Names Matter: Fostering Cultural Awareness Through Multimodal Literacy in a Predominantly White Classroom

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Manuscriptanonymous.pdf (1.33 MB)

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https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/trtr.70046

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https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.70046
 http://hdl.handle.net/11603/42258

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UMBC Faculty Collection
UMBC Education Department

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Author/Creator ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4813-3406

Date

2026-02-28

Type of Work

journal articles
postprints
Text

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Program

Citation of Original Publication

Yang, Shuling, and Brianna Harper. “Names Matter: Fostering Cultural Awareness Through Multimodal Literacy in a Predominantly White Classroom.” The Reading Teacher 79, no. 6 (2026): e70046. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.70046.

Rights

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Yang, Shuling, and Brianna Harper. “Names Matter: Fostering Cultural Awareness Through Multimodal Literacy in a Predominantly White Classroom.” The Reading Teacher 79, no. 6 (2026): e70046. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.70046., which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.70046. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions. This article may not be enhanced, enriched or otherwise transformed into a derivative work, without express permission from Wiley or by statutory rights under applicable legislation. Copyright notices must not be removed, obscured or modified. The article must be linked to Wiley’s version of record on Wiley Online Library and any embedding, framing or otherwise making available the article or pages thereof by third parties from platforms, services and websites other than Wiley Online Library must be prohibited.

Subjects

Abstract

This article demonstrates how picture books centered on names can foster cultural awareness and identity development in young children. Through a cycle of repeated read-alouds combined with multimodal activities, including visual arts, music, crafts, and generative AI, we guided students toward personal reflection and creative expression. Our findings indicate that this approach extends classroom discussions beyond surface-level comprehension to foster critical thinking and meaningful connections with the students' lived experiences, resulting in high levels of engagement. We provide practical strategies and classroom examples to help educators design inclusive, identity-affirming learning experiences that honor each child's unique story about their names.