Summary Of Secret Signs: An Escape Through The Underground Railroad

We live in a world that strives for perfection and this is seen throughout education. Students are consistently taking standardized tests to compare their scores to the norm/benchmark and based on how far away the student may be from the norm/benchmark, the student may be labeled “at risk”. Special Education services may be an impact based on these scores. The problem with the education system is that for some students the attempt for perfection is a task that may be near to impossible, some may succeed, but others may fail. Although learning disabilities can be overcome, there are other disabilities that a student may have for the rest of their life, either they were born with or they may become disabled later on in their life. Regardless
Students will begin to learn first hand on reframing the way disabilities is perceived, which can positively impact students with disabilities. Disabilities can effect anyone, which is not based on race, gender, culture, etc. Therefore, including a text set about disabilities also offers discussion in classrooms that are related to cross-cultural as well as cross-curricular literature. The story Secret Signs: An Escape Through the Underground Railroad by Antia Riggio, which is about a boy who is Deaf, but also during a time during the Civil War and Underground Railroad. This story not only addresses cultural understanding my emphasizing the importance of the Deaf culture, but also discusses the Civil War, making this book a guide for the topic of disabilities, but also can include a cross-curricular activity into a social studies unit about the Civil War. Many books about disabilities do not just focus solely on the fact that a child is disabled, but how they use their disability to impact what is happening around
Having vivid illustrations can be helpful for primary grade levels, English Language Learners, as well as students with disabilities. Illustrations help students follow along with the book and help students become engaged in the story through visual images. For example, We’re All Wonders by Raquel J. Palacio illustrations are extraordinary and visually depict the plot. With these illustrations students are capable of following the pictures and understanding that Auggie (the main character) only has one eye, which helps students understand what the text is representing. The colors in the illustrations incorporate mood and Auggie’s facial expressions are clear and visible for students to see how he feels. The illustrations in the story Can I Play Too? By Mo Willems clearly depict what is happening in the story and has minimal text; a student who is unable to read can follow the pictures to understand clearly what is happening throughout the story. Illustrations play a large part in the enjoyment of picture books, with the combination of text and illustrations they can communicate to students the message of the