Surfacing: The Toe Tag Monologues and YA Literature by Dr. Gretchen Rumohr

Gretchen Rumohr is Chief Curator of YA Wednesday.  She serves as a professor of English and Writing Program Administrator at Aquinas College, where she teaches writing and language arts methods.   She is also a Co-Director of the UNLV Summit on the Research and Teaching of Young Adult Literature. She lives with her four girls and a five-pound Yorkshire Terrier in west Michigan.

Surfacing:  The Toe Tag Monologues and YA Literature by Dr. Gretchen Rumohr

Whew!  It has been a busy couple of weeks which has paused some blogwork.  Now, in the midst of exam week I can take a quick breath and reflect on my NCTE/ALAN experience in Anaheim.
I've been fortunate to work with colleagues Steven Bickmore, Shelly Shaffer, and Steffany Maher on a book project that focuses on the Toe Tag Monologues, a greater Las Vegas dramatic troupe founded by R. Byron Stringer. Focusing on diverse youth, the Toe Tag Monologues address youth trauma that often results in deaths of marginalized students. Currently, we are drafting a book about how Stringer's monologues can be used in tandem with Young Adult Literature in secondary classrooms.  The writing has been interesting and seems to evolve the more we know about young people and the challenges they face.

Too many students in our classrooms are marginalized through bullying, neglect, abuse, racism, or other issues that they can't find ways to understand or express. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated many of these problems. In an equitable society, we should attend to the social and emotional needs of young people and empower them to dream instead of simply cope with their trauma. We worry that our students are shouting into the dark–that their needs aren't being heard, understood, amplified, and attended to.  How do we recognize our students’ stories--ALL of their stories--and also make space to meet their needs? These issues are real, and teachers must be empowered to broach these difficult topics.  Too often the topics are censored, even for students who are, in reality, living and experiencing these situations. 

We were fortunate to have R. Byron Stringer serve as our keynote.  He was able to provide more information on the Monologues and moved us toward meaningful discussion.

We had a chance to explain how the Toe Tag Monologues can equip teachers to approach youth trauma.  We also aimed to connect Byron's work with well-known Young Adult authors.  At our roundtables with Matt de la Peña, Padma Venkatraman, Bill Konigsberg, and Ellen Hopkins, we asked authors to describe some of the most impactful responses from readers that they have received; to share words of encouragement for teachers considering using “taboo topics” in their classrooms; and to reflect on how their own books connect to taboo topics.  Those attending the session had the chance to talk about their favorite YA books related to various traumas, their questions about addressing various traumas in the classroom, and questions for the author about using their work or addressing certain traumas.

One observation I continue to make is that most Young Adult authors are eager to meet not only their readers, but the teachers who support their work through book talks, classroom libraries, literature circles, and meaningful whole-class reads.  I walked away from this session feeling empowered to continue these conversations–and am ready to finish writing this book!