“I open a notebook. I write: Where is home? I write: A place where I am accepted.”
~Kao Kalia Yang, A Home on the Page
On April 16, AmazeWorks partnered with Mississippi Creative Arts School in St. Paul to host a book launch for Kao Kalia Yang’s The Blue House I Loved and A Home on the Page. Both books explore how Hmong refugee families make homes for themselves in Minnesota. The book launch celebrated Hmong storytelling through literature and performance, with students performing a play of The Blue House I Loved and a Hmong dance number.
Our hearts needed these stories. After the harm and disruption caused by Operation Metro Surge, Mississippi Creative Arts School thanked Kalia for the opportunity to perform a refugee story rooted in family joy and memories.
In the author’s note for A Home on the Page, Kalia writes, “I made a promise to myself: with everything I do, I will build a more welcoming world.” This newsletter asks us to do the same, following Kalia’s lead to use home as a lens. How can we create homes for ourselves? How can we create homes for each other? Keep reading to consider these questions through reading, reflection, and activity.
AmazeWorks is raising $20,000 for our spring fundraising campaign to#FindBalanceInBelonging. ⚖️💕 Each year, more impossible expectations fall onto the shoulders of our educators, with crises like Operation Metro Surge, the COVID-19 pandemic, and school shootings exacerbating the physical and emotional labor of the job.
AmazeWorks exists to support educators in balancing it all, ensuring they are not alone in meeting student needs for learning and healing. We provide resources for teachers to create belonging without piling onto their workload. Here’s how AmazeWorks creates balance through belonging:
This list only scratches the surface. The effects of classroom belonging reverberate into more connected, engaged, and confident learners.
Our campaign officially launches on May 5, but you can give today to start our campaign off strong.Click here to help us reach our $20,000 goal by May 28! Thank you for supporting AmazeWorks and balanced teacher workloads.
Plus, newsletter subscribers get first dibs on this special offer. The first 10 people who start or increase monthlydonations will receive a free AmazeWorks notebook and bag as a thank you! Don’t forget to select monthly as your donation schedule when filling out the form. 😊
A family of newly arrived Hmong refugees move into the lower level of a duplex in St. Paul, Minnesota. They build a home there, sharing meals, hardships, joys, and memories. Even after the house is torn down, the ghosts of it remain for the family, and its stories help them remember their beginnings in a new country.
One day, Nou finds a hurtful message painted on their mailbox in front of the house that reads, “Asians go home.” Nou wonders where her home is. Her family finds home in songs, gardens, story clothes, and community gatherings. Nou must create for herself a place of belonging. Can she find it in the unwritten pages of a book?
Our themed book sets ensure that all children see themselves positively reflected in the books they read. Now, we have a book set on Immigration and Migration to bring belonging to life through brave conversations about immigrant and refugee experiences. Here are the books inside:
Children see and hear what’s happening around them. They noticed the disruptions caused by Operation Metro Surge, whether they were directly or indirectly affected. The discussion guides in this book set foster open communication, supporting adults in being responsive and building trust with children as they learn that they can talk to you about real-world situations. These brave conversations make space for explaining values and beliefs about belonging and dignity for all that are important to your family or community.
We will be healing from the impacts of ICE for a long time. This book set is part of the healing.
These AmazeWorks activities explore the concept of home and honor the places that have shaped who we are.
Invite children to write a poem about what home is for them. Some questions that might help them with ideas include:
For younger children, providing a template may be helpful. One idea is to have them choose one word to describe home, so they can use the word to create an acrostic poem. For older children, take this activity further by asking them to think about how they could decorate their page using flowing lines like the illustrator, Seo Kim, did. For example, some pages used flowing lines of thread, stems/vines, music staff, waves, and wind to symbolize the different ways Nou’s family found their homes. Ask children to consider how they could use similar symbolism in their own poem.
Have children write a letter to a place they love. In their letter, they should describe the things about the place that stand out in their memories and have important meanings. They can also express gratitude for the things the place has given them or ask the place questions they wonder about. Use the journal prompts provided in the guide as a starting point.
This Sunday, you can support AmazeWorks by book browsing at Cream & Amber! Join AmazeWorks at the Books & Beers Fundraiser on May 3 between 1-5pm. 20% of all Cream & Amber sales will support AmazeWorks. Whether it’s books, beer, or merch, your purchase will support belonging for all! 🤗
AmazeWorks has discussion guides on THREE Minnesota Book Award Finalists. 💫 We’re thrilled these amazing books are being honored!
Children’s Literature Finalists
Young Adult Literature Finalist
The Flip Side by Jason Walz