By Latrishka Thomas
Kindergarten teacher and author Karian Christian has released two new additions to her “Children of the Soil” series, expanding her mission to bring Caribbean-focused educational materials to young learners.
The new releases build upon her original volume, which launched on Amazon in January 2022.
Drawing from her experience as an educator, Christian identified a significant gap in culturally relevant teaching materials.
“Everything that we take up is so Americanised and European centred. I just want us to have something of our own,” she emphasized.
The books are designed to reach beyond local shores, targeting Caribbean communities worldwide.
Volume 2, “Children of the Soil Colouring and Activity Book,” features interactive activities centred around Caribbean culture, while Volume 3, “Children of the Soil Alphabet and Tracing Book,” introduces preschool and kindergarten students to literacy fundamentals through a local lens.
She told Observer that the new additions are continuations from the first volume.
“You would think that with a hundred pages of colouring and activity with themes from Antigua and Barbuda and the wider Caribbean, you would get everything, but it’s impossible to get everything in one book,” Christian explained.
She noted that public feedback has been instrumental in shaping the series’ expansion. “When people see me on the streets and say, ‘oh, you forgot this, you forgot that,’ I said, I didn’t forget. I just couldn’t cram all of it into one book.”
So, she decided to create more books.
The success of her first volume extends beyond sales figures, Christian revealed.
“It’s selling and still selling on Amazon, but in monetary wise and monetary success it’s small in comparison to the way I see people even touch the book when they’re in front of me or their face lights up when they realize a tiny Antiguan flag is on the first volume,” she shared.
“The delight I see on children and adults’ faces when they flip through the book and see something like roast corn, something like sorrow, our carnival, sailing boats… that alone is success to me that it’s doing what it’s supposed to be doing,” she added.
The series, which can be found on Amazon, represents a growing movement to incorporate more Caribbean-centric content into early childhood education, helping young learners connect with their cultural heritage through interactive learning tools.
