Happy Saturday! We are so excited to have gotten to know Bethany Edwards, the driving force behind Biracial Bookworms! Bethany cares passionately about education and traveling, and even has a course she teaches (link below). We hope you enjoy the post, and can help Bethany on her journey to create allies and make a better world!
The Tiny Activist: Introduce yourself!
Bethany Edwards: Hi my name is Bethany Edwards. I am an international educator and reading and literacy specialist. I am from California, but I always knew I would see the world. As of now I have taught in 6 different countries, and traveled to 56 countries total.
I am also a freelance writer and founder of Biracial Bookworms. On my website, I focus on different areas of human rights and education.
TTA: What are you passionate about?
BB: I have had a front seat to so much injustice and inequality as I have traveled around the world.
I feel it is my obligation to fight for equality and the safety of others, especially as a White woman with an American passport. We cannot just sit back, ignore our privilege, and expect things to change. Change is now.
Everyone has a part to play in creating change. My passion is to help teachers and parents raise readers, activists, and leaders though reading, traveling, and learning multiple languages. Reading more books means more empathy. I believe empathy is the key to change the world.
Helping others become better allies and accomplices to marginalized groups of people is a part of my daily life, because the lives of my own two daughters depends on it.
TTA: Tell us about a project you’re currently working on!
BB: I am currently working on spreading the word about my new online and self-paced course for parents and caregivers called Teaching Kids to Read Ages 0-5.
It is a how-to guide on encouraging your baby, toddler, or preschooler to have extraordinary reading, writing, speech, listening, and motor skills before they turn 5 years old.
It is not simply reading strategies but 10 lessons on how to create a literacy-rich and diverse environment to instill a love and passion for reading through brain based learning. However, I will also help you teach children how to read the world by exposing kids to different cultures, languages, and travel (in your own city or around the world).
The course is guaranteed to be authentic. No gimmicks or shortcuts with “magic” curriculum. Plus, you are guaranteed your money back if you aren’t completely satisfied.
The first 5 years are the most important years of a child’s life. I want to help you develop strong habits during the most crucial years of brain development.
TTA: How can people support you on your journey?
BB: Subcribe to my weekly emails full of resources and helpful tools for raising readers, activists, and leaders.
TTA: What book was your favorite in 2018?
BB: Hands down for myself it was Becoming by Michelle Obama. There is a very good reason she is beloved by people from all over the world. Like so many heroes before her, she values family and believes education is our most powerful weapon.
As for a children’s book, Let the Children March by Monica Clark-Robinson and Frank Morrison which is about the tiny and mighty freedom fighters in the Civil Rights Movement was extremely powerful. Listening to the voices of children has always been the most powerful way to make change. This picture book is a must read. You can also read my interview with the author here.
TTA: What are you looking forward to in the coming year?
BB: I have dedicated 2019 to hone my craft as a writer. I work every day on polishing and crafting new children’s books about my experiences as a teacher around the world and I am determined to put in the work they need to see them in print.
Kids need a push to want to be stronger than fear and go see what they do not understand. Books are one of the most powerful tool to get children out of their comfort zone.
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