“Es Como Kind of Tonta”:

Challenging Gendered Master Narratives Through Children’s Literature in Bilingual Classrooms

Abstract

This article challenges gendered master narratives by incorporating interactive read-alouds in three bilingual classrooms in the Southwest U.S. Using a LatCrit framework, data in the form of recorded bilingual read-alouds, classroom discussions, and writing extension activities were collected and analyzed. The one-way bilingual classrooms in this study were each led by a male Latino teacher, who chose children’s literature that covered such topics as the intersection of gender and race/ethnicity in children who choose to play the role of Peter Pan; gender roles in selecting a future career; adhering to strict familial traditions and gender norms (as depicted by a family of wolves); and subverting sexism or domestic abuse in a heteronormative relationship (depicted by turtles). Through literary critical encounters, structures of gender were made visible and tangible to bilingual children in kindergarten, third grade, and fourth grade. In addition, as the teachers engaged their bilingual students with the chosen texts, illustrating the disruption of normed gender roles, they were able to guide them to develop the ability to question majoritarian tales (Solórzano & Yosso, 2002) or master narratives (Fránquiz et al., 2011). This was most effective when the teachers could bridge connections to their bilingual students’ prior experiences and position those as valid tools for learning and making sense of readings.