Elementary School Level  

I’m Like You, You’re Like Me: A Child’s Book About Understanding and Celebrating Each Other, by Cindy Gainer

With its emphasis on sharing feelings and being kind, this book promotes tolerance and understanding of diversity for young children. Its simple message rings out, “I’m like you, you’re like me. But we’re not exactly the same. That’s why I like you and you like me.”
 
Sitti’s Secrets, by Naomi Shihab Nye

This beautifully illustrated picture book is a timely piece about an Arab American girl visiting her grandmother, “sitti”, in Palestine. It emphasizes aspects of different cultures that can bind or keep those cultures apart. Read this book and discuss the situation in the Middle East today. Help your students recognize the commonalities that all Americans cherish and the variety of beliefs and cultures that makes our nation unique.
 
Middle School Level  

Coming to North America from Mexico, Cuba, and Puerto Rico, by Susan Garver and Paula McGuire

This book, aimed at fifth and sixth graders, explores the experiences of Mexican, Cuban and Puerto Rican immigrants in the United States through personal accounts, histories and photographs. It includes a bibliography, a history of U.S. Immigration Laws and an index. Discuss the presence of these groups in your own community and across the United States.
 
Website: Favorite Teenage Angst Books at http://www.grouchy.com/angst/reviews.html

Send your students along to this creative, funny website where they can read reviews for books in categories such as “fitting in”, “mixed-up families” and “pressure”. They can also share with others on a message board. The website is geared toward teenagers rather than the adults around them. This site is a fantastic way to expose your students to a wide range of books.

High School Level

To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

This classic book contains a profound lesson in tolerance. Since it has been frequently cited on lists of banned books, it provides perfect fodder for Banned Books Week at the end of September. John Traverse, a teacher from Houston, has created a website on the “Quest for Tolerance” in To Kill A Mockingbird with an entire lesson plan for high school students. Check it out at: http://www.scs.k12.tn.us/STT99_WQ/STT99/Houston_HS/
traversej/traversequest/travquest.htm
 
Website: Holocaust Literature at http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/holocaust/arts/litSurvi.htm

“The Teacher’s Guide to the Holocaust”, an online resource with many activities and a long literature list, is an excellent source for teaching about tolerance and citizenship. The website includes a list of plays and books dealing with this topic. Some examples include Night,by Elie Wiesel and Man’s Search for Meaning, by Viktor Frankl. Explore the site’s creative lesson plans and art education suggestions.
 
Resource for Teachers:
Check out the Syracuse Cultural Workers: Tools for Change catalogue for posters, books, calendars and t-shirts to promote tolerance and peace in your classroom. This catalogue is full of vibrant and profound materials to enhance your classroom. Contact them at http://www.syrculturalworkers.org/