TY - JOUR AU - Emmerson, Jean AU - Brenna, Beverley PY - 2015/11/29 Y2 - 2024/03/29 TI - Characters With Exceptionalities Portrayed in Contemporary Canadian Children’s Books JF - Canadian Journal of Education/Revue canadienne de l'éducation JA - CJE/RCÉ VL - 38 IS - 4 SE - Articles DO - UR - https://journals.sfu.ca/cje/index.php/cje-rce/article/view/1974 SP - 1-28 AB - This article examines the ways in which exceptionality is addressed in Canadian children’s literature, offering critical literacy as an avenue toward social justice. A content analysis (Berg, 2009) of 134 Canadian children’s books offers a wide scope of contemporary titles to include in classrooms. We developed conceptual categories to explore patterns and trends through a qualitative interpretive stance (Seidman, 2006). Our findings include the following results:<br />• ethnically diverse characters with exceptionalities,<br />• authentic characters with real-world challenges,<br />• fantasy blended with other genres.<br />As narratives that include exceptionalities become more authentic and abundant, we can become more appreciative of diversity, further affecting inclusive schools and communities. ER -