Brown Girl Dreaming

By Ally Dunlap -
In brown girl dreaming by Jaqueline Woodson, Woodson writes of her own childhood. Throughout the novel, she mentions many important themes like religion, race, education, and family. Two themes I want to focus on in my blog post are religion and education.
In brown girl dreaming, Jaqueline's grandma is a Jehovah witness. This directly impacts Jaqueline and her siblings because it separated themselves from their peers. A poem that stands out to me in regards to religion is on page 164. Woodson writes,
"No Halloween
No Christmas
No birthdays.
Even when
other kids laugh as we leave the classroom
just as the birthday cupcakes arrive
we pretend we do not see the chocolate frosting,
pretend we do not want
to press our fingertips against
each colorful sprinkle and lift them,
one by sweet one
to our mouth" (164).
Diversity is something that should be celebrated, but for younger children, it is very easy for them to notice when another student is not like them or does not do the same things as everybody else. This causes the student to stand out because children do not understand that everyone does not have to act the same way and/or believe in the same thing.
Another important theme in the novel is education. Religion still plays a big role in education because the national anthem is said every morning. In the poem titled "flag", Jaqueline explains,
"When kids in my class ask why
I am not allowed to pledge the flag
I tell them It's against my religion but don't say,
I am in the world but not of the world" (Woodson 162).
Even though this quote mentions religion, things like this in the education system can many times effect students. Students want to fit in and not stand out. However, situations like this sometimes cause a student to stand out. I think that reading Woodson's novel allows the audience and especially future educators to remember that even though our students come from different backgrounds and cultures, we must try our best to make sure they feel like they fit in as best as possible at school.

Comments

  1. Taylor ScottOctober 7, 2019 at 7:50 AM

    I agree, all students need a place in school, but should we allow them to make the choice to stand out? Being a part of a religion is to take a stand and believe something, even when others do not. I think it is okay for students to feel that tension because it causes them to really decide what they believe.

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  2. Carter McGillOctober 7, 2019 at 9:31 AM

    I love the way you say diversity needs to be celebrated. This is very important to point out because younger children such as adolescents, sometimes struggle with the fact that they can be different from their peers. As future educators the students need to know that its okay to stand out and be unique. Whether they have a different skin color or have a different religion they need to know they are all accepted. Making sure diversity is celebrated will help students see that more in the future.

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