Explore how integrating culturally relevant and informed content into K-12 classrooms comes to life through the art of literacy. CLAS is passionate about promoting the teaching of Latin America through literature that resonates with students and educators alike.
Our programs place particular emphasis on promoting literacy. We've created the "Read the World" book group, a gathering of teachers who come together monthly to share insights about diverse literature and effective ways to integrate these materials into teaching. Additionally, we provide sets of books for classrooms on loan, and we also serve as coordinators for the Américas Award—a national initiative that celebrates children's and young adult literature from the Américas.
We invite you to learn more about these programs below.
Classroom Book Sets for Loan
CLAS is delighted to provide classroom sets of outstanding Latinx literature curated for children and young adults. These sets come in different sizes and configurations, and they're accessible at no charge. You can borrow them for up to four weeks, The books are housed at CLAS, Marshall Building-Suite 280, 845 N. Park Ave, Tucson, AZ 85721. To secure your set, make an advance booking and arrange for in-person pickup.
To request a set, please fill out this form. Please note that we are only able to loan book sets to educators local to Southern Arizona.
A complete annotated bibliography of all book sets is available.
Many of our books have accompanying educator materials included with the set, as indicated by the asterisk (*).
Américas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature
CLAS is proud to be an institutional coordinator of the Américas Award, established by the Consortium of Latin American Studies Programs (CLASP) in 1993. This initiative aims to recognize and celebrate creators – authors, illustrators, and publishers – who craft exceptional children's and young adult books centered around Latin America, the Caribbean, or Latine people in the United States. It offers educators valuable recommendations for classroom integration. CLASP presents up to two annual book awards, along with a list of honor and commended titles. Each year, CLAS creates educators guides to accompany titles recognized by the Américas Award.
For archives of past winners and related curriculum resources, explore the CLASP website.
Read the World K12 Educator Book Group
Brazilian educator Paulo Freire writes, “Reading is not exhausted merely by decoding the written word or written language, but rather anticipated by and extending into knowledge of the world. Reading the world precedes reading the word, and the subsequent reading of the word cannot dispense with continually reading the world. Language and reality are dynamically intertwined” (The Importance of the Act of Reading).
Join the University of Arizona Centers for East Asian Studies, Latin American Studies, and Middle Eastern Studies for our Reading the World book group. Inspired by Freire’s words, we aim to create a space dedicated to teachers discussing authentic and engaging global literature for elementary, middle, and high school classrooms.
We meet each month from 4:40-6:00 pm at the Eckstrom-Columbus Library (4350 E 22nd St). We welcome your participation whether you've read the whole book or a single page. This event is free and open to the public.
Visit the CLAS event calendar for detailed information about each month's reading selection.