A local resident and retired teacher writes children’s books that build self-awareness and self-esteem
By C. Zawadi Morris Email the author March 22, 2012
Article from Bed-Stuy Patch
One could say that Bed-Stuy resident Jwajiku Korantéma is in the business of building self-esteem.
Since her retirement in 2005, Korantéma has published three children’s books—all of them aimed at helping African-American children feel encouraged and loved and proud of their heritage.
Her first book, “I’m African and Proud,” started as a poem Korantéma wrote after she attended an elementary school assembly during Martin Luther King’s birthday.
“This teacher every year would make her students memorize and recite a part of King’s speech,” said Korantéma. “I met a woman at the assembly—a substitute teacher—and she was reciting the speech right along with the children, because she had learned it as well in that same third-grade class.
"And I said, ‘Wow, I want to leave something for young black children that they can remember and pass on.’”
At the time, Korantéma was a kindergarten teacher in Patterson, New Jersey, approaching retirement.
“One thing I noticed was that my young children really hated the word ‘African,’ and especially hated relating it to who they were. Because to them, Africans were naked and uneducated, since those were the only images they saw in the media.
"I wanted black children to know their real history and where they came from… let them know we’re doctors and scientists and thinkers and we didn’t start out as slaves or swinging from trees.”
So she wrote a poem, “I’m African and Proud.” It was an easy poem children could read, recite and remember. Eventually, she turned the poem into a book of the same title.
“I’m African and Proud,” was an instant hit, landing on Amazon.com’s best-seller’s list within a year of its publication. Excited, Korantéma hand delivered the book to her local libraries and placed it in every kindergarten through third grade classroom.
“It was so funny, because I wrote on the back of the book, ‘Retired Teacher,’ and I hadn’t retired yet. My principal, he saw the book and he said, ‘So are you trying to tell me something?’” she said, laughing.
In 2010, Korantéma published a second children’s book, “You Are Special, Beautiful Child,” followed by “Somebody Loves Me,” published in 2011.
“I mean, basically, you know, some of our children have issues, okay?” she said. “I have a 21-year-old son, and my books come out of my experiences with him. When he would fail at something, I would reassure him that his failure didn’t mean he’s no longer important to me or anyone else. I’d tell him, ‘You’re still special, and my love is unconditional, but you’re just going to have to keep trying and work harder.’”
Korantéma is now working on her fourth book, “What Makes Your Heart Sing?”
“It’s telling children to do what makes them happy, not just what will make you money—find out what your passion is, and follow that.
“Basically,” said Korantéma, “I promote self-esteem. Our children don’t hear enough that they’re special and beautiful. I want them to know every day that they’re beautiful and special in every way.”
Article from Bed-Stuy Patch