Abstract
The significant role picture book biographies (PBBs) play when it comes to providing readers with a deeper understanding of ‘global connections and cultural diversity’ is evident in the research (Morgan, Early Childhood Educ J 37:219, 2009). This becomes even more important among gifted and talented readers who can use multicultural PBBs to know more intimately the life narratives of men and women who have achieved expertise and prominence in their respective fields and domains. Multicultural titles, in particular, would allow readers to see themselves as part of humanity and provide a window to other societies and lifestyles that may be unfamiliar to them. The use of biographies that focus on diverse populations allows students to see everyone as having equally high potential and helps develop an appreciation of alternative pathways to talent development and expertise. Based on a research project that looks into building a database of multicultural picture books for social and emotional learning, text-sets of PBBs by award-winning authors and artists have been compiled, representing different types of giftedness including artistic, literary, musical, athletic, leadership and intellectual skills. This would be linked to cognitive traits of the gifted and talented, social and emotional issues experienced by the gifted and social and emotional traits of gifted learners and the highly creative. The PBBs of resilient individuals who demonstrate sass and verve and grit and gumption despite misfortune and adversity will likewise be shared and discussed. Through these inspired and well-crafted biographies, it is hoped that teachers can scaffold gifted readers’ understandings of, and identification with, diverse people from around the world and come to realise how the road to excellence can prove to be an arduous, but meaningful journey.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Abellán-Pagnani, L., & Hébert, T. (2013). Using picture books to guide and inspire young gifted Hispanic students. Gifted Child Today, 36(1), 47–56.
Ash, V., & Barthelmess, T. (2011). What makes a good picture book biography? The Horn Book Magazine, 87(2), 40–45.
Bal, P. M., & Veltkamp, M. (2013). How does fiction reading influence empathy? An experimental investigation on the role of emotional transportation. PLoS One, 8(1), 1–12.
Banks, J. A. (2009). Teaching strategies for ethnic studies. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Bloom, B. (1985). Developing talent in young people. New York, NY: Ballantine Books.
Botelho, M. J., & Rudman, M. K. (2009). Critical multicultural analysis of children’s literature: Mirrors, windows, and doors. New York, NY: Routledge.
Buchori, S., & Dobinson, T. (2015). Diversity in teaching and learning: Practitioners’ perspectives in a multicultural early childhood setting in Australia. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 40(1), 71–79.
Chong, S. N. Y., & Cheah, H. M. (2010). Demographic trends: Impact on schools. New Horizons in Education, 58(1), 1–15.
Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning. (2013). CASEL schoolkit: A guide for implementing schoolwide academic, social, and emotional learning. Chicago, IL: Author.
Credé, M., Tynan, M. C., & Harms, P. D. (2017). Much ado about grit: A meta-analytic synthesis of the grit literature. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 113(3), 492–511. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspp0000102
Cross, T. L. (2005). The social and emotional lives of gifted kids: Understanding and guiding their development. Waco, TX: Prufrock Press.
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1997). Creativity: Flow and the psychology of discovery and invention. New York, NY: Harper Perennial.
Delisle, J. R. (2016). I’m tired of ‘grit. Education Week, 35(20), 20–21.
Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations for the Council of Australian Governments [DEEWR]. (2009). Belonging, being and becoming: The early years learning framework for Australia. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia.
Duckworth, A. L. (2016). Grit: The power of passion and perseverance. New York, NY: Scribner/Simon and Schuster.
Duckworth, A. L., Peterson, C., Matthews, M. D., & Kelly, D. R. (2007). Grit: Perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92(6), 1087–1101. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.92.6.1087
Ellis, A. K. (2007). Teaching and learning elementary social studies. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Ericsson, K. A., Charness, N., Feltovich, P. J., & Hoffman, R. R. (2006). The Cambridge handbook of expertise and expert performance. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511816796
Fears-Floyd, E., & Hebert, T. (2010). Using picture book biographies to nurture the talents of young gifted African American students. Gifted Child Today, 32(2), 38–46.
Ford, D. Y. (2011). Multicultural gifted education (2nd ed.). Waco, TX: Prufrock Press.
Ford, D. Y., Moore, J. L., & Harmon, D. A. (2005). Integrating multicultural and gifted education: A curricular framework. Theory Into Practice, 44(2), 125–137.
Ford, D. Y., Tyson, C. A., Howard, T. C., & Harris, J. J. (2000). Multicultural literature and gifted black students: Promoting self-understanding, awareness, and pride. Roeper Review, 22(4), 235–240.
Forss, P. (2007, 28 August). Queues form at Tanjong Katong Primary ahead of registration. The Straits Times. Singapore.
Furner, J. M. (2017). Helping all students become Einstein’s using bibliotherapy when teaching mathematics to prepare students for a STEM world. Pedagogical Research, 2(1), 1–11.
Galton, F. (1892). Hereditary genius: An inquiry into its laws and consequences. London, England: Macmillan.
Gay, G. (2000). Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, and practice. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.
Ghosh, K. (2015). Who’s afraid of the big bad wolf? Children’s responses to the portrayal of wolves in picturebooks. In J. Evans (Ed.), Challenging and controversial picturebooks (pp. 201–224). New York, NY: Routledge.
Goertzel, M. G., Goertzel, V., Goertzel, T. G., & Hansen, A. M. W. (2004). Cradles of eminence: Childhoods of more than 700 famous men and women. Scottsdale, AZ: Great Potential Press.
Gopalakrishnan, A. (2011). Multicultural children’s literature: A critical issues approach. California, USA: Sage.
Haigen, H., & Hao, Z. (2017). High achievers from low socioeconomic backgrounds: The critical role of disciplinary climate and grit. Mid-western Educational Researcher, 29(2), 93–116.
Harper, L. J. (2016). Using picture books to promote social-emotional literacy. Young Children, 71(3), 80–86.
Harper, L. J., & Trostle-Brand, S. (2010). More alike than different: Promoting respect through multicultural books and literacy strategies. Childhood Education, 86(4), 224–233.
Hebert, T. P. (1991). Meeting the affective needs of bright boys through bibliotherapy. Roeper Review, 13(4), 207–212.
Hebert, T. P., & Kent, R. (2000). Nurturing social and emotional development in gifted teenagers through young adult literature. Roeper Review, 22(3), 167–171.
Hebert, T. P., Long, L. A., & Speirs Neumeister, K. L. (2001). Using biography to counsel gifted young women. Journal of Secondary Gifted Education, 12(2), 62–79.
Hildreth, G. H. (1966). Introduction to the gifted. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Hollingworth, L. S. (1926). Gifted children: Their nature and nurture. New York, NY: Macmillan.
Hymel, S., Schonert-Reichl, K. A., & Miller, L. D. (2006). Reading, riting, rithmetic and relationships: Considering the social side of education. Exceptionality Education Canada, 16(2/3), 1–44.
Khum, K. C. O. (2013). Student teachers’ perceptions about multicultural education in Singapore. International Assembly at the National Council for Social Studies Conference, St. Louis, Missouri, USA, 22–24 November 2013. Retrieved from https://repository.nie.edu.sg/bitstream/10497/14620/1/International Assembly_National Council for Social Studies Conference-2013_a.pdf
Lukens, R. J., Smith, J. J., & Coffel, C. M. (2013). A critical handbook of children’s literature. Boston, MA: Pearson Education.
Montero, M. K., & Robertson, J. M. (2006). ‘Teachers can’t teach what they don’t know’: Teaching teachers about international and global children’s literature to facilitate culturally responsive pedagogy. Journal of Children’s Literature, 32(2), 27–35.
Morgan, H. (2009). Picture book biographies for young children: A way to teach multiple perspectives. Early Childhood Education Journal, 37(3), 219–227.
Nguyen, H. T. (2012). Culturally and linguistically diverse students with giftedness: How teachers and parents can support their academic and social needs. Multicultural Education, 19(2), 10–17.
Nikolajeva, M. (2013). Picturebooks and emotional literacy. The Reading Teacher, 67(4), 249–254. https://doi.org/10.1002/TRTR.1229
Pedersen, K. S., & Kitano, M. K. (2006). Designing a multicultural literature unit for gifted learners. Gifted Child Today, 29(2), 38–49.
Polette, N. (2009). Gifted biographies, gifted readers! Higher order thinking with picture book biographies. California, USA: Libraries Unlimited.
Rimm, S. B., Siegle, D., & Davis, G. A. (2018). Education of the gifted and talented (7th ed.). New Jersey, USA: Pearson.
Robinson, A., & Jolly, J. L. (2013). A century of contributions to gifted education: Illuminating lives. New York, NY: Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group.
Rycik, J. A., & Irvin, J. L. (2005). Teaching reading in the middle grades: Understanding and supporting literacy development. Boston, USA: Allyn & Bacon.
Salisbury, M., & Styles, M. (2012). Children’s picturebooks: The art of visual storytelling. London, England: Laurence King Publishing Ltd.
Schlichter, C. L., & Burke, M. (1994). Using books to nurture the social and emotional development of gifted students. Roeper Review, 16(4), 280–283.
Simonton, D. K. (2001). Talent development as multidimensional, multiplicative, and dynamic process. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 10(2), 39–43.
Sims Bishop, R. (2003). Reframing the debate about cultural authenticity. In D. L. Fox & K. G. Short (Eds.), Stories matter: The complexity of cultural authenticity in children’s literature (pp. 25–40). Illinois, USA: National Council of Teachers of English.
Smith, S. (2017). Responding to the unique social and emotional learning needs of gifted Australian students. In E. Frydenberg, A. J. Martin, & R. J. Collie (Eds.), Social and emotional learning in Australia and the Asia-Pacific (pp. 147–166). Singapore, Singapore: Springer Nature.
Stambaugh, T., & Ford, D. Y. (2015). Microaggressions, multiculturalism, and gifted individuals who are black, Hispanic, or low income. Journal of Counseling and Development, 93, 192–201.
Strayhorn, T. L. (2014). What role does grit play in the academic success of black male collegians at predominantly white institutions? Journal of African American Studies, 18(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12111-012-9243-0
Terman, L. (1925). Genetic studies of genius: Vol. 1. Mental and physical traits of a thousand gifted children. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Weingarten, S. (1956). Reading can help the gifted adolescent. The Reading Teacher, 26, 598–601.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Section Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2019 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
About this entry
Cite this entry
Garces-Bacsal, R.M. (2019). Of Grit and Gumption, Sass and Verve: What Gifted Students Can Learn From Multicultural Picture Book Biographies. In: Smith, S. (eds) Handbook of Giftedness and Talent Development in the Asia-Pacific. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-3021-6_18-1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-3021-6_18-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-13-3021-6
Online ISBN: 978-981-13-3021-6
eBook Packages: Springer Reference EducationReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Education
Publish with us
Chapter history
-
Latest
Of Grit and Gumption, Sass and Verve: What Gifted Students Can Learn From Multicultural Picture Book Biographies- Published:
- 14 August 2019
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-3021-6_18-2
-
Original
Of Grit and Gumption, Sass and Verve: What Gifted Students Can Learn From Multicultural Picture Book Biographies- Published:
- 22 June 2019
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-3021-6_18-1