Camryn Dodson's E-portfolio

ENGL 380: Children’s Literature was easily the most eye-opening related education class I have taken at Longwood so far. In this class, I was challenged to look at children’s literature with a new perspective. We discussed a wide range of media, including picture books, short chapter books, novels, poetry, films, and television shows. The main goal throughout the semester was to consider the complex and sometimes contradictory ways adults depict children in the texts they create for them. This course required an efficient understanding of close and critical reading strategies and literary analysis. I was given the opportunity to study a wide range of literature on my own time and then discuss my thoughts, as well as others’ findings in class discussion. This course opened my eyes to the idea that adults write literature in a way in which they think kids think; this in turn causes the majority of children’s literature to lack substance and intelligent material. Kids deserve the right to literature that is just as challenging and complex as adults do. Throughout the semester, we were able to explore any piece of literature outside of the assigned class list, and using the information and analytical skills we had learned in discussion, present our thoughts on the content. Below is an example of a presentation I put together on the findings of a notable children’s book titled Liar and Spy.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1tahn049oqxGF34xd250KkkKXz2XlP35t6C0uedSG4FQ/edit?usp=sharing

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