Placelessness through children’s literature

Abstract

Where do you belong? This seemingly simple question can be answered very differently by individuals of different ages. What is the developmental age when we find the answer to this question? What factors can influence our answer to this question? Answering this question or just feeling we are being questioned about it can contribute to feelings of placelessness. This can be especially difficult for the immigrant population (Schwartz et al., 2011; Syed & Juang, 2014). Additionally, since the place we live can act as a significant marker of identity (Corcoran, 2002), determining how they are connected to the place can also have an effect on a child's sense of culture and belonging. This qualitative study addresses the lacuna of research focused on the pedagogical practices teachers can use to enhance the voices of immigrant children through new understandings of place attachment in school immigrant populations and shows how schools can be supportive of children’s expression of culture and community. The study will explore how arts-based pedagogical practices and children’s literature can help to enhance students' identities and voices through their shared place-based narratives. Furthermore, it will explore challenges and successes with the multimodal expressions of immigrant children's voices in a primary classroom in an Eastern Canadian school with a diverse population.