with Jenn Graff at another. At the fourth roundtable, Erika Thulin Dawes will engage attendees in the final part of the framework, “Create.”
 
We’ll conclude the session by sharing a Library Thing database of over 350 picturebook biographies (with tags)! This process will allow attendees to engage in dialogue about the power of biography and consider new ways to conceptualize how to bring the genre into their classes with more heart and hope. Everyone will leave the 2024 Expert Class filled with the wonder of biographies and ideas for new opportunities to bring biographies into the lives of children and tweens.
 
We are excited to share this biography party with you!  While building connections and learning together, we’ll share some vegan and gluten-free snacks (it’s late afternoon, and everyone might be a bit peckish). The Expert Class will close with the awarding of biography-based door prizes to bring home along with your new ideas and expertise.

Mary Ann Cappiello, Sara K. Sterner, and Kathy Short serve as the 2024 CLA Expert Class Committee.
 
  • Mary Ann is a Professor of Language & Literacy at Lesley University
  • Sara is an Associate Professor of Elementary Education at Cal-Poly Humboldt University and a CLA Board Member
  • Kathy is a Professor of Teaching, Learning & Sociocultural Studies at The University of Arizona and a CLA Board Member

Other CLA offerings during NCTE 2024

Notables
CLA Breakfast
Art Auction

2024 CLA Breakfast Preview: Meet the Ransomes

10/15/2024

 

by Jeanne Gilliam Fain & Susan Polos (2024 CLA Breakfast Co-Chairs)

Every year, the Children's Literature Assembly hosts the CLA Breakfast during the annual NCTE Conference. This year, we are delighted to feature as keynote speakers award-winning author Lesa-Cline Ransome and award-winning illustrator James Ransome.

Lesa Cline-Ransome and James Ransome are significant and prolific figures in the world of children’s literature. Lesa has written over 25 picture books, five middle grade or YA novels, biographies, a collective biography, and she has contributed to several anthologies. James Ransome has illustrated over 70
picture books, often, but not always, partnering with Lesa. James Ransome was named the winner of the 2023 Children’s Literature Legacy Award; he has previously won the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award and the Illustrator Honors Award. Lesa has won Coretta Scott King Author Honor Awards, the Scott O’Dell Award, and other honors.

James and Lesa’s most recent collaborations include Fighting with Love: the Legacy of John Lewis (2024) and They Call Me Teach: Lessons in Freedom (2024). Fighting with Love is a nonfiction picture book chronicling the life of civil rights hero John Lewis, from his childhood through his work in government and in resistance. They Call Me Teach: Lessons in Freedom captures an important historical truth: the risks taken by enslaved people to teach each other to read and write. Lesa Cline-Ransome’s most recent chapter book is One Big Open Sky (2024), a verse novel told in three intergenerational perspectives telling of the Black homesteader movement, another aspect of history seldom shared in textbooks.
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Lesa Cline-Ransome
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James Ransome
Fighting with Love Cover
Lesa and James value the stories that we need to know from history. They often ask each other the questions, “Have you heard this?” or “Did you know this?” and these questions often lead them to write about stories and “the humanity of people whose stories have never been told.” You won’t want to miss Lesa and James as they provide us with incredible insights into their work during the 2024 CLA Breakfast on Sunday, November 24th, starting at 7 am ET  (Room 210A, Convention Center, Level 2).
Here’s an excerpt from our interview with them:

Lesa: Our newest, the book that came out this month, is John Lewis: Fighting With Love. I said to James after he finished the illustrations, and I never say this because I have to live with James, so what I don’t want is for James to get a head so big he can’t come into the house, “This book is outstanding.” He’ll tell you, I very rarely say that. I say, “James, it’s beautiful. Good job,” but rarely, “outstanding.”   Every time I look at this book I find something else to love. It is a balance of writing and illustration and the way they seamlessly came together. It is the story of Congressman John Lewis, who James and I have both loved and admired. James pitched this to our editor several years ago. Was I involved? Nope.  Because sometimes James just pitches a project to an editor and the next thing that I know I am writing with him.
 
James: Well, I always discuss them with you. Well except the time with Game Changers: The Story of Venus and Serena Williams. I’d been asking, begging Lesa, I think after she wrote Satchel Paige, that was the book I asked her to write…
Lesa and James are a powerful author and illustrator team. Their banter is real and genuine. Separately and together, they embrace the power of writing, illustrating, and sharing critical stories with their readers. We came away feeling excited for the CLA Breakfast where we know Lesa and James will share their extraordinary expertise along with their unique and important perspectives. They understand the responsibility of stories that add to our understanding of history.
2024 CLA Breakfast

Special Thanks To

Simon & Schuster for sponsoring Lesa and James' participation and donating books for the breakfast.
Simon & Schuster logo
Candlewick and Holiday House for donating books for the breakfast.
Candlewick press logo
Holiday House Logo
Jeanne Gilliam Fain is a professor in the College of Education at Lipscomb University and she is the Director of MLL/ELL program. Her scholarship agenda includes a focus on Literacy, Literature, and Language Study in K-12 classrooms. She served as chair of the Notable in Children’s Language Arts Award and she currently serves as current chair of the Notable Books for a Global Society. She is 2024 co-chair of the CLA Breakfast Committee.

Susan Polos is the middle school librarian at Greenwich Country Day School (Greenwich, CT). She has served on the Coretta Scott King, Newbery, and Pura Belpré book award juries. Currently, she serves Assistant Chair of the Outstanding International Books Committee for the United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY), is a co-chair of the Breakfast Committee for the Children's Literature Assembly, and is a member of the Archives and History Committee of the Coretta Scott King Book Award Community. 

CLA at NCTE 2024

For further details about the breakfast and other CLA sessions and activities during NCTE 2024, visit our CLA@NCTE page.

2024 CLA Breakfast with Lesa Cline-Ransome and James Ransome

10/8/2024

 

by Jeanne Gilliam Fain & Susan Polos (2024 CLA Breakfast Co-Chairs)

We invite you to join us for our annual Children’s Literature Assembly Breakfast at the 2024 NCTE Convention, featuring the award-winning author Lesa Cline-Ransome and the award-winning illustrator James Ransome. Our breakfast is on Sunday, November 24th, starting at 7 am (ET) and takes place in Convention Center, Level 2 in Room 210A. 

The CLA breakfast is an event that you will not want to miss. We will present awards, have an art auction and book raffle, and then Lesa Cline-Ransome and James Ransome will speak and sign books afterwards! You need a ticket to attend the CLA breakfast. If you have already registered for the NCTE Conference but would like to purchase a ticket, the easiest way to do this is to call NCTE directly at (877) 369-6283. 

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Lesa Cline-Ransome and James Ransome are significant and prolific figures in the world of children’s literature. Lesa has written over 25 picture books, five middle grade or YA novels, biographies, a collective biography, and she has contributed to several anthologies. James Ransome has illustrated over 70 picture books, often, but not always, partnering with Lesa. James Ransome was named the winner of the 2023 Children’s Literature Legacy Award; he has previously won the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award and the Illustrator Honors Award. Lesa has won Coretta Scott King Author Honor Awards, the Scott O’Dell Award, and other honors. 

Lesa and James value the stories that we need to know from history. They both often ask the questions, “Have you heard this?” or “Did you know this?” and these questions often lead them to write about, as Lesa states, “the humanity of people whose stories have never been told.” They will enlighten and inspire you with the powerful stories behind their work.

If you regularly attend the CLA Breakfasts at NCTE, you know what a wonderful experience they are! But if you haven’t, we welcome you to join us! It’s a positive opportunity to meet other people who are passionate about children’s literature, hear about an amazing author and an illustrator, purchase raffle tickets for wonderful books, and, if you are so inclined, bid on art from children’s illustrators! We hope to see you there!


Jeanne Gilliam Fain is a professor in the College of Education at Lipscomb University and she is the Director of MLL/ELL program. Her scholarship agenda includes a focus on Literacy, Literature, and Language Study in K-12 classrooms. She served as chair of the Notable in Children’s Language Arts Award and she currently serves as current chair of the Notable Books for a Global Society. She is 2024 co-chair of the CLA Breakfast Committee.

Susan Polos is the middle school librarian at Greenwich Country Day School (Greenwich, CT). She has served on the Coretta Scott King, Newbery, and Pura Belpré book award juries. Currently, she serves Assistant Chair of the Outstanding International Books Committee for the United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY), is a co-chair of the Breakfast Committee for the Children's Literature Assembly, and is a member of the Archives and History Committee of the Coretta Scott King Book Award Community. 

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2024 Children’s Literature Assembly Board Elections: Meet the Candidates

9/24/2024

 

By Ruth Lowery, Chair of CLA's Nominating Committee

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Children's literature remains an important vehicle to introduce young children to the diverse world around them. Young readers get excited as they explore their lived world through exposure to works like The Snowy Day (Keats, 1962), Goodnight Moon (Brown, 1947), Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (Martin & Archambault, 1989), and Thank You, Omu! (Mora, 2018). They learn the nuances of storytelling, sounds and word recognition, and simply how to live in the moment as they discover the beauty of listening, then discovering their universe. 

The Children’s Literature Assembly (CLA) continues to champion the value of literature for young readers. The CLA advocates for a “teacher's privilege and responsibility to help students discover the joy of reading, while they also teach students how to internalize the skills and strategies of fluent reading." Literature advocates want children to be critical citizens of the world, so we advocate for sharing high quality, culturally diverse books with them. 

Although some groups want to limit children’s access to books based on their content, working to remove diverse books from library shelves, we concur with the International Literacy Association (ILA) that children have the “basic human right to read." So, as we embark on the 2024 election season for the next three board members who will be selected to serve the CLA for a three-years term, we are excited to share with you the slate of nominees. These nominees are book lovers and reading advocates, eager and willing to take the mantle and continue this work of sharing wonderful books with young readers, librarians, teachers, teacher educators, authors and illustrators, and all stakeholders interested in reading and sharing quality children’s literature. ​

Meet the Candidates

Suriati Abas
State University of New York (SUNY) Oneonta


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​Dr. Suriati Abas is an assistant professor teaching children's literature and literacy education at SUNY Oneonta. Her research encompasses promoting diverse children’s literature through collaborative community-based work involving pre-service teachers, elementary-age children, teachers, public libraries, and picture book authors and graphic novelists. As a CLA Board Member, Suriati hopes to focus on developing strategies to combat censorship, expanding CLA's outreach to educators, and initiating conversations on critical multimodal approaches to children's literature.

Mary Ellen Oslick
Stetson University
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​Dr. Mary Ellen Oslick is a literacy faculty member at Stetson University in Florida. Her research focuses on the transformative power of literature. She has been involved with CLA in various capacities including serving on the Early Career Award committee and chairing the Bonnie Campbell Hill National Literacy Leader Award committee. As a CLA Board Member, Mary Ellen wants to continue to emphasize the vital work of supporting the integration of high-quality children’s literature in all classrooms for all readers.


Rebecca Stortz
The University of Texas at San Antonio
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​Dr. Rebecca Stortz is a literacy faculty member in the educator preparation program at UTSA. An active member of CLA, she amplifies and uplifts the voices of authors and illustrators from diverse perspectives through her teaching of children’s and young adult literature. She is also passionate about developing innovative and effective ways for preservice and inservice teachers to delve deeply into stories and bring them to life for their own students. As a CLA Board Member, Rebecca hopes to encourage literacy research surrounding children’s and young adult literature, seeking ways to promote our assembly’s work and knowledge via non-traditional avenues such as exciting new virtual education spaces.

Dorian Harrison
The Ohio State University
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​Dr. Dorian Harrison is an associate professor of literacy at Ohio State University. Her research is grounded in equity and social justice, as she utilizes literature as a tool for critical explorations of self and the world. She has been active in CLA, serving as a member of the Notables Children's Books in the Language Arts (NCBLA). As a CLA Board Member, Dorian wants to play an active role in continuing to help champion access to great literature.
​


Jennifer Slagus
Brock University (Canada) & University of South Florida

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Jennifer Slagus is a librarian at the University of South Florida. She is also completing her doctoral dissertation at Brock University. Her research focuses on neurodivergent representation in middle grade literature. She has been involved with CLA, serving as chair of the student committee and on the organizing committee for the inaugural CLA Research Conference. As a CLA Board Member, Jennifer hopes to provide early-career perspectives on policies and decision-making to continue strengthening the impact that the organization makes on the literacy field.

Meghan Valerio
District Literacy Coach, Canfield Local Schools, Ohio

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Dr. Meghan Valerio, a District Literacy Coach (K-12), sees children’s literature as essential in children’s lives. She currently serves as co-chair of the 2024 CLA Breakfast Committee and has served CLA in various capacities. Meghan’s research explores children’s and YA literature through various textual formats, seeking patterns and pathways that can provide teachers and young readers with frameworks for understanding. As a CLA Board Member, Meghan wants to continue to advocate for teachers as they integrate authentic and diverse children’s literature in their curriculum.

We invite you to visit CLA's Elections Page to learn more about these candidates. Also, we encourage CLA members to watch their email inboxes for a link to vote. Voting will be September 30 - October 10, 2024, and accessing the ballot will require logging in to CLA. The newly elected Board members will be announced during the CLA Breakfast at the 2024 National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Convention in November.
Ruth Lowery is Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Faculty Affairs in the College of Education of the University of North Texas. She is immediate past president of CLA and chair of the Nominating Committee.
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