The Patchwork Quilt

Title: The Patchwork Quilt

Author: Valerie Flournoy

Illustator: Jerry Pinkney

Publisher: Dial Books: New York, 1985

ISBN#: 0-8037-0098-9

    Mulitcultural books are a great way to invite students to explore the culture within their homes, communties, and the world. Even before young children can read themselves, family members and teachers are reading them stories about other children in far-away places, sometimes from the distant past, or about children whose lives are not unlike their own. The impressions and messages contained in these stories can last a lifetime. Selecting good multicultural children's books begins with the same criteria as that for selecting any good children's books - the literary elements of plot, characterization, setting, style, theme and point of view must be interwoven to provide an interesting story. In addition, good multicultural children's books may challenge stereotypes and promote a realistic glimpse into the lives of diverse groups of people. By providing children with accurate and positive representations of the many cultural groups that make up the community, society and the world in which they live, multicultural books can help children learn to identify stereotypes and biases when they encounter them.

    The story "The Patchwork Qulit" by Valerie Flounoy, is an outstanding multicultural book that I throughly enjoyed reading. This story teaches about the joy of creating something from nothing, and that some things we create can hold a little piece of inside. A grandmother and grandaughter work together to create a quilt that the whole family will eventually become part of. At the beginning of the story "Grandma" says

"A quilt won’t forget. It can tell your life story." In my opinion this statement is what brings the story to life, and allows for readers to understand the truth behind why the grandmother makes the quilt. Using scraps cut from the family’s old clothing, a young girl (Tanya) learns the secret ingredient in her Grandma’s special quilt of memories. The quilt in this story serves as a family heirloom so the "memories" of this quilt will be passed down from generation to generation. Tanya's grandmother begins making a special quilt from pieces of worn out clothes that have belonged to various family members. Tanya's mother and grandmother spend many evenings working on the quilt. Tanya's grandmother eventually becomes ill, too ill for even Tanya to see her. Tanya worked on the quilt with her mother while her grandmother lay in bed resting. After a couple of months Tanya's grandmother got better and was able to help complete the quilt that she then gave to Tanya as a gift.
    This book is a perfect tool for the classroom. It teaches the value and importance of culture and relationships. After reading this story to a class the teacher can invite students to tell about projects they have worked on with members of their family. The class can also discuss how working together not only helps them complete a project more quickly and efficiently, but can also bring a family closer together. The teacher and students can discuss what activities they like to do with their family. A great activity to do after reading this book, can be to have students make a paper quilt featuring themselves and their grandparents. The teacher could have students draw a picture of some activity they enjoy doing with their grandparents (or another relative) on their individual squares. They could also write a caption for the picture that tells about the activity. When the students have finished their "quilt" it can be displayed in the classroom. There are so many different cultures around the world, allowing for exploration may help children to understand other cultures, as well as their own.