During Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we're highlighting the stories of individuals who have often been left out of traditional historical records, like Duke Kahanamoku, a Native Hawaiian swimmer and surfer who overcame prejudice to become one of the most famous athletes in the world thanks to his Olympic success, his role in popularizing surfing internationally, and his lifelong dedication to sharing and preserving Hawaiian culture.
Making Waves on Climate Action Day
To celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month, we're highlighting a story from our Hidden Voices series about Bernice Sandler, the first Chair of the National Advisory Council on Women’s Educational Programs and champion of the groundbreaking Title IX law that transformed student athletics and gender equity in the United States.
Learn more about how Bernice Sandler became known as the "Godmother of Title IX" on Hidden Voices
Wednesday, May 20 is our final Climate Action Day of the year! This month's theme is water, which encourages schools to plan activities that show how we can conserve water, and how we can adapt to changes in our city, like more rainfall and intense storms. Check out these reading recommendations to learn more about this month's theme!
Early Readers (3-K–Grade 2)
- The Brilliant Deep: Rebuilding the World’s Coral Reefs, by Kate Messner; illustrated by Matthew Forsythe
- Else B. in the Sea, by Jeanne Walker Harvey; illustrated by Melodie Stacey
- Ocean Soup: A Recipe for You, Me, and a Cleaner Sea, by Meeg Pincus; illustrated by Lucy Semple
- Ocean Speaks: How Marie Tharp Revealed the Ocean's Biggest Secret, by Jess Keating; illustrated by Katie Hickey
- The Water Lady: How Darlene Arviso Helps a Thirsty Navajo Nation, by Alice B. McGinty; illustrated by Shonto Begay
Elementary (Grades 3–5)
- Frozen in Time: What Ice Cores Can Tell Us About Climate Change, by Carmella Van Vleet
- The Girl Who Tested the Waters: Ellen Swallow, Environmental Scientist, by Patricia Daniele; illustrated by Junyi Wu
- Gracie Under the Waves, by Linda Sue Park
- Haven Jacobs Saves the Planet, by Barbara Dee
- The New Ocean: The Fate of Life in a Changing Sea, by Bryn Barnard
Middle School (Grades 6–8)
- The Line Tender, by Kate Allen
- Oceans of Plastic: Understanding and Solving a Pollution Problem, by Tracey Gray
- Planet Ocean: Why We All Need a Healthy Ocean, by Patricia Newman; photographs by Annie Crawley
- Safe Harbor, by Padma Venkatraman
- World Without Fish, by Mark Kurlansky; illustrated by Frank Stockton
Upper Grades (Grades 9–12)
- Dry, by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
- Eat Like a Fish: My Adventures Farming the Ocean to Fight Climate Change, by Bren Smith
- Into The Deep: Science Technology, and the Quest to Protect the Ocean, by Christy Peterson
- Poisoned Water: How the Citizens of Flint, Michigan Fought for their Lives and Warned the Nation, by Candy J. Cooper with Marc Aronson
- Whale Quest: Working Together to Save Endangered Species, by Karen Romano Young
You can find these books and many more great reads on Sora, our Citywide Digital Library, which provides free access to thousands of digital e-books and audiobooks for our students. You can also find even more recommendations in the Climate Action Days Collection on Sora!
Missed our previous book recommendations?
Check them out in the "What We're Reading" Archive!
SPOTLIGHT ON OUR SCHOOLS
Over the past month, we've seen some incredible examples of teamwork from our students!
On Earth Day, Chancellor Samuels stopped by PS 14 in Queens, where students and teachers worked together with NYC Parks staff members to plant six new trees! It was great seeing everyone work together to help beautify the PS 14 campus—thank you, NYC Parks, for partnering with us to make this year's Earth Day a memorable one for PS 14!
And in early May, PS 111 in the Bronx hosted District 11's Fifth Annual Soap Box Derby, where groups of students from schools across the Bronx built soap box cars for bragging rights and a shot at racing glory! At every participating school, students worked together in teams to research and build their soap box cars—what we saw at this year's Derby was the result of hundreds of hours of dedicated engineering work by our students and staff members. It was great fun seeing students' competitive spirits on full display, and we thank everyone who made this year's Soap Box Derby possible!
