I think justice-centered learning is a lens that we need to learn to see through, especially if you're not part of a marginalized group. It’s easy to just buy the popular books by the most popular authors, but looking through books with a justice-centered learning lens, would make you look closer to books that feature charters of different races, abilities, and that are different from the “norm.” Justice-centered learning can validate children from all over. One of my favorite children's books is Aaron Slater, Illustrator by Andrea Beaty, it's part of the Ada Twist, Scientist series. Aaron Slater is a young boy who struggled with dyslexia but he loved books and telling stories, eventually he learns to tell stories through his art, and at the very end he does learn to read, even though it’s a struggle. I’ve never related more to a children's book, I struggled so much with reading when I was young, and I wish this book existed when I was little.
-Sylvia

-The teacher in the poem asks the young reader to read “faster” and “older.” What might be the impact of reading “faster” and “older” be on young readers? On you? Consider benefits, downsides, and everything in between and around.

First I don’t enjoy people telling me what speed I should read. Everyone has their own speed and tone and personality. The benefit is the story will end quickly if you are in a hurry. The downside is that  you can not soak in the details where you can try to connect details to your own life. I think we have to try to find a balance. Sometimes when you are reading, you can tell you are reading the background of the story or the important parts of the story. By knowing the basic knowledge of each section of the paragraph or sentence, you can tell what parts are more likely to be the good part of the story then you can speed through to get to the good part. 

-What might the power of reading slower and younger be? For young readers? For you? How and why might you read slower and younger as part of this learning practice?

I think when you’re younger you are still learning about how to read and gaining more knowledge including how to read advanced vocabulary words. Some people are born with talents and others born with their own speed. For me when I read it slower I understand better because I can hear more clearly. 

-The speaker in the poem talks about the way her reading settles “inside my brain, slowly becoming a part of me.” In what ways do you want to make this justice-centered learning practice a part of you? How do justice-centered stories help you to deepen the way you understand your own identities and impacts?

I think everyone learns at their own speed in a different style. Everyone has their own learning disability. We are not robots so we have to let the system know, or the people around us, that  reading is different for everyone including how they transfer the knowledge into their brains. It’s not exactly like copy and paste. It’s more like re-read and repeating until you understand the knowledge or have someone explaining to you ways to transfer the knowledge to your brain. It doesn’t matter what speed you can read, as long as the knowledge eventually will be in your brain and restore it in your memories. Reading social justice stories makes me a better person by learning important knowledge. These stories make me feel like I matter and also encourage others that they matter. 

-What resonates between the poem “Reading” and “Howling at the Ocean”?  Where do you see intersection in the ideas across the poem and article(s)?  Holding your specific identities, what are you seeing in terms of the places for repair, healing, responsibility, release, and more that you might lean into this term when it comes to exploring education through a justice lens?

I think it connects to how there’s no one way to do things in life and realizing everyone has their own unique ways of doing things and expressing and questioning. I really like how Johnson realized that each student has their own story to tell in their own way to express and there’s no one way to do it. Helping kids and giving them safe space and love and free space to share justice and help change the world from everyone’s voice perspective. Everyone likes to feel they matter and be heard. This ties into the poem in a similar way.

-What resonates between the poem “Reading” and “Recommitting to the Joyful Classroom”  Where do you see intersection in the ideas across the poem and article(s)?  Holding your specific identities, what are you seeing in terms of the places for repair, healing, responsibility, release, and more that you might lean into this term when it comes to exploring education through a justice lens?

I think it resonates in the reading, such as there’s no one way to do things or read and understand. It is important to have joy in education and have kids be excited to share their life story and their value to others and to connect and understand diverse cultures. I like that our education is not just about efficiency, it's also that sometimes it takes more space and time to discuss and learn important values about everything. An example is having the hardest topics but it makes the students think about how it connects to the world in education. I enjoy when education connects to people's stories. It makes it exciting and I learn more than just knowledge but also about  others. I like when teachers have students write their own weekly journals from your own learning and connect it to your own life. I find it very healing. I feel my voice matters and is heard. It gives a space for repair, healing, and release.

I think it resonates in the reading, such as there’s no one way to do things or read and understand. It is important to have joy in education and have kids be excited to share their life story and their value to others and to connect and understand diverse cultures. I like that our education is not just about efficiency, it's also that sometimes it takes more space and time to discuss and learn important values about everything. An example is having the hardest topics but it makes the students think about how it connects to the world in education. I enjoy when education connects to people's stories. It makes it exciting and I learn more than just knowledge but also about  others. I like when teachers have students write their own weekly journals from your own learning and connect it to your own life. I find it very healing. I feel my voice matters and is heard. It gives a space for repair, healing, and release.

I remember when I was younger I was told to read books at a higher level by my family, as a young reader being told to read faster and older was aggravating to me.  I was asked to explain what I was reading after each chapter, but it felt like my brain couldn’t process what I was reading and it was difficult for me to understand it.  Reading at a higher level was hard for me, but it also challenged me to work harder to grasp the detail and be able to describe it to someone else which could be considered a benefit now that I look back on that time.  Though as a downside I was often left frustrated and felt like it was too much of a challenge at times.  

Reading slower, and younger for me gave me time to understand what I was reading.  As a kid if I was reading younger, or my level I was able to explain what was happening in the book in great detail and could tell I was learning.  I think as a young reader it gives you more time to think about the vocabulary, and what the book is relaying.  

As someone who doesn’t enjoy reading as much as I used to, I think that justice-centered learning is something that can teach us more about identities we might not be exposed to.  I think these can help us to deepen our understanding of our own identities, and impacts by diving out of the normal.  I feel like when I go with friends to bookstores they’re looking for the most popular books, but as young readers and students, I think justice-centered stories can expand our knowledge of things that matter.  

Reading slower and younger could have benefits for adults as it allows for curiosity and taking time, which many of us don’t have the privilege of slowing down anymore. For young readers, it may open up new understandings or allow them to investigate words they may not be fully familiar with. For me I feel like it would take the pressure off of reading as I always feel like I need to get it done super fast, especially school assigned readings. I may read slower and younger to allow for a more broader audience to feel as though readings are accessible to them. 

Justice centered learning practices are really important to me, and I feel as though linking it with childrens books and working with kids allows for an optimistic approach in change and uplifting communities, it can be hard (but obviously important) as an adult reading and witnessing the harsh reality of our country, I tend to lose sight of the positive future of children. Justice centered stories help me deepen the way I understand my own identities and impacts by providing a base to reference in a safe environment and especially as I’m working with Bookmobile Babe and offering free books to kids in the park, I can see that we do have a future ahead of love and gratitude. 

Even now, as a grown-up, I get fed up with people telling me how to do things when I'm asked to read "faster" or "louder". When I was a child, I was more frightened that I was being 'instructed' from the position of 'teacher' - was it because I was different that the teacher was only criticising me for my wrongdoings? For children, the status of teacher is synonymous with authority, and these comments and demands are tantamount to their being denied by 'authority'. What's more, everyone's ability to understand and direction of understanding is different and the same amount of time does not mean that the same text will be fully understood; providing a set amount of time for them to read and understand on their own may be a better approach.

Reading slower and younger may offer readers the opportunity for deeper understanding of the story and self-discovery. For me, reading slower allows me to more fully enjoy and deeply understand the text and to re-examine the world in a way that I cannot experience in my everyday life. And even when slowing down to read, books that are more suitable for younger people are better suited to more easily allow me to understand, vicariously and fully immerse myself in the story. So I choose to read books for a younger audience and use them to slow down and appreciate the detail and depth of the story.

By reading justice-centred stories, I can see how different human beings approach and deal with the same event, and understand and respect their perspectives. This will allow me to more consciously assess and question my own perceptions and actions, and how these in turn may affect the people and society around me. At the same time, most of the justice-centric stories, articles and news will deal with important current and historical events on a societal level. All of these stories can help me to re-examine my own identity and the impact of different classes of people on society as a whole. By seeing things from a different perspective, I can better understand my place in this complex society.