Teaching literature from a developmental perspective

My educational psychology class was many moons ago and it's rarely referenced during staff developments. And I've spent many hours in trainings over the last decade and a half. And none of those trainings ever addressed how to teach literacy from a developmental perspective. It's important to frame questions about literature in a way that meets kids where they are developmentally, or how to approach skills that require a more developed ability to think abstractly (i.e. inferencing, determining themes, complex metaphors, just to name a few)

But literature can also BE a developmental scaffold, especially for subjects like history and government. Incorporating historical fiction and on level nonfiction can create a context for young people that are transitioning from the concrete stage of development as many adolescents still are.

It's critical that librarians understand the developmental levels of the student body they serve in order to curate a relevant collection that reflects their students' interests, needs, and perspectives and include literature that can move them forward as readers and human beings.

#textbookreflection #adolescentdevelopmentreflection