The Skin I'm In

The Skin I'm In is a book by Sharon Flake. It goes through the life of a girl Maleeka she's an African American student that gets made fun of because of her very dark skin. She's faced with the moral dilemma, she has the opportunity to be friends with Char, the popular girl in school, if Maleeka does Char's homework. Throughout the book we see the issues that can come up in schooling life away from the teachers eyes, and the issues that students are faced with that go beyond the simple grades that they are given such as poverty and harassment. Maleeka describes her teacher Miss Sonders who has a large white birthmark on her face, as "as odd as they come." As the book progresses we see Maleeka begin to respect Miss Sonders and eventually bond with her. Miss Sonders is considered odd by her co-workers. Maleeka by the end of the book realizes the fact that being different isn't so bad after all. This book would be good to teach to show the kids that being different isn't something to be ashamed of and really shows that we should all wear our differences with pride.