All American Boys

 All American Boys
by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
Published in 2015 by Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Grades 8 and up
ISBN 978-1-4814-6333-1

Book Review

All American Boys by Jason Reynold and Brendan Kiely is a powerful novel about race, friendship and family. When Rashad stops at a local convenience store to buy a snack, he never expects the events of one moment to impact his life in such a profound manner. Told primarily through the lens of two characters, Rashad and his white teammate, Quinn, the two authors share the complex emotions and viewpoints that accompany police violence and racism. Quinn’s progression as a character shows how difficult it can be to make the right choice, particularly when some of your friends and family members prove to be at odds. A sub plot surrounds the complexity of family from both character’s experiences. The book ultimately ends on an uplifting note, showing the power of making the right choice. Highly recommended. 

 Teaching Ideas/Invitations for Your Classroom

Developing Background Knowledge - Civil Rights Era (History)
Use a strategy like KWL (Ogle, 1986) to establish what the students know about the civil rights era. Use the strategy as a guide to develop this crucial background knowledge. Collaborate with a history teacher to locate resources that will provide an background information. Look at issues from the 1960s as well as current cases of police violence. (Description of the KWL strategy can be found here).
SOL USII.9 The student will demonstrate knowledge of the key domestic and international issues during the  second half of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries by a) examining the Civil Rights Movement and the changing role of women.  

Sports and School (Physical Education)
Sports, particularly basketball, play an important role in the lives of many teenagers. Rashad, Quinn, English, Shannon and Carlos all spend considerable time working on their basketball skills. As a contrast,  have students select, research and then showcase an athletic skill that they have little experience with. Work with a P.E. teacher and help locate resources (particularly videos) that show the skills in action. Skills can vary from shooting a basketball, running around the track, doing a handstand, etc. 
SOL 9.4b The student will explain the impact of sports and activities in developing respect for the unique characteristics, differences and abilities of peers.

Cartoons as social commentary (Fine Arts) 
Rashad has a large collection of clippings from the cartoon, Family Circus (Keane, B. & Keane, J.).  He enjoys looking at them since "it seemed like white families, at least in comics, lived simple, easy lives" (Reynolds, J., Kiely, B., 2015, p. 143). Look at what Rashad says about the Family Circus. Help locate examples of the Family Circus and other cartoons in the library databases. Why do you think he likes it so much? From there, investigate how cartoons/comics are often used as social commentary. What do you think different characters would say about their communities? Collaborate with an art teacher to have students create their own cartoons about current events. 
SOL AII.13 The student will examine and discuss social, political, economic and cultural factors that influence works of art and design.
  
Active reading through self-assessment: the student-made quiz (English)    
Students work in collaborative teams to develop a variety of kinds of questions about the book (literal, inferential, evaluative). Students will develop quizzes to take for self-assessment of reading comprehension of the book. Collaborate with an English teacher to investigate ways to create online quizzes.  In order to help guide students understanding of questioning, use the Question-Answer Relationship strategy as guide. 
SOL 11.4 The student will read, comprehend, and analyze relationships among American literature, history, and culture. k) Generate and respond logically to literal, inferential, evaluative, synthesizing, and critical thinking questions before, during, and after reading texts. 

Podcasts (Computer Technology)
In All American Boys, Quinn reflects deeply on what he believes in. Work with an English teacher to locate examples of podcasts about equality and education.  Students will listen to the podcasts to stretch their thinking. They will then use what they have learned to create their own philosophy statements.  
SOL C/T 9-12.9 Plan and apply strategies for gathering information, using a variety of tools and sources, and reflect on alternate strategies that might lead to greater successes in future projects. A) use various technology and digital resources to collect information.

Further Explorations
Eyes on the Prize (documentary) A 14-part documentary on the Civil Rights movement. A classic documentary that will provide excellent information for all kinds of learners.

Letter from Birmingham Jail (letter) Martin Luther King's famous letter about the injustice of racism. This is a primary source that will help current students develop an appreciate for what MLK Jr. did.

Miranda Rights  Investigate exactly what are an individual's Miranda Rights. Look at their connection to the 5th amendment. This will allow all students a better understanding of what the Miranda Rights are (and are not).

Landmark cases  Learn about some of the landmark cases connected to civil rights and/or Miranda rights. Retrieved from https://www.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/rights/landmark_miranda.html. While these cases may be a bit complex for a struggling learner, they do provide excellent background knowledge.

Author studies Learn more about the two authors at  jasonwritesbooks.com and brendankiely.com
Learning more about each author can provide an extra incentive for students who may also be intrigued by the subject matter or in developing their writing skills. 

One Crazy Summer (book) - This books gives a fictional account of a woman involved with the Black Panthers. It shows how the Black Panthers supported local communities. While the work is fiction, it provides a different perspective for students.

Partner Titles
Allen Iverson (ESPN documentary) No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson 17-year old basketball star Allen Iverson is arrested and brought to trial in Hampton, Virginia. The trial sharply divided the city along racial lines. This documentary goes beyond what happened to Rashad, but the conversation about racism is the same. ESPN's documentaries are well done. This story, while not recent, will resonate with students as it took place in Virginia to a famous athlete.

Black and White (Speak) (book)  Two friends and athletes, one black and one white, whose ill-advised choices impact their futures. This is a timely and well-written book.

Racial Profiling (book).  In-depth examination of the history and impact of racial profiling in the United States. This book will add accuracy regarding racial profiling to the library's collection.

How It Went Down (book). The ramifications of a racially charged shooting are looked at from multiple characters' viewpoints. This book is appropriate for teens as it centers on a relevant, current topic.

The Bombs that Brought Us Together (book). Set up as an allegorical tale, the story highlights the differences between two regions and the difficulties they have in seeing one another's perspectives.This book adds to the collection as it takes the issue of understanding one another and provides another avenue to explore it.

References 
Behnke, A.M. (2017). Racial profiling. Minneapolis, MN:Twenty-First Century/Lerner.
Civil Rights Cases (n.d). Retrieved from
https://www.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/rights/landmark_miranda.html.
Conaghan, B. (2016). The bombs that brought us together. New York, NY: Bloomsbury.  
Hampton, H. (Producer). (1987). Eyes on the prize [Documentary]. United States: Blackside. 
James, S. (Producer & Director). (2010). No crossover: The trial of Allen Iverson [Documentary]. United States: Kartemquin Films. 
King, M.L Jr. (1963). Letter from birmingham jail. The Atlantic, 212(2), 78-88.
Kirkus Review (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/jason-reynolds/all-american-boys/.
Lehr, D. (2017). Trell. Somerville, MA:Candlewick.
Magoon, M. (2014). How it went down. New York, NY: Henry Holt. 
Ogle, D. (1986).  KWL strategy retrieved from http://www.readingquest.org/strat/kwl.html.
Raphael, D. (1984). Question answer relationship. Retrieved from http://www.readingquest.org/strat/qar.html 
Virginia Department of Education. (2010). Standards of learning. Retrieved from http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/.  
Volponi, P. (2005). Black and white (speak). New York, NY:Viking.
Williams-Garcia, R. (2010). One crazy summer. New York:Amistad.