Des Moines Branch Members Share Inspiring Books with Schoolchildren

Jan Corderman and Patti Lawson read Malala’s Magic Pencil to a third-grade class at Edmunds Elementary School in Des Moines. Photo credit: Mary Ann Koch.

By Jan Corderman
Des Moines Branch

Talking to a young audience about what it felt like to be afraid to walk to school is something that Malala Yousafzai does very well in Malala’s Magic Pencil, her carefully crafted story about her childhood that was one of the 2018 Jane Addams Children’s Book Awardees.

When Jan Corderman and Patti Lawson read the book to Patti’s son Kingston’s third-grade class at Edmunds Elementary School, they weren’t sure how to talk about what happened to Malala when she defied the Taliban and demanded that girls be allowed to receive an education. But they needn’t have worried; Malala chose the perfect words, as she did so often as a child, and continues to do to this day.

Yousafzai started a blog at age 11. Her words appeared anonymously on the Urdu language site of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) for everyone in her native Pakistan to hear.

She openly defied those who believe that children, especially girls, should not be allowed to go to school. In her book she says, “My voice became so powerful that the dangerous men tried to silence me……. But they failed.”

The class was delighted to hear about Malala winning the Nobel Peace Prize at the young age of 17. They also loved repeating the words she said to the Nation State Leaders at the UN on her sixteenth birthday, “One Child, one teacher, one book and one pen can change the world.”

After a discussion, at their teacher’s suggestion, the students used their “magic” crayons to draw pictures of their wishes for their community and the world.

Vonnie Salem presented the books to the entire student body and faculty at Samuelson Elementary during an all-school gathering. The books then go to the school’s library for students to check out and for the teachers to integrate into the curriculum. Both Vonnie and the students look forward to this opportunity made possible by the Des Moines Branch.

Joan Engler gave the books to her three sons who are writers and union leaders, and their families. Her grandchildren are immersed in activism from a very young age and love the books too. They tell the stories of other children, like them, who are emotionally impacted by events in their communities and by telling their stories show that they can make a difference.    

Jan Corderman and Mary Ann Koch read Before She Was Harriet to third graders at St. Joseph School in Des Moines. Photo credit: Barb Basch.

Jan Corderman and Mary Ann Koch have been visiting St. Joseph School in Des Moines for a few years now. Mrs. Barb Basch, a third grade teacher at St. Joseph, commented after the visit, “This year Miss Jan & Miss Mary Ann visited our classroom and read Before She Was Harriet. My third graders loved listening to the story, enjoying the pictures, and learning about this time in history through discussion during the story. They especially liked doing a ‘picture draw’ where each student recreated a scene from the story and colored it. I then took their drawings, laminated them, and made a book as a keepsake for our class. This is the fourth year we have participated in this project and my students always comment that it is one of their favorite activities throughout the year!”

Before Mary Ann turned the chairwoman’s duties over to Doris Covalt & Vonnie, she took a collection of the books to EveryStep, whose mission is to empower individuals, support families, and strengthen communities.