Exploring the World Through the USBBY Outstanding International Book List
Each year, the United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY), the national chapter for the 75-member country International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), determines the most outstanding international titles that have been imported, and often translated, for U.S. publication. For the purposes of this honor list, the term "international book" is used to describe a book published or distributed in the United States that originated or was first published in a country other than the U.S. The selections cover all genres, eras, continents, and peoples.
In this unit, students will practice and develop literacy and map skills in order to assess and describe ways in which the text and illustration of setting helps determine and define the arc of a character’s journey or a story. In so doing, students will address the following NCSS Strands:
Time, Continuity, and Change
Knowing how to read, reconstruct and interpret the past allows us to answer questions.
People, Places, and Environments
People, Places, and Environments
The study of people, places, and environments enables us to understand the relationship between human populations and the physical world.
Global Connections
Global Connections
This theme typically appears in units or courses dealing with geography, culture, economics, history, political science, government, and technology but may also draw upon the natural and physical sciences and the humanities, including literature, the arts, and languages.
For a full list of honor books and corresponding maps of where they originated, students can explore the the USBBY OIB Lists page, https://www.usbby.org/outstanding-international-books-list.html.
