I never knew that ‘A Letter to Amy’ by Ezra Jack Keats could be a solid discussion on whom to invite or not to invite for a birthday. This is a book about a boy named Peter who writes a letter to Amy, a very special friend, inviting her for his birthday party. I thought that in today’s society there is a very fine line of difference between a girl and a boy and that our society considers them to be equal. But I guess, I was wrong. In some places, gender does matter among the children even when we make friends or, as is in this case,when we decide whom to invite to a party.
I was under the assumption that both genders, to some extent, have an equal position, but it seems like I was wrong. This realization sprung when I read this book in two different schools in grade 4. The first time, I read it in Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) High School, Goa Velha and the second time, in Swami Vivekanand School (SVS), Borim. I received two different sides of the argument in both the schools.
It all began with a simple question about whom they would invite for their birthday party. I received answers such as close relatives, siblings and friends. When it came to friends, I was exposed to the two discussions. In the first discussion in IHM, most of the boys shared that they did not mind inviting girls for their birthday party and the same was shared by the girls too. In fact, the children shared that they are delighted to invite the entire class irrespective of girls or boys.
But I received an exactly opposite response from the boys of SVS school, who shared that they would like to invite only the boys. The girls in turn also said that they do not invite boys. However, three boys very boldly said that they do invite a few girls from their own class.
It was interesting to note that the children were very honest and bold enough to share about being able to invite whoever they wanted to. This discussion provoked me to think about the reasons for these two different views. Was it the children’s home and surrounding environment that moulded these views? If yes, then I feel that it is a library’s responsibility to be a medium to open up such critical topics for discussion amongst children? This will not only enable critical thinking and sharing of views amongst the children but also go a long way in creating sensitive humans for the society.
I was very fortunate to see two sides of discussion and was glad that i was part of this discussion. Truly,stories really can be used as a medium to open up such a wonderful discussion.
