Lesson: Deanna Singh, a former colleague of my husband, recently published a children’s book entitled I am a boy of color. Not long ago, I had the pleasure of meeting her and she spoke of her inspiration behind writing the book. She briefly shared with me the moment she was prompted to start writing. The message of her book is for her three sons. They were her inspiration as she began the journey! The story of her commencement to this path was very moving and encouraged me to purchase the book for my son!

This book has a message for every young boy AND girl, as well as for everyone who interacts with children of color on any level. It’s a message of loving oneself, seeing possibilities within, knowing who you are, and embracing inner love and joy. It’s a message of hope, a hope that every child should have and keep tucked in their heart as they grow and mature into adulthood. It is also a message to others who see boys of color everyday. It encourages people to look beyond their skin tone and see their heart and potential for greatness. The illustrations in this book are breathtaking! The many images of so many little boys of varying shades of color and smiles could light up a room because they were so vivid and real. The positive messages jump off the pages with the vibrancy of the illustrations!

Interestingly, this book took me back to my original blog post topic and the reason of why I am an educator and why I write this blog. Building strong children! As Frederick Douglas once said, “It’s easier to build strong children then to repair broken men.” This book builds strong children!

Our children need to see images in front of them that are inspiring, that help them to be confident, believe in themselves, love what they see in the mirror and give them hope even when things look hopeless around them.

What I love most about this book is at the end there are two empty mirrors that encourage the child reading the book to draw an image of what they see when they look at themselves. It’s a great opportunity for parents and children to talk through the deeper meaning of the book. A moment where parents can build up their children and help them embrace what they see when they look at themselves in the mirror.

Application: Check out this book! I purchased my copy on Amazon. Also, invest in other books that can aide in helping to teach your children to appreciate, accept and love themselves. These types of books will strengthen them to resist any negative messages that our world attempts to narrate about them.