Carmela Full of Wishes

I LOVE this book for its insightful take on a poignant issue: the impact of family separation. In the story, Carmela accompanies her brother on his chores, discovering a dandelion. Faced with the chance to make a wish, Carmela ponders deeply. Should her wish bring comfort to her mother, or fix her father's immigration status so he can join them in America? The book’s study guide is remarkable, providing kid-friendly explanations for complex terms such as 'migrant' and 'immigrant without documentation', a valuable tool for educators striving for inclusive communication.
-Dena

Social Justice Activities:

I strongly suggest reading the Teacher's Guide below and studying pages 1-7. This is an excellent resource for teaching Social Justice.

Relevant Social Justice Standards:

Diversity 9. Students will respond to diversity by building empathy, respect, understanding and connection.

Diversity 10. Students will examine diversity in social, cultural, political and historical contexts rather than in ways that are superficial or oversimplified.

Justice 12. Students will recognize unfairness on the individual level (e.g., biased speech) and injustice at the institutional or systemic level (e.g., discrimination).

Justice 14. Students will recognize that power and privilege influence relationships on interpersonal, intergroup and institutional levels and consider how they have been affected by those dynamics.

Reading Strategies:

Character Analysis:

Analyze Carmel's wishes. What do these wishes tells us about her? (She is loving, thinks about others, misses her father, generous
Analyze the brother's actions throughout the story. He seems to dislike his sister at the beginning but at the end he helps restore her wellness because he truly loves her.
Infer why Carmela takes her bracelets off at the end (she does this as an act of kindness to her brother).

Setting: Analyze the setting and highlight the beautiful diversity of communities.

Irony: Examine Carmela's comment, "It's a free country," against the reality facing her father.

Teacher's Guide:

Book Details:

Fiction, All Ages
Perspectives: Separated family members who do not yet have immigration documents
Author's stated heritage: Mexican heritage, raised in California
Subject Integration: Art, Science

Book covers images are from publishers and in the public domain