My Identity

My Identity is part of the “Our Values” series which is divided into three levels. Level One is comprised titles for very young readers; Level Two is designed for elementary school students; and Level Three is for middle schoolers. In this first level, the text is printed in a large simple font surrounded by plenty of white space. Concepts are fairly easy for youngsters to grasp although some of the information might require further explanation from a parent or teacher. Illustrations consist of colour photographs and represent children of different races. However, there is not a single photo of a child with a physical disability or special needs, and the speech bubble style of labelling the illustrations is somewhat distracting. A table of contents, a brief glossary and an index are included, though it is rather unlikely that a very young reader will use these.

A person’s identity is what makes him or her unique. My Identity focuses on the various aspects of identity: looks, clothing choices, likes and dislikes, talents, interests, culture, religion, community, age, gender and family. The author tries to be very careful when describing gender in an age-appropriate way (“Gender is how someone feels like a boy or a girl. There are many ways to feel like boys and girls.”), but this section might be a bit confusing to a youngster.

Suitable for the youngest students in a school, the books in the “Our Values” series, Level One, are very basic and do not contain anything that wouldn’t normally be covered at home or in a Kindergarten or Grade One class.